„Pirkit mane ir skaitykit“. Pirmieji spausdinti LDK akrostichai
“Buy me and read me”. First Printed Acrostics in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Author(s): Ilja LemeškinSubject(s): Cultural history, Lithuanian Literature, 16th Century, Theory of Literature
Published by: Lietuvių Kalbos Institutas
Keywords: M. Mažvydas; F. Skorina; acrostic; Catechism; paratext; the book’s invocation to the reader; quatrain; personification of the book; language of advertising;
Summary/Abstract: The first printed books in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania – The Small Travel Book in 1522 and Catechism in 1547 – paved their way to the Ruthenian and Lithuanian reader though acrostics. The books of uniform format and similar purposes originated one after another in the same historical cultural domain; however, the acrostics by Francisk Skorina and Martynas Mažvydas have not until now been the object of a thorough comparative study. The article attempts to fill this gap. The Ruthenian acrostics of the period 1519–1522 from which M. Mažvydas could have potentially drawn his inspiration are first discussed. With reference to analogy, the characteristics of acrostics are analysed; the source of M. Mažvydas’ pieces of writing is discussed.
Journal: Acta Linguistica Lithuanica
- Issue Year: 2017
- Issue No: 77
- Page Range: 9-52
- Page Count: 44
- Language: Lithuanian