Šárka B. Hrbková
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Šárka B. Hrbková (also ''Sarka B. Hrbek, Sarka B. Herbkova, Sarah Hrbek'' and ''Sara B. Hrbek''; August 23, 1878 – February 7, 1948) was an American author, writer, university professor, translator, Slavologist, historian, journalist, union official, suffragette, and feminist of Czech descent.


Early life

Hrbková was born on August 23, 1878, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. At the time there was a significant Czech community in Iowa. Her younger brother was Jefrem D. Hrbek (1882–1907), who was the founder of the School of Slavonic Language and Literature at the
University of Nebraska A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
.


Career

After graduating from a school for teachers, from 1895 to 1906 she taught in the public schools in Cedar Rapids. There, she organized the first night school for foreigners and Czech immigrants. She earned her Bachelor of the Arts from
University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...
in 1909 in literature, Slavic studies, and Bohemian studies. In January 1908, she accepted a position as a graduate student and teacher of Czech at the University of Nebraska, replacing her deceased brother Professor Jefrem Hrbek, who died in 1907. As a graduate student at the University of Nebraska, and after her graduation, from 1908 to 1919, she was a member of the faculty and served as the chairman of the Department of Slavonic Languages and Literature. She became an adjunct professor in 1910 and an assistant professor in 1914. In 1918 she was made a full professor. She graduated with a
Masters of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
from the University of Nebraska in 1914. She was the first Czech woman to teach at the University of Nebraska. Beginning in 1908 and continuing until 1917, she was the editor-in-chief of the ''Komensky Magazine'', which was written in Czech.


Czechoslovakian Resistance

During her career, she was active in the Czech community in the United States, which was strengthened by efforts to establish an independent
Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak Repu ...
state after the beginning of
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. Sarka gave educational lectures on Slavic studies and the history of the Czech-American community throughout the United States, including in
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
,
Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...
,
Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...
. After 1914, her speeches and newspaper contributions to Czech-American periodicals were written in Czech. She was involved in supporting the activities of Czechs in exile, including
Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk Tomáš () is a Czech name, Czech and Slovak name, Slovak given name, equivalent to the name Thomas (name), Thomas. Tomáš is also a surname (feminine: Tomášová). Notable people with the name include: Given name Sport *Tomáš Berdych (born 198 ...
,
Edvard Beneš Edvard Beneš (; 28 May 1884 – 3 September 1948) was a Czech politician and statesman who served as the president of Czechoslovakia from 1935 to 1938, and again from 1939 to 1948. During the first six years of his second stint, he led the Czec ...
, and
Milan Rastislav Štefánik Milan Rastislav Štefánik (; 21 July 1880 – 4 May 1919) was a Slovak politician, diplomat, aviator and astronomer. During World War I, he served at the same time as a general in the French Army and as Minister of War for Czechoslovakia. ...
and advocating for the creation of an independent Czechoslovakia.


After 1918

When World War I broke out, she became active in war work. She was a member of the Nebraska State Council of Defense and the only woman member of said council. between 1918 and 1919, served as the Chairman of the Woman's Committee in said council. She was appointed to this position by Dr. Anna Howard Shaw and was later elected to it by a mass vote of the women of Nebraska. For her service with this organization, she received no pay. In 1919, she was made Chairman of the Speaker's Division of the Women's State Liberty Loan Committee. In 1919, she left Nebraska for New York City, where she served as manager of the Czechoslovak Bureau of the Foreign Language Information Service of the
American Red Cross The American National Red Cross is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Humanitarianism, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. Clara Barton founded ...
. She probably directly replaced Josef Tvrzický in the leadership position, whose health deteriorated sharply due to a hereditary disease, leading him to commit suicide in 1920. In the following years, she continued to be active in the Czech-American community and worked as an interpreter and author in New York. She was a member of numerous scholarly and cultural organizations, including the Iowa historical society, Nebraska historical society, and the
National League of American Penwomen National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
. She returned to Cedar Rapids in 1942 and lived the last years of her life in the home of her family.


Death

Šárka B. Hrbková died on February 7, 1948, in her native Cedar Rapids at the age of 69. She was buried in the family grave at the Czech National Cemetery in Cedar Rapids.


Works

Her works include: *
The Slavs of Austria-Hungary
' (1918) * "Bridging the Atlantic: A Discussion of the Problems and Methods of Americanization" (1919). * " Bohemians in Nebraska." ''Nebraska State Historical Society'' 19 (1919):158. * ''
Czechoslovak Stories Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...
'' (1920) * "'Bunk' in Americanization." ''The Forum'' (April–May 1920): 428–438 * "Notes on the paintings" in ''
Historical paintings of the Slavic nations by Alfons Mucha History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...
'' (1921) *
The Czecho-Slovaks in America
''Our World'' (December 1923): 88–90 Her translations include: * Jan Výrava, play by
František Adolf Šubert František () is a masculine Czech and Slovak given name. It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, François and Franz. It can be also surname (feminine: Františková). Notable people with the name include: Given name Arts * Frank Daniel (Franti ...
(1915) * The Will o' the Wisp, play by
Jaroslav Kvapil Jaroslav Kvapil (25 September 1868 – 10 January 1950) was a Czech poet, theatre director, translator, playwright and librettist. Early life, education and family Jaroslav Josef Kvapil was born on 25 September 1868 in Chudenice, into the fami ...
(1916)
The Apple Tree
by Svatopluk Cech (1922) * ''Czechoslovak Stories'', anthology of short stories (1920)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hrbkova, Sarka B. 20th-century American women educators 20th-century American educators 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American writers 20th-century Czech writers 20th-century Czech women writers Czechoslovak writers 1878 births 1948 deaths Writers from Cedar Rapids, Iowa