Mihkel Veske
Encyclopedia
Mihkel Veske is an Estonian poet
and linguist
.
in northern Livonia. He attended the village school in Pullerits, the parish school in Paistu
and secondary school in Tartu
. Between 1866 to 1867 he attended the mission school in Leipzig
. In 1872 he graduated from the University of Leipzig
with a doctoral degree. He published his doctorate in 1873 on comparative grammar of languages. Veske then returned to Estonia and worked as a journalist for the newspaper Eesti Põllumees.
From 1874 to 1887 Veske was a lecturer in Estonian language at the University of Dorpat. From 1886 until his untimely death in 1890 Veske was a lecturer in Finno-Ugric languages
at the University of Kazan.
During the 1880s, Veske was one of the leading representatives of the Estonian national awakening
. He belonged to the strongly patriotic groups around the Estonian intellectuals and journalists Carl Robert Jakobson
. From 1882 to 1886 Veske was the President of the Society of Estonian Literati
. 1884 Veske edited the magazine Oma Maa (My Land).
Veske was one of the first Estonian linguists to use the comparative method of historical linguistics. Between 1875 and 1884, he spent the summers traveling, comparing the dialects in different regions. In 1880 he visited Finland
, and in 1885/86 Hungary
. He advocated an Estonian standard language on the basis of the North Estonian dialect and phonetic spelling. During his time in Kazan, he studied the languages of the Mari and Mordvin, and dealt with the cultural relations between the Finno-Ugric
and Slavic peoples
. 1881-83, he created a two volume textbook of the Finnish language
.
After his death in Kazan, Veske's body was returned to Estonia. He is buried at the Uus-Jaani cemetery
in Tartu (Dorpat). The bronze bust on his tomb was created by the Estonian sculptor August Weizenberg (now lost).
, Russian, Finnish and Hungarian folk songs into Estonian.
Estonian literature
Estonian literature refers to literature written in the Estonian language The domination of Estonia after the Northern Crusades, from the 13th century to 1918 by Germany, Sweden, and Russia resulted few early written literary works in Estonian language. The oldest records of written Estonian...
and linguist
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
.
Life
Mihkel Veske was born on a farm in the Veske farm, HolstreHolstre
Holstre is a village in Paistu Parish, Viljandi County, Estonia. It has a population of ~220....
in northern Livonia. He attended the village school in Pullerits, the parish school in Paistu
Paistu Parish
Paistu Parish is a rural municipality of Estonia, in Viljandi County. It has a population of 1,622 and an area of 128.59 km².-Settlements:Villages...
and secondary school in Tartu
Tartu
Tartu is the second largest city of Estonia. In contrast to Estonia's political and financial capital Tallinn, Tartu is often considered the intellectual and cultural hub, especially since it is home to Estonia's oldest and most renowned university. Situated 186 km southeast of Tallinn, the...
. Between 1866 to 1867 he attended the mission school in 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...
. In 1872 he graduated from the University of Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
with a doctoral degree. He published his doctorate in 1873 on comparative grammar of languages. Veske then returned to Estonia and worked as a journalist for the newspaper Eesti Põllumees.
From 1874 to 1887 Veske was a lecturer in Estonian language at the University of Dorpat. From 1886 until his untimely death in 1890 Veske was a lecturer in Finno-Ugric languages
Finno-Ugric languages
Finno-Ugric , Finno-Ugrian or Fenno-Ugric is a traditional group of languages in the Uralic language family that comprises the Finno-Permic and Ugric language families....
at the University of Kazan.
During the 1880s, Veske was one of the leading representatives of the Estonian national awakening
Estonian national awakening
The Estonian Age of Awakening is a period in history where Estonians came to acknowledge themselves as a nation deserving the right to govern themselves. This period is considered to begin in 1850s with greater rights being granted to commoners and to end with the declaration of the Republic of...
. He belonged to the strongly patriotic groups around the Estonian intellectuals and journalists Carl Robert Jakobson
Carl Robert Jakobson
Carl Robert Jakobson was an Estonian writer, politician and teacher active in Livonia, Russian Empire. He was one of the most important persons of Estonian national awakening in the second half of the 19th century.Between 1860 and 1880, the Governorate of Livonia was led by a moderate...
. From 1882 to 1886 Veske was the President of the Society of Estonian Literati
Society of Estonian Literati
The Society of Estonian Literati was an influential association of Estonian intellectuals based in Tartu between the years 1871 to 1893.-History:...
. 1884 Veske edited the magazine Oma Maa (My Land).
Veske was one of the first Estonian linguists to use the comparative method of historical linguistics. Between 1875 and 1884, he spent the summers traveling, comparing the dialects in different regions. In 1880 he visited Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, and in 1885/86 Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
. He advocated an Estonian standard language on the basis of the North Estonian dialect and phonetic spelling. During his time in Kazan, he studied the languages of the Mari and Mordvin, and dealt with the cultural relations between the Finno-Ugric
Finno-Ugric peoples
The Finno-Ugric peoples are any of several peoples of Europe who speak languages of the proposed Finno-Ugric language family, such as the Finns, Estonians, Mordvins, and Hungarians...
and Slavic peoples
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
. 1881-83, he created a two volume textbook of the Finnish language
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
.
After his death in Kazan, Veske's body was returned to Estonia. He is buried at the Uus-Jaani cemetery
Raadi cemetery
The Raadi cemetery) is one of the oldest and largest cemeteries in Tartu, in Estonia, dating from the 18th century. Many prominent historical figures from the history of Estonia are buried here. It is also the largest burial ground of the Baltic Germans in Estonia after the destruction of Kopli...
in Tartu (Dorpat). The bronze bust on his tomb was created by the Estonian sculptor August Weizenberg (now lost).
Poetry
Veske's poetry is inspired by the simplicity of the popular Estonian folk song. Veske also collected folk poetry. He translated numerous GermanGerman folklore
German folklore shares many characteristics with Scandinavian folklore and English folklore due to their origins in a common Germanic mythology. It reflects a similar mix of influences: a pre-Christian pantheon and other beings equivalent to those of Norse mythology; magical characters associated...
, Russian, Finnish and Hungarian folk songs into Estonian.
Poetry collection
- Viisidega laulud (1874)
- Dr. Veske laulud (1899)
- Mihkel Veske laulud (1931)