Tributes were paid yesterday to the poet Michael Davitt who died on Sunday at the age of 55.
Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism John O'Donoghue said he had been described as "the Bob Dylan of the Irish language".
"He was central to the transformation of the Irish language into a form which allowed true expression of contemporary Ireland. The Blaskets and the Kerry Gaeltacht opened Michael's imagination and were always at the heart of his writings. The Irish language has lost a true champion and hero," Mr O'Donoghue said.
Mary Cloake, Director of the Arts Council, said: "Michael Davitt will be remembered for his own extraordinary body of work and its unique, precise and contemporary style... Michael Davitt changed the direction of modern Irish poetry and of literature as a whole by his involvement in the Innti movement - the impact of which is still felt today."
Foras na Gaeilge chief executive Seosamh Mac Donncha said: "Michael made a huge contribution to the development of modern Irish poetry... His legacy will endure."
Writer Alan Titley said that Davitt was "the driving force behind modern Irish-language poetry. He drew poets from all around Ireland like a magnet. He believed in the creativity of the Irish language and encouraged others to believe in it."
Davitt was born and educated in Cork and gained a degree in Celtic studies from University College Cork. He was one of the founders of the poetry magazine Innti, in 1970. The journal became a major catalyst in the modernisation and internationalisation of Irish- language poetry.
Davitt, Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill, Liam Ó Muirthile and Gabriel Rosenstock were some of the voices to emerge from Innti.
Davitt remained one of the most vibrant and distinctive voices through 30 years of writing and six collections of original poetry. His work enjoyed critical and popular acclaim and was recognised with many literary prizes, including the Butler Award from the Irish-American Cultural Institute and membership of Aosdána.
Davitt spent his life promoting the arts in Irish while working for Gael Linn in the 1970s and RTÉ in the 1980s.
A spokesman for Gael Linn said: "His work was proof positive that not only was the Irish language entirely compatible with emergent trends but that the language and its culture could be enriched by the association."
A regular visitor to the Corca Dhuibhne Gaeltacht, Davitt mingled with former Blasket Islanders and mastered Munster Irish to an astonishing degree. He retired from RTÉ early and pursued his poetry full-time, dividing his time between Ireland and France.