Marya Fiamengo was born in 1926 in Vancouver, BC, the child of immigrants from the Croatian island of Vis. Complementing her Slavic roots is Fiamengo’s love for the English language. She earned a Master’s degree in English and Creative Writing from University of British Columbia under the direction of Earle Birney and Dorothy Livesay. She then taught in the English Department at UBC from 1962 to 1993, publishing seven volumes of poetry as well as numerous critical reviews and essays. Since the early 1970s, she has been a passionate advocate of Canadian cultural and national autonomy. She now lives in Gibsons, BC.