There are writers who shape our thoughts, and then there are those who shape our very language – the way we think, the way we express, the way we put into words our understanding of the world around us. Tekie Tesfay belongs to this rare breed. A lexicographer, linguist, translator, and storyteller, he has dedicated his life to documenting, refining, and elevating the Tigrigna language.
His books were some of the first I ever read as a child. As I grew older, I began to understand the immensity of his contribution – not just in the realm of literature but in the foundation of how Tigrigna is used, studied, and preserved. Now, with the simultaneous release of his Tigrigna translation of The Diary of Anne Frank and the highly anticipated first volume of his autobiography, we finally gain insight into the life of the man who has spent decades shaping our collective linguistic heritage.
It is a rare privilege to witness a writer of his stature reflect on his own life. As someone who has long been fascinated by his journey, I find myself even more curious – about the circumstances that propelled him towards language, about the choices that led him to dedicate his life to words, about the books he reads, and the enormous vocabulary at his disposal. And now, as he shares his own story, I find myself tracing my history with his books and with the invisible but undeniable influence they have had on my life. And so this essay is a reflection, not a book review. It is a quiet thankyou to a writer whose work has accompanied me from childhood into adulthood.
There is a particular thrill in owning a book for the first time – the sharp scent of its pages, the crisp design on the cover, the weight of it in your hands, the quiet invitation into a world waiting to be discovered. I was perhaps eight or nine years old when I first encountered Tekie’s work. I remember the slim volume so vividly. It was a children’s book titled Selected Fables. Of all the stories in the book, I favored The Emperor’s New Clothes, and I remember returning to it almost daily.
My parents soon bought me Tekie’s translations of Aesop’s fables, Pinocchio and, when I was a little older, Sans Famille. Those who read Tekie as children will remember that his distinctive illustrations became an integral part of the pleasure of reading him. Pinocchio was soon a beloved favorite of mine, and I read and reread the book with such frequency that my father thought I was struggling to finish it. When he found out I was only reading it for the 30th time, he decided to buy me Sans Famille.
I did not know then that I was holding the work of a literary giant, someone who was building, word by word, a bridge for future generations. I only knew that the language felt alive – not rigid or complex, like the language of grown-ups, but fluid, rich, and inviting. His illustrations danced, and his words had weight. Even as a young reader, I could sense that there was something different about the way he used Tigrigna. It was as if he were giving the language its full breadth, allowing it to stretch and breathe.
To understand the magnitude of Tekie’s work, one must first grasp the Tigrinya language itself, a rich language in history, poetry, and oral tradition. Yet, despite its deep literary roots, its lexicographical development has been slow, and until relatively recently, it lacked the systematic documentation afforded to other world languages.
This is where Tekie has been a pioneer. His dedication to documenting, defining, and standardizing Tigrigna words has been nothing short of revolutionary. His dictionaries and linguistic studies are foundational texts – guiding not only students and scholars but also ensuring that future generations have access to a wellstructured and enriched Tigrigna lexicon.
A dictionary is more than a collection of words; it is a cultural repository, a map of a people’s history, worldview, and intellectual evolution. Tekie understood this better than anyone. His dictionaries, painstakingly compiled, are magnificent reference books. But they are also acts of preservation – safeguards against linguistic erosion.
The work of a lexicographer is one of patience and precision. It is the labor of documenting a language’s very essence, of capturing words before they slip into obscurity. I imagine Tekie at work – late at night, hunched over a desk, the glow of a lamp illuminating handwritten notes and well-worn books. I imagine the meticulous process: weighing meanings, cross-referencing definitions, and delicately balancing tradition and modernity. It is easy to take a language for granted, assuming that words will always be available when we need them. But languages are fragile things. Without careful tending, they fade, their nuances lost, their depth reduced to a simple function. Tekie knew this, and he devoted his life to ensuring that Tigrigna did not suffer such a fate.
Translation is one of the highest forms of literary craftsmanship. To translate is not simply to substitute words from one language into another; it is to capture the soul of a text, to recreate its rhythm, emotion, and meaning while ensuring that it resonates with a new audience.
Tekie’s latest translation, The Diary of Anne Frank, is a testament to his skill and his deep empathy for both the source material and the target language. Translating Anne Frank’s diary is no ordinary feat – it demands historical sensitivity, cultural nuance, and a deep respect for the voice of a young girl whose words transcended time and geography.
By bringing Anne’s voice into Tigrigna, Tekie has created a historical bridge, allowing Eritrean readers to engage with one of the most profound and haunting testimonies of human resilience. In Tigrigna, Anne’s words take on new resonance. Her fears, her hopes, her longing for freedom – these are emotions not unfamiliar to Eritreans, whose history, too, is marked by struggle and resilience.
For all his contributions as a scholar and translator, it is perhaps as a writer that Tekie Tesfay leaves his most personal mark. I have always wondered about his childhood – about the formative years that shaped his passion for language and literature. What books first sparked his curiosity? What teachers or mentors guided him toward his lifelong pursuit of knowledge? What struggles did he face in a world that did not always recognize the value of literary and linguistic scholarship?
These questions are morbid curiosities, yes, but they are also essential to understanding his work. Every writer is, in some way, a reflection of his own experiences. By sharing his life story, Tekie is offering us a window into the intellectual and cultural history of Tigrinya itself.
I am eager to read about the challenges he faced in compiling his dictionaries, the joys and frustrations of translation, the moments of doubt and triumph that shaped his literary career. More than anything, I am eager to see how he sees himself – not as a celebrated scholar, but as a boy who loved words, a man who dedicated his life to them, and a writer who continues to shape the language he loves.
The first volume of his autobiography offers glimpses into his childhood, painting a portrait of a young boy who would grow into one of Tigrinya’s most important literary figures. Reading it, I feel a quiet kinship. The child who once held his books in awe is now an adult – still having them, still in awe – but now with a deeper appreciation of the journey that shaped them.
One of the most remarkable aspects of Tekie is not just his intellect but his gentleness. Despite his towering contributions, he remains unassuming, kind, humble, and deeply generous with his knowledge.
This is something I have witnessed firsthand. Whether in conversation or through the familiar warmth of his writing, there is no sense of intellectual arrogance – only a deep love for language and an earnest desire to share it. Many great scholars build legacies of prestige. Tekie Tesfay has built a reputation for service and humility. His willingness to make knowledge accessible is perhaps his greatest gift.
As I reflect on Tekie’s influence, both on me and on the Tigrigna literary output, I am struck by the sheer breadth and depth of his contributions and by how much of our literary landscape bears his mark. His dictionaries guide our words. His translations expand our horizons; they bring the voices of the world into Tigrinya and take Tigrinya to the world. His work ensures that Tigrinya remains a language of literary and intellectual rigor. His writings remind us that even the most brilliant minds come from ordinary beginnings.
Language is, at its core, an inheritance – something passed down, preserved, enriched. Tekie Tesfay has ensured that our inheritance is a rich one. And for that, we are deeply grateful.