Pažaislis is a neighborhood ("territory") of Kaunas, Lithuania, within its
Petrašiūnai eldership
Petrašiūnai is a neighborhood in the eastern part of the Lithuanian city of Kaunas. Part of larger Petrašiūnai elderate which also consists with Amaliai, Palemonas and Naujasodis neighorhoods. In 2006 it occupied about 28.46 km², with ...
. It includes the
Pažaislis Monastery
Pažaislis is a neighborhood ("territory") of Kaunas, Lithuania, within its Petrašiūnai eldership. It includes the Pažaislis Monastery.
History
The name Pažaislis is Lithuanization of Polish name , literally meaning "by Zajście", i.e. lo ...
.
History
The name Pažaislis is
Lithuanization
Lithuanization (or Lithuanianization) is a process of cultural assimilation, where Lithuanian culture or its language is voluntarily or forcibly adopted.
History
The Lithuanian annexation of Ruthenian lands between the 13th and 15th centuries wa ...
of Polish name , literally meaning "by Zajście", i.e. located at the mouth of the Zajście stream, a tributary of
Neman
The Neman, Nioman, Nemunas or MemelTo bankside nations of the present: Lithuanian: be, Нёман, , ; russian: Неман, ''Neman''; past: ger, Memel (where touching Prussia only, otherwise Nieman); lv, Nemuna; et, Neemen; pl, Niemen; ...
.''
Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland
The Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and other Slavic Countries ( pl, Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich) is a monumental Polish gazetteer, published 1880–1902 in Warsaw
Warsaw ( p ...
'', vol. VII p. 960 /ref>
Originally, there were two so named places in the same area. One of them was a
folwark
''Folwark''; german: Vorwerk; uk, Фільварок; ''Filwarok''; be, Фальварак; ''Falwarak''; lt, Palivarkas is a Polish word for a primarily serfdom-based farm and agricultural enterprise (a type of ''latifundium''), often very ...
owned by
Krzysztof Zygmunt Pac
Krzysztof Zygmunt Pac ( lt, Kristupas Zigmantas Pacas; 1621–1684) was a nobleman and statesman of Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Chancellor (1658–1684) of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
He was the brother of Michał Kazimierz Pac, the G ...
. By the end of the 19th century it had 6 households with some 50–60 persons. Another was a manor ( pl, dwór) across Neman.''
Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland
The Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and other Slavic Countries ( pl, Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich) is a monumental Polish gazetteer, published 1880–1902 in Warsaw
Warsaw ( p ...
'', vol. I p. 5 /ref> Originally it was owned by the
Oborski Oborski, feminine Oborska is a Polish noble family name. Historically it originated from the nobiliary toponymic naming "z Obór" ("from Obory").p. 160 /ref> Initially, a wooden hermitage of Camaldolese was built there by Krzysztof Pac in 1664, on the hill called Mons Pacis in Latin (a hint to the
Pac family
The House of Pac or Pacowie ( pl, Pacowie, lt, Pacai, be, Па́цы) was one of the most influential noble families in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the era of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Numerous high-ranking officials of ...
; Literal trans'ation: "Peace Mountain"; lt, Taikos kalnis, but it may also be read "Pac's Mountain"). Eventually it grew into the monastery. The same year Pac transferred the ownership of the whole Pożajście to Camaldolese and henceforth the place was known as Mons Pacis. In 1667 Pac further transfers to Camaldolese several other manors ( Duszmiany, Jackówek, etc.).
With the construction of the monastery the settlement grew and eventually became the seat of the . Pažaislis was incorporated into Kaunas in 1946.
A significant part of the neighborhood is occupied by the park named . It is part of the
Kauno Marios Regional Park
Kauno Marios Regional Park was established in 1992 with the purpose to protect the unique lower landscape of Kaunas Reservoir, its natural ecosystem, and cultural heritage. It covers the total of 101.73 km² (water - 51.45 km², forests ...
.
By the monastery, within the heath of Pažaislis, grows the , a natural heritage object. It "succeeded" the original Pažaislis oak, which was dying and removed from the list of natural monuments. "Pažaislio ąžuolo pamaina" /ref>
During the construction of the
Kaunas Reservoir
Kaunas Reservoir ( lt, Kauno marios, Kaunas Lagoon, Kaunas Sea) is the largest Lithuanian artificial lake, created in 1959 by damming the Nemunas River near Kaunas and Rumšiškės. It occupies 63.5 square kilometers, which is about 0.1% of the to ...
nearly all its territory northeast of the monastery was flooded. During the flooding the Peace Mountain naturally formed a peninsula, on which the monastery resides now.
