Lithuanian National Revival

The Lithuanian National Revival, alternatively the Lithuanian National Awakening or Lithuanian nationalism (Lietuvių tautinis atgimimas), was a period of the history of Lithuania in the 19th century at the time when a major part of Lithuanian-inhabited areas belonged to the Russian Empire (the Russian partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth). It was expressed by the rise of self-determination of the Lithuanians that led to the formation of the modern Lithuanian nation and culminated in the re-establishment of an independent Lithuanian state. The most active participants of the national revival included Vincas Kudirka and Jonas Basanavičius. The period largely corresponded to the rise of romantic nationalism and other national revivals of 19th-century Europe. The revival was predated by a short period of the early 19th century known as the "Samogitian revival" led by students of Vilnius University, including Simonas Daukantas and Simonas Stanevičius. The most recent Lithuanian national revival may be linked to the late 20th century developments also known as the Singing Revolution. Due to a long period of common Polish-Lithuanian statehood and nationality, and the Russian Empire's policy of Russification, many of the Lithuanian nobles in the 19th century had become Polonized and the language was generally used only by the poor and by the middle classes; some of the latter tended to use Polish as a status symbol for social advancement. Lithuanian was generally a spoken language and was not considered prestigious enough for written usage; it was, however, retained by some members of the minor nobility, especially in the Samogitian region. The language was not yet standardized; its grammar varied greatly from region to region in form of Aukštaitijan and Samogitian dialects and their sub-dialects. There were even expectations that the Lithuanian language would become extinct, as the eastern territories within what is modern-day Lithuania and northwestern Belarus became increasingly Slavicized, and many people used Polish or Belarusian in their daily lives.

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Related concepts (26)

Samogitian language

Samogitian (Samogitian: žemaitiu ruoda, žemaitiu kalba, žemaitiu rokunda, žemaičių tarmė) is a dialect of the Lithuanian language, although it is sometimes considered a separate language. Samogitian is spoken mostly in Samogitia (in the western part of Lithuania). The Samogitian language, heavily influenced by Curonian, originated from the East Baltic proto-Samogitian dialect which was close to Aukštaitian dialects. During the 5th century, Proto-Samogitians migrated from the lowlands of central Lithuania, near Kaunas, into the Dubysa and Jūra basins, as well as into the Samogitian highlands.

Lithuanian press ban

The Lithuanian press ban (spaudos draudimas) was a ban on all Lithuanian language publications printed in the Latin alphabet in force from 1865 to 1904 within the Russian Empire, which controlled Lithuania proper at the time. Lithuanian-language publications that used Cyrillic were allowed and even encouraged. The concept arose after the failed January Uprising of 1863, taking the form of an administrative order in 1864, and was not lifted until 24 April 1904.

Prussian Lithuanians

The Prussian Lithuanians, or Lietuvininkai (singular: Lietuvininkas, plural: Lietuvininkai), are Lithuanians, originally Lithuanian language speakers, who formerly inhabited a territory in northeastern East Prussia called Prussian Lithuania, or Lithuania Minor (Prūsų Lietuva, Mažoji Lietuva, Preußisch-Litauen, Kleinlitauen), instead of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and, later, the Republic of Lithuania (Lithuania Major, or Lithuania proper).