Aukustis Robertas Niemis ir lietuvių folkloristika: indėlio į disciplinos formavimąsi recepcija

ENFormulated during the Soviet period but not further expanded, the claim that the Finnish folklorist Aukusti Robert Niemi (1869–1931) contributed to the formation of Lithuanian folklore studies as an independent academic discipline, has been reiterated like an axiom up until now. Focusing on this statement as the point of departure, the author discusses researcher’s place and significance in the history of the discipline. Due to historical circumstances, the collection and publication of folklore and the field of folklore research was in want. Therefore the Lithuanian studies conducted by the Finnish scholar, who introduced the historical-geographical method in his own way and opened new perspectives for comparative research, stood out against the background of Lithuanian folklore historiography. However, due to the language barrier the works written in Finnish did not become a weighty stepping stone for the tradition of folklore research that was still developing in Lithuania. They entered the academic discourse only a few decades after their publication. On the other hand, the reception of Niemi’s work in Lithuanian studies crystallised together with the formation of Lithuanian folklore studies as an independent scientific discipline, that is, in the 1920s–1930s. Therefore, the Finnish scholar’s research into songs influenced, in one way or another, the maturity of the concept of the discipline, contributed to the formation of a broader approach to folklore studies, although it did not have a greater impact on the content of the research itself. In the field of academic discourse and culture, Niemi was wider seen and reflected as a collector of folklore, who, together with Adolfas Sabaliauskas, prepared and published the song collection "Lietuvių dainos ir giesmės šiaur-rytinėje Lietuvoje" (Lithuanian Songs and Hymns in North-Eastern Lithuania, 1912).As the first printed collection of folk songs from a country not yet known in the culture of writing, it created serious prerequisites for the expansion of research into poetic folk creation. In addition, this song collection matured the ideas of academic song editing. As folklore studies were gaining impetus and the need for sources for scientific purposes arose, the collection of folk songs prepared by the experienced folklorist was a guiding light for the editors of oral heritage sources. [From the publication]