‘A privilege to have known her’

Thursday 12th August 2010, 2:29PM BST.

Paul Domaille, of the Floral St Peter’s Group, in the Marie de Garis Community Garden yesterday with flowers that were laid by her family. (Picture by Tom Tardif, 1009392)

TRIBUTES were paid yesterday to ‘the grand lady of the Guernsey French language’ who died on Tuesday.

Authoress and historian Marie de Garis, who was 100 in June, will be best remembered for her Guernsey French dictionary, first published in 1967 and revised in 1983.

David Robilliard, who has performed and adjudicated at the Guernsey French section of the Eisteddfod, said he had known Mrs de Garis for most of his life.

‘I first knew her when I was about nine or 10 and she was such an encouragement in terms of the language and it was clearly her passion then,’ he said. ‘The effect of her work had influence way beyond the confines of our island.’