Mato Kósyk
Encyclopedia
Mato Kosyk was a Sorbian
poet and minister. He was born in Werben
, Prussia
, emigrated from Lower Lusatia
to the United States
, and died at his rural home near Albion, Oklahoma
.
in Cottbus
in 1867, with the intention of studying theology. He left the gymnasium before graduation in 1873, bringing his study ambitions to a temporary end. Instead, he started working for a Leipzig
railroad company, where he wrote his first lyrical texts. These were all written in Lower Sorbian
.
News). Through his involvement in the revision of the Lower Sorbian church hymnal he made a lasting impact on the Lower Sorbian language.
Kosyk maintained contacts with practically all important representatives of Sorbian cultural life: Kito Šwjela, Hajndrich Jordan, Bjarnat Krušwica, Juro Surowin and Alfons Parczewski, as well as Michał Hórnik en Jan Arnošt Smoler
. Kosyk was one of the founders of the Lower Sorbian Maśica Serbska, the most important organisation of Lower Sorbian culture.
, from where he sailed to New York
. He travelled by way of Buffalo, New York
, to Springfield, Illinois
. Here he could fulfill his dreams to study theology, and he enrolled in an orthodox Lutheran theological seminary. In January 1884 however, he transferred to a German seminary in Chicago, Illinois, instead, and continued his studies in a liberal Lutheran direction. Moreover, the students there spoke German instead of English, making it much easier for Mato Kosyk to understand. He completed his studies in 1885 and was ordained in Wellsburg, Iowa
, where he worked among German Frisia
n immigrants. Although Kosyk worked in the United States among German
- and Frisian-speaking farmers, he never ceased to write his Sorbian tales and poems during this period. He continued to publish in Sorbian publications.
near Peitz
. His efforts were in vain, however, and he travelled back to the United States in 1887.
, where until 1907 he worked in several German-language congregations: Ridgeley in Dodge County
(1887–1889), Princeton in Lancaster County
(1889–1895), Stamford
in Harlan County
(1896–1899) and Ohiowa
in Fillmore County
(1899–1907). From autumn 1895 until summer 1896 he was out of work and lived in Roca
in Lancaster County
. Kosyk married Anna Wher in Princeton in 1890. Anne came from Duzno (formally Hochsburg, now part of Trzemeszno
), a village in Kreis Gnesen
in the Province of Posen
. Kosyk's last position was in El Reno, Oklahoma
. He retired in 1913 and moved near Albion, Oklahoma
where in 2010, the home he lived in still stood (see http : //tiny.cc/JYmbk).
Only in 1892 did Kosyk pick up poetry and writing again. He also renewed his neglected contacts with Sorbian intellectuals. Bogumił Šwjela wanted to publish an anthology of Kosyk poems, which appeared in 1893. Kosyk would continue to have poems published in th Lausitz until 1898.
After the deaths of Kosyk's only son, Juro, (at age 24 after a horse-riding accident) in 1915 and his wife Anna in 1929, Kosyk became increasingly isolated. He eventually married his housekeeper Wilma Filter in 1938. Wilma left Albion a year after Kosyk's death taking his papers with him; these have been deemed lost. During this last period, Kosyk maintained intensive contacts with the young Serbian writer Mina Witkojc
.
Kosyk used both classical form as well as rhyming forms taken from folk culture for his poems. His preference was for the hexameter
form. For example, his Serbska swajźba w Błotach ("The Sorbian Wedding it the Spreewald") consists of nearly 2,000 hexameters. Hexameters are also used in Ten kśicowany ("The Crucified") and Helestupjenje Jezusa Kristusa ("The Descent of Jesus Christ to Hell").
The home were Kosyk lived from 1913 to 1940, situated near Albion, Oklahoma
, Pushmataha County, in the State of Oklahoma, may be viewed at h t t p: // www. flickr. com/photos/25600678%40N08/3354733435. The home, called the Mato Kosyk House
, has been added to the National Register of Historic Places
. Its justification for inclusion is that it is the sole surviving structure associated with Kosyk. As in Kosyk's time, it features beautiful views of the Kiamichi Mountains
.
The primary school in Briesen
has been named after Kosyk.
Sorbian languages
The Sorbian languages are classified under the Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages. They are the native languages of the Sorbs, a Slavic minority in the Lusatia region of eastern Germany. Historically the language has also been known as Wendish or Lusatian. Their collective ISO 639-2 code...
poet and minister. He was born in Werben
Werben, Brandenburg
Werben is a municipality in the district of Spree-Neiße, in Brandenburg, Germany....
, Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
, emigrated from Lower Lusatia
Lower Lusatia
Lower Lusatia is a historical region stretching from the southeast of the Brandenburg state of Germany to the southwest of the Lubusz Voivodeship in Poland. Important towns beside the historic capital Lübben include Calau, Cottbus, Guben , Luckau, Spremberg, Finsterwalde, Senftenberg and Żary...
to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and died at his rural home near Albion, Oklahoma
Albion, Oklahoma
Albion is a town in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 143 at the 2000 census.- History :A United States Post Office opened at Albion, Indian Territory on December 6, 1887 and is still in operation....
.
Youth
Kosyk began his schooling at the gymnasiumGymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
in Cottbus
Cottbus
Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :...
in 1867, with the intention of studying theology. He left the gymnasium before graduation in 1873, bringing his study ambitions to a temporary end. Instead, he started working for a Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
railroad company, where he wrote his first lyrical texts. These were all written in Lower Sorbian
Lower Sorbian
Lower Sorbian is a Slavic minority language spoken in eastern Germany in the historical province of Lower Lusatia, today part of Brandenburg. It is one of the two literary Sorbian languages, the other being Upper Sorbian....
.
Literary activities
Because of problems with his health, Kosyk returned to Werben in 1877. During the following years he made a living as a freelance writer and produced his most important poetic works. From 1880 onwards he was co-editor of the Bramborske nowiny (BrandenburgProvince of Brandenburg
The Province of Brandenburg was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1815 to 1946.-History:The first people who are known to have inhabited Brandenburg were the Suevi. They were succeeded by the Slavonians, whom Henry II conquered and converted to Christianity in...
News). Through his involvement in the revision of the Lower Sorbian church hymnal he made a lasting impact on the Lower Sorbian language.
Kosyk maintained contacts with practically all important representatives of Sorbian cultural life: Kito Šwjela, Hajndrich Jordan, Bjarnat Krušwica, Juro Surowin and Alfons Parczewski, as well as Michał Hórnik en Jan Arnošt Smoler
Jan Arnošt Smoler
Jan Arnošt Smoler on March 3, 1816; died in Bautzen on June 13, 1884) was a Sorbian philologist and writer. He played a vital role in revitalizing the Sorbian languages in the 19th century. He also supported a form of Pan-Slavism....
. Kosyk was one of the founders of the Lower Sorbian Maśica Serbska, the most important organisation of Lower Sorbian culture.
Emigration
In October 1883, Kosyk left for HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, from where he sailed to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He travelled by way of Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, to Springfield, Illinois
Springfield, Illinois
Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
. Here he could fulfill his dreams to study theology, and he enrolled in an orthodox Lutheran theological seminary. In January 1884 however, he transferred to a German seminary in Chicago, Illinois, instead, and continued his studies in a liberal Lutheran direction. Moreover, the students there spoke German instead of English, making it much easier for Mato Kosyk to understand. He completed his studies in 1885 and was ordained in Wellsburg, Iowa
Wellsburg, Iowa
Wellsburg is a city in Grundy County, Iowa, United States. The population was 707 at the 2010 census a 1.3% decrease from 716 at the 2000 census...
, where he worked among German Frisia
Frisia
Frisia is a coastal region along the southeastern corner of the North Sea, i.e. the German Bight. Frisia is the traditional homeland of the Frisians, a Germanic people who speak Frisian, a language group closely related to the English language...
n immigrants. Although Kosyk worked in the United States among German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
- and Frisian-speaking farmers, he never ceased to write his Sorbian tales and poems during this period. He continued to publish in Sorbian publications.
Temporary return
At the end of 1886 Mato returned to Lower Lusatia when his brother Kito died. It appears his return was made easier because of tensions between the congregation in Wellsburg and himself. After returning, Kosyk endeavoured to have his ordination recognized; he very much wanted to fill a vacancy in DrachhausenDrachhausen
Drachhausen is a municipality in the district of Spree-Neiße, in Brandenburg, Germany....
near Peitz
Peitz
Peitz is a town in the district of Spree-Neiße, in southeastern Brandenburg, Germany.-Overview:It is situated 13 km northeast of Cottbus. Surrounded by freshwater lakes, it is well known for its fishing industry...
. His efforts were in vain, however, and he travelled back to the United States in 1887.
America
In 1887 Kosyk again travelled to the United States, and he would never again return to Europe. He found work as pastor in NebraskaNebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, where until 1907 he worked in several German-language congregations: Ridgeley in Dodge County
Dodge County, Nebraska
- History :Dodge County was formed in 1855. It was named after the US Senator Augustus Caesar Dodge.- Demographics :As of the census of 2000, there were 36,160 people, 14,433 households, and 9,756 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were...
(1887–1889), Princeton in Lancaster County
Lancaster County, Nebraska
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 250,291 people, 99,187 households, and 60,702 families residing in the county. The population density was 298 people per square mile . There were 104,217 housing units at an average density of 124 per square mile...
(1889–1895), Stamford
Stamford, Nebraska
Stamford is a village in Harlan County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 202 at the 2000 census.-History:Stamford, named after Stamford, Connecticut, was laid out by the Lincoln Land Company in 1887, becoming incorporated as a village in 1907. The first town board members were Frank...
in Harlan County
Harlan County, Nebraska
-History:Prior to 1870, the portion of the Republican valley that now includes Harlan County was a prized hunting ground for the Native Americans; and the threat of attack deterred white settlement in the area...
(1896–1899) and Ohiowa
Ohiowa, Nebraska
Ohiowa is a village in Fillmore County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 115 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Ohiowa is located at ....
in Fillmore County
Fillmore County, Nebraska
-Hunting:Fillmore is popular with hunters of pheasant, deer, Canada goose and other popular game animals.-Organizations:Fillmore County is home to a nonprofit organization which promotes education and the development of habitat for butterflies in Nebraska....
(1899–1907). From autumn 1895 until summer 1896 he was out of work and lived in Roca
Roca, Nebraska
Roca is a village in Lancaster County, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Lincoln, Nebraska Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 220 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Roca is located at ....
in Lancaster County
Lancaster County, Nebraska
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 250,291 people, 99,187 households, and 60,702 families residing in the county. The population density was 298 people per square mile . There were 104,217 housing units at an average density of 124 per square mile...
. Kosyk married Anna Wher in Princeton in 1890. Anne came from Duzno (formally Hochsburg, now part of Trzemeszno
Trzemeszno
Trzemeszno is a town in central Poland belonging to the group of the oldest settlements in the region. The town’s name derives from an Old Polish word “Trzemcha” meaning the flower of the "Bird’s Cherry" plant, which once grew in the vicinity...
), a village in Kreis Gnesen
Kreis Gnesen
Kreis Gnesen is one of several Kreise in the northern administrative district of Bromberg, in the Prussian province of Posen.-Table of Standesamter:...
in the Province of Posen
Province of Posen
The Province of Posen was a province of Prussia from 1848–1918 and as such part of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918. The area was about 29,000 km2....
. Kosyk's last position was in El Reno, Oklahoma
El Reno, Oklahoma
El Reno is a city in Canadian County, Oklahoma, United States, in the central part of the state. A part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area, El Reno is west of downtown Oklahoma City...
. He retired in 1913 and moved near Albion, Oklahoma
Albion, Oklahoma
Albion is a town in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 143 at the 2000 census.- History :A United States Post Office opened at Albion, Indian Territory on December 6, 1887 and is still in operation....
where in 2010, the home he lived in still stood (see http : //tiny.cc/JYmbk).
Only in 1892 did Kosyk pick up poetry and writing again. He also renewed his neglected contacts with Sorbian intellectuals. Bogumił Šwjela wanted to publish an anthology of Kosyk poems, which appeared in 1893. Kosyk would continue to have poems published in th Lausitz until 1898.
After the deaths of Kosyk's only son, Juro, (at age 24 after a horse-riding accident) in 1915 and his wife Anna in 1929, Kosyk became increasingly isolated. He eventually married his housekeeper Wilma Filter in 1938. Wilma left Albion a year after Kosyk's death taking his papers with him; these have been deemed lost. During this last period, Kosyk maintained intensive contacts with the young Serbian writer Mina Witkojc
Mina Witkojc
Mina Witkojc was a Sorbian poet. She wrote in the Lower Sorbian language.- Works :* Dolnoserbske basni, Budyšin 1925* Wĕnašk błośańskich kwĕtkow, Budyšin 1934* K swĕtłu a słyńcu, Berlin 1955...
.
Heritage
Mato Kosyk's work is predominantly lyrical, and includes very little prose. His poems are concentrated around the Christian faith, which Kosyk generally connected to nature in general and Lusatia in particular. The latter is the equivalent of the homeland, of the Heimat, and is contrasted with the foreign. Kosyk identifies this through the Sorbian language, which on the one hand combines beauty and vulnerability and on the other hand has to battle against imminent extinction.Kosyk used both classical form as well as rhyming forms taken from folk culture for his poems. His preference was for the hexameter
Hexameter
Hexameter is a metrical line of verse consisting of six feet. It was the standard epic metre in classical Greek and Latin literature, such as in the Iliad and Aeneid. Its use in other genres of composition include Horace's satires, and Ovid's Metamorphoses. According to Greek mythology, hexameter...
form. For example, his Serbska swajźba w Błotach ("The Sorbian Wedding it the Spreewald") consists of nearly 2,000 hexameters. Hexameters are also used in Ten kśicowany ("The Crucified") and Helestupjenje Jezusa Kristusa ("The Descent of Jesus Christ to Hell").
The home were Kosyk lived from 1913 to 1940, situated near Albion, Oklahoma
Albion, Oklahoma
Albion is a town in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 143 at the 2000 census.- History :A United States Post Office opened at Albion, Indian Territory on December 6, 1887 and is still in operation....
, Pushmataha County, in the State of Oklahoma, may be viewed at h t t p: // www. flickr. com/photos/25600678%40N08/3354733435. The home, called the Mato Kosyk House
Mato Kosyk House
The Mato Kosyk House is a private residence in Albion, Oklahoma. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.- Mato Kosyk :...
, has been added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. Its justification for inclusion is that it is the sole surviving structure associated with Kosyk. As in Kosyk's time, it features beautiful views of the Kiamichi Mountains
Kiamichi Mountains
The Kiamichi Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern Oklahoma. A subrange within the larger Ouachita Mountains that extend from Oklahoma to western Arkansas, the Kiamichi Mountains sit within Le Flore, Pushmataha, and McCurtain counties near the towns of Poteau and Albion...
.
The primary school in Briesen
Briesen
- In Brandenburg, Germany :* Briesen , in the Spree-Neiße district * Briesen , in the Oder-Spree district,* A part of Friesack, in the Havelland district,* A part of Halbe, in the Dahme-Spreewald district,...
has been named after Kosyk.
Works
- Serbska swajźba w Błotach, 1880
- Pśerada markgroby Gera, 1881
- Branibora Pad, 1882
- Zběrka dolnoserbskich pěsnjow, 1893
- Zhromadźene spisy
- Pěsni, two parts, 1929–1930, published by Bogumił Šwela