Guyana has been the birth place of some of the Caribbean’s most critically acclaimed writers. But
not many can claim to have the unquestionable respect and adoration of international writing bodies like David Dabydeen. The uncanny mastery of the literary arts by this Indo-Guyanese for the last
40 years has cemented his place among the world’s literary icons. Today, this distinguished
gentleman is an accomplished critic, novelist and intellect whose skills remain unmatched. Dabydeen was born to Veronica Dabydeen and David Harilal Sookram on December 9, 1955. He grew up with his mother and her parents in Plantation Zealand. At a young age, his parents divorced and his father, an Attorney-at-Law, had migrated to England, leaving his mother and five siblings behind. At the age of seven, David and his siblings moved to New Amsterdam with his mother, where he completed his primary education. He attended the Vryman’s Erven Government School where his path to academia was first molded. He was very successful at the Common Entrance Examination, and although resources were scarce, he secured a place at Queen’s College.
At the secondary level, the young writer thrived with assistance from eminent teachers and inspirational students like Eric Phillips, who is currently affiliated with the African Cultural
Development Association (ACDA). At the age of 13, he migrated to London to live with his father and
entered a totally different school life. This new life was quite mesmerizing to him as a writer. He enrolled in one of England’s outstanding schools, and was lucky to again be entrusted in the care of a terrific English teacher who pushed him towards one of the best universities in the world. But
with his drive for academic success, he still felt like a second class citizen because he belonged to an ethnic minority. He was not discouraged. He made best of England’s resources, especially the colossal number of books available and the scholarships that were at his disposal. Dabydeen read for English
literature at Cambridge University in 1974, and in 1982, commenced a doctorate at the University College of London. He was then awarded a research fellowship at Wolfson College, Oxford. In
1984, he landed a job as an academic at the University of Warwick and taught there for 26 years. He was appointed Director of the Centre for Caribbean Studies and Professor at the Centre for
British Comparative Cultural Studies at the University some 13 years ago. Since then, David has published and edited hundreds of books. His achievements over the years enabled him to be recognized and nominated as a member of UNESCO’s Executive Board where he functions in the post
of Honorary Ambassador to Guyana. Dabydeen also renders his intellectual self to the promotion of literary work in Guyana. He has been doing this since 1992. In his own words, the critic
notes, “I was asked by the then President, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, if I could help promote scholarship
and publications in Guyana. So ever since then, this is what I have been doing whenever I come to Guyana. I sometimes take some writings back (to England) with me and go to the various publishing houses and ask them to see if the materials could be published.”