María de la Concepción Jesusa Basilisa Rodríguez-Espina y García-Tagle, short form Concha Espina ([ˈkontʃa esˈpina], 15 April 1869 or 1877 or 1 April 1879 or 15 April 1879 in Santander – 19 May 1955 in Madrid), was a Spanish writer.
She was nominated for a Nobel prize in literature 25 times in 28 years.
Life
María de la Concepción Jesusa Basilisa Rodríguez-Espina y García-Tagle was born in Santander, the seventh of 10 children of Víctor Rodríguez-Espina y Olivares and Ascensión García-Tagle y de la Vega. On 12 January 1893 she married Ramón de la Serna y Cueto, and they moved to Valparaíso, Chile during some years. The marriage had 5 children: Ramón, Víctor, José, Josefina (wife of Regino Sainz de la Maza) and Luis. The couple separated in 1909, and legally in 1934. In 1940 she went blind, but she continued to write. She died at 86, on 19 May 1955 in Madrid.
Her best known novel is called That Luzmela Girl (La niña de Luzmela) and describes life in the Cantabrian village of Mazcuerras, today also known as Luzmela after her. A Madrid metro station of line 9, Concha Espina, is named after her. A major avenue in the same area is called Avenida de Concha Espina.
