Jan Czeczot of Ostoja ( be, Ян Чачот, ''Jan Čačot,'' lt, Jonas Čečiotas, 1796–1847) was a Polish romantic poet and ethnographer. Fascinated by the

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, rangin ...

and the traditional folk songs of the former

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was Partitions of Poland, partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire, Habsburg Empire of ...

, a confederal part of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

, he recollected hundreds of them in his works. Inspired by them, he also wrote several poems in what could be considered a pre-modern

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 ...

. As such, he is often cited as one of the first Polish ethnographers and one of the predecessors of the

Belarusian national revival The Belarusian national revival ( be, Беларускае нацыянальнае адраджэнне) is a social, cultural and political movement that advocates the revival of Belarusian culture, language, customs, and the creation of the Be ...

Biography

Jan Czeczot was born on 24 June 1796 in a noble family that was part of the

Clan of Ostoja The Clan of Ostoja (old Polish: ''Ostoya'') was a powerful group of knights and lords in late-medieval Europe. The clan encompassed families in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (including present-day Belarus and Ukraine), Hungary and Upper H ...

family of Tadeusz Czeczot in Małuszyce ( Malušyčy, now in

Hrodna Voblast Grodno Region ( pl, Grodzieńszczyzna) or Grodno Oblast or Hrodna Voblasts ( be, Гродзенская вобласць, ''Hrodzienskaja vobłasć'', , ''Haradzienščyna''; russian: Гродненская область, ''Grodnenskaya oblast' ...

) near

Navahrudak Novogrudok ( be, Навагрудак, Navahrudak; lt, Naugardukas; pl, Nowogródek; russian: Новогрудок, Novogrudok; yi, נאַוואַראַדאָק, Novhardok, Navaradok) is a town in the Grodno Region, Belarus. In the Middle A ...

. He graduated from a Dominican school in Navahrudak and then joined the Vilna Academy in 1816. There, he made friends with many of the predecessors of

Polish romanticism Romanticism in Poland, a literary, artistic and intellectual period in the evolution of Polish culture, began around 1820, coinciding with the publication of Adam Mickiewicz's first poems in 1822. It ended with the suppression of the January 186 ...

, among them

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish Ro ...

, who is said to support Czeczot's early poetic writings. Their friendship was immortalized in the dedication to Mickiewicz's III part of ''

Dziady Dziady ( Belarusian: , Russian: , Ukrainian: , pl, Dziady; lit. "grandfathers, eldfathers", sometimes translated as Forefathers' Eve) is a term in Slavic folklore for the spirits of the ancestors and a collection of pre-Christian rites, ritual ...

''. Also, Czeczot became the secretary of the Philomatic Society and a friend of

Ignacy Domejko Ignacy Domeyko or Domejko, pseudonym: ''Żegota'' ( es, Ignacio Domeyko, ; 31 July 1802 – 23 January 1889) was a Polish geologist, mineralogist, educator, and founder of the University of Santiago, in Chile. Domeyko spent most of his life, an ...

, with whom he shared passion for the folklore. After the society was discovered by the Russian

secret police Secret police (or political police) are intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political, religious, or social opponents and dissidents. Secret police organizations are characteristic ...

in 1823, Czeczot was arrested and sent to

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part ...

. After his sentence was completed, he relocated to central Russia and in 1833 settled in

Lepiel Lyepyel ( be, Ле́пель, Liepieĺ; pl, Lepel; russian: Ле́пель, Lepel, ; yi, ליעפּליע, Li'epli'e) is a town located in the center of the Lyepyel Raion (district) in the Vitebsk Province of Belarus near Lyepyel Lake. Lyepy ...

. In 1837 he was allowed to publish his first book, the ''Piosnki wieśniacze znad Niemna'' (''Folk Songs of the

Neman River 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; ; ...

''). The second edition of that anthology, published in 1844 under the title of ''Piosnki wieśniacze znad Niemna z dołączeniem pierwotwornych w mowie słowiańsko-krewickiej'' (''Folk Songs of the Neman River with Originals Written in Slavic-Krevich Language''), was significantly expanded and included many translations of his works to what could be seen as a predecessor of the modern

. It was not until 1839 when he finally was allowed to return home. Unable to find a job, for five years he was working as a librarian in a family estate of his family's friends, the Chrebtowicze family. He never fully recovered after his resettlement to Siberia. In 1846 he went to the spa of Druskienniki (

Druskininkai Druskininkai (; pl, Druskieniki; be, Друскенiкi; yi, דרוזגעניק, translit=Druzgenik) is a spa town on the Nemunas River in southern Lithuania, close to the borders of Belarus and Poland. The city of Druskininkai has a population ...

), but the treatment was unsuccessful and Jan Czeczot died on 23 August of the following year. He is buried in a small cemetery in Rotnica (now Ratnyčia in Lithuania). Several of his works published in the latter part of his life gained much popularity. Among the fans of his poetry was composer

Stanisław Moniuszko Stanisław Moniuszko (; May 5, 1819 – June 4, 1872) was a Polish composer, conductor and teacher. He wrote many popular art songs and operas, and his music is filled with patriotic folk themes of the peoples of the former Polish–Lithuania ...

, who even decided to illustrate some of his poems with music.Wójcicki Antoni, Cieślak Antoni, Polskie pieśni i piosenki : śpiewnik polski : elodie i teksty Warszawa, Wydawnictwo Polonia, 1989

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Czeczot, Jan 1796 births 1847 deaths People from Karelichy District Polish nobility Clan of Ostoja Polish exiles in the Russian Empire 19th-century Polish poets 19th-century Belarusian poets Belarusian folklorists Belarusian male poets Polish male poets 19th-century Polish male writers Vilnius University alumni Polish writers in Belarusian

Biography

See also

References