Jan (Janka) Stankievič (also called Ian Stankevich, be, Ян Станкевіч, pl, Jan Stankiewicz; 26 November 1891 – 16 August 1976) was a Belarusian politician, Nazi collaborator,
linguist
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...
, historian and philosopher.
Biography
Jan Stankievič was born in the village Arlianiaty near
Ashmyany
Ashmyany ( be, Ашмя́ны; Łacinka: ''Ašmiany''; russian: Ошмя́ны; lt, Ašmena; pl, Oszmiana; yi, אָשמענע, ''Oshmene'') is a town in Grodno Region, Belarus, located at 50 km from Vilnius. The town is Ashmyany District' ...
. During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Stankievič served in the army of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
. Starting in 1917–1918, he began to actively participate in activities of Belarusian national organizations.
Jan Stankievič graduated from the Vilnia Belarusian Gymnasium in 1921 and the
Charles University in Prague
)
, image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg
, image_size = 200px
, established =
, type = Public, Ancient
, budget = 8.9 billion CZK
, rector = Milena Králíčková
, faculty = 4,057
, administrative_staff = 4,026
, students = 51,438
, undergr ...
in 1926, and became Doctor of Slavonic philology and history. Between 1928 and 1932 he worked as a
Belarusian language
Belarusian ( be, беларуская мова, biełaruskaja mova, link=no, ) is an East Slavic language. It is the native language of many Belarusians and one of the two official state languages in Belarus. Additionally, it is spoken in some p ...
professor at the
University of Warsaw
The University of Warsaw ( pl, Uniwersytet Warszawski, la, Universitas Varsoviensis) is a public university in Warsaw, Poland. Established in 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country offering 37 different fields o ...
, and from 1927 to 1940 at the
University of Vilnius
Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...
.
Between 1928 and 1930, Stankievič was member of the Polish
Sejm
The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland.
The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...
. As a politician, Stankievič advocated closer ties of Belarus and
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
, for what he has been often criticized by other
West Belarus
Western Belorussia or Western Belarus ( be, Заходняя Беларусь, translit=Zachodniaja Bielaruś; pl, Zachodnia Białoruś; russian: Западная Белоруссия, translit=Zapadnaya Belorussiya) is a historical region of mod ...
ian politicians. He also actively proposed the name of ''Great Lithuania'' for Belarus considering Litvin traditions of Belarusian statehood.
In 1940, Stankievič went to
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
and joined the Nazi collaborationist pro-German Belarusian Committee. He also created a pro-Polish Belarusian group called the Belarusian Nationalist Party.
In fall 1941, Stankievič moved to the Nazi-occupied
Minsk
Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...
, where he worked at the science department of the pro-Nazi puppet administrative body, the
Belarusian Central Rada
The Belarusian Central Council ( be, Беларуская цэнтральная рада, in lacinka: Biełaruskaja centralnaja rada; german: Weißruthenischer Zentralrat) was a puppet administrative body in German-occupied Belarus during World ...
. He was member of the Belarusian Self-Help and was among founders of a Belarusian Scientific Society.
In 1944, Jan Stankievič emigrated to Germany with the retreating German military.
In 1949, he moved to the United States where he continued his work. Jan Stankievič was an active member of the Belarusian diaspora.
Stankievič is buried at the Saint Euphrosynia Belarus Orthodox Church Cemetery in
South River, New Jersey
South River is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 16,008,Adam, was a notable Belarusian
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
* [http://www.jivebelarus.net/history/gistografia/tales-and-stories-of-belarusian-chronicles.html «Повесьці й апавяданьні беларускіх (крывіцкіх) летапісцаў»]
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