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Aleksandras Fromas-Gužutis
Aleksandras Fromas known by his pen name Gužutis (1822–1900) was a Lithuanian writer, one of the first authors of Lithuanian plays and dramas. Born to a family of an office worker, Fromas received some education at the Kražiai College. He worked in various government offices until he purchased a farm in 1853 where he lived and worked until his death. Encouraged by his neighbor Mečislovas Davainis-Silvestraitis, Fromas began publishing his texts in the Lithuanian press in 1884. While he wrote three novels, some short stories, and poems, he is mostly known as the author of the first Lithuanian plays. Thirteen plays are known; four of them were published during his lifetime. Most of the plays deal with heroic and romanticized episodes from the old Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Other plays transformed traditional Lithuanian myths, including Eglė the Queen of Serpents and Jūratė and Kastytis, into literary dramas and dealt with realities of the 19th-century Lithuania, including the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raseiniai
Raseiniai (; Samogitian: ''Raseinē'') is a city in Lithuania. It is located on the south eastern foothills of the Samogitians highland, some north from the Kaunas–Klaipėda highway. History Grand Duchy of Lithuania Raseiniai is one of the oldest communities in Lithuania – the name of the settlement was mentioned for the first time in 1253. Its name was mentioned in Chronicles of the 13th and 14th centuries under various names, including ''Rushigen'', ''Rossyen'', and ''Rasseyne''. In 1253 Grand Duke Mindaugas ceded one part of the Samogitia territory, including some of the district around Raseiniai, to the Livonian Order, and the rest to the first bishop of Lithuania, Kristyan. In the 14th–18th centuries, Raseiniai was one of the most important towns in the Samogitia region. At the end of the 14th century the city became important centre, and its representative participated with others from the region in signing the peace treaty of Königsberg in 1390. At the end of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martynas Jankus
Martynas Jankus or Martin Jankus (7 August 1858 in Bittehnen (Lit.: Bitėnai), near Ragnit – 23 May 1946 in Flensburg, Germany, reburied in Bitėnai cemetery on 30 May 1993) was a Prussian-Lithuanian printer, social activist and publisher in East Prussia, called the Patriarch of Lithuania Minor. He was one of the publishers of ''Aušra'', the first Lithuanian-language newspaper for both Lithuania Minor and Lithuania Major. Jankus used various pen names, including V. Giedris, Martyneitis, Bitėnų Merčius, and Gyvoleitis. Biography After graduating from a primary school in Bitėnai, Jankus continued self-education. From the last decade of the 19th century he was an important figure in the pro-Lithuanian movement, and was close to the Lithuanian National Revival movement in Lithuania. He was one of the founders of several cultural organizations, including the Birutė Society, founded in 1885 in Tilsit. From 1889 to 1892 Jankus was its chairman. In 1890, together with Dovas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christianization Of Lithuania
The Christianization of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos krikštas) occurred in 1387, initiated by King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Władysław II Jagiełło and his cousin Vytautas the Great. It signified the official adoption of Christianity by Lithuania, the last pagan country in Europe. This event ended one of the most complicated and lengthiest processes of Christianization in European history. History Early contacts with Eastern Orthodox Christianity Lithuanians' contacts with the Christian religion predated the establishment of the Duchy of Lithuania in the 13th century. The first known record of the name Lithuania (''Litua''), recorded in the Annals of Quedlinburg in 1009, relates to Chalcedonian missionaries led by Bruno of Querfurt, who baptised several rulers of the Yotvingians, a nearby Baltic tribe. However, Lithuanians had more active contacts with the Kievan Rus' and subsequent Eastern Slavic states, which had adopted Eastern Orthodox Christianity follo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lithuanian Mythology
Lithuanian mythology ( lt, Lietuvių mitologija) is the mythology of Lithuanian polytheism, the religion of pre-Christian Lithuanians. Like other Indo-Europeans, ancient Lithuanians maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure. In pre-Christian Lithuania, mythology was a part of polytheistic religion; after Christianisation mythology survived mostly in folklore, customs and festive rituals. Lithuanian mythology is very close to the mythology of other Baltic nations – Prussians, Latvians, and is considered a part of Baltic mythology. Sources and evidence Early Lithuanian religion and customs were based on oral tradition. Therefore, the very first records about Lithuanian mythology and beliefs were made by travellers, Christian missionaries, chronicle writers and historians. Original Lithuanian oral tradition partially survived in national ritual and festive songs and legends which started to be written down in the 18th century. The first bits about Baltic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iron Wolf (character)
The Iron Wolf ( lt, Geležinis Vilkas) is a mythical character from a medieval legend of the founding of Vilnius, the capital city of the old Grand Duchy of Lithuania and modern Republic of Lithuania. First found in the Lithuanian Chronicles, the legend shares certain similarities with the Capitoline Wolf and possibly reflected Lithuanian desire to showcase their legendary origins from the Roman Empire (see the Palemonids). The legend became popular during the era of Romantic nationalism. Today Iron Wolf is one of the symbols of Vilnius and is used by sports teams, Lithuanian military, scouting organizations, and others. Legend According to the legend, Grand Duke Gediminas (ca. 1275 – 1341) was hunting in the sacred forest near the Valley of Šventaragis, near where Vilnia River flows into the Neris River. Tired after the successful hunt of an aurochs, the Grand Duke settled in for the night. He fell soundly asleep and dreamed of a huge Iron Wolf standing on top a hill and how ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gediminas
Gediminas ( la, Gedeminne, ; – December 1341) was the king or Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 or 1316 until his death. He is credited with founding this political entity and expanding its territory which later spanned the area ranging from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. Also seen as one of the most significant individuals in early Lithuanian history, he was responsible for both building Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, and establishing a dynasty that later came to rule other European countries such as Poland, Hungary and Bohemia. As part of his legacy, he gained a reputation for being a champion of paganism, who successfully diverted attempts to Christianize his country by skillful negotiations with the Pope and other Christian rulers. Biography Origin Gediminas was born in about 1275. Because written sources of the era are scarce, Gediminas' ancestry, early life, and assumption of the title of Grand Duke in ca. 1316 are obscure and continue to be the subject of sc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Kaunas
The siege of Kaunas was laid by the Teutonic Order on the newly built Kaunas Castle in spring 1362. It was the first brick castle built by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After a month-long siege, the castle was captured and destroyed. Its commander Vaidotas, son of Kęstutis, and 36 others were taken captive. The defeat, followed by the destruction of Veliuona and Pieštvė the following year, severely weakened Lithuanian defenses along the Neman River and opened central Lithuania to Teutonic attacks. Background The Teutonic Order waged a decades-long crusade against the pagan Grand Duchy of Lithuania in attempts to conquer it and convert it to Christianity. The Neman River became the natural frontier and each side built a network of castles and fortresses along its banks. Lithuanian fortresses were wooden ( Kolainiai, Veliuona, Pieštvė, Paštuva, Bisenė) until they began building stone and red brick Kaunas Castle near the confluence of the Neman and Neris Rivers. Si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Varpas
''Varpas'' (literally: ''The Bell'') was a monthly Lithuanian-language newspaper published during the Lithuanian press ban from January 1889 to December 1905. Because its publication was illegal in Lithuania, then part of the Russian Empire, it was printed in Tilsit (current Sovetsk) and Ragnit (current Neman) in German East Prussia and smuggled into Lithuania by the knygnešiai (book smugglers). ''Varpas'', with circulation of about 500 to 1,000 copies, played a pivotal role in the Lithuanian National Revival. ''Tautiška giesmė'', one of poems by founder and editor Vincas Kudirka written to commemorate the 10th anniversary of ''Varpas'', became the Lithuanian national anthem.Classic Lithuanian Literature Anthology Editorial staff of ''Varpas'' later started two more specialized publications: more practical '' Ūkininkas'' (''The Farmer'', 1890–1905) for less educated peasants and apolitical '' Naujienos'' (''News'', 1901–1903) for general public. History After the first na ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vincas Kudirka
Vincas Kudirka (; – ) was a Lithuanian poet and physician, and the author of both the music and lyrics of the Lithuanian national anthem, "". He is regarded in Lithuania as a national hero. Kudirka used the pen names V. Kapsas, Paežerių Vincas, Vincas Kapsas, P.Vincas, Varpas, Q.D, K., V.K, Perkūnas. Kudirka was born in Paežeriai, in the Augustów Governorate of Congress Poland (present-day Lithuania). He began studying history and philosophy in Warsaw in 1881, but changed his major to medicine the following year. During his studies, he was a member of the revolutionary organization Great Proletariat, for which he was arrested and expelled from the university in 1885. He was reinstated as a student in 1887. He graduated in 1889, and worked as a country doctor in Šakiai and Naumiestis. During his school years Kudirka was writing poetry in Polish. In 1888 he began writing poetry in Lithuanian. As a middle school student, he considered himself a Pole, but under ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ūkininkas
''Ūkininkas'' or ''Ukinįkas'' (literally: ''The Farmer'') was a monthly Lithuanian-language newspaper published during the Lithuanian press ban by the editorial staff of ''Varpas'' from 1890 to 1905. ''Ūkininkas'' was printed in Tilsit (current Sovetsk) and Ragnit (current Neman) in German East Prussia and smuggled into Lithuania by the knygnešiai. The two newspapers shared staff and similar ideology, but ''Ūkininkas'' was geared towards less educated peasants and had larger circulation of 1,000–2,000 copies. It contained few political or cultural discourses and concentrated on practical advice regarding farming, husbandry, and forestry. It also published short news from various locations across Lithuania, helping to develop the idea of Lithuania as a single entity. Various writers, including Jonas Biliūnas, Vincas Kudirka, Gabrielė Petkevičaitė-Bitė, Sofija Pšibiliauskienė, contributed their fiction. After publication of ''Ūkininkas'' was discontinued, it was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lietuviškasis Balsas
''Lietuviškasis balsas'' (original spelling: ''Lietuwiszkasis Bałsas''; literally: The Lithuanian Voice) was a Lithuanian-language newspaper published by Jonas Šliūpas from July 1885 to February 1889 in New York City and Shenandoah, Pennsylvania. It promoted the Lithuanian National Revival. Due to financial difficulties, it appeared irregularly. It competed with pro-Polish and pro-Catholic '' Vienybė lietuvninkų'' and was discontinued after 96 issues in early 1889. The competition and ideological debate between the two newspapers identified the two main branches of the Lithuanian movement – rationalist nationalists and conservative Catholics. Establishment Šliūpas arrived to United States in June 1884. Together with , who owned a small printing shop and was the publisher of the first Lithuanian American newspaper ', they established the Lithuanian-language weekly newspaper ''Unija'' (Union). Šliūpas' anti-Polish rhetoric elicited protests from local Polish groups and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aušra
''Aušra'' or ''Auszra'' (literally: ''dawn'') was the first national Lithuanian newspaper. The first issue was published in 1883, in Ragnit, East Prussia, Germany (newspaper credited it as lt, Ragainė) East Prussia's ethnolinguistic part - Lithuania Minor. Later it was published monthly in Tilsit (present-day Sovetsk). Even though only forty issues were published and the circulation did not exceed 1,000, it was a significant event as it marked the beginnings of the Lithuanian national rebirth that eventually resulted in an independent Lithuanian State (1918–1940). This period, between 1883 and 1904, when the Lithuanian press ban was enforced by Tsarist authorities, has been referred to as the ''Aušros gadynė'' (the Dawn Period). Due to financial difficulties the printing was discontinued in 1886. History After the Russian authorities denied permission to publish a Lithuanian newspaper in Vilnius, Jonas Šliūpas proposed to publish it in East Prussia, Germany. Howeve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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