Ernests Birznieks-Upītis (6 April 1871 – 30 December 1960) was a Latvian writer, translator and librarian.

Biography

Birznieks-Upītis was born 6 April 1871, in Dzirciems. His father died in 1874. From 1880 to 1886, he studied at the Dzirciems Parish School. From 1887 to 1889, Birznieks-Upītis continued his studies at

Tukums Tukums (; ; ) is a town in Latvia and serves as the administrative center of Tukums Municipality. It is located in the eastern part of the historical region of Courland, and with more than 16,000 inhabitants Tukums is the 13th largest settlem ...

City School. Then he prepared for the teacher exams through self-study, which he passed as a teacher. In 1889, he returned to his native Dzirciems, where he worked as a home teacher. In 1891, his first work "Mother" was published in the "Baltijas Vēstnesī", as well as a translation of Ivan Krilov's fable. In 1892, he wrote the story "Soldier's Bride". From 1893 to 1921, Birznieks-Upītis lived in

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

. After leaving his job as a home teacher, he worked as a library manager and as an oil company clerk. In 1900, Birznieks-Upītis' first story book "Upītis stories" was published, which ensured the author's popularity. In 1908, Ernests Birznieks-Upītis founded the book publishing house "Dzirciemnieki". By 1921, 67 books had been published, including Birznieks-Upītis' own works. In 1912 and 1913, two more books by Birznieks-Upītis were published - "Morning" and "Before the Evening". In 1914, his "Gray Stone Stories" was published separately. In 1922, Ernests Birznieks-Upītis returned to

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

. In the same year he started publishing the newspaper "Vārds". He also worked in the magazines "Domas", "Rainbow", "Youth Flows", "Small Flows of Youth". In 1924, his cycle of Caucasian stories "Caucasus Mountains" was published, and in 1927 "Caucasian Stories" was published in two parts. From 1922 to 1924, the "Pastariņš Trilogy" and "Nina's Fairy Tales" were published. From 1927 to 1934, he was the head of the Riga City Library Center. During the German occupation of Latvia, Birznieks-Upītis lived with relatives in Zentene Parish. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, they mainly lived in

Lielupe The Lielupe ( in Latvian language, Latvian Literal translation, literally: ''Large River'', , ) is a river in central Latvia. Its length is (the length would reach if the Mēmele River were counted as part of the Lielupe). The surface area of ...

, and he joined the Writers' Union.

References

1871 births 1960 deaths People from Tukums Municipality People from Courland Governorate Latvian male writers 20th-century Latvian writers Writers from the Russian Empire People's Writers of the Latvian SSR Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour {{Latvia-writer-stub