Jan Seklucjan (born either in 1498 [2] or around 1510, [3] died 1578) (also known as Jan from Siekluki, Seclucian, Seclucianus) was a Polish Lutheran theologian, an activist in the Protestant Reformation in Poland and Ducal Prussia (a Polish fief), [4] translator, writer, publisher and printer.
Little is known about his early life. According to his name he perhaps was born or came from the village of Siekluki in the Duchy of Masovia, near Radom. [5] Originally Seklucjan was a Dominican. [6] After studying at Leipzig he moved in around 1543 to Poznań, where he served as a Lutheran preacher. [3] [7] Threatened by the local bishop with a charge of heresy, in 1544 he found refuge at Königsberg (Królewiec, today Kaliningrad) in Ducal Prussia, at the time a fief of the Kingdom of Poland. There he lived under the protection of Duke Albert of Prussia and began publishing and printing Lutheran literature in the Polish language. He was encouraged in his endeavors by Duke Albert, who wanted to have the Bible and catechism translated into the vernacular language of the many refugees from Poland, who became his subject. Seklucjan was in charge of the parish of the church in Steindamm (part of Königsberg), [8] which served as a local center for Lutheran Poles. In many of his works he cooperated with the Polish Lutheran theologian Andrzej Samuel. [7]
Seklucjan focused mostly on translations into Polish. In 1544 or 1545 he published a Polish language catechism, entitled Wyznanie wiary chrześcijańskiej (Profession of the Christian Faith), most likely based on Martin Luther's Small Catechism, a second edition of which was printed in 1547. [9] Also in 1547 he published a hymnal, Pieśni duchowne a nabożne ("Holy and divine hymns"), which included 35 religious hymns, including eight written by Luther. [10]
In 1544 Albert of Prussia issued an edict requiring that the Bible be read in Polish to the growing number of Polish Protestants in the Duchy. To that effect he sought to procure a Polish language translator. His first choice was the theologian Rapagelanus, chair at the University of Königsberg. However, Rapagelanus died in 1545 before completing the task. Albert's second choice was the theologian Stapelage, who soon became embroiled in controversy and ended up converting back to Catholicism. It was at this point that Albert commissioned Seklucjan. [3] As a result, in 1551 Seklucjan began publishing translations of the New Testament into Polish. First, in that year, he published the Gospel of Matthew, then the other Evangelists, and in 1553 the complete New Testament. In these translations, Seklucjan collaborated with and relied on Stanisław Murzynowski, and it is likely that most of the translation work was done by Murzynowski, with Seklucjan merely taking the credit. [2] [3]
Additionally, the translation of the New Testament into Polish was delayed by a dispute between Seklucjan and another Polish translator, Jan Sandecki-Malecki. While the origins of the dispute concerned the usefulness of the Czech language as an aid in translating the New Catechism (with Sandecki-Malecki extolling the usefulness of Czech and Seklucjan insisting on purely "Polish words"), it quickly evolved to include doctrinal matters. Ultimately, thanks to support from Andreas Osiander, Seklucjan was given the exclusive right to the translation for four years, although he was forbidden from including his own commentary (aside from a preface). [2] [3]
Seklucjan also wrote original works, including Rozprawa krótka a prosta o niktórych ceremonijach i ustawach kościelnych (A short and simple treatise on some ceremonies and practices of the church"), a poetic dialog between a "student" (the author) who had just come back from travels abroad, and his elders who had stayed home. [10] [11] He also translated the works of the vernacular Polish poet and the founder of Polish literary language and literature, Mikołaj Rej. [12]
Albert of Prussia was the 37th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, who after converting to Lutheranism, became the first ruler of the Duchy of Prussia, the secularized state that emerged from the former Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights. Albert was the first European ruler to establish Lutheranism, and thus Protestantism, as the official state religion of his lands. He proved instrumental in the political spread of Protestantism in its early stage, ruling the Prussian lands for nearly six decades (1510–1568).
Mikael Agricola was a Lutheran clergyman who became the de facto founder of literary Finnish and a prominent proponent of the Protestant Reformation in Sweden, including Finland, which was a Swedish territory at the time. He is often called the "father of literary Finnish".
The Duchy of Prussia or Ducal Prussia was a duchy in the region of Prussia established as a result of secularization of the State of the Teutonic Order during the Protestant Reformation in 1525.
This article presents lists of the literary events and publications in 1563.
Justus Jonas, the Elder, or simply Justus Jonas, was a German Lutheran theologian and reformer. He was a Jurist, Professor and Hymn writer. He is best known for his translations of the writings of Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon. He accompanied Martin Luther in his final moments.
Stanislovas Svetkus Rapolionis was a Lutheran activist and Protestant reformer from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. With patronage of Albert, Duke of Prussia, he obtained the doctorate of theology from the Protestant University of Wittenberg where he studied under Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon. After graduation, he became the first professor of theology at the newly established University of Königsberg, also known as Albertina. As professor he began working on several Protestant publications and translations, including a Bible translation into Polish. It is believed that he also started the first translation of the Bible into Lithuanian. Together with Abraomas Kulvietis, Rapolionis was one of the very first authors to write in the Lithuanian language. While Rapolionis and Kulvietis died early leaving their work unfinished, they laid the foundations for future Lithuanian writers and translators.
Jonas Bretkūnas, Johann(es) Bretke, also known as Bretkus (born 1536 in Bammeln near Friedland – 1602 Königsberg was a Lutheran pastor and was one of the best known developers of the written Lithuanian language. He translated the Bible into Lithuanian, was the author of twelve Lithuanian books, and a historian as well.
Königsberg is the name for a former German city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Originally a Sambian or Old Prussian city, it later belonged to the State of the Teutonic Order, the Duchy of Prussia, the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire, the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany until 1945. After being largely destroyed in World War II by Allied bombing and Soviet forces and annexed by the Soviet Union thereafter, the city was renamed Kaliningrad. Few traces of the former Königsberg remain today.
Valentinus Smalcius was a German Socinian theologian. He is known for his German translation of the Racovian Catechism, and Racovian New Testament (1606) translated from Greek into Polish. A migrant to Poland, he became largely Polonised towards the end of his life.
The earliest Bible translations into the Polish language date to the 13th century. The first full ones were completed in the 16th.
The first known translations of the Bible into the Lithuanian language appeared in the middle of the 16th century following the spread of the Protestant Reformation. The full Protestant Bible was first published in 1735 in Königsberg. The full Roman Catholic translation was published in 1911–1937 in Kaunas.
Aleksander Augezdecky was a Polish printer and publisher of Czech origin.
Hans Weinreich was a publisher and printer of German and Polish language books in the first half of the sixteenth century. Weinreich was originally from Danzig (Gdańsk) in Royal Prussia, Kingdom of Poland, and then moved to Königsberg (Królewiec) in Ducal Prussia at the invitation of Albert of Prussia.
Eustachy Trepka was a Polish Lutheran theologian, pastor, and translator.
Stanisław Murzynowski was a Polish writer, translator and a Lutheran activist during the Protestant Reformation. Murzynowski came from a Polish noble family of the Ogończyk coat of arms.
Hieronim Malecki (1527, most likely in Kraków – 1583 or 1584 in Lyck, Ducal Prussia was a Polish, Prussian Lutheran pastor and theologian, as well as a translator, publisher, writer and creator of literary Polish.
The History of Poles in Königsberg goes back to the 14th century. In the struggles between the Kingdom of Poland and the Teutonic Order, the city was briefly part of the Polish state, and after the Second Peace of Toruń, 1466, it was a capital of Duchy of Prussia, a fief of Poland. During the Protestant Reformation Królewiec became the center of Polish Lutheranism and partially for this reason, a birthplace of Polish printing and one of the epicenters of vernacular Polish literature. Polish intellectuals and scholars played a major role in the founding of the University of Königsberg (Albertina) and served as both faculty and administrators.
The Simple Words of Catechism by Martynas Mažvydas is the first printed book in the Lithuanian language. It was printed on 8 January 1547 by Hans Weinreich in Königsberg. The 79-page book followed the teachings of Martin Luther but reflects both religious and secular needs. The book included the first Lithuanian-language poem, primer with alphabet, basic catechism, and 11 religious hymns with sheet music. The book was written in the Samogitian dialect and printed in Gothic (schwabacher) font; Latin dedication and preface are printed in Latin font (antiqua).
The Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV) is a project to create an accurate, balanced translation of the Bible into the English language. The Bible translation began in 2013 due to the relative lack of a commonly accepted translation, especially among Lutherans, compared to the historical popularity of the King James Version and New International Version, due in part to the replacement of the 1984 version of the New International Version by the 2011 version and the ageing language used in the King James Version. The group of translators consists of pastors and teachers from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) and Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS). The Wartburg Project, the group which created the EHV, has finished a version containing the New Testament and Psalms, which was published in the summer of 2017, and the full version has been sent to Northwestern Publishing House.
