Mihai Eminescu

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Eminescu" redirects here. For other uses, see Eminescu (disambiguation).

Mihai Eminescu

Born

15 January 1850 Botoani, Moldavia

Died

15 June 1889 (aged 39) Bucharest, Romania

Occupation

Poet

Genres

Romanticism

Notable work(s)

"Luceafrul", "Scrisoarea III", "Ft-Frumos din lacrim"

Mihai Eminescu (Romanian pronunciation: [mihaj eminesku]; born Mihail Eminovici; 15 January 1850 15 June 1889) was aRomantic poet, novelist and journalist, often regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet.[1] Eminescu was an active member of the Junimea literary society and he worked as an editor for the newspaper Timpul ("The Time"), the official newspaper of the Conservative Party (18801918).[2] His poetry was first published when he was 16 and he went to Vienna to study when he was 19. The poet's Manuscripts, containing 46 volumes and approximately 14,000 pages, were offered by Titu Maiorescu as a gift to the Romanian Academy during the meeting that was held on 25 January 1902.[3] Notable works include Luceafrul (The Vesper/The Evening Star/The Lucifer/The Daystar), Od n metru antic (Ode in Ancient Meter), and the five Letters (Epistles/Satires). In his poems he frequently used metaphysical, mythological and historical subjects.
Contents [hide] 1 Life o o o o 1.1 Family 1.2 Early years 1.3 Statue 1.4 Later life

2 Works o o 2.1 Poetry 2.2 Prose

3 Romanian culture o o o o 3.1 Genius 3.2 National poet 3.3 Iconography 3.4 International legacy

4 Political views 5 References o o 5.1 Footnotes 5.2 Notation

6 External links

Life[edit]
Family[edit]

Family

Mihai Eminescu statue, Copou Park

Mihai Eminescu statue,Chiinu

His father was Gheorghe Eminovici from Clineti, a Moldavian village in Suceava county, Bucovina, which was then part of the Austrian Empire (while his father came from Banat). He crossed the border into Moldavia, settling in Ipoteti, near the town of Botoani. He married Raluca Iuracu, an heiress of an old aristocratic Moldavian family. In a register of the members of Junimea, Eminescu himself wrote down the date of his birth as 22 December 1849 and in the documents of the Gymnasium from Cernui, where Eminescu studied, the date of 14 December 1849 is written down as his birthday. Nevertheless, Titu Maiorescu, in his work Eminescu and His Poems (1889) quoted N. D. Giurescu's researches and adopted his conclusion regarding the date and place of Mihai Eminescu's birth, as being 15 January 1850, in Botoani. This date resulted from several sources, amongst which there was a file of notes on christenings from the archives of the Uspenia (Domneasc) Church of Botoani; inside this file, the date of birth was "15 January 1850" and the date of christening was the 21st of the same month. The date of his birth was confirmed by the poet's elder sister, Aglae Drogli, who affirmed that the place of birth was the village of Ipoteti.[4]

Early years[edit]
Mihail (as he appears in baptismal records) or Mihai (the more common form that he used) was born in Botoani, Moldavia. He spent his early childhood in Botoani and Ipoteti, in his parents' family

home. From 1858 to 1866 he attended school in Cernui. He finished 4th grade as the 5th of 82 students, after which he attended two years of gymnasium. The first evidence of Eminescu as a writer is in 1866. In January of that year Romanian teacher Aron Pumnul died and his students in Cernuipublished a pamphlet, Lcrmioarele nvceilor gimnaziati (Tears of the Gymnasium Students) in which a poem entitled La mormntul lui Aron Pumnul (At the Grave of Aron Pumnul) appears, signed "M. Eminovici". On 25 February his poem De-a avea (If I were to have) was published in Iosif Vulcan's literary magazine Familia in Pest. This began a steady series of published poems (and the occasional translation from German). Also, it was Iosif Vulcan, who disliked the Slavic source suffix "-ici" of the young poet's last name, that chose for him the more apparent Romanian "nom de plume" Mihai Eminescu. In 1867 he joined the troupe of Iorgu Caragiale as clerk and prompter; the next year he transferred to the troupe of Mihai Pascaly. Both of these were among the leading Romanian theatrical troupes of their day, the latter including Matei Millo and Fanny Tardini-Vldicescu. He soon settled in Bucharest, where at the end of November he became a clerk and copyist for the National Theater. Through this period, he continued to write and publish poems. He also paid his rent by translating hundreds of pages of a book by Heinrich Theodor Rotscher, although this never resulted in a completed work. Also at this time he began his novel Geniu pustiu (Wasted Genius), published posthumously in 1904 in an unfinished form. On 1 April 1869 he was a co-founder of the "Orient" literary circle, whose interests included the gathering of Romanian folklore, and documents relating to Romanian literary history. On 29 June, various members of the "Orient" group were commissioned to go to different provinces. Eminescu was assigned Moldavia. That summer, he quite by chance ran into his brother Iorgu, a military officer, in Cimigiu Gardens, but firmly rebuffed Iorgu's attempt to get him to renew ties to his family. Still in summer 1869, he left Pascaly's troupe and traveled to Cernui and Iai. He renewed ties to his family; his father promised him a regular allowance to pursue studies in Vienna in the fall. As always, he continued to write and publish poetry; notably, on the occasion of the death of the former ruler of Wallachia, Barbu Dimitrie tirbei, he published a leaflet, La moartea principelui tirbei.

Statue[edit]

The University's Central Library "Mihai Eminescu", Iai

Eminescu's signature

From October 1869 to 1872 he studied in Vienna. He was counted as an "extraordinary auditor" at the Faculty of Philosophy and Law. He was active in student life, befriended Ioan Slavici, and came to know Vienna through Veronica Micle; he became a contributor to Convorbiri literare(Literary Conversations), edited by Junimea (The Youth). The leaders of this cultural organisation, Petre P. Carp, Vasile Pogor, Theodor Rosetti, Iacob Negruzzi and Titu Maiorescu, exercised their political and cultural influence over Eminescu for the rest of his life. Impressed by one of Eminescu's poems, Venere i Madon (Venus and Madonna), Iacob Negruzzi, the editor of Convorbiri literare, traveled to Vienna to meet him. Negruzzi would later write how he could pick Eminescu out of a crowd of young people in a Viennese caf by his "romantic" appearance: long hair and gaze lost in thoughts. In 1870 Eminescu wrote three articles under the pseudonym "Varro" in Federaiunea in Pest, on the situation of Romanians and other minorities in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He then became a journalist for the newspaper Albina (The Bee) in Pest. From 1872 to 1874 he continued as a student in Berlin, thanks to a stipend offered by Junimea. From 1874 to 1877 he worked as director of the Central Library in Iai, substitute teacher, school inspector for the counties of Iai andVaslui, and editor of the newspaper Curierul de Iai (The Courier of Iai), all thanks to his friendship with Titu Maiorescu, the leader ofJunimea and rector of

the University of Iai. He continued to publish in Convorbiri literare. He became a good friend of Ion Creang, whom he convinced to become a writer and introduced to the Junimea literary club. In 1877 he moved to Bucharest, where until 1883 he was first journalist, then (1880) editor-in-chief of the newspaper Timpul (The Time). During this time he wrote Scrisorile, Luceafrul, Od n metru antic etc. Most of his notable editorial pieces belong to this period, when Romania was fighting the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish War of 18771878 and throughout the diplomatic race that eventually brought about the international recognition of Romanian independence, but under the condition of bestowing Romanian citizenship to all subjects of Jewish faith. Eminescu opposed this and another clause of the Treaty of Berlin: Romania's having to give southern Bessarabia to Russia in exchange for Northern Dobrudja, a former Ottoman province on the Black Sea. In June 1883, the poet fell seriously ill, and was interned in the hospital of

Mihai Eminescu
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Eminescu" redirects here. For other uses, see Eminescu (disambiguation).

Mihai Eminescu

Born

15 January 1850 Botoani, Moldavia

Died

15 June 1889 (aged 39) Bucharest, Romania

Occupation

Poet

Genres

Romanticism

Notable work(s)

"Luceafrul", "Scrisoarea III", "Ft-Frumos din lacrim"

Mihai Eminescu (Romanian pronunciation: [mihaj eminesku]; born Mihail Eminovici; 15 January 1850 15 June 1889) was aRomantic poet, novelist and journalist, often regarded as the most famous and influential Romanian poet.[1] Eminescu was an active member of the Junimea literary society and he worked as an editor for the newspaper Timpul ("The Time"), the official newspaper of the Conservative Party (18801918).[2] His poetry was first published when he was 16 and he went to Vienna to study when he was 19. The poet's Manuscripts, containing 46 volumes and approximately 14,000 pages, were offered by Titu Maiorescu as a gift to the Romanian Academy during the meeting that was held on 25 January 1902.[3] Notable works include Luceafrul (The Vesper/The Evening Star/The Lucifer/The Daystar), Od n metru antic (Ode in Ancient Meter), and the five Letters (Epistles/Satires). In his poems he frequently used metaphysical, mythological and historical subjects.
Contents [hide] 1 Life o o o o 1.1 Family 1.2 Early years 1.3 Statue 1.4 Later life

2 Works o o 2.1 Poetry 2.2 Prose

3 Romanian culture o 3.1 Genius

o o o

3.2 National poet 3.3 Iconography 3.4 International legacy

4 Political views 5 References o o 5.1 Footnotes 5.2 Notation

6 External links

Life[edit]
Family[edit]

Family

Mihai Eminescu statue, Copou Park

Mihai Eminescu statue,Chiinu

His father was Gheorghe Eminovici from Clineti, a Moldavian village in Suceava county, Bucovina, which was then part of the Austrian Empire (while his father came from Banat). He crossed the border into Moldavia, settling in Ipoteti, near the town of Botoani. He married Raluca Iuracu, an heiress of an old aristocratic Moldavian family. In a register of the members of Junimea, Eminescu himself wrote down the date of his birth as 22 December 1849 and in the documents of the Gymnasium from Cernui, where Eminescu studied, the date of 14 December 1849 is written down as his birthday. Nevertheless, Titu Maiorescu, in his work Eminescu and His Poems (1889) quoted N. D. Giurescu's researches and adopted his conclusion regarding the date and place of Mihai Eminescu's birth, as being 15 January 1850, in Botoani. This date resulted from several sources, amongst which there was a file of notes on christenings from the archives of the Uspenia (Domneasc) Church of Botoani; inside this file, the date of birth was "15 January 1850" and the date of christening was the 21st of the same month. The date of his birth was confirmed by the poet's elder sister, Aglae Drogli, who affirmed that the place of birth was the village of Ipoteti.[4]

Early years[edit]
Mihail (as he appears in baptismal records) or Mihai (the more common form that he used) was born in Botoani, Moldavia. He spent his early childhood in Botoani and Ipoteti, in his parents' family

home. From 1858 to 1866 he attended school in Cernui. He finished 4th grade as the 5th of 82 students, after which he attended two years of gymnasium. The first evidence of Eminescu as a writer is in 1866. In January of that year Romanian teacher Aron Pumnul died and his students in Cernuipublished a pamphlet, Lcrmioarele nvceilor gimnaziati (Tears of the Gymnasium Students) in which a poem entitled La mormntul lui Aron Pumnul (At the Grave of Aron Pumnul) appears, signed "M. Eminovici". On 25 February his poem De-a avea (If I were to have) was published in Iosif Vulcan's literary magazine Familia in Pest. This began a steady series of published poems (and the occasional translation from German). Also, it was Iosif Vulcan, who disliked the Slavic source suffix "-ici" of the young poet's last name, that chose for him the more apparent Romanian "nom de plume" Mihai Eminescu. In 1867 he joined the troupe of Iorgu Caragiale as clerk and prompter; the next year he transferred to the troupe of Mihai Pascaly. Both of these were among the leading Romanian theatrical troupes of their day, the latter including Matei Millo and Fanny Tardini-Vldicescu. He soon settled in Bucharest, where at the end of November he became a clerk and copyist for the National Theater. Through this period, he continued to write and publish poems. He also paid his rent by translating hundreds of pages of a book by Heinrich Theodor Rotscher, although this never resulted in a completed work. Also at this time he began his novel Geniu pustiu (Wasted Genius), published posthumously in 1904 in an unfinished form. On 1 April 1869 he was a co-founder of the "Orient" literary circle, whose interests included the gathering of Romanian folklore, and documents relating to Romanian literary history. On 29 June, various members of the "Orient" group were commissioned to go to different provinces. Eminescu was assigned Moldavia. That summer, he quite by chance ran into his brother Iorgu, a military officer, in Cimigiu Gardens, but firmly rebuffed Iorgu's attempt to get him to renew ties to his family. Still in summer 1869, he left Pascaly's troupe and traveled to Cernui and Iai. He renewed ties to his family; his father promised him a regular allowance to pursue studies in Vienna in the fall. As always, he continued to write and publish poetry; notably, on the occasion of the death of the former ruler of Wallachia, Barbu Dimitrie tirbei, he published a leaflet, La moartea principelui tirbei.

Statue[edit]

The University's Central Library "Mihai Eminescu", Iai

Eminescu's signature

From October 1869 to 1872 he studied in Vienna. He was counted as an "extraordinary auditor" at the Faculty of Philosophy and Law. He was active in student life, befriended Ioan Slavici, and came to know Vienna through Veronica Micle; he became a contributor to Convorbiri literare(Literary Conversations), edited by Junimea (The Youth). The leaders of this cultural organisation, Petre P. Carp, Vasile Pogor, Theodor Rosetti, Iacob Negruzzi and Titu Maiorescu, exercised their political and cultural influence over Eminescu for the rest of his life. Impressed by one of Eminescu's poems, Venere i Madon (Venus and Madonna), Iacob Negruzzi, the editor of Convorbiri literare, traveled to Vienna to meet him. Negruzzi would later write how he could pick Eminescu out of a crowd of young people in a Viennese caf by his "romantic" appearance: long hair and gaze lost in thoughts. In 1870 Eminescu wrote three articles under the pseudonym "Varro" in Federaiunea in Pest, on the situation of Romanians and other minorities in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He then became a journalist for the newspaper Albina (The Bee) in Pest. From 1872 to 1874 he continued as a student in Berlin, thanks to a stipend offered by Junimea. From 1874 to 1877 he worked as director of the Central Library in Iai, substitute teacher, school inspector for the counties of Iai andVaslui, and editor of the newspaper Curierul de Iai (The Courier of Iai), all thanks to his friendship with Titu Maiorescu, the leader ofJunimea and rector of

the University of Iai. He continued to publish in Convorbiri literare. He became a good friend of Ion Creang, whom he convinced to become a writer and introduced to the Junimea literary club. In 1877 he moved to Bucharest, where until 1883 he was first journalist, then (1880) editor-in-chief of the newspaper Timpul (The Time). During this time he wrote Scrisorile, Luceafrul, Od n metru antic etc. Most of his notable editorial pieces belong to this period, when Romania was fighting the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish War of 18771878 and throughout the diplomatic race that eventually brought about the international recognition of Romanian independence, but under the condition of bestowing Romanian citizenship to all subjects of Jewish faith. Eminescu opposed this and another clause of the Treaty of Berlin: Romania's having to give southern Bessarabia to Russia in exchange for Northern Dobrudja, a former Ottoman province on the Black Sea. In June 1883, the poet fell seriously ill, and was interned in the hospital of