Judith Ortiz Cofer

Quick Facts

Full Name	Judith Ortiz Cofer
Occupation	Essayist
Date Of Birth	Feb 24, 1952(1952-02-24)
Age	72
Date Of Death	December 30, 2016, Louisville, GA
Birthplace	Hormigueros
Country	Puerto Rico
Horoscope	Aquarius

Judith Ortiz Cofer Biography

Judith Ortiz Cofer is one of the most popular and richest Essayist who was born on February 24, 1952 in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico. An Puerto Rican short story writer as well as an essayist, novelist for young adults, writer, and poet. famous for works of original non-fiction such as her memoir from 1990, The Partial Remembrance of the Puerto Rican Childhood. Other notable works include The Line of the Sun and The Latin Deli.

The story she wrote, The Latin Deli, was awarded the 1994 O. Henry Prize. Cofer is the very first Hispanic author to be awarded this award.

Judith Ortiz Cofer (February 24, 1952 – December 30, 2016) was a Puerto Rican American author. Her critically acclaimed and award-winning work spans a range of literary genres including poetry, short stories, autobiography, essays, and young-adult fiction. Ortiz Cofer was the Emeritus Regents’ and Franklin Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Georgia, where she taught undergraduate and graduate creative writing workshops for 26 years. In 2010, Ortiz Cofer was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame, and in 2013, she won the University’s 2014 Southeastern Conference Faculty Achievement Award.

Ortiz Cofer received a B.A. in English from Augusta College, and later an M.A. in English literature from Florida Atlantic University. Early in her writing career, Ortiz Cofer won fellowships from Oxford University and the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, which enabled her to begin developing her multi-genre body of work. Cofer was fluent in English and Spanish and worked as a bilingual teacher in the public schools of Palm Beach County, Florida, during the 1974-1975 school year. After she received her master’s degree and published her first collection of poems she became a lecturer in English at the University of Miami at Coral Gables. In 1984, Ortiz Cofer joined the faculty of the University of Georgia as the Franklin Professor of English and Creative Writing. After 26 years of teaching undergraduate and graduate students, Ortiz Cofer retired from the University of Georgia in December 2013. Ortiz Cofer is best known for creative nonfiction works but she has worked in poetry, short fiction, children’s books, and personal narrative. Cofer began her writing career with poetry, which she believed contained “the essence of language.” One of her earliest books was Peregrina (1986) which won the Riverstone International Chapbook Competition. She has received various awards such as grants from the Witter Bynner Foundation and the Georgia Council for the Arts, as well as fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts for poetry, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and the Florida Fine Arts Council. In 2010 Ortiz Cofer was admitted to the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.

The style she wrote in was influenced by oral narrative , and was in large part in the style of the storytelling skills of her Puerto Rican grandmother’s superb storytelling capability.

Judith Ortiz Cofer Net Worth

Judith Ortiz Cofer is one of the richest Essayist from Puerto Rico. According to our analysis, Wikipedia, Forbes & Business Insider, Judith Ortiz Cofer 's net worth $5 Million. (Last Update: December 11, 2023)

She often traveled from Puerto Rico and New Jersey before making the move from New Jersey to Atlanta, Georgia during her high school time. She later was able to graduate from Augusta College with a Bachelor’s degree in English.

She earned her master’s degree with a major in English in the University of Florida. Florida Atlantic University.

Judith Ortíz Cofer was born to Jesus Lugo Ortíz and Fanny Morot in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico, on February 24, 1952. She moved to Paterson, New Jersey with her family in 1956. Morot gave birth to Judith Ortíz Cofer when she was fifteen years old. They believed they would have more opportunities for young parents in America. Despite Lugo’s passion for academia, he left school and joined the U.S. Navy. He was stationed in Panama when his daughter was born. He met Judith Ortiz Cofer for the first time two years later. It is evident that her family’s move from Puerto Rico to New Jersey influenced her writing. Call Me Maria is a young adult novel that was published in 2004. It focuses on a teenage girl’s transition from Puerto Rico to New York City. They often made back-and-forth trips between Paterson and Hormigueros. Ortíz Cofer reflects on these trips in her memoir, Silent Dancing: A Partial Remembrance of a Puerto Rican Childhood, stating they were disruptive to both her education and her social life. While she was primarily educated in Paterson, New Jersey, she attended local schools in Puerto Rico while she was there. While in Puerto Rico, Ortíz Cofer would stay in the home of her grandmother. Her transition between Puerto Rico and New Jersey greatly influenced her writing because she was able to contrast the two cultures. In 1967, when Ortíz Cofer was fifteen, her family moved to Augusta, Georgia, where she lived until her death in 2016. There, she attended Butler High School. Judith and her brother, Ronaldo, initially resisted the family’s move South. Upon arriving in Georgia, however, Ortíz Cofer was struck by Augusta’s vibrant colors and vegetation compared with the gray concrete and skies of city-life in Paterson.

Height, Weight & Body Measurements

Judith Ortiz Cofer height Not available right now. Judith weight Not Known & body measurements will update soon.

Who is Judith Ortiz Cofer Dating?

According to our records, Judith Ortiz Cofer married to Charles John Cofer. As of December 1, 2023, Judith Ortiz Cofer’s is not dating anyone.

Relationships Record : We have no records of past relationships for Judith Ortiz Cofer. You may help us to build the dating records for Judith Ortiz Cofer!

Facts & Trivia

Judith Ranked on the list of most popular Essayist. Also ranked in the elit list of famous people born in Puerto Rico. Judith Ortiz Cofer celebrates birthday on February 24 of every year.

Why is Judith Ortiz Cofer famous?

Although Ortiz Cofer is best known for her works of creative nonfiction , she began her writing career with poetry, which she felt “contains the essence of language.” Her early chapbook Peregrina (1986) won the Riverstone International Chapbook Competition, and she published various other collections of poetry, …

How did Judith Ortiz learn to speak English?

Growing up, Ortiz Cofer’s home language was Spanish. In school , she encountered English, which became her functional language and the language she wrote in.

What are Judith Ortiz Cofer books about?

Her stories about coming-of-age experiences in Puerto Rican communities outside of New York City and her poems and essays about cultural conflicts of immigrants to the U.S. mainland made Ortiz Cofer a leading literary interpreter of the U.S.–Puerto Rican experience.

What is the message of American History by Judith Ortiz Cofer?

Ortiz Cofer’s story explores the theme of tragedy, both personal and collective, as well as tragedy’s ability to simultaneously bring people together and push them apart.

How does Judith Ortiz feel about her heritage?

Ortiz Cofer’s mother tried hard to maintain her island heritage ; she always viewed herself as being in temporary isolation when she found herself on the mainland. She held fast to the traditions and family values she knew well.