Jan Lam
Encyclopedia
Jan Lam was a Polish
journalist, writer and comic, as well as a teacher in numerous schools of Galicia. He is probably best remembered as the author of a poem Marsz Sokołów, the anthem of the Sokół, as well as a long-time journalist of the Dziennik Polski
daily.
Jan Lam was born Johann Lam on January 16, 1838 in the town of Stanisławów
, Austria-Hungary
(now Ivano-Frankivsk
, Ukraine
). Born to a German family, he chose to be a Pole much like most of his colleagues and took part in the January Uprising
against Imperial Russia. Upon his return to Austria in 1864 he was arrested and sentenced to one year in prison for his part in the struggle against Russia.
In 1866 he moved to Lwów, where he briefly appeared as a journalist of the Gazeta Narodowa daily. In 1868 he started publishing a weekly Lwów chronicles column, a largely popular satirical rubric. Its popularity made him change the newspaper and the following year he was hired by the Dziennik Polski, the most popular Polish language newspaper of Galicia. He also published a number of novels, most of which were also satirical to some extent. In his works he mocked the short-mindedness of the szlachta
and the clergy
, as well as the absurdities of Austro-Hungarian rule and red-tape in Galicia. Such topics made Lam one of the most popular journalist of Lwów, a town primarily inhabited by burghers rather than gentry. He died August 3, 1886 in Lwów (then Austro-Hungarian
Galicia, modern Lviv in Ukraine).
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
journalist, writer and comic, as well as a teacher in numerous schools of Galicia. He is probably best remembered as the author of a poem Marsz Sokołów, the anthem of the Sokół, as well as a long-time journalist of the Dziennik Polski
Dziennik Polski
Dziennik Polski is a London-based Polish-language newspaper for Polish immigrants.Dziennik Polski may also refer to:* Dziennik Polski , a newspaper based in Kraków, Poland, where Jan Lam worked....
daily.
Jan Lam was born Johann Lam on January 16, 1838 in the town of Stanisławów
Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk is a historic city located in the western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast , and is designated as its own separate raion within the oblast, municipality....
, Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
(now Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk is a historic city located in the western Ukraine. It is the administrative centre of the Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast , and is designated as its own separate raion within the oblast, municipality....
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). Born to a German family, he chose to be a Pole much like most of his colleagues and took part in the January Uprising
January Uprising
The January Uprising was an uprising in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth against the Russian Empire...
against Imperial Russia. Upon his return to Austria in 1864 he was arrested and sentenced to one year in prison for his part in the struggle against Russia.
In 1866 he moved to Lwów, where he briefly appeared as a journalist of the Gazeta Narodowa daily. In 1868 he started publishing a weekly Lwów chronicles column, a largely popular satirical rubric. Its popularity made him change the newspaper and the following year he was hired by the Dziennik Polski, the most popular Polish language newspaper of Galicia. He also published a number of novels, most of which were also satirical to some extent. In his works he mocked the short-mindedness of the szlachta
Szlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
and the clergy
Clergy
Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....
, as well as the absurdities of Austro-Hungarian rule and red-tape in Galicia. Such topics made Lam one of the most popular journalist of Lwów, a town primarily inhabited by burghers rather than gentry. He died August 3, 1886 in Lwów (then Austro-Hungarian
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
Galicia, modern Lviv in Ukraine).
Works
- Wielki świat Capowic (Fashionables of Buckville; 1869)
- Koroniarz w Galicji (A Crown-manCrown of the Polish KingdomThe Crown of the Kingdom of Poland , or simply the Crown , is the name for the unit of administrative division, the territories under direct administration of Polish nobility from middle-ages to late 18th century...
in Galicia; 1870) - Głowy do pozłoty (Heads to be Gilt; 1873)
- Idealiści (Idealists; 1876)
- Dziwne kariery (Strange Careers; 1881)
- Dzieła (Selected works in 4 volumes; 1956–1957)