Baltistikos įvadas vengrų kalba

INTRODUCTION TO BALTISTICS IN HUNGARIAN In the autumn of 1968, at an international congress of Slavists in Prague, Kostas Korsakas introduced the author of these lines to a young Hungarian philologist who, although he had never yet seen Lithuania, already spoke Lithuanian. Years passed. Our public heard more and more about the Hungarian philologist Endre Bojtár (Böjtara). He visited Lithuania many times, found a large circle of friends here, and became friends with Lithuanians in the United States of America. One after another, books by Lithuanian writers translated by him began to appear in Hungary. We were especially delighted in 1970 to see the publication of Kristijonas Donelaitis’s famous “The Seasons” (“Évszakok”. Európa Könyvkiadó, 1970), issued by a renowned Budapest publishing house and translated by E. Bojtár together with the poet Dezső (Dežiu) Tandori. The translation was accompanied by an article by E. Bojtár, which introduced Hungarian readers, for the first time in greater detail, to our great poet. Among other things, E. Bojtár and D. Tandori also translated Justinas Marcinkevičius’s trilogy of dramas. Lithuanian literature receives much attention in the Hungarian philologist’s studies of Eastern European avant-garde literature and Romanticism. E. Bojtár nicely summed up his practice of independent Lithuanian-language study in an excellent, methodically prepared Lithuanian textbook (“Kevés szóval litvánul”. Tankönyvkiadó, Budapest, 1985). It probably need not be said that a book of this kind was also published in Hungary for the first time. One might say that this book already offered a literary scholar’s perspective on linguistics. E. Bojtár also learned Latvian well. He diligently studied the cultural history, folklore, and mythology of the Baltic peoples. All these studies were crowned by E. Bojtár’s new book, published in a remarkably handsome edition: “Introduction to Baltistics” (“Bevezetés a baltisztikába. A balti kultúra a régiségben”. Osiris Kiadó. Budapest, 1997). This is a substantial work (316 pages), whose scope is amply attested by its bibliography: about a thousand books and articles written in various languages. E. Bojtár’s especially favored researchers of the Baltic past include: J. Balys, H. Biezajis (Biezais), A. Brückner, K. Būga, J. Endzelynas, M. Gimbutienė, A. J. Greimas, E. Gudavičius, V. Ivanovas, Z. Ivinskis, J. Kabelka, G. Labuda, H. Lowmiański, P. Šmitas, V. Toporovas, M. Vasmeris, Z. Zinkevičius. In separate chapters of the book, the author discusses in detail the history of the Baltic peoples and tribes, describes their languages and dialects, and devotes considerable space to mythology (in this respect, E. Bojtár’s work perhaps differs most from all previously published books of this kind). As one leafs through the pages of E. Bojtár’s book, one is led to think that it was written not only by a diligent scholar but also by a sincere friend of the Baltic peoples: it is no coincidence that it begins with a map of Lithuania in the time of Vytautas the Great, while its cover is adorned with a galloping ancient Baltic horseman (a tapestry by Ramutė Jasudytė). It is pleasing that the field of Baltistics is expanding; when will we have a Lithuanian introduction to Finno-Ugristics? Algirdas Sabaliauskas 259