Odon Peterka (March 13, 1925 – May 1945) was a Slovene poet.

Life and work

Peterka was born in

Jesenice Jesenice (, german: Aßling''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru'', vol. 6: Kranjsko. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 144.) is a Slovenian town and the seat of the Municipality of Jesenice on the ...

, the son of Alojz Peterka (1883–1962), who had fought with

Rudolf Maister Rudolf Maister (pen name: Vojanov; 29 March 1874 – 26 July 1934) was a Slovene military officer, poet and political activist. The soldiers who fought under Maister's command in northern Slovenia became known as "Maister's fighters" ( sl ...

. Peterka attended elementary school first in

Domžale Domžale (; german: Domschale)''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 24. is a town and the seat of Municipality of Domžale. The town lies ...

and then in

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

, where he later enrolled in the classical secondary school. According to his sister Erna, he started to writing very early in elementary school, but he started producing seriously only later in high school.

Gonars and the Home Guard

Peterka was captured by the Italians at age 17 in a general raid on June 29, 1942, and sent to the

Gonars concentration camp The Gonars concentration camp was one of the several Italian concentration camps and it was established on February 23, 1942, near Gonars, Italy. Many internees were transferred to this camp from the other Italian concentration camp, Rab concen ...

. He remained there until the

Italian armistice The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Brigad ...

. He then wanted to continue his education, but he gave it up in mid-December 1943 and joined the

Slovene Home Guard The Slovene Home Guard ( sl, Slovensko domobranstvo, SD; german: Slowenische Landeswehr) was a Slovene anti- Partisan military organization that was active during the 1943–1945 German occupation of the formerly Italian-occupied Province of Lju ...

together with his friends. At the end of the war, in May 1945, he retreated with other Home Guard members to Carinthia, from where he was returned from the camp at Viktring by the British and handed over to Yugoslavia.

Death and legacy

Peterka was murdered in 1945, barely 20 years old, in the Kočevje Rog massacres, and his body was thrown into one of the caves there. In his poem "Moj grob" (My Grave), the poet wrote about the premonition of approaching death, and a line from this poem, ''Nikdar ne boste našli moje jame'' 'You will never find my grave', also foreshadowed his fate. Peterka, like the poet

France Balantič France Balantič (29 November 1921 – 24 November 1943) was a Slovenian language, Slovene poet. His works were banned from schools and libraries during the Titoist regime in Slovenia, but since the late 1980s he has been re-evaluated as one of th ...

, was suppressed under the postwar communist authorities, although his lyrics had exceptional artistic value. He is known for his more traditional forms (sonnets and quatrains), which contain carefully selected and lyrical language. In

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, emigrants with the help of Uroš Žitnik, who sent the poems to Argentina, printed seven of Peterko's poems in 1977: "Adventum" (Advent), "Pomlad" (Spring), "Tihožitje" (Still Life), "Obeti" (Promises), "Smrti" (Deaths), "Moj grob" (My Grave), and "Vzdih" (Breath).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peterka, Odon 1925 births 1945 deaths Prisoners who died in Yugoslav detention Ethnic Slovene people Slovenian poets