Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
Heaney was the eldest of nine kids. (Source.)
Heaney died after a short illness in Dublin, Ireland. Total bummer. (Source.)
At Heaney's alma mater, Queens University, there is now The Seamus Heaney Centre for Poetry, with some of the top names in Irish poetry as part of its staff (see: Ciaran Carson, Edna Longley, and Medbh McGuckian). That's a serious legacy. (Source.)
Though Heaney's poetry is deeply rooted in his Irish heritage, he spent many years living in both Ireland and the U.S. (while teaching at Berkeley or Harvard). (Source.)
Seamus Heaney's work is often compared to one of the world's most famous poets, fellow Irishman W.B Yeats. Not too shabby. (Source.)