Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 12 January (BelTA) – The legacy of Yanka Kupala is of international importance, Belarusian Culture Minister Boris Svetlov said at the opening event of Yanka Kupala’s anniversary year celebrations today, BelTA has learned.

“Yanka Kupala’s legacy is of international importance. Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Latvia, and Slovakia will also join the anniversary celebrations. Both we and our descendants should know and remember Yanka Kupala as a great poet and a great citizen,” Boris Svetlov said.

Yanka Kupala’s life is an example of a patriotic self-sacrifice. “Both as a poet and as a social and political activist, Yanka Kupala strived to give back to Belarusians their “place of honor and fame among nations”. It was his highest achievement, I believe,” Boris Svetlov stressed.

He also noted that the cultural events of 2017 are a logical continuation of 2016, which was declared the Year of Culture in Belarus. “In my opinion, the Year of Culture continues with certain names of eminent representatives of our culture. Yanka Kupala is one of the most notable of them. We continue the efforts to revive and preserve Belarusian culture,” Boris Svetlov added.

The celebrations started with the presentation of Yanka Kupala’s portrait by Russian painter Nikolai Pavlov. Chairman of the Federal National and Cultural Association “Belarusians of Russia” Sergei Kandybovich donated the portrait to the poet’s museum. “It is symbolic that we learned about this portrait on the eve of the poet’s anniversary. Along with other works by Nikolai Pavlov, it was put up for an auction in Moscow. We decided to buy the artwork and donate it to the poet’s museum,” Sergei Kandybovich said.

Some original handwritten poems by Yanka Kupala (My Fate, And Who's Going There?, The Prophet, and The Heritage) were awarded the status of Category 1 historical and cultural value by the Council of Ministers’ executive order No.607 of 2 August 2016.

Yanka Kupala is one of the most respected Belarusian authors. Many Belarusian streets are named after him. There are also a lot of monuments and commemorative plaques to Yanka Kupala both in Belarus and abroad.