Tauta

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Tauta (literally: nation) was a Lithuanian-language newspaper published by the Party of National Progress in Kaunas, Lithuania from 19 November 1919 to 5 November 1920. It was a four-page (occasionally two-page) newspaper published once or twice a week. In total, 65 issues appeared. [1]

It was organized and established by Vytautas Petrulis who was also the editor of the first nine issues published in 1919. In 1920, the editorial work was taken over by a commission, which included Liudas Noreika . From March 1920, or the 12th issue, it was edited by priest Juozas Tumas-Vaižgantas who was invited by Antanas Smetona to move from Vilnius to Kaunas. [2] Tumas and Smetona had previously worked on Viltis (Hope), which formed the early outlines of the ideology of the Party of National Progress and later the Lithuanian Nationalist Union. [2] [3]

Tauta published articles on political, cultural, economic, social, and similar topics. Its contributors included Jonas Pranas Aleksa, Sofija Kymantaitė-Čiurlionienė, Jonas Jablonskis, Martynas Yčas, Petras Klimas, Vincas Krėvė-Mickevičius, Pranas Mašiotas, Stasys Šilingas, Juozas Tūbelis, Augustinas Voldemaras. [1]

In April 1921, Tauta was replaced by Lietuvos balsas (Voice of Lithuania), edited by Antanas Smetona. [1] As he was particularly critical of the government, the publications were closed one after another by the government censors. [4] Using a loophole in the law, they would establish a new publication under a slightly different name. Thus Lietuvos balsas turned into Lietuvių balsas (Voice of the Lithuanians; November–December 1921) which became Tautos balsas (Voice of the Nation), Tėvynės balsas (Voice of the Fatherland), and eventually Krašto balsas (Voice of the Country; October 1922 – June 1923). In September 1923, they briefly revived the pre-war Vairas (Helm). [5]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Burneikienė, Genovaitė (1997). "Tauta" (PDF). In Tapinas, Laimonas; et al. (eds.). Žurnalistikos enciklopedija (in Lithuanian). Vilnius: Pradai. p. 506. ISBN   9986-776-62-7.
  2. 1 2 Merkelis, Aleksandras (1989) [1934]. Juozas Tumas Vaižgantas (in Lithuanian) (3rd ed.). Vilnius: Vaga. p. 267. ISBN   5-415-00658-3.
  3. Jakštas, Juozas (1970–1978). "Periodicals". In Sužiedėlis, Simas (ed.). Encyclopedia Lituanica . Vol. IV. Boston, Massachusetts: Juozas Kapočius. p. 222. OCLC   95559.
  4. Žemaitytė-Veilentienė, Audronė (2008). "Parlamentarizmo ir cenzūros problema 1920–1926 metais". Žurnalistikos tyrimai (in Lithuanian). I: 130. ISSN   2029-1132.
  5. Eidintas, Alfonsas (2015). Antanas Smetona and His Lithuania: From the National Liberation Movement to an Authoritarian Regime (1893-1940). On the Boundary of Two Worlds. Translated by Alfred Erich Senn. Brill Rodopi. p. 133. ISBN   9789004302037.