Bogo Grafenauer
Encyclopedia
Bogo Grafenauer was a Slovenia
n historian, who mostly wrote about medieval history in the Slovene Lands
. Together with Milko Kos
, Fran Zwitter
, and Vasilij Melik
, he was one of the founders of the so-called Ljubljana school of historiography.
in a well established Carinthian Slovene
family. His father, Ivan Grafenauer
, was a famous literary historian and ethnologist and nephew of Franc Grafenauer, a representative in the Carinthia
n provincial assembly. He was the brother of the mineralogist Stanko Grafenauer and designer and choreographer Marija Grafenauer-Vogelnik.
He studied history
at the University of Ljubljana
, graduating in 1940. In his college years, he joined the Christian left
intellectual circle around Edvard Kocbek
. After the Axis
invasion of Yugoslavia
in April 1941, he joined the Liberation Front of the Slovenian People
. Between 1942 and 1943, the Italian Fascist
occupation authorities interned him in the Gonars concentration camp
. Nevertheless, he managed to complete his PhD dissertation in 1944 under the supervision of the medievalist Milko Kos
.
in the Middle Ages
. He continued the researches of Milko Kos on settlements patterns in the Slovene Lands
in the early middle ages
, focusing on the Slavic settlement of the Eastern Alps
and the medieval Slavic principality of Carantania. He wrote several treatises on the transition between tribal and feudal socio-economic forms in the Eastern Alps and the west Balkans
. His main contribution was however the history Peasants' War
s in the late 15th and 16th century in the Slovene Lands and in Croatia
. He also wrote on the history of Slovenes in Carinthia in the 19th and 20th century, and on agricultural modernization in the early 19th century. Since the 1950s and 1960s, he was among those who introduced the approaches of the French Annales school
in the Yugoslav historiography.
Between 1945 and 1955, he wrote several expert surveys on border areas in Carinthia
and the Julian March
for the Yugoslav
diplomacy.
From 1946 to 1982, he taught Slovene medieval history and theory of historiography
at the University of Ljubljana. In 1972, he became member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
. He was also member of the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts and the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina
. Between 1978 and 1987, he served as president of the prestigious publishing house Slovenska matica
; during his presidency, Grafenauer hired several prominent external collaborators, some of whom (like Ivo Urbančič
, Tine Hribar
and Drago Jančar
) had been persecuted by the Communist regime, raising the quality and reputation of the institution.
In the last decade of his life, Grafenauer rose to prominence again with his resolute fight against autochthonist re-interpretations of Slovenian history, especially against the popular Venetic theory
which denied the Slavic settlement in the East Alps.
Bogo Grafenauer died in Ljubljana and was buried in the Žale
cemetery. His daughter, Darja Mihelič, is also a historian.
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
n historian, who mostly wrote about medieval history in the Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands or Slovenian Lands is the historical denomination for the whole of the Slovene-inhabited territories in Central Europe. It more or less corresponds to modern Slovenia and the adjacent territories in Italy, Austria and Hungary in which autochthonous Slovene minorities live.-...
. Together with Milko Kos
Milko Kos
Milko Kos was a Slovenian historian, considered the father of the so-called Ljubljana school of historiography....
, Fran Zwitter
Fran Zwitter
Fran Zwitter was a Slovenian historian. He is considered, together with Milko Kos, Bogo Grafenauer and Vasilij Melik, the co-founder of the so-called Ljubljana school of historiography.- Life and work :...
, and Vasilij Melik
Vasilij Melik
Vasilij Melik was a Slovenian historian, who mostly worked on political history of the Slovene Lands in the 19th century.He was born in Ljubljana as the only son of the renowned geographer Anton Melik...
, he was one of the founders of the so-called Ljubljana school of historiography.
Early life
He was born in LjubljanaLjubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
in a well established Carinthian Slovene
Carinthian Slovenes
Carinthian Slovenes are the Slovene-speaking population group in the Austrian State of Carinthia. The Carinthian Slovenes send representatives to the National Ethnic Groups Advisory Council...
family. His father, Ivan Grafenauer
Ivan Grafenauer
Ivan Grafenauer was a Slovenian literary historian and ethnologist of Carinthian Slovene origin.He was born in the village of Micheldorf near Hermagor in Carinthia, now part of Austria. At that time, Micheldorf was the westernmost Slovene-inhabited village, not only in Carinthia, but in all the...
, was a famous literary historian and ethnologist and nephew of Franc Grafenauer, a representative in the Carinthia
Duchy of Carinthia
The Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
n provincial assembly. He was the brother of the mineralogist Stanko Grafenauer and designer and choreographer Marija Grafenauer-Vogelnik.
He studied history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
at the University of Ljubljana
University of Ljubljana
The University of Ljubljana is the oldest and largest university in Slovenia. With 64,000 enrolled graduate and postgraduate students, it is among the largest universities in Europe.-Beginnings:...
, graduating in 1940. In his college years, he joined the Christian left
Christian left
The Christian left is a term originating in the United States, used to describe a spectrum of left-wing Christian political and social movements which largely embraces social justice....
intellectual circle around Edvard Kocbek
Edvard Kocbek
Edvard Kocbek was a Slovenian poet, writer, essayist, translator, political activist, and resistance fighter. He is considered as one of the best authors who have written in Slovene, and one of the best Slovene poets after Prešeren...
. After the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
invasion of Yugoslavia
Invasion of Yugoslavia
The Invasion of Yugoslavia , also known as the April War , was the Axis Powers' attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II...
in April 1941, he joined the Liberation Front of the Slovenian People
Liberation Front of the Slovenian People
On 26 April 1941 in Ljubljana the Anti-Imperialist Front was established. It was to promote "an international massive movement" to "liberate the Slovenian nation" whose "hope and example was the Soviet Union"...
. Between 1942 and 1943, the Italian Fascist
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
occupation authorities interned him in the Gonars concentration camp
Gonars concentration camp
On February 23, 1942 the Italian fascist regime established a concentration camp in Gonars, a town with approx. 4,600 inhabitants near Palmanova in the Province of Udine in northeastern Italy.Most of the prisoners were from present day Slovenia and Croatia...
. Nevertheless, he managed to complete his PhD dissertation in 1944 under the supervision of the medievalist Milko Kos
Milko Kos
Milko Kos was a Slovenian historian, considered the father of the so-called Ljubljana school of historiography....
.
Career
Grafenauer started publishing already in the late 1930s. In his academic career, Grafenauer focused on social historySocial history
Social history, often called the new social history, is a branch of History that includes history of ordinary people and their strategies of coping with life. In its "golden age" it was a major growth field in the 1960s and 1970s among scholars, and still is well represented in history departments...
in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. He continued the researches of Milko Kos on settlements patterns in the Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands or Slovenian Lands is the historical denomination for the whole of the Slovene-inhabited territories in Central Europe. It more or less corresponds to modern Slovenia and the adjacent territories in Italy, Austria and Hungary in which autochthonous Slovene minorities live.-...
in the early middle ages
Early Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages was the period of European history lasting from the 5th century to approximately 1000. The Early Middle Ages followed the decline of the Western Roman Empire and preceded the High Middle Ages...
, focusing on the Slavic settlement of the Eastern Alps
Slavic settlement of the Eastern Alps
Slavic settlement of the Eastern Alps region was a historic process that took place between the 6th and 9th century AD, having culminated in the final quarter of the 6th century...
and the medieval Slavic principality of Carantania. He wrote several treatises on the transition between tribal and feudal socio-economic forms in the Eastern Alps and the west Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
. His main contribution was however the history Peasants' War
Peasants' War
The Peasants' War was a popular revolt that took place in Europe during 1524–1525...
s in the late 15th and 16th century in the Slovene Lands and in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. He also wrote on the history of Slovenes in Carinthia in the 19th and 20th century, and on agricultural modernization in the early 19th century. Since the 1950s and 1960s, he was among those who introduced the approaches of the French Annales school
Annales School
The Annales School is a group of historians associated with a style of historiography developed by French historians in the 20th century. It is named after its scholarly journal Annales d'histoire économique et sociale, which remains the main source of scholarship, along with many books and...
in the Yugoslav historiography.
Between 1945 and 1955, he wrote several expert surveys on border areas in Carinthia
Carinthia (state)
Carinthia is the southernmost Austrian state or Land. Situated within the Eastern Alps it is chiefly noted for its mountains and lakes.The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Austro-Bavarian group...
and the Julian March
Julian March
The Julian March is a former political region of southeastern Europe on what are now the borders between Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy...
for the Yugoslav
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
diplomacy.
From 1946 to 1982, he taught Slovene medieval history and theory of historiography
Historiography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...
at the University of Ljubljana. In 1972, he became member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
The Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts is the national academy of Slovenia, which encompasses science and the arts and brings together the top Slovene researchers and artists as members of the academy....
. He was also member of the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts and the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the national academy of Bosnia and Herzegovina.-History:...
. Between 1978 and 1987, he served as president of the prestigious publishing house Slovenska matica
Slovenska matica
Slovenska matica , also known as Matica slovenska, is the second-oldest publishing house in Slovenia, founded in the 19th century as an institution for the scholarly and cultural progress of Slovenes...
; during his presidency, Grafenauer hired several prominent external collaborators, some of whom (like Ivo Urbančič
Ivo Urbancic
Ivo Urbančič is a Slovenian philosopher. He is considered to be one of the fathers of the phenomenological school in Slovenia...
, Tine Hribar
Tine Hribar
Tine Hribar is a Slovenian philosopher and public intellectual, notable for his interpretations of Heidegger and his role in the democratization of Slovenia between 1988 and 1990, known as the Slovenian Spring...
and Drago Jančar
Drago Jancar
Drago Jančar is a Slovenian writer, playwright and essayist. Jančar is one of the most known contemporary Slovene writers. In Slovenia, he is also famous for his political commentaries and civic engagement.-Life:...
) had been persecuted by the Communist regime, raising the quality and reputation of the institution.
In the last decade of his life, Grafenauer rose to prominence again with his resolute fight against autochthonist re-interpretations of Slovenian history, especially against the popular Venetic theory
Venetic theory
The Venetic theory is a widely diffused autochthonist theory of the origin of Slovenes which denies the Slavic settlement of the Eastern Alps in the 6th century, claiming that proto-Slovenes have inhabited the region since ancient times. Although it has been rejected by scholars, it has been an...
which denied the Slavic settlement in the East Alps.
Bogo Grafenauer died in Ljubljana and was buried in the Žale
Žale
Žale Central cemetery , often abbreviated to Žale, is the largest and the central cemetery in Ljubljana. It is located in the Bežigrad district and operated by the Žale Public Company.- History :...
cemetery. His daughter, Darja Mihelič, is also a historian.
Further reading
- Grafenauerjev zbornik, edited by Vincenc Rajšp. Ljubljana: Scientific Research Centre, 1996.
- Oto LutharOto LutharOto Luthar is a Slovenian historian. Since 1992, he has served as the director of the Scientific Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts in Ljubljana, the largest research institution in Slovenia....
, Med kronologijo in fikcijo. Ljubljana: Znanstveno in publicistično središče, 1993.