Cynthia Mc Leod
Encyclopedia
Suriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
se novelist
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
.
Background
McLeod was born in Paramaribo as Cynthia Ferrier; she is the daughter of Johan FerrierJohan Ferrier
Johan Henri Eliza Ferrier was a Surinamese politician who served as the 1st President of Suriname from November 25, 1975, until August 13, 1980. He was that country's last governor before independence, from 1968 to 1975, and first president after it gained independence from the Netherlands...
, the first President of Suriname.
She completed her secondary school education in Suriname and continued her education in the Netherlands, where she studied to become a teacher in Child Care and Education. She married Dr. Donald McLeod whom she met in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. In 1962 they went to Suriname, where McLeod studied for a teaching degree in Dutch Language
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
and Dutch Literature
Dutch literature
Dutch literature comprises all writings of literary merit written through the ages in the Dutch language, a language which currently has around 23 million native speakers...
. From 1969 to 1978 she taught Dutch Language and Literature in pre-university education in Paramaribo. Her husband, Donald McLeod, was appointed in 1978 as Suriname’s Ambassador to Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
. Then he became Suriname’s Ambassador to Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and the United States of America. Abroad McLeod started writing and especially during her stay in Belgium she had the opportunity to do research in the archives of The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
, Emmerich
Emmerich
Emmerich am Rhein; , meaning Emmerich at the Rhine is a city on the lower part of the River Rhine in the northwest of the German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia...
, and Köln
KOLN
KOLN, digital channel 10, is the CBS affiliate in Lincoln, Nebraska. It operates a satellite station, KGIN, on digital channel 11 in Grand Island. KGIN repeats all KOLN programming, but airs separate commercials...
.
In 1986 the McLeods returned to Suriname and in 1987 her debut novel Hoe duur was de suiker? (How expensive was the sugar?) was published by publisher Vaco in Paramaribo. The first print was sold out within a few weeks and Cynthia McLeod became the most famous Surinamese novelist overnight. Later this historical novel about the sugar cane industry in the 18th century was published under license by her Dutch publisher Conserve
Conserve (publisher)
Conserve is a Dutch publishing organization that was founded in 1983 in Schoorl by Kees de Bakker. The company is specialised in publishing historical novels. Cynthia Mc Leod is one of the authors published by Conserve....
. Soon other historical novels from her hand appeared, such as Hitchin wegwijzer vervolging.
Elisabeth Samson
McLeod studied the life of Elisabeth Samson for over five years. Samson was a free Negress whose name occurs prominently in historical works on Suriname because she wanted to marry a white man (which was forbidden in the colony Suriname during the first half of the 18th century). The results of this research were first published as a study by the Faculty of Cultural Anthropology of the University of Utrecht. For eight years subsequently Mc Leod studied the social structure and life of that period, which allowed her to position Elisabeth as a rich free black person in this society dominated by prejudices and white supremacy. She then wrote the highly captivating novel: The Free Negress Elisabeth, Prisoner of Color.Other activities
As a result of her long research Mc Leod has gained a wealth of knowledge about Surinamese history; knowledge she gladly shares with others. For the Surinamese school youth she organizes free educational trips with her motorized vessel, the Sweet Merodia. During these tours over the Surinamese Rivers, past former plantations, she captivates her audience with stories about its interesting past. She further engages in historic city tours through the centre of historic Paramaribo, which has been a UNESCOUNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
world heritage site since 2002.