Literature
in Polish
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Who is a Polish writer?
Because of the high status of Polish language and culture across the whole expanse of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish remained important means of communication for the Central European intelligentsia. Hence, many writers and artists from other nations had a Polish chapter in their biographies: many knew Polish and often wrote their early works in the language. -
Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis
A Lithuanian painter/composer who never fully mastered the Lithuanian language; his correspondence and literary attempts were in Polish. His work was influenced by Polish romantic poetry, particularly Juliusz Słowacki.
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Ivan Franko
A Ukrainian writer working in Ukrainian, Polish and German. An ideologue of the Ukrainian national movement, though at a certain point he was even considered a Polish poet. Advocated the peaceful coexistence of nations in Galicia.
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Yanka Kupala
A Belarusian poet, he debuted in 1904 with verses written in Polish, but one year later began to write solely in Belarusian. His mother never accepted that decision, convinced that true poetry could only exist in Polish.
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Rosa Luxemburg
A revolutionary socialist, born in Zamość in 1871. Although she is best known as a German author, Luxemburg maintained a very emotional attitude to Polish language and literature, as evidenced by her letters to her husband.
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Joseph Roth
An Austrian writer, born in Galicia in 1894, who knew Polish from secondary school; his first youthful verses date from that time. His work is an apology of the multicultural world of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.