The Bible in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Early Modern Period: translators, editors, readers

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th and 17th centuries was a domain of an intensified activity in the field of the Bible’s translation. Inspired by both new confessional demands and by the revival of the literary language, the phenomenon still arises interest of many scholars.

I would like to discuss many aspects of the phenomenon of translation and commentary work of the Bible in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th and 17th centuries. As it was a very special or even unique movement, extremely varied and long-time lasting, it would be difficult to offer its complete synthesis in one course. Though, the exhaustive presentation of the historical and linguistic contexts would help us to understand the phenomenon. Intensified interest in translations of the Bible was connected in a very special way with the interest in the Polish language, its literary expression as well as its grammatical and orthographic standardisation that occurred just in the same time. The intellectual activity related to the Bible contributed simultaneously to the development of the Polish literary language and even inspired the translations of the sacred texts of other religions present in the country. Moreover, contacts between different languages of Central and Eastern European area, where many attempts of new translations appeared, are very important. A quick rise of the different Reformation currents contributed to a ‘natural’ need for new translations and commentaries to be used by community members. These new currents, first easily accepted and spread in the country, even when suppressed, could not arrest this activity, and later new Catholic translations and commentaries of the post-Trident period, both in Polish and Lithuanian, proved it. We will dedicate our attention also to some concrete typographical realizations of this activity and provide an interesting example of the musical expression directly inspired by the biblical translation.

David A. Frick, Polish sacred Philology in the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation. Chapters in the History of the Controversies (1551-1632). Modern Philology, vol. 123, University of California Press, Berkeley / Los Angles / London 1989

The oldest Slavonic translations of the Bible of the German series entitled “Biblia Slavica”

(These re-editions have been published in a facsimile form of the biblical monuments (i.e. manuscripts or old prints) with additions of scientific elaboration (German: Kommentare) written by German, American and other specialists from the country, where the Bible came into being. The series „Biblia Slavica” is very helpful for scientists, who are interested in history, language, biblical philology, culture, spirituality etc. The series has been divided by its editors into five groups: I. Czech Bibles, II. Polish Bibles, III. East-Slavonic Bibles, IV. South-Slavonic Bibles and V. Farther Bibles. I concentrated mainly on the Polish Bibles, i.e. The New Testament of Stanisław Murzynowski of 1551-1552, The Leopolita Bible of 1561, The Brest Bible of 1563, The Budny Bible of 1572 and The Wujek Bible of 1599. It belongs to add that the first printed Polish Bible, i.e. The Leopolita Bible of 1561, initiated the whole „Biblia Slavica” series.)

Word of God, words of Men. Transaltions, inspirations, transmissions of the Bible in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Renaissance, ed. by J. Pietrzak-Thébault, Refo500 Academic Studies, vol. 43, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Gõttingen 2019

History:

Janusz Tazbir, A State without Stakes: Polish Religious Toleration in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries, Kosciuszko Foundation, New York 1973

Satoshi Koyama, The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealt a a Poltical Space: it Unity and Complexity, in: Regions of Central and Eastern Europe : past and Presentm ed. By T. Hayashi , H. Faluda, Slavic Resarch Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 2007, p. 137-153

Wojciech Kriegseisen, Historical Overwiew of the Political and Denominational Reality in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from the Mid-sixteenth Century to the Mid-seventeenth Century in: Word of God, words of Men..., ed. by J. Pietrzak-Thebault, p. 19-38

West /East:

Rajmund Pietkiewicz :

The significance of Pagninius Bible for the Brest Bible Translation, in: https://www.academia.edu/7667868/THE_SIGNIFANCE _OF_PAGNINIUS_BIBLE_FOR_THE_BREST_BIBLE_TRANSLATION

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1179/1462245915Z.00000000068

Margarita Korzo:

"Polnische Fibelkatechismen des 16. und 17. Jahrhunderts: religiöser Inhalt und deutsche Einflüsse", Religion und Bildungsmedien, eds. S. Schütze, E. Matthes, unter Mitarbeit von W. Sroka. Bad Heilbrunn: Verlag Julius Klinkhardt, 2018. S. 92–99.

"An episode from the History of Literary Contacts: the Reception of Franz Coster's SI Works in the Book Culture of the Polisch Lithuanian Commonwealth, XVI–XVII C.", Studia Slavica Hungarica, 2017, vol. 16/1, pp. 1–13. DOI: 10.1556/060.2017.62.1.2.

"Forms of Existence of Texts from other Confessions in Orthodox Book-Publishing of the 17th Century: the Case Study of Polish-Litauen Commonwealth and Russia", Filosofiya i Kultura 4(2015), pp. 573–581.

"Some remarks on polish ABC-book models: the 16th Century", Pedagogical research: problems and perspectives, ed. S.V. Ivanova, vol. 1, Moscow, IET Press, 2014, pp. 342–357.

“Polish Catechisms in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, 16th – 17th C.”, LDK kalbos, kulturos ir rastijos tradicijos, Vilnius, Lietuviu Kalbos Institutas, 2009, pp. 193–200.

Izabela Winiarska-Górska :

Secularization of Ducal Prussia and the Polish Literary Language in the Sixteenth Century – Two Models of Modernization of a Religious Discourse

Systhematique presence , discussion and participation.