The Anglo-Belarusian Society () is one of the oldest

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

-related organisations in the UK with an object of “diffusion, interchange and publication of knowledge relating to the Belarusian people, their land, history and culture”.

History

Originally a part of the

Association of Belarusians in Great Britain The Association of Belarusians in Great Britain ( be, Згуртаваньне беларусаў у Вялікай Брытаніі, ''Zhurtavańnie bielarusaŭ u Vialikaj Brytanii'') is the oldest Belarusian organisation in the United Kingdom un ...

, the Society was established on 16 March 1954 using contacts within British political and academic circles developed by the Belarusian community in the early 1950s. At the height of the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, there was a growing interest in British Belarusians as representatives of one of the

Captive Nations "Captive Nations" is a term that arose in the United States to describe nations under undemocratic regimes. During the Cold War, when the phrase appeared, it referred to nations under Communist administration, primarily Soviet rule. As a part of t ...

. The founders of the Society were Auberon Herbert and Pavel Navara. Auberon Herbert also became the first acting chairman. The first president of the Society was David Ormsby-Gore. A long-serving President of the Society was Frances Ward (Lady Phipps), wife of

Eric Phipps Sir Eric Clare Edmund Phipps (27 October 1875 – 13 August 1945) was a British diplomat. Family Phipps was the son of Sir Constantine Phipps, later British Ambassador to Belgium, and his wife, Maria Jane (née Miller Mundy). Henry Phipps, ...

. Another woman who was actively involved in the Society was Katharine Macmillan, a vice-chairman of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

in 1968. She served first as the organisation's Vice President and then President. The Society, despite its "Anglo-" label, was by no means intended to exclude Scotland, Wales and other parts of the UK. Among the early cultural activities of the Society was the publication of a regular pamphlet on Belarus and the organisation of concerts of Belarusian church chants, folk songs and dances in

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral is the mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It is the largest Catholic church in the UK and the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster. The site on which the cathedral stands in the City of ...

Hall in 1950s. In 1965 the Society began publishing the ''

Journal of Belarusian Studies The ''Journal of Belarusian Studies'' (formerly the ''Journal of Byelorussian Studies'') is an English language academic journal in the field of Belarusian studies. It was described as “one of the longest lasting Belarusian publishing projects i ...

'', with an introduction by Prof. Robert Auty. The Journal was distributed annually to universities, libraries and private subscribers in the UK, the US, the Soviet Union and other countries throughout the world. As well as articles on

Belarusian literature Belarusian literature ( be, Беларуская лiтаратура, Biełaruskaja litaratura) is the writing produced, both prose and poetry, by speakers (not necessarily native speakers) of the Belarusian language. History Pre-17th century ...

, linguistics, history and art, each number of the Journal included book reviews, a chronicle of current events, and a comprehensive bibliography for the preceding year. A booklet “An Introduction to Byelorussia” was also published by the Society in 1965. For many decades, the Society and the Journal have provided a development platform for a number of prominent scholars of

Belarusian studies Belarusian studies ( be, Беларусазнаўства) is a field of research dedicated to Belarusian language, literature and culture. History Emergence of the field Research on the language, ethnography and history of Belarusian lands wa ...

and researches of Belarusian culture, including

Guy Picarda Guy Reginald Pierre Picarda (20 July 1931 – 20 April 2007) was a scholar and promoter of Culture of Belarus, Belarusian culture and Music of Belarus, music, a founder of the Anglo-Belarusian Society and the Journal of Belarusian Studies. Biogr ...

Vera Rich Vera Rich (born Faith Elizabeth Rich, 24 April 1936 – 20 December 2009) was a British poet, journalist, historian, and translator from Belarusian and Ukrainian. Biography Born in London in April 1936, she studied at St Hilda's College of th ...

Arnold McMillin Arnold Barratt McMillin (born 21 June 1941) is a British scholar of Belarusian and Russian studies, Emeritus Professor of Russian Literature, and the author of the first English-language history of Belarusian literature. Life Arnold McMillin ...

Jim Dingley Jim Dingley (born 24 March 1942) is a researcher and promoter of Belarusian culture in the UK as well as a translator of Belarusian literature. Early life Dingley was born in Leeds on 24 March 1942. After studies of Russian and other Slavonic ...

, Bishop Ceslaus Sipovich, Fr Alexander Nadson,

Peter Mayo Peter Mayo (born 2 May 1955) is a professor, speaker, editor, writer, and former head of the Department of Arts, Open Communities and Adult Education at the University of Malta, in Malta. He is responsible for the UNESCO Chair in Global Adult Educ ...

and others.

Present day

The Society remains a leading organisation promoting Belarusian culture and studies in the UK. Its present-day activities include among others: * annual commemoration of the

International Mother Language Day International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21 February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism. First announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999, it was formally r ...

with poetry recitals, etc; * annual celebration of the

Kupala Night Kupala Night ( be, Купалле, pl, Noc Kupały, russian: Иван-Купала, uk, Івана Купала, Купайла), also called Ivanа Kupala, is a traditional Slavic holiday that was originally celebrated on the shortest night of ...

; * annual Batlejka performance over the Christmas period; * ad hoc concerts, recitals, performances and other events. Dr Alan Flowers is the current chair of the Society.

Image gallery

File:Kupala Night London.jpg,

in London, June 2019 File:Batlejka St Cyril Church London.jpg, Batlejka in the St Cyril Church, December 2019 File:Pinsk Gentry Performance.jpg,

Alan Flowers Alan Flowers (born 3 May 1953) is a British scientist studying the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, environmental and human rights activist, promoter of Belarusian culture in the UK and the chair of the Anglo-Belarusian Society. Early years and aca ...

taking part in the performance of

Pinskaja Šliachta ''Pinskaja Šliachta insk Nobility(1866)'' is one of the most famous plays by Vincent Dunin-Marcynkievič (1808–1884), a classic writer of Belarusian literature who stood at the origins of the national literary language and professional dram ...

, July 2017 File:Concert Vaiciuskievic.jpg, Concert of Belarusian singer Źmicier Vajciuškiévič, London, summer 2019

References

External links

Anglo-Belarusian Society web site

Journal of Belarusian Studies
{{Authority control Belarusian diaspora in Europe Belarus–United Kingdom relations 1954 establishments in the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1954 United Kingdom friendship associations

History

Present day

Image gallery

See also

References

External links