Valentin Vodnik
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Valentin Vodnik | |
---|---|
Born | Zgornja Šiška, Habsburg monarchy | February 3, 1758
Died | 8 January 1819 Ljubljana, Austrian Empire | (aged 60)
Occupation | Friar, priest, teacher, journalist, editor |
Nationality | Slovenian |
Literary movement | Age of Enlightenment |
Years active | 1779–1818 |
Valentin Vodnik (3 February 1758 – 8 January 1819) was a Carniolan priest, journalist and poet of Slovene descent. He was active in the late Enlightenment period. He is well known for his contributions in writing materials that lifted the prestige of the Slovene language creating a standard meant to unify the people of Slovene Lands in a single intelligible tongue.[1] He was also active in geological sciences, where he collaborated with Sigmund Zois in the research of the origin of the Julian Alps. He spent significant time curating his mineral collection consisting of 338 specimens.[2]
Life and work
Vodnik was born in
He worked as a priest in Ljubljana, in the
Vodnik dedicated himself to writing poetry in
In addition to poetry and journalism, Vodnik also wrote grammars, textbooks, and even the first Slovene-language cookbook (Kuharske bukve, 1799) and a translation of a manual for
In the 1810s, he became a fervent supporter of the
Legacy
Vodnik is generally regarded as the first real poet in Slovene, as well as the first journalist. In his writings, written in the old
Valentin Vodnik was selected as the main motif for a recent commemorative coin series: the 250th anniversary of the birth of Valentin Vodnik, minted in January 2008. The obverse shows Valentin Vodnik's profile, the bottom portion of the coin is inscribed with the last verse of the poem "Moj spomenik," which in English says:
"No daughter no son, to come after me, enough memory done, my songs sing of me." The same verses are inscribed on the back side of the Vodnik Monument at Vodnik Square[6] and also on his tombstone. The monument was erected in 1889. The bronze statue and the simple pedestal were made by Alojz Gangl. Some elements related to the faithfulness to the Illyrian Provinces were added to the pedestal in 1929.[7]
See also
References
- ^ a b Seruga, Kaja (7 July 2021). "The 18th-Century Cookbook That Helped Save the Slovene Language". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
- ^ Legan Ravnikar, Andrerja, ed. (2019). "Oživljeni Vodnik: razprave o Valentinu Vodniku" [The Revived Vodnik: Discussions on Valentin Vodnik] (in Slovenian). Institute of Slovene Language, Scientific Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, ZRC Publishing House. p. 184.
- ^ Stanko Janež (1971). Živan Milisavac (ed.). Jugoslovenski književni leksikon [Yugoslav Literary Lexicon] (in Serbo-Croatian). Novi Sad (SAP Vojvodina, SR Serbia): Matica srpska. p. 572.
- ^ Marija Vrečar, Winden – Krainer – Slowenen? : Valentin Vodniks "Lublanske novice" (1797–1800) : Elemente der nationalen Ideologie im Umfeld der ersten Zeitung in slowenischer Sprache(Ljubljana-Klagenfurt-Wien: Hermagoras/Mohorjeva, 1999)
- ^ Valentin Vodnik biography (In Slovenian)
- ^ "Spomeniki zaslužnim možem" [Monuments to Deserving Men] (in Slovenian). Government Communication Office, Republic of Slovenia. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
- ISBN 978-961-268-001-5.
Further reading
- Janko Kos, Valentin Vodnik (Ljubljana: Partizanska knjiga, 1990)
External links
- Works by or about Valentin Vodnik at Internet Archive
- Works by Valentin Vodnik at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)