Day of Belarusian Written Language
Logo of the Belarusian Written Language Day
Day of Belarusian Written Language is an annual holiday that is marked on the first Sunday of September.
The holiday is intended to demonstrate the unity of the Belarusian written word and the history and culture of the Belarusian people, and to show the development of the written language and book publishing in Belarus.
Following the tradition, Day of Belarusian Written Language is celebrated in the cities which are considered cultural, scientific and literature centers of the country.
2012 was declared Year of Book in Belarus.
Timeline
Day of Belarusian Written Language was first celebrated in the ancient city of Polotsk in 1994.
Later on, the celebrations were held in the country’s historically significant cultural centers such as Turov, Novogrudok, Nesvizh, Orsha, Pinsk, Zaslavl, Mstislavl, Mir, Kamenets, Postavy, Shklov, Borisov, Smorgon, Khoiniki, Gantsevichi, Glubokoe, Bykhov, Zaslavl, Shchuchin, Rogachev, Polotsk.
In 2015 a new Belarus' literary capital Shchuchin, Grodno Oblast, hosted the 22nd Day of Belarusian Written Language.
In 2016 the traditional celebrations of the Day of Belarussian Written Language was held in Rogachev, Gomel Oblast.
In 2017, the capital of the festival, dedicated to the 500th anniversary of the Belarusian book printing, was ancient Polotsk, the birthplace of the Belarus first printer and enlightener Francysk Skaryna.
In 2018, the 25th edition of Belarusian Written Language Day was marked in Ivanovo, Brest Oblast, with My Native Land being a theme line of the celebrations.
In 2019, the Belarusian Written Language Day was celebrated in Slonim, Grodno Oblast, one of Belarus’ oldest cultural and religious centers.
In 2020 the Belarusian Written Language Day took place in Belynichi, Mogilev Oblast – a place with great history and an unusual sacred fate.
In 2021 the capital city of the Belarusian Written Language Day was the ancient town of Kopyl, Minsk Oblast. It is kind of a unique literature center of the country since over 50 prominent Belarusian writers and poets came from that area.
In 2022 the Belarusian Written Language Day was hosted by the town of Dobrush, which was first mentioned in the 16th century. Belarus’ first paper mill (1870) was founded there as well as a chinaware plant. The Belarusian classicist, writer, scriptwriter and playwright Ivan Shamyakin is a famous native of the area.
In 2023 celebrations of the Belarusian Written Language Day was centered in Gorodok, Vitebsk Oblast. Konstantin Verenitsyn – the author of the famous poem Taras na Parnase [Taras on Mount Parnassus], the most popular work of the national literature of the 19th century – was born in this land.
Events on Day of Belarusian Written Language
The participants and guests of the celebrations are given a unique chance to get familiar with the new books and meet national and foreign writers, poets, journalists and publishers. By tradition Day of Belarusian Written Language includes an award ceremony of the winners of the best literary work contest, a science-to-practice conference, and many more interesting events.
Belarusian Written Language Day in Gorodok
The jubilee 30th Belarusian Written Language Day took place in Gorodok, Vitebsk Oblast on 2-3 September 2023. A celebration of unity of printed media, literature, and history of the nation took place in a land that is famed far and wide for its rich traditions and artistic legacy. The Gorodok area is the birthplace of Konstantin Verenitsyn, the author of one of the most popular works of 19th century Belarusian literature – the poem Taras na Parnase [Taras on Mount Parnassus]. The poem was considered anonymous for a long time. Only in 1973 Gennady Kiselev, Doctor of Philological Sciences, unveiled the mystery of who penned the poem. In the 21st century the town started a festival themed in honor of the famous compatriot and titled as Garadotski Parnas [Gorodok’s Mount Parnassus]. A sculpture was erected in honor of the poem’s main character – the woodsman Taras.