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Kurier Wileński

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Kurier Wileński
Kurier Wileński logo-en.png
TypeDaily newspaper
FormatA4
Owner(s)VšĮ "Kurier Wilenski"
PublisherUAB "Klion"
EditorRobert Mickiewicz
Staff writers24
Founded1796
LanguagePolish language
HeadquartersVilnius, Lithuania
Circulation2,500 daily
3,500 Saturday
ISSN1392-0405
Websitekurierwilenski.lt

Kurier Wileński (literally: Vilnian Courier) is the main Polish-language newspaper in Lithuania. Printed in Vilnius, it is the only Polish-language daily newspaper published east of Poland. A direct descendant of both the 19th-century newspaper of the same name and the Czerwony Sztandar [pl] newspaper, created by the Soviet authorities in 1953 as a means of Sovietization of the Polish diaspora left in the Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union. The newspaper is a member of the European Association of Daily Newspapers in Minority and Regional Languages (MIDAS). According to TNS Gallup media research, Kurier Wileński 36,800 people or 1.4% of Lithuania's population read at least one issue out of the last six in summer 2008,[1] but that measure dropped to 0.3% in spring 2010.[2]

Discover more about Kurier Wileński related topics

Polish language

Polish language

Polish is a West Slavic language of the Lechitic group written in the Latin script. It is spoken primarily in Poland and serves as the native language of the Poles. In addition to being the official language of Poland, it is also used by the Polish diaspora. There are over 50 million Polish speakers around the world. It ranks as the sixth most-spoken among languages of the European Union. Polish is subdivided into regional dialects and maintains strict T–V distinction pronouns, honorifics, and various forms of formalities when addressing individuals.

Newspaper

Newspaper

A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.

Lithuania

Lithuania

Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania shares land borders with Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and Russia to the southwest. It has a maritime border with Sweden to the west on the Baltic Sea. Lithuania covers an area of 65,300 km2 (25,200 sq mi), with a population of 2.8 million. Its capital and largest city is Vilnius; other major cities are Kaunas and Klaipėda. Lithuanians belong to the ethno-linguistic group of the Balts and speak Lithuanian, one of only a few living Baltic languages.

Vilnius

Vilnius

Vilnius is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 625,349 or 630,885 as of 2023. The population of Vilnius's functional urban area, which stretches beyond the city limits, is estimated at 718,507, while according to the Vilnius territorial health insurance fund, there were 753,875 permanent inhabitants as of November 2022 in Vilnius city and Vilnius district municipalities combined. Vilnius is situated in southeastern Lithuania and is currently the largest city in the Baltic states. It is the seat of Lithuania's national government and the Vilnius District Municipality.

Sovietization

Sovietization

Sovietization is the adoption of a political system based on the model of soviets or the adoption of a way of life, mentality, and culture modelled after the Soviet Union. This often included adopting the Latin or Cyrillic script, and sometimes also the Russian language.

History

Early history

The newspaper was first founded under the name of Kurier Litewski in 1796 in Grodno (modern Hrodna). The following year it moved to Vilna (modern Vilnius, Lithuania), where it became one of the principal sources of information for the local population. After the November Uprising of 1831, the newspaper was ordered to prepare a Russian language version as well, and served the role of the official newspaper of the Russian authorities of Vilna Governorate. However, it also fulfilled an important role in countering the Russification of local Poles.

In 1840 the newspaper was renamed to Kurier Wileński and attracted many notable Polish writers and journalists of the era as one of the very few relatively free newspapers in the lands ruled by the Russian Empire. Among them was Władysław Syrokomla and Antoni Odyniec. The newspaper was closed down and banned after the failed January Uprising of 1863.

It was relaunched under the title of Kurier Litewski after the Revolution of 1905. Headed by Eliza Orzeszkowa, it promoted Polish literature and culture, for which it was closed down several times by the Tsarist authorities. The title remained until the outbreak of World War I and the German occupation of Vilna in 1915.

During the interbellum the Polish press was no longer persecuted by the local authorities and the title was continued as one of several newspapers, the most important local newspapers being Słowo (headed by Stanisław Cat Mackiewicz), Robotnik Wileński and Express Wileński. Altogether, there were 114 newspapers published in Wilno in late 1930s, among them 17 dailies. 74 titles were being published in Polish, 16 in Yiddish and Hebrew, 12 in Belarusian, 9 in Lithuanian and 3 in Russian.

After the Invasion of Poland of 1939 and the Soviet annexation of Vilna, Kurier Wileński was closed down (the last issue was dated September 18, 1939). The only newspaper that was allowed by the Soviet authorities was Belarusian-language Vilenskaya Prauda (Віленская праўда). After the city was transferred to Lithuania, Kurier Wileński was allowed to be published, this time under heavy control of the Lithuanian authorities and censorship. It was again closed down after the city was annexed by the Soviet Union and its role was taken over by roughly 73 underground newspapers published in the city during the rest of World War II.

Czerwony Sztandar

After the war most of the local inhabitants of Vilnius were expelled from the city. However, a sizeable Polish minority in Lithuania remained. The Polish-language newspaper Czerwony Sztandar (Red Banner), edited by Antoni Fiedorowicz, was established.[3]

In 1962, Leonid Romanowicz became the new editor in chief. Although Russian himself, Romanowicz was fascinated by the Polish culture and started to attract many notable journalists and writers. He also promoted the newspaper and it became the only daily newspaper in Polish available to many Poles in the Soviet Union. With time Russian staff was replaced by Poles and in 1984 Stanisław Jakutis became the new editor in chief.

In independent Lithuania

On November 1, 1988, Stanisław Jakutis was replaced by Zbigniew Balcewicz, who wanted to rename the newspaper back to Kurier Wileński to reflect the historic traditions. The first attempt to rename the daily was dismissed at the 20th Assembly of the Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Lithuania as a "newspaper with such name was being published during the period between World Wars, when Vilnius region was under Polish occupation". Only after second attempt, made after publication by Lithuanian scientist about the roots of Kurier Wileński and the history of Lithuanian press, Czerwony Sztandar ceased to exist and was replaced by Kurier Wileński on February 9, 1990.

On February 23, 1990, the Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Lithuania and Chair of the Supreme Soviet of the Lithuanian SSR issued a statement, of which 3rd point stated, that "In order to reflect the opinions of representatives of various nationalities and social classes of the Republic, we state that Sovietskaya Litva and Kurier Wileński are the newspapers of the Supreme Soviet of Lithuania and the Council of Ministers of Lithuania". On May 2, special issue of the newspaper was issued and Dziennik KC KP Litwy (The daily of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Lithuania) was removed from the paper's front page.

In 1995, the newspaper was privatised by its staff and in upcoming turmoil almost went bankrupt. It was taken over by UAB "Klion", and, after being reorganised and modernised, was moved to the new quarters. In 2000 it was passed to non-profit publisher Vilnijos Žodis.

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November Uprising

November Uprising

The November Uprising (1830–31), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in the heartland of partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. The uprising began on 29 November 1830 in Warsaw when young Polish officers from the military academy of the Army of Congress Poland revolted, led by Lieutenant Piotr Wysocki. Large segments of the peoples of Lithuania, Belarus, and the Right-bank Ukraine soon joined the uprising. Although the insurgents achieved local successes, a numerically superior Imperial Russian Army under Ivan Paskevich eventually crushed the uprising. The Russian Emperor Nicholas I issued the Organic Statute in 1832, according to which henceforth Russian-occupied Poland would lose its autonomy and become an integral part of the Russian Empire. Warsaw became little more than a military garrison, and its university closed.

Russian language

Russian language

Russian is an East Slavic language mainly spoken in Russia. It is the native language of the Russians and belongs to the Indo-European language family. It is one of four living East Slavic languages, and is also a part of the larger Balto-Slavic languages. Besides Russia itself, Russian is an official language in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, and is used widely as a lingua franca throughout Ukraine, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and to some extent in the Baltic states. It was the de facto language of the former Soviet Union.

Vilna Governorate

Vilna Governorate

The Vilna Governorate or Government of Vilnius was a governorate of the Russian Empire created after the Third Partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795. It was part of the Lithuanian General Governorate, which was called the Vilnius General Governorate after 1830, and was attached to the Northwestern Krai. The seat was in Vilnius, where the Governors General resided.

Russification

Russification

Russification, or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians, whether involuntarily or voluntarily, give up their culture and language in favor of the Russian culture and the Russian language.

Russian Empire

Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. The rise of the Russian Empire coincided with the decline of neighbouring rival powers: the Swedish Empire, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Qajar Iran, the Ottoman Empire, and Qing China. It also held colonies in North America between 1799 and 1867. Covering an area of approximately 22,800,000 square kilometres (8,800,000 sq mi), it remains the third-largest empire in history, surpassed only by the British Empire and the Mongol Empire; it ruled over a population of 125.6 million people per the 1897 Russian census, the only census carried out during the entire imperial period. Owing to its geographic extent across three continents at its peak, it featured great ethnic, linguistic, religious, and economic diversity.

January Uprising

January Uprising

The January Uprising was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at the restoration of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It began on 22 January 1863 and continued until the last insurgents were captured by the Russian forces in 1864.

Eliza Orzeszkowa

Eliza Orzeszkowa

Eliza Orzeszkowa was a Polish novelist and a leading writer of the Positivism movement during foreign Partitions of Poland. In 1905, together with Henryk Sienkiewicz, she was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Polish language

Polish language

Polish is a West Slavic language of the Lechitic group written in the Latin script. It is spoken primarily in Poland and serves as the native language of the Poles. In addition to being the official language of Poland, it is also used by the Polish diaspora. There are over 50 million Polish speakers around the world. It ranks as the sixth most-spoken among languages of the European Union. Polish is subdivided into regional dialects and maintains strict T–V distinction pronouns, honorifics, and various forms of formalities when addressing individuals.

Hebrew language

Hebrew language

Hebrew is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. It was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a spoken language by their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans, before dying out after 200 CE. However, it was largely preserved as a liturgical language, featuring prominently in Judaism and Samaritanism. Having ceased to be a dead language in the 19th century, today's Hebrew serves as the only successful large-scale example of linguistic revival. It is the only non-extinct Canaanite language, and is also one of only two Northwest Semitic languages still spoken, with the other being Aramaic.

Lithuania

Lithuania

Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania shares land borders with Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and Russia to the southwest. It has a maritime border with Sweden to the west on the Baltic Sea. Lithuania covers an area of 65,300 km2 (25,200 sq mi), with a population of 2.8 million. Its capital and largest city is Vilnius; other major cities are Kaunas and Klaipėda. Lithuanians belong to the ethno-linguistic group of the Balts and speak Lithuanian, one of only a few living Baltic languages.

Censorship

Censorship

Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments, private institutions and other controlling bodies.

Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national republics; in practice, both its government and its economy were highly centralized until its final years. It was a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, with the city of Moscow serving as its capital as well as that of its largest and most populous republic: the Russian SFSR. Other major cities included Leningrad, Kiev, Minsk, Tashkent, Alma-Ata, and Novosibirsk. It was the largest country in the world, covering over 22,402,200 square kilometres (8,649,500 sq mi) and spanning eleven time zones.

Structure

The newspaper does not financially sustain itself and relies on support from the Polish Senate. According to press reports in 2007, the daily received approximately 120,000 litas annually to cover paper and printing costs from the Polish Senate and 4,000 litas monthly from Vilnius city municipality for advertising.[4] In 2011, the daily suffered large financial losses due to increased postage costs, shrinking readership, and overall economic downturn.[5] It considered publishing only three issues a week, but Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs promised to find enough funding to keep the newspaper on a daily schedule. The Polish support during the first ten months amounted to 328,000 Polish zloty.[6]

Kurier Wileński has its own printing shop, which proved to be more cost effective. Its current circulation is between 2,500 and 3,500, issued Tuesday through Saturday. Daily issues have 16 pages, while Saturday issues have 24 pages and a TV supplement. Gazeta Harcerska (Scout's gazette) is a weekly page about Polish scouts is written exclusively by the scouts.

The staff consists of 24 people, including printing-shop's workers and management. There are four full-time journalists, four half-time journalists and seven freelancers.

Other activities

During the Perestroika and the dissolution of the USSR, Czerwony Sztandar and later Kurier Wileński led numerous social campaigns. Among them were campaigns against demolition of the Rasos Cemetery and for creation of Polish kindergartens to prevent the growing Lithuanization of Polish children.

Kurier Wileński is also, along with Gazeta Wyborcza, responsible for media coverage of the festival Kaziuki Wilniuki (inspired by Kaziuko mugė in Vilnius) held annually on March 3 to 6 in Lidzbark Warmiński.[7]

On August 5, 2005, journalists of Kurier Wileński, together with colleagues from newspapers Tygodnik Wileńszczyzny and Magazyn Wileński, radio station Znad Wilii, quarterly Znad Wilii and TV program Album Wileński organised a protest in front of the Belarusian embassy in Vilnius against repressions of Polish journalists in Belarus.[8]

On October 17, 2008, the daily switched to the F4 format[9] (before that Kurier Wileński was published in the tabloid format).

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Perestroika

Perestroika

Perestroika was a political movement for reform within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s widely associated with CPSU general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev and his glasnost policy reform. The literal meaning of perestroika is "reconstruction", referring to the restructuring of the Soviet political and economic system, in an attempt to end the Era of Stagnation.

Rasos Cemetery

Rasos Cemetery

Rasos Cemetery is the oldest and most famous cemetery in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania. It is named after the Rasos district where it is located. It is separated into two parts, the old and the new cemeteries, by a narrow Sukilėliai Street. The total area is 10.8 ha. Since 1990 new burials are allowed only to family graves.

Lithuanization

Lithuanization

Lithuanization is a process of cultural assimilation, where Lithuanian culture or its language is voluntarily or forcibly adopted.

Gazeta Wyborcza

Gazeta Wyborcza

Gazeta Wyborcza is a Polish nationwide daily newspaper based in Warsaw, Poland. Launched on May 8, 1989, as the first Polish daily newspaper after the transformation. The newspaper was founded on the basis of the Polish Round Table Agreement, as a press organ of the trade union "Solidarity" in the election campaign before the Contract Sejm.

Kaziuko mugė

Kaziuko mugė

Kaziuko mugė or Saint Casimir's Fair is a large annual folk arts and crafts fair in Vilnius, Lithuania, dating to the beginning of the 17th century. The fair is traditionally held in city's markets and streets on the Sunday nearest to 4 March, the anniversary of Saint Casimir's death. In Lithuanian, Kaziukas is a diminutive of Casimir. Today, Saint Casimir's fair also features music, dance, theater performances; it attracts tens of thousands of visitors and many craftsmen from across Lithuania as well as from neighbouring countries such as Latvia, Russia, and Poland. In recent years, the fair has expanded into other cities in Lithuania, Belarus, Poland.

Lidzbark Warmiński

Lidzbark Warmiński

Lidzbark Warmiński, often shortened to Lidzbark, is a historical town located within the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northern Poland. It is the capital of Lidzbark County.

Magazyn Wileński

Magazyn Wileński

Magazyn Wileński is a Polish-language monthly political and cultural magazine based in Lithuania. In 2005 it was one of four Polish-language print publications in the country.

Belarus

Belarus

Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Covering an area of 207,600 square kilometres (80,200 sq mi) and with a population of 9.2 million, Belarus is the 13th-largest and the 20th-most populous country in Europe. The country has a hemiboreal climate and is administratively divided into seven regions. Minsk is the capital and largest city.

Controversies

Much of controversy surrounds the daily regarding its financial status and takeover by UAB "Klion". Also, there are conflicts with Lithuanian nationalists who regard Lithuanian Poles as merely Polonised Lithuanians.[10]

Article by Krzysztof Buchowski

In November 2006, Kurier Wileński published an article by Krzysztof Buchowski, Polish historian from the Białystok University, about Polish and Lithuanian relations between the world wars (Polish: Jak Polak widział Litwina w okresie międzywojennym). It was a reprint of a thesis presented during a Polish–Lithuanian historical conference (Polish: Stosunki polsko-litewskie na przestrzeni wieków) at Vilnius University.

In January 2007 (before municipal elections, in which Polish party also participated), Lithuanian TV program Savaitės komentarai on the TV3 station sparked a scandal claiming that the article was insulting the Lithuanians. Information about the article was passed on to the Lithuanian Ethics Committee of Journalists and Publishers (Lithuanian: Lietuvos žurnalistų ir leidėjų etikos komisija), which decided on March 19, 2007, that Kurier Wileński acted unethically publishing an article that was derogatory and insulting to the Lithuanians.[11] The daily lost the appeal with the Committee and sued in the Lithuanian courts. The court rejected the appeal in April 2011. Kurier Wileński then submitted the case to the European Court of Human Rights.[12]

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Krzysztof Buchowski

Krzysztof Buchowski

Krzysztof Buchowski is a Polish historian at Institute of History at University of Białystok. He specializes in Central and Eastern European history in 19th-20th century and Polish-Lithuanian relations.

Polish language

Polish language

Polish is a West Slavic language of the Lechitic group written in the Latin script. It is spoken primarily in Poland and serves as the native language of the Poles. In addition to being the official language of Poland, it is also used by the Polish diaspora. There are over 50 million Polish speakers around the world. It ranks as the sixth most-spoken among languages of the European Union. Polish is subdivided into regional dialects and maintains strict T–V distinction pronouns, honorifics, and various forms of formalities when addressing individuals.

Vilnius University

Vilnius University

Vilnius University is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom, Denmark and Sweden. Today it is Lithuania's leading academic institution, ranked among the top 400 (QS) or top 800 (ARWU) universities worldwide. As of 2022 QS ranks VU as 8th in CEE ; an ARWU equivalent would be 11th.

Lithuanian language

Lithuanian language

Lithuanian is an Eastern Baltic language belonging to the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the official language of Lithuania and one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.8 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 200,000 speakers elsewhere.

European Court of Human Rights

European Court of Human Rights

The European Court of Human Rights, also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a contracting state has breached one or more of the human rights enumerated in the convention or its optional protocols to which a member state is a party. The European Convention on Human Rights is also referred to by the initials "ECHR". The court is based in Strasbourg, France.

Source: "Kurier Wileński", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, January 30th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurier_Wileński.

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References
  1. ^ "Spaudos auditorija 2008 m. vasara" (PDF) (in Lithuanian). TNS Gallup. 2008. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-02-06.
  2. ^ "Artūras Kokoškinas: TNS skaičiai kelia nerimą dėl popierinės spaudos ateities" (in Lithuanian). Media House. 2010-09-03. Archived from the original on 2010-11-25.
  3. ^ Sienkiewicz, Jan (2003). Kronika na gorąco pisana: "Czerwony Sztandar" - Kurier Wileński 1953-2003 (in Polish). Wilno: Kurier Wileński. p. 258. ISBN 9955-9628-1-X.
  4. ^ Lukaitytė, Rasa (2007-04-02). "Lietuvius juodinantį straipsnį išspausdinęs "Kurier Wilenski" savo nuomonę ketina ginti teisme" (in Lithuanian). Delfi.lt. „Kurier Wilenski" kasmet iš Lenkijos senato gauna 120 000 litų dotaciją, už kurią perka popierių bei dengia dalį spausdinimo išlaidų. 4 tūkst. litų „Kurier Wilenski" kas mėnesį skiria ir Vilniaus miesto savivaldybė, už tai leidinyje gaunanti keturis puslapius reklaminio ploto.
  5. ^ Baltic News Service (2011-10-26). ""Kurier Wilenski" bus leidžiamas tik triskart per savaitę" (in Lithuanian). Delfi.lt.
  6. ^ "Laikraštį "Kurier Wilenski" gelbės Lenkijos URM" (in Lithuanian). Delfi.lt. 2011-10-28.
  7. ^ Kaczan, Norbert (2005-03-02). "Kaziuki Wilniuki w weekend" (in Polish).
  8. ^ ELTA (2005-08-05). "Baltarusijos ambasadai įteiktas spaudos laisvę Baltarusijoje ginantis kreipimasis" (in Lithuanian). Delfi.lt.
  9. ^ "Kurier Wileński w nowym formacie" (PDF) (in Polish).
  10. ^ Šakalys, Antanas R. (2007). "Kur tautiškumo ir valstybės tapatybės krizė" (PDF). Varpas (in Lithuanian). 06 (152): 3. ISSN 1648-0244.
  11. ^ Jackevičius, Mindaugas (2007-03-19). ""Kurier Willenski" už lietuvių juodinimą – žurnalistų etikos sargų kirtis" (in Lithuanian). Delfi.lt.
  12. ^ ""Kurier Wilenski" skundžia Lietuvą EŽTT" (in Lithuanian). Delfi.lt. 2011-10-17.
External links

Coordinates: 54°39′44″N 25°18′11″E / 54.662264°N 25.303187°E / 54.662264; 25.303187

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