Izmail Sreznevsky
Encyclopedia
Izmail Ivanovich Sreznevsky ' onMouseout='HidePop("87119")' href="/topics/Yaroslavl">Yaroslavl
- 21 February 1880, St. Petersburg) was a towering figure in 19th-century Slavic studies.
His father, Ivan Sreznevsky, was a prolific translator of Latin poetry who taught at the Demidov Lyceum in Yaroslavl
before moving to Kharkov University. It was in Kharkov that Sreznevsky graduated in philology (in 1829) and gained a professorship (in 1842). He was a notable figure in the Ukrainian literary revival and compiled several multi-volume anthologies of local folklore, including Zaporozhian Antiquities. In 1839-42 he undertook a tour through every major library of Central and Eastern Europe with a view toward consulting the oldest extant Slavic manuscripts.
In 1847 Sreznevsky moved to St. Petersburg, where he applied himself to the task of preparing a comprehensive dictionary of the Old Russian language. This work spanned several decades and involved the study and publication of numerous obscure medieval texts and codices, including Codex Zographensis
(in 1856), Codex Marianus
(in 1866), and Kiev Fragments (in 1874). Sreznevsky's pièce de résistance
, though incomplete, was published posthumously in three volumes (1893-1903) and was reprinted with an addendum in 1912, 1958, and 1988. It was superseded only with the publication of a 24-volume academic dictionary in 1975-99.
Sreznevsky was the founding father of the Russian Language Department of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences (of which he was elected a member in 1851) and the St. Petersburg academic school of Slavic studies. As early as 1849, he delivered a series of lectures on the history and evolution of the Russian language
, the first such work of a scholarly type. His influential outline of Slavonic palaeography
was published in 1885. A long list of his students at St. Petersburg University includes Alexander Pypin, Nikolai Chernyshevsky
, Nikolay Dobrolyubov, and Vladimir Lamansky (who published his biography in 1890).
Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historical part of the city, a World Heritage Site, is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl Rivers. It is one of the Golden Ring cities, a group of historic cities...
- 21 February 1880, St. Petersburg) was a towering figure in 19th-century Slavic studies.
His father, Ivan Sreznevsky, was a prolific translator of Latin poetry who taught at the Demidov Lyceum in Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl
Yaroslavl is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historical part of the city, a World Heritage Site, is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Kotorosl Rivers. It is one of the Golden Ring cities, a group of historic cities...
before moving to Kharkov University. It was in Kharkov that Sreznevsky graduated in philology (in 1829) and gained a professorship (in 1842). He was a notable figure in the Ukrainian literary revival and compiled several multi-volume anthologies of local folklore, including Zaporozhian Antiquities. In 1839-42 he undertook a tour through every major library of Central and Eastern Europe with a view toward consulting the oldest extant Slavic manuscripts.
In 1847 Sreznevsky moved to St. Petersburg, where he applied himself to the task of preparing a comprehensive dictionary of the Old Russian language. This work spanned several decades and involved the study and publication of numerous obscure medieval texts and codices, including Codex Zographensis
Codex Zographensis
The Codex Zographensis ) is an illuminated manuscript Gospel Book that was found in the Bulgarian Zograf Monastery on Mount Athos in 1843 by Croatian writer and diplomat Antun Mihanović, and which dates from the late 10th or early 11th century....
(in 1856), Codex Marianus
Codex Marianus
The Codex Marianus ) is a Glagolitic fourfold Gospel Book from the beginning of eleventh century , which is , one of the oldest manuscript witnesses to the Old Church Slavonic language, one of the two fourfold gospels being part of the Old Church Slavonic canon, which contains a parts written by...
(in 1866), and Kiev Fragments (in 1874). Sreznevsky's pièce de résistance
Pièce de résistance
Pièce de résistance is a French term , translated into English literally as "piece of resistance," referring to the best part or feature of something , a showpiece, or highlight. It can be thought of as the portion of a creation which defies Pièce de résistance is a French term (circa 1839),...
, though incomplete, was published posthumously in three volumes (1893-1903) and was reprinted with an addendum in 1912, 1958, and 1988. It was superseded only with the publication of a 24-volume academic dictionary in 1975-99.
Sreznevsky was the founding father of the Russian Language Department of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences (of which he was elected a member in 1851) and the St. Petersburg academic school of Slavic studies. As early as 1849, he delivered a series of lectures on the history and evolution of the Russian language
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, the first such work of a scholarly type. His influential outline of Slavonic palaeography
Palaeography
Palaeography, also spelt paleography is the study of ancient writing. Included in the discipline is the practice of deciphering, reading, and dating historical manuscripts, and the cultural context of writing, including the methods with which writing and books were produced, and the history of...
was published in 1885. A long list of his students at St. Petersburg University includes Alexander Pypin, Nikolai Chernyshevsky
Nikolai Chernyshevsky
Nikolay Gavrilovich Chernyshevsky was a Russian revolutionary democrat, materialist philosopher, critic, and socialist...
, Nikolay Dobrolyubov, and Vladimir Lamansky (who published his biography in 1890).
Sons
- Vyacheslav Sreznevsky (1849-1937) was the founder and chairman of the St. Petersburg Society of Ice Skating Amateurs (1877-1923) and the first ever chairman of the Russian Olympic CommitteeRussian Olympic CommitteeRussian Olympic Committee , is the National Olympic Committee representing Russia.-See also:*Russian Paralympic Committee*Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Organizing Committee...
(1911). He helped organize the first World Figure Skating Championship (1896, St. Petersburg) and authored the first Russian reference book on photography (1883). - Boris Sreznevsky (1857-1934) was a leading Russian/Ukrainian climatologist and meteorologist of his generation who taught at Yuryev University (now Tartu University) in 1894-1918 and was in charge of the Kiev Meteorological Observatory in 1919-1934.
- Vsevolod Sreznevsky (1869-1936) was an authority on Slavic paleography that scoured Russia's northern regions in search of manuscripts and drew up a detailed account of the manuscripts held by the Russian Academy of Sciences Library (1910-30, vol. 1-3).