Jurij Brězan (9 June 1916 – 12 March 2006) was a Sorbian writer. His works, especially the novels, narrative works and children's books, were available in the two languages German and

Upper Sorbian Upper Sorbian (), occasionally referred to as Wendish (), is a minority language spoken by Sorbs in the historical province of Upper Lusatia, today part of Saxony, Germany. It is a West Slavic language, along with Lower Sorbian, Czech, Poli ...

. He lived, following its creation during and after 1945, in the German Democratic Republic (East Germany).

Life and work

Brězan was born in

Räckelwitz Räckelwitz ( German) or Worklecy ( Sorbian, ) is a municipality in Bautzen district, in the state of Saxony, Germany. The municipality of Räckelwitz has a population of 1,111 (2020) and is a member of the municipal association ''"Am Klosterwas ...

Upper Lusatia Upper Lusatia (, ; , ; ; or ''Milsko''; ) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the north, it makes up the region of Lusatia, named after the Polabian Slavs, Slavic ''Lusici'' tribe. Both parts of Lusatia a ...

, the son of a quarry worker and

smallholder A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technolo ...

. He had three younger sisters whose insatiable appetite for new stories encouraged him to exercise his narrative talents from an early age. He attended school in

Bautzen Bautzen () or Budyšin (), until 1868 ''Budissin'' in German, is a town in eastern Saxony, Germany, and the administrative centre of the Bautzen (district), district of Bautzen. It is located on the Spree (river), Spree river, is the eighth most ...

and then studied

political economics Political or comparative economy is a branch of political science and economics studying economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and their governance by political systems (e.g. law, institutions, and government). Widely-studie ...

. However, he was excluded from his studies in 1936. After 1933, he worked illegally for

Domowina Domowina () is a political independent league of the Sorbian and Wendish people and umbrella organization of Sorbian societies in Lower and Upper Lusatia, Germany. It represents the interests of Sorbian people and is the continual successor of ...

and was active in a Sorbian resistance group. Domowina was closed down by

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

in 1937, and in 1937–38, Brězan emigrated to

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. After his return, he was arrested and was held in prison in 1938–39. From 1942 to 1944, he was a soldier in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

and became a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

with the Americans. Between 1945 and 1948, he was a youth official for the Domowina. In 1946, he joined the

Socialist Unity Party The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (, ; SED, ) was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from the country's foundation in 1949 until its dissolution after the Peaceful Revolution in 1989. It was a Ma ...

. After 1949, he worked as a freelance writer. In 1946, he became a member of the German PEN-Zentrum East and West, in 1965 a member of the

Akademie der Künste The Academy of Arts () is a state arts institution in Berlin, Germany. The task of the Academy is to promote art, as well as to advise and support the states of Germany. The academy's predecessor organization was founded in 1696 by Elector F ...

. Between 1969 and 1989 he was vice-president of the writers union of

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. He lived near his birthplace until his death in

Kamenz Kamenz () or Kamjenc ( Sorbian, ) is a town (''Große Kreisstadt'') in the district of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany. Until 2008 it was the administrative seat of Kamenz District. The town is known as the birthplace of the philosopher and poet Gotth ...

. He was frequently honored in Communist East Germany, receiving the

National Prize of East Germany The National Prize of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) () was an award of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) given out in three different classes for scientific, artistic, and other meritorious achievement. With scientific achievem ...

in 1951, 1964 and 1976; the literature and art prize of the Domowina in 1973, the

Order of Karl Marx The Order of Karl Marx () was the most important order in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). The award of the order also included a prize of 20,000 East German marks. The order was founded on May 5, 1953 on the occasion of Karl Marx's 135th ...

in 1974, and the

Vaterländischer Verdienstorden The Patriotic Order of Merit (German: ''Vaterländischer Verdienstorden'', or VVO) was a national award granted annually in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was founded in 1954 and was awarded to individuals and institutions for outstanding ...

in 1981.

Works

Many of his novels and stories have autobiographical elements. His best known of such works is the novel trilogy of ''Der Gymnasiast'' (1959), ''"Semester der verlorenen Zeit'' (1959) and ''Mannesjahre'' (1964). Other works use elements from the rich folklore of

. *''52 Wochen sind ein Jahr'' (Novel, 1953) *''Christa'' (Story, 1957) *''Der Gymnasiast'' (Novel, 1958) *''Borbas und die Rute Gottes'' (Story, 1959) *''Semester der verlorenen Zeit'' (Novel, 1960) *''Mannesjahre'' (Novel, 1964) *''Der Elefant und die Pilze'' (Children's book, 1964) *''Die Reise nach Krakau'' (1966) *''Die Abenteuer des Kater Mikosch'' (Children's book, 1967) *''Die Schwarze Mühle'' (Story, 1968) *''Krabat oder Die Verwandlung der Welt'' (Novel, 1976) *''Der Brautschmuck'' (Stories, 1979) *''Bild des Vaters'' (Novel, 1983) *''Dalmat hat Ferien'' (Children's book, 1985) *''Wie das Lachen auf die Welt kam'' (Stories, 1986) *''Einsichten und Ansichten'' (1986) *''Geschichten vom Wasser'' (Stories, 1988) *''Mein Stück Zeit'' (Autobiographical report, 1989) *''Bruder Baum und Schwester Lärche'' (1991) *''Das wunderschöne blaue Pferd'' (1991) *''Krabat oder Die Bewahrung der Welt'' (Novel, 1993) *''Rifko – aus dem Tagebuch eines Dackels'' (Children's book, 1994) *''Die Leute von Salow'' (Novel, 1997) *''Ohne Pass und Zoll'' (Autobiographical report, 1999) *''Die grüne Eidechse'' (Novel, 2001) *''Hunds Tagebuch'' (Story, 2001)

References

External links

Jurij-Brezan.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brezan, Jurij 1916 births 2006 deaths People from Räckelwitz Writers from the Kingdom of Saxony Socialist Unity Party of Germany members East German writers Writers from Saxony Sorbian-language writers German male writers German Army personnel of World War II Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit (honor clasp) Recipients of the National Prize of East Germany German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United States