Fran Levstik (28 September 1831 – 16 November 1887) was a Slovene writer, political activist, playwright and critic. He was one of the most prominent exponents of the

Young Slovene Young Slovenes () were a Slovene national liberal political movement in the 1860s and 1870s, inspired and named after the Young Czechs in Bohemia and Moravia. They were opposed to the national conservative Old Slovenes. They entered a crisis in t ...

political movement.

Life and work

Levstik was born in 1831 in

Dolnje Retje Dolnje Retje (; in older sources also ''Dolenje Retje'',''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 40. ) is a small village southeast of Velike ...

(now part of the municipality of

Velike Lašče Velike Lašče (; )''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 42. is a town in Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Velike Lašče. I ...

) in

Lower Carniola Lower Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region in Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south an ...

(then part of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

, today in

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

) in a peasant Slovene family. Levstik was the first notable writer of Slovene epic prose. Among his most known works are the short tale '' Martin Krpan From Vrh'' (), which became a classic work of

Slovene literature Slovene literature is the literature written in Slovene. It spans across all literary genres with historically the Slovene historical fiction as the most widespread Slovene fiction genre. The Romantic 19th-century epic poetry written by the ...

, and the

itinerary Itinerary or Itineraries or Itinerarium may refer to: Travel * Itinerarium, an Ancient Roman road map in the form of a listing of cities, villages, and other stops, with the intervening distances * ''Itinerarium Burdigalense'', also known as the ...

A Journey from Litija to Čatež A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient G ...

'' (), the main objective of which is a literary manifesto. In the critical essay ''Napake slovenskega pisanja'', he exposed his views on the development of the Slovene literary language. Levstik was one of the main exponents of the

Young Slovenes Young Slovenes () were a Slovene national liberal political movement in the 1860s and 1870s, inspired and named after the Young Czechs in Bohemia and Moravia. They were opposed to the national conservative Old Slovenes. They entered a crisis in ...

, a progressive and

radical Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century *Radical politics ...

political group akin to the

Young Czechs The Young Czech Party (, officially National Liberal Party, ''Národní strana svobodomyslná'') was formed in the Bohemian crown land of Austria-Hungary in 1874. It initiated the democratization of Czech political parties and led to the establi ...

in the

Czech Lands The Czech lands or the Bohemian lands (, ) is a historical-geographical term which denotes the three historical regions of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia out of which Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic and Slovakia, were formed. ...

that challenged the then prevailing influence of

conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilizati ...

, led by

Janez Bleiweis Janez Bleiweis (19 November 1808 – 29 November 1881) was a Slovene conservative politician, journalist, physician, veterinarian, and public figure. He was the leader of the so-called Old Slovene political movement. Already during his lifetime ...

, within the

Slovenian National Movement Slovene or Slovenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Slovenia, a country in Central Europe * Slovene language, a South Slavic language mainly spoken in Slovenia * Slovenes, an ethno-linguistic group mainly living in Slovenia * Sl ...

. In his late years, he grew closer to

Pan-Slavist Pan-Slavism, a movement that took shape in the mid-19th century, is the political ideology concerned with promoting integrity and unity for the Slavic people. Its main impact occurred in the Balkans, where non-Slavic empires had ruled the South S ...

ideals. Levstik and his literary program had a great influence on future generations of Slovene authors of

national liberal National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal policies and issues with elements of nationalism. Historically, national liberalism has also been used in the same meaning as conservative liberalism (right-liberalism). A serie ...

views, especially

Josip Jurčič Josip Jurčič (4 March 1844 – 3 May 1881) was a Slovene writer and journalist. He was born in Muljava, Austrian Empire (now part of the municipality of Ivančna Gorica, Slovenia)Levec, Fran. 1881. Josip Jurčič. ''Ljubljanski zvon'' 1(6) ...

Josip Stritar Josip Stritar (6 March 1836 – 25 November 1923) was a Slovene writer, poet, essayist, the first aesthetic critic, playwright, publisher and translator. Life Stritar spent his early childhood in his home village of Podsmreka in rural Lower ...

Janko Kersnik Janko Kersnik (4 September 1852 – 28 July 1897) was a writer and politician from Austria-Hungary who was an ethnic Slovenes, Slovene. Together with Josip Jurčič, he is considered the most important representative of literary realism in the ...

Anton Aškerc Anton Aškerc (; 9 January 1856 – 10 June 1912) was a Slovenian poet and Roman Catholic priest who worked in Austria, best known for his epic poems. Aškerc was born into a peasant family near the town of Rimske Toplice in the Duchy of Styria, ...

Janez Trdina Janez Trdina (29 May 1830 – 14 July 1905) was a Slovene writer and historian. The renowned author Ivan Cankar described him as the best Slovene stylist of his period. He was an ardent describer of the Gorjanci Mountains and of the Lower Carni ...

and

Ivan Tavčar Ivan Tavčar () (28 August 1851 – 19 February 1923) was a Slovenian writer, lawyer, and politician. Biography Tavčar was born into the poor peasant family of Janez and Neža née Perko in the Carniolan village of Poljane near Škofja Lo ...

. The Slovene composer

Breda Šček Breda Friderika Šček Orel (20 August 1893 – 11 March 1968) was an Italian-Slovene composer, choir conductor, and singer. She published her music under the name Breda Šček. Life Šček was one of eight children born in Trieste to Slovene pa ...

set Levstik’s texts to music. He died of

Bright's disease Bright's disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that are described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. It was characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine. It was frequently accompanied ...

(nephritis) in

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

after a period of serious mental illness, which included delusions of a religious nature. He was buried in the former

St. Christopher's Cemetery Navje Memorial Park (), the redesigned part of the former St. Christopher's Cemetery (), is a memorial park in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. It is located in the Bežigrad district, just behind the Ljubljana railway station. History St. ...

in the Bežigrad district of Ljubljana. The

Levstik Award The Levstik Award () is a literary award in Slovenia awarded for achievements in children's literature. It has been bestowed since 1949 by the Mladinska Knjiga Publishing House, making it the first literary award established by a Slovene publishin ...

for achievements in children's literature is named after him.Levstik Award on Culture.si Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia site
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Levstik, Fran 1831 births 1887 deaths People from the Municipality of Velike Lašče Dramatists and playwrights from Austria-Hungary Literary critics from Austria-Hungary Carniolan dramatists and playwrights Carniolan philologists Carniolan essayists Slovenian literary critics Young Slovenes politicians Carniolan poets 19th-century Carniolan writers Slovenian dramatists and playwrights