Václav Kosmák (5 September 1843,

Martínkov Martínkov is a municipality and village in Třebíč District in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 200 inhabitants. Martínkov lies approximately south-west of Třebíč, south of Jihlava, and south-east of Prague. Demo ...

– 15 March 1898, Prosiměřice) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

novelist, humorist and satirist. Kosmák was a priest as well as a writer. Notable for his realism and humor, Kosmák's short stories sketch the provincial life of

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

. His collected works were published in 1883–1884; a second, more complete edition was published after his death. Notable of his works include ''Kukátko z kukátek'', ''Jak Martin Chlubil bloudil a na pravou cestu opět se vrátil'' and ''Pokoj lidem dobre vůle'' (which could be translated into English as ''Keyhole of Keyholes'', ''How Martin Chlubil Wandered but Returned to the Right Path Again'', and ''Peace for the People'') The

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church where he was a priest, in

, outside of

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 ...

, bears a monument in remembrance of his contribution to church, community, and the public. In the 20th century, his writings were required reading in many Czech schools.

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Short biography
1843 births 1898 deaths People from Třebíč District Czech humorists Czech male writers 19th-century Czech Roman Catholic priests {{CzechRepublic-writer-stub