2023Emil Korytko - Set

Emil Korytko was a Polish political activist who was arrested by the Austrian authorities for anti-state activities and deported to Ljubljana in 1834. Here he became an important ethnographer of the romantic period, a collector of national goods, a poet and a translator. After arriving in Ljubljana, he made friendly contacts with Slovenian intellectuals and influential people of the time, such as Blaž Crobath, Matija Čop, France Prešeren, etc. To his credit is a collection of Slovenian (Carnij) folk songs, which were published after his death, from 1839 to 1844, in five volumes. In the newspaper Illyrisches Blatt, in 1838, he published the first questionnaire to collect material on folk life in Carniola, which was also a call to collect from other Slavs. He also got to know the ideas of the Illyrian movement. His collecting zeal was very great, because in addition to songs, stories and riddles, he also collected material about material culture, especially about clothing and regional costumes. Their depictions were contributed by the painter Franz Kurz von Goldenstein and have been preserved. Years ago, they were presented on the stamps of Pošta Slovenije. His idea to publish a book about Carniola in Polish was not realized. Emil Korytko is buried in the former Navje cemetery in Ljubljana, where his tombstone is also located. Prof. dr. Janez Bogataj