A History of Bohemian LiteratureLützow, Francis, hrabe
History
A History of Bohemian Literature
Lützow, Francis, hrabe
Czech literature -- History and criticism
Among other Bohemian humanists, Gregory Hrubý z Jeleni and his
son Sigismund--both are better known under the Latinised name of
"Gelenius"--deserve special notice. Gregory Gelenius, born about the
year 1450, was one of the most industrious translators of classical
works into the Bohemian language, and as such has deserved well of the
language of his country. The works of Cicero particularly appealed to
him, and he not only translated several of them into Bohemian, but also
published an _Admonition to the Citizens of Prague_, which is an
adaptation of Cicero's speech _Pro Lege Manilia_. Gelenius did not
limit his translations to the classical writers. He translated several
of the Latin works of Petrarch, the _Encomium Moriæ_ of Erasmus,
whose fame in Bohemia was very great, and some of the Latin poems of
Bohnslav of Lobkovic. I have already alluded to the indignation with
which Bohnslav received this attempt to translate his verses into his
national language, which he so greatly despised. Gregory Gelenius died
in 1514.
Gregory's son, SIGISMUND GELENIUS, was perhaps the most learned of
the Bohemian humanists. Born in 1497, he travelled in Italy when very
young, and during a stay at Venice acquired a thorough knowledge
of Greek. He also seems to have been acquainted with the Semitic
languages. Sigismund endeavoured, but unsuccessfully, to obtain a
professorship of Greek at the University of Prague. Disappointed by his
failure, he left Bohemia, and, on the suggestion of Erasmus, proceeded
to Basel, where he was employed by the publisher John Frobenius, who
was then preparing a series of editions of classical authors. Sigismund
Gelenius is one of the greatest philologians of the sixteenth century,
and obtained special notice as editor and annotator of the works of
Ammianus Marcellinus, Pliny, and Livy. He spent his whole life at
Basel, and refused repeated invitations to return to his country. The
celebrated Bohemian Brother, Blahoslav, who visited him at Basel in
1550, has recorded that he still "spoke Bohemian very well." Sigismund
Gelenius died at Basel in 1554.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account