Lietuviai Latvijos Respublikoje 1918-1940 metais

LTPirmojo pasaulinio karo išvakarėse daugiau kaip pusę milijono gyventojų turinčioje Rygoje gyveno 37 tūkst. lietuvių. Manoma, kad pagal bendrų mieste gyvenusių lietuvių skaičių tai buvo lietuviškiausias pasaulio miestas. Per Pirmąjį pasaulinį karą Latvijoje gyvenančių lietuvių skaičius gerokai sumažėjo, tačiau liko nepakilusios pagrindinės lietuvių santalkos - Ryga, Liepoja ir pasienis su Lietuva Žiemgalos regione. 1918 m. susikūrus Latvijos Respublikai, lietuvių bendruomenė tapo viena iš nacionalinės latvių valstybės tautinių mažumų bendruomenių. Knygoje bandoma atskleisti, kaip susiklostė lietuvių bendruomenės likimas tautine valstybe tapusioje Latvijoje 1918-1940 metais. Autoriai bando atsakyti į klausimus, kaip Latvijos Respublikoje 1918-1940 m. gyvenusiai lietuvių bendruomenei sekėsi saugoti savo tautinę tapatybę, kokiomis priemonėmis tai daryta ir kokį vaidmenį tapatybės saugos istorijoje suvaidino Lietuvos valstybė. [Anotacija knygoje]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Lietuviai emigrantai; Latvija (Latvia); Latvijos lietuviai; Gyventojų mažumos; Asimiliacija; Tapatybė; Bendruomenė; Konsolidavimas; Lithuanian emigrants; Latvia; Lithuanians in Latvia; National minorities; Assimilation; Identity; Community; Consolidation.

ENOn the eve of World War I, there were 37,000 Lithuanians living in Riga, which had a population of over half a million. Based on the total number of Lithuanians living there, Riga had become the most Lithuanian city in the world. As a result of labour-related migration, Lithuanian communities also formed in other Latvian cities at this time. The Republic of Latvia was formed in 1918 and the Lithuanian community became one of the national minority groups in the national Latvian state. This book reveals how Lithuanian community life developed in Latvia in 1918-1940 - how the Lithuanian community tried to preserve the national identity of its members, the measures that were used to hold back the community’s assimilation and what role the Lithuanian state played in this struggle. The number of Lithuanians living in Latvia during World War I dropped significantly, however, the main concentrations of Lithuanians remained basically unchanged - Riga, Liepäja and the Zemgale region bordering Lithuania. Living in different regions of Latvia, Lithuanian communities faced a range of problems caused by the economic, demographic and cultural features of the region. However, all Lithuanian communities had one common problem - the danger of assimilation. If until World War I it was thought that the main threat to Lithuanian identity is the transformation of Catholic Lithuanians into Catholic Poles, then with the formation of the Latvian state, the main problem became the potential for Lithuanians to become Latvian. Assimilation affected both Lithuanians that had lived in Latvia from earlier times, as well as labourers who had arrived from Lithuania for seasonal work - this labour-related migration increased in the beginning of the 1930s.The greatest stimulus for the assimilation of labour migrants was the goal of securing ones right to work. Lithuanian diplomats and consular staff found the assimilation of seasonal Lithuanian labourers in Latvia a significant problem, however a more important issue was the assimilation of the traditionally-formed Lithuanian community in Latvia. Lithuanian community figures and Lithuanian diplomats in Latvia who were concerned with protecting Lithuanian identity searched for ways of halting assimilation. For this purpose, Lithuanian schools and Lithuanian societies were established in areas that were more densely populated by Lithuanians; the community was mobilised to actively participate in elections to local self-governing bodies and the parliament. The Lithuanian press also became an instrument in nurturing and supporting Lithuanian identity - it’s mission was to consolidate the community, and as a result, Lithuanians scattered all around Latvia had a greater sense of being members of one national community. The cultural and social life of the Lithuanian diaspora in Latvia was commonly expressed in the space of social organisations or with their assistance - ranging from forms of leisure time entertainment to the publication of the Lithuanian press. Societies played an important role in supporting Lithuanian identity too - both via social networks that supported the national identity of their members, and through public activities that involved community members. There was no shortage of societies, however up until the 1930s, the Lithuanian community did not have its own national minority representatives who would have been authorised to speak to the Latvian government on behalf of all the Lithuanians living in Latvia. This was a serious hurdle in the effective resolution of Lithuanian community problems and in defending the rights of Lithuanians as a national minority group.Thanks to Lithuanian diplomats who closely followed the lives of Lithuanians in diaspora and looked for ways of protecting Lithuanian identity, a community consolidation project was implemented to bring the community together - a Latvian Lithuanian Union was formed. Backed by the Lithuanian embassy, the Latvian Lithuanian Union managed to gather Lithuanian societies and thereby consolidate the community. The financially insecure Lithuanian community struggled to see that the educational and cultural needs of its members could be met in their native language. The Lithuanian state allocated significant financial assistance for the community’s educational and cultural pursuits. It was thanks solely to this support from Lithuania that Latvia’s Lithuanians could release their own weekly newspaper. The greatest percentage of the support received from Lithuania was set aside for education. The main concern of both the Lithuanian community and the Lithuanian government was to create all the conditions that would allow the younger generation of the community to be literate in their native language, which is why most attention was aimed at the creation of a network of primary Lithuanian schools in Latvia. Lithuanian primary schools had to first of all put a stop to the community’s de-nationalisation. Even though Latvian laws defended the rights of national minorities to receiving an education in their native language, the practical realisation of this right was far from smooth. The fragmented establishment of new Lithuanian schools and various problems related to educating Lithuanians prompted the Lithuanian government to think about additional guarantees for the existence of Lithuanian schools [...]. [Extract, p. 307-309]