Milica Stojadinović-Srpkinja | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of poet Milica Stojadinović-Srpkinja | |
| Born | (1828-07-06)6 July 1828 |
| Died | 25 July 1878(1878-07-25) (aged 50)[1] |
| Occupation | Poet |
Milica Stojadinovic-Srpkinja (Serbian Cyrillic:Милица Стојадиновић Српкиња,pronounced[mîlitsastɔjadǐːnɔv̞itɕsr̩̂pkiɲa]) (1828–1878) was a Serbianpoet, sometimes called "the greatest female Serbian poet of the 19th century".
Raised in the family of the priest Vasilije Stojadinović, she was among rare Serbian women in the early 19th century who could read and write both in Serbian and German languages.[2] She started writing at a very young age and published her first poemMladi Srbin (The Young Serb) inSrbski narodni list (Serbian National Journal) in 1845. Her first book of poems was published in 1850.[3] Written in 1854, her journalU Fruškoj gori (In Fruška Gora) represents a unique collection of fairy tales, beliefs, sayings, and customs. The peak of her public activity was going toVienna in 1850 at the invitation ofVuk Karadžić, who used her materials for his work.[2]
As her fame spread beyond the confines ofSerbian culture of theAustrian Empire,Prince Mihailo Obrenović would invite her to court when she came to Belgrade andVienna-based anthropologist and poetJohann Gabriel Seidl devoted a poem to her.
She corresponded extensively with writers Đorđe Rajković (1825–1886),Ljubomir Nenadović,Vuk Stefanović Karadžić and his daughterWilhelmine/Mina,Božena Němcová, andLudwig August von Frankl. In 1891 an almanachDie Dioskuren was issued in Vienna by Ludwig von Frankl with a collection of letters written by Milica Stojadinović.
Her work, though, has been mostly out of the public eye and almost forgotten except by literary experts for most of the 20th century, first duringfin-de-sièclemodernist poeticism as an outdated poetic form of pre-1870s, and later, underCommunist rule as an unacceptable expression of patriotism for only one of the six nations ofYugoslavia (namely: Serbian).[citation needed]
AfterJosip Broz Tito's death the awareness of her work was revived, and in the last quarter of a century a four-day poetry memorial is convened annually inNovi Sad in her honour, where a poetry prize bearing her name is awarded to prominent poets from Serbia.
Biljana Dojčinović has written on the role of Stojadinović-Srpkinja in the development of women's writing in Serbia, through a feminist framework.[4]
Milica Stojadinović-Srpkinja literary award was established in her honor in 1994. It was awarded to many prominent authors, such asMira Alečković,Jara Ribnikar,Matija Bećković,Boško Petrović, etc.
Since 2009 the rules have been modified so that the award can only be given to women poets.[5][6]
