Peter Hargitai, a Hungarian-born American poet, novelist and translator of Hungarian literature, died on January 28, 2026, at the age of 79.
Born in Budapest, Hungary, on January 28, 1947, he wrote his first poem, “Rebels,” at age 9 as a tribute to the failed 1956 Hungarian Revolution. He later moved to the United States with his father, mother and two brothers.
During university studies in Cleveland between 1965 and 1975, he began publishing poems in his adopted language. He married Dianne Kress at age 20, and they had two children.
Peter Joseph Hargitai (January 28, 1947 – January 28, 2026) was a Hungarian-born American poet, novelist and translator of Hungarian literature.