The Texas Wends or Wends of Texas are a group of people descended from a congregation of 558 Sorbian/Wendish people under the leadership and pastoral care of John Kilian (Sorbian languages : Jan Kilian, German : Johann Killian) who emigrated from Lusatia (part of modern-day Germany) to Texas in 1854. [1] The term also refers to the other emigrations (and all descendants) occurring before and after this group. However, none came close to the size or importance of the Wendish culture in Texas.
In 1817, King Frederick William III of Prussia ordered the Lutheran and Reformed churches in his territory to unite, forming the Evangelical Church of the Prussian Union. The unification of the two branches of German Protestantism sparked a great deal of controversy. Many Lutherans, termed Old Lutherans, chose to leave the established churches and form independent church bodies. Many left for America and Australia. The dispute over ecumenism overshadowed other controversies within German Lutheranism. The group which eventually became the Wends of Texas was part of this movement, its members distinguished in their specific ethnic identity as Wends, i.e. a Slavic minority living within a predominantly German environment. [2]
Resisting the merger of Lutheranism and Calvinism being forced by the national church, this group, comprising members of many congregations and villages, met at Dauban [3] on March 23, 1854, to make decisions on what was to be done. It was decided to meet again in May to call a pastor. May 25, 1854, saw the call of John Kilian as pastor of the newly formed congregation and plans began to form for the emigration to Texas.
Converging at Hamburg, they traveled to Hull, England, where they were expecting to begin their voyage across the sea. Upon arrival they found their intention to travel on one large ship was fouled as two smaller ships awaited them. After negotiating and waiting for news to come back, their would-be ship line transported them to their requested ship among the White Star Line's line of packet ships, the Ben Nevis in Liverpool, England.
While in Liverpool, the group was exposed to the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak. After setting sail, they were forced to drop anchor at Queenstown, Ireland, to have the ship quarantined and the disease complete its cycle. Continuing on, they landed in Galveston, Texas, after passing the health inspection. Finding the largest city of Texas (at that time) beset by yellow fever, they hurriedly continued on to Houston (then about half the size of Galveston). By the time they had left Galveston, a total of 73 had died from various ailments, 55 of which died from cholera.
Upon arrival in Houston, many of the Wends did not have enough money to continue the journey inland other than to travel on foot, carrying what they could. Along the way many stopped short of the congregation's planned destination in other German communities. Ultimately arriving in present-day Lee County, they founded the Low Pin Oak Settlement (now Serbin, Texas).
Through their first winter they survived in little more than dug-outs and meager shelters. Through the coming year, they finished building their first church and school, and continued to preserve their culture. Kilian persevered, preaching in both Sorbian and German as more German migrants moved closer. Eventually he added English to the list of his preaching languages. The use of German had made such inroads into the community that gravestones for Kilian and his family were carved in German. His sons continued the Wendish preaching and teaching, but with them ended the last of major Wendish language exposure to the small colony.
The Wendish valued strong work ethic and having emigrated seeking liberty, did not feel it necessary to participate in slave ownership. [4] Many Wendish homesteads continued to grow and develop profitable cotton crop during this time. As a result of high premiums on cotton from the Union blockade of the Gulf and borders, the Wends smuggled cotton for sale on European Markets, evading federal troops and bandits [5] and boosting the economy. [6]
Several Wendish men served honorably in 1st Battalion Infantry, Waul's Texas Legion, having been recruited by a Captain Robert Voigt, Company C. The unit was eventually captured and sent to detainment by federal troops in 1863 at Yazoo City. Among C Company was a Wend, Johann Kieschnik, who, while in custody, was immediately sought out by his captors for his services as a shoemaker. Several Wendish men became seriously ill, and died in federal captivity. [7]
Expanding land and economic opportunities enticed many to start new Wendish communities and churches throughout Texas and gradually throughout the United States. This intensified following the Second World War, with many Wendish families moving to cities across the world. During this time, Concordia University Texas began studying and documenting the Texas Wends and their journey, leading to the development of the Texas Wendish Heritage Museum near the original St. Paul Church, Cemetery, and Picnic Ground. This study began to bring the Wends back together, represented by a Wendish Festival [8] started in 1988 and is still continuing. In the 1990s, the Wends began organizing trips to the Domowina and have sustained relations with the residing Wends of Lusatia.
Very little literature written in Wendish has been translated into German, much less into English. In 2018, a Texas university student translated a collection of seven Wendish poems from German into English. [9] The poems all stressed Wendish identity, written originally in Wendish. In 2018, they had been translated into German by Kito Lorenc and published . [10]
The towns and surrounding areas of Serbin, Warda, and Giddings are still composed largely of descendants of the original Lusatian pioneers; though without many Wendish speaking pastors, the culture largely exists today in the Texas Wendish Heritage Museum, which continues to publish a newsletter, hosts the annual Wendish Festival, [11] organizes trips for Wends to visit the Domowina, and is open throughout the year with special events, in Serbin, celebrating the traditions and history of the Wends. [12] [13]
With a renewal of the sense of Wendish culture since the 1970s, the Texas Wendish Heritage Society [14] preserves the history and culture of this group with their museum located in Serbin. The 3000+ artifacts, documents, and original log buildings of Johann Killian and his congregation serve as the chief voice of this bygone era. A Wendish Fest has occurred annually every fourth Sunday in September since 1988 to celebrate Wendish culture, traditions, and background. The festival has grown to be a premiere celebration of Wendish culture, with attendants from all over the world gathering to share their stories, eat Wendish noodles and streusel coffee cake, [15] participate in cross-cut saw and other traditional competitions, and keep alive the way of life brought from Lusatia. [16] They continue to decorate eggs in their cultural fashion and their egg noodles are never far from the table.
The original church bell, having been brought from Lusatia and since replaced in the St. Paul Lutheran Church's bell tower, now rests at Concordia University Texas in Austin. That institution was founded by Texas Wends and is affiliated with the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod. [17]
The Sorbian languages are the Upper Sorbian language and Lower Sorbian language, two closely related and partially mutually intelligible languages spoken by the Sorbs, a West Slavic ethno-cultural minority in the Lusatia region of Eastern Germany. They are classified under the West Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages and are therefore closely related to the other two West Slavic subgroups: Lechitic and Czech–Slovak. Historically, the languages have also been known as Wendish or Lusatian. Their collective ISO 639-2 code is wen.
Wends is a historical name for Slavs who inhabited present-day northeast Germany. It refers not to a homogeneous people, but to various peoples, tribes or groups depending on where and when it was used. In the modern day, communities identifying as Wendish exist in Slovenia, Austria, Lusatia, the United States, and Australia.
Sorbs are a West Slavic ethnic group predominantly inhabiting the parts of Lusatia located in the German states of Saxony and Brandenburg. Sorbs traditionally speak the Sorbian languages, which are closely related to Czech, Polish, Kashubian, Silesian, and Slovak. Upper Sorbian and Lower Sorbian are officially recognized minority languages in Germany.
Lusatia is a historical region in Central Europe, territorially split between Germany and Poland. Lusatia stretches from the Bóbr and Kwisa rivers in the east to the Pulsnitz and Black Elster rivers in the west, and is located within the German states of Saxony and Brandenburg as well as in the Polish voivodeships of Lower Silesia and Lubusz. Major rivers of Lusatia are the Spree and the Lusatian Neisse, which defines the border between Germany and Poland. The Lusatian Mountains of the Western Sudetes separate Lusatia from Bohemia in the south. Lusatia is traditionally divided into Upper Lusatia, the hilly southern part, and Lower Lusatia, the flat northern part.
Bautzen or Budyšin, until 1868 Budissin in German, is a town in eastern Saxony, Germany, and the administrative centre of the district of Bautzen. It is located on the Spree river, is the eighth most populous town in Saxony, and is the seat of Saxony's largest district. Bautzen lies in the bilingual Sorbian settlement area of Lusatia, and is Lusatia's third-largest town after Cottbus and Görlitz, as well as the second-largest town in Upper Lusatia.
Domowina is a political independent league of the Sorbian and Wendish people and umbrella organization of Sorbian societies in Lower and Upper Lusatia, Germany. It represents the interests of Sorbian people and is the continual successor of the previous Domowina League of the Lusatian Sorbs. The organization is a member of the Federal Union of European Nationalities since 1990.
John Kilian also German: Johann Kilian, Upper Sorbian: Jan Kilian, pronounced[ˈjaŋˈkʲilʲi.an] was a Lutheran pastor and leader of the colony known as the Wends of Texas.
Concordia University Texas is a private university in Austin, Texas. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and online degrees as well as an adult degree program for part-time and returning students.
Upper Lusatia is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the north, it makes up the region of Lusatia, named after the Slavic Lusici tribe. Both parts of Lusatia are home to the West Slavic minority group of the Sorbs.
Serbin is an unincorporated community in southwestern Lee County, Texas, United States. Located about 50 miles (80 km) east of Austin, it was originally established as Low Pin Oak Settlement by Sorbian (Wendish) immigrants to Texas in the mid-1850s. The community's name was changed to Serbin, meaning "Sorbian land" in the Sorbian language, prior to 1860. The West Slavic Sorbs are distinct from the South Slavic Serbs, although the names of the two Slavic ethnic groups have a common origin.
Weißenberg (German) or Wóspork is a town in the district of Bautzen, in Saxony, Germany. The Upper Lusatian town has approximately 3100 inhabitants and is part of the recognized Sorbian settlement area in Saxony.
Johann Gottfried Scheibel was a German theologian and a leader of the Old Lutherans.
Jan Arnošt Smoler was a Sorbian philologist and writer. He played a vital role in promoting the Sorbian languages in the 19th century.
Mato Kósyk was a German minister and Sorbian language poet. He was born in Werben, Prussia, emigrated from Lower Lusatia to the United States, and died at his rural home near Albion, Oklahoma.
The Giddings Deutsches Volksblatt was a trilingual German-American newspaper published in Giddings, Texas. Most of the content was in German, while many stories were in English and some short supplements were in Wendish (Sorbian), the language of Wendish settlers in that area of Texas, especially in nearby Serbin. In early years of publication, the newspaper included a Sorbian supplement. The Deutsches Volksblatt was designed to serve the German Texan community and especially the Wends scattered throughout Texas.
Sorbian literature refers to the literature written by the Western Slavic people of Central Europe called the Sorbs in Sorbian languages.
Krystijan Bogumił Šwjela was a Wendish/Sorbian Protestant clergyman and ethnic activist in the Lower Lusatia region.
Marja Kubašec was a Sorbian writer who is considered by literary historians to be the first woman to write novels in Upper Sorbian. Working as a schoolteacher, she wrote theatre plays, short stories, biographies, and novels dealing with the history of the Sorbian people.
The Sorbian settlement area commonly makes reference to the area in the east of Saxony and the South of Brandenburg in which the West Slavic people of the Sorbs live autochthonously. In colloquial German, it is called Sorbenland ; before 1945 also – sometimes pejoratively – called Wendei.
Maćica Serbska is a scientific association of Sorbs. It aims at promoting Sorbian studies and disseminating knowledge about the Sorbs and their culture. It is the oldest Sorbian association that is still operational. Its chair person is Anja Pohontsch since 2020.
