Kursenieki - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

For the extinct Baltic tribe, see Curonians
Curonians
The Curonians or Kurs were a Baltic tribe living on the shores of the Baltic sea in what are now the western parts of Latvia and Lithuania from the 5th to the 16th centuries, when they merged with other Baltic tribes. They gave their name to the region of Courland , and they spoke the Old...

.

The Kuršininkai (Curonians; ; ; ) (sg. Kursenieks) are a nearly extinct Baltic

Balts

The Balts or Baltic peoples , defined as speakers of one of the Baltic languages, a branch of the Indo-European language family, are descended from a group of Indo-European tribes who settled the area between the Jutland peninsula in the west and Moscow, Oka and Volga rivers basins in the east...

ethnic group

Ethnic group

An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...

living along the Curonian Spit

Curonian Spit

The Curonian Spit is a 98 km long, thin, curved sand-dune spit that separates the Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea coast. Its southern portion lies within Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia and its northern within southwestern Lithuania...

. "Kuršininkai" refers only to inhabitants of Lithuania

Lithuania

Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...

and former East Prussia

East Prussia

East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...

that speak a Lithuanian language

Lithuanian language

Lithuanian is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognized as one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 170,000 abroad. Lithuanian is a Baltic language, closely related to Latvian, although they...

dialect.
Autochthonous inhabitants of Palanga

Palanga

Palanga and beautiful sand dunes. Officially Palanga has the status of a city municipality and includes Šventoji, Nemirseta, Būtingė and other settlements, which are considered as part of the city of Palanga.-Legend:...

in Lithuania

Lithuania

call themselves "Curonians" as well, but in Lithuania they usually are counted as Latvians

Latvians

Latvians or Letts are the indigenous Baltic people of Latvia.-History:Latvians occasionally refer to themselves by the ancient name of Latvji, which may have originated from the word Latve which is a name of the river that presumably flowed through what is now eastern Latvia...

Confusion

Kuršininkai/Kurzemnieki are often confused with the extinct Curonian

Curonians

The Curonians or Kurs were a Baltic tribe living on the shores of the Baltic sea in what are now the western parts of Latvia and Lithuania from the 5th to the 16th centuries, when they merged with other Baltic tribes. They gave their name to the region of Courland , and they spoke the Old...

Baltic tribe

Balts

, as neighbouring ethnic groups called Kuršininkai/Kurzemnieki as Curonians: in German

German language

German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

, Latvian

Latvian language

Latvian is the official state language of Latvia. It is also sometimes referred to as Lettish. There are about 1.4 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and about 150,000 abroad. The Latvian language has a relatively large number of non-native speakers, atypical for a small language...

and Lithuanian

Lithuanian language

, Kuršininkai and the Curonian tribe are known by the same terms (Kuren, kurši and kuršiai respectively). In scientific Lithuanian literature, the name kuršininkai is used to designate them from the Curonian tribe. Simillary in Latvian kurzemnieki is used mostly exclusively by scientists to designate them from the Curonian tribe. On the other hand, Kuršininkai should not be confused with Kurzemnieki, which are the geographical group of Latvians from Kurzeme

Kurzeme

Kurzeme is the Latvian name for Courland, a historical region of Latvia.It may also refer to:* Kurzeme District, Riga, an administrative district of Riga, Latvia* Kurzeme Region, a planning region of Latvia...

. Kuršininkai are often considered descendants of the extinct Curonian tribe.

The Kuršininkai/Kurzemnieki have never designated themselves as Latvians and their own language was called "Curonian language" (kurzemnieku valoda). From a linguistic point of view, it is a dialect of Latvian. In German and Latvian writings of the 19th century, Kuršinikai sometimes are called "Prussian Latvians" . Kuršininkai were loyal to Germany and identified themselves as German citizens and ethnic Kuršininkas.

History

The origin of the Kuršininkai is unclear. One version says that they are indigenous descendants of the Curonian tribe

Curonians

who lived there since antiquity, at least along the Curonian Spit

Curonian Spit

. During the conquest of the Old Prussians

Old Prussians

The Old Prussians or Baltic Prussians were an ethnic group, autochthonous Baltic tribes that inhabited Prussia, the lands of the southeastern Baltic Sea in the area around the Vistula and Curonian Lagoons...

and Curonians by the Teutonic Knights

Teutonic Knights

The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...

, the area became nearly uninhabited. In the process of various migrations of the 14th-17th centuries, Curonians from Courland

Courland

Courland is one of the historical and cultural regions of Latvia. The regions of Semigallia and Selonia are sometimes considered as part of Courland.- Geography and climate :...

settled near Memel

Klaipėda Region

The Klaipėda Region or Memel Territory was defined by the Treaty of Versailles in 1920 when it was put under the administration of the Council of Ambassadors...

, along the Curonian Spit, and in Sambia

Sambia

Sambia or Samland is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea. The Curonian Lagoon and the Vistula Lagoon demarcate the peninsula. Prior to 1945 it formed an important part of East Prussia.-Names:Sambia is named after the Sambians, an extinct...

(all regions in East Prussia

East Prussia

). They preserved the old self-designation of Curonians (kursi), while Curonians who stayed in Courland

Courland

Courland is one of the historical and cultural regions of Latvia. The regions of Semigallia and Selonia are sometimes considered as part of Courland.- Geography and climate :...

became Latvians

Latvians

. The Kuršininkai were assimilated by Germans

Germans

The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

, except along the Curonian Spit where some still live. Until 1945, several places in Sambia were named after Kuršininkai, including Cranz

Cranz

Cranz may refer to:Family name: , German writer , German mathematician * Christl Cranz , German skier , German Christian scholar...

kuhren, Neukuhren, Gross Kuhren, and Klein Kuhren. In 1649 Kuršininkai lived from Memel (Klaipėda)

Klaipeda

Klaipėda is a city in Lithuania situated at the mouth of the Nemunas River where it flows into the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest city in Lithuania and the capital of Klaipėda County....

to Danzig (Gdańsk)

Gdansk

Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...

. In the end of the 19th century the total number of Kuršininkai was around 4,000 persons.

Kuršininkai were considered Latvians after World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

when Latvia

Latvia

Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...

gained independence from the Russian Empire

Russian Empire

The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...

. This consideration was based on linguistic arguments and was the rationale for Latvian claims over the Curonian Spit, Memel, and some other territories of East Prussia. Later these claims were removed. In 1923 the newly-created Memel Territory (Klaipėda Region)

Klaipėda Region

The Klaipėda Region or Memel Territory was defined by the Treaty of Versailles in 1920 when it was put under the administration of the Council of Ambassadors...

separated the Curonian Spit in two parts. This separation interrupted contacts between Kuršininkai. In 1933 Latvia tried to establish a cultural center for Kuršininkai of the Curonian Spit where the majority of them lived, but was opposed by Lithuania

Lithuania

, to which the Memel Territory belonged. Latvian books that were sent to Kuršininkai were confiscated and accused of communist propaganda

Communist propaganda

Communist propaganda is propaganda aimed to advance the ideology of communism, communist worldview and interests of the communist movement.A Bolshevik theoretician, Nikolai Bukharin, in his The ABC of Communism wrote:...

.
Near the end of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the majority of Kuršininkai fled from the Red Army

Red Army

The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

during the evacuation of East Prussia

Evacuation of East Prussia

The evacuation of East Prussia refers to the evacuation of the German civilian population and military personnel in East Prussia and the Klaipėda region between 20 January, and March 1945, as part of the evacuation of German civilians towards the end of World War II...

. Kuršininkai that remained behind were subsequently expelled

Expulsion of Germans after World War II

The later stages of World War II, and the period after the end of that war, saw the forced migration of millions of German nationals and ethnic Germans from various European states and territories, mostly into the areas which would become post-war Germany and post-war Austria...

by the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

after the war and replaced with Russians

Russians

The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....

and Lithuanians

Lithuanians

Lithuanians are the Baltic ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,765,600 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language...

.

Some Kuršininkai managed to return to their homes after the war, but only 219 lived along the Curonian Spit in 1955. Many had German names such as Fritz

Fritz

Fritz originated as a German nickname for Friedrich, or Frederick , as well as for similar names including Fridolin...

or Hans

Hans (name)

Hans is a masculine given name. In German, Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Icelandic and Swedish, originally it is short for Johannes but is also recognized in Sweden, Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands as a name in its own right for official purposes....

, a cause for anti-German discrimination. Russian settlers called the Kuršininkai fascists, while Lithuanian settlers called them Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

ns. In the Lithuanian SSR

Lithuanian SSR

The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Lithuanian SSR, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union...

, church services in German were banned. Because of this discrimination, many immigrated to West Germany

West Germany

West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....

in 1958, where the majority of Kuršininkai now live. Neither Lithuania

Lithuania

nor Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

has allowed the return to Kuršininkai of property confiscated after World War II.

Culture

Curonians

are one of the Baltic tribes. Their Culture,religion and architecture is similar to those found in Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

and Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

. Curonians are related with Lithuanians

Lithuanians

and Latvians

Latvians

. The Kuršininkai were predominantly Lutheran

Lutheranism

Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...

, like most former inhabitants of East Prussia

East Prussia

, although some ancient pagan customs were preserved. Most Kuršininkai were bilingual or even trilingual: the Curonian language

Curonian language

The Curonian language or Old Curonian is an extinct language spoken by the Curonian tribe, who lived mainly on the Courland peninsula and along the nearby Baltic shores....

was used within the family and while fishing, German

German language

was used in everyday communication, and the language of church services was German and Lithuanian. The Kuršininkai were primarily fishermen. Some elements of cuisine are named after Kuršininkai, for example Curonian coffee (Kurenkoffee); a drink made of vodka flavoured with coffee, honey and other ingredients was popular throughout East Prussia.
The first who took an interest in Kuršininkai culture and language was Paul Kwauka, a member of the separatist movement of Memel Territory. His book "Kurisches Worterbuch" is a highly valuable source of information.The work of describing their heritage is continued by one of the last remaining Curonians, Richard Pietsch.

Language

The so-called New Curonian language (New Curonian: Kursenieku valoda; ) is spoken by the Kursenieki of the Curonian Spit

Curonian Spit

, a thin strip of land stretching between southwestern Lithuania and Russia. In the process of various migrations of the 14th-17th centuries, Curonians (already speaking in Latvian) settled along the Curonian Spit in East Prussia

East Prussia

and became known as the Kursenieki

Kursenieki

The Kuršininkai are a nearly extinct Baltic ethnic group living along the Curonian Spit. "Kuršininkai" refers only to inhabitants of Lithuania and former East Prussia that speak a Lithuanian language dialect....

.

The language was influenced by Old Prussian, Low German, High German

German language

and the Samogitian dialect respectively, and by the end of the 18th century new Curonian dialects had formed, with the dialect of the Curonian Spit being notably distinct, due to its isolation from the mainland. New Curonian vocabulary published in 1927 shows: 60% of Curonian words were the same as Latvian, 26% were loanwords from “German” (i.e. Low German and High German), and 13% from Lithuanian dialects. The New Curonian language is mutually intelligible

Mutual intelligibility

In linguistics, mutual intelligibility is recognized as a relationship between languages or dialects in which speakers of different but related languages can readily understand each other without intentional study or extraordinary effort...

with Latvian, especially with its southwestern dialects, and Latvians can communicate easily with Kursenieki today.

Before World War II

World War II

, the New Curonian language was a sociolect

Sociolect

In sociolinguistics, a sociolect or social dialect is a variety of language associated with a social group such as a socioeconomic class, an ethnic group, an age group, etc....

of Kursenieki fishermen of the Curonian Spit. In other spheres of everyday life Kursenieki used the Low German and High German languages.
The events of the first half of the 20th century, including the Soviet and German occupations of the Baltic states and later East Prussia

East Prussia

, led to the near extinction of the language, making it severely endangered

Endangered language

An endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use. If it loses all its native speakers, it becomes a dead language. If eventually no one speaks the language at all it becomes an "extinct language"....

. Several remaining native speakers live in Germany

Germany

, having been expelled

Expulsion of Germans after World War II

in the ethnic cleansing that took place in East Prussia

Evacuation of East Prussia

after World War II.

Surnames

The surnames of Kuršininkai have various origins, including:

Latvian
Latvian language
Latvian is the official state language of Latvia. It is also sometimes referred to as Lettish. There are about 1.4 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and about 150,000 abroad. The Latvian language has a relatively large number of non-native speakers, atypical for a small language...

, some with elements of Old Curonian
Curonian language
The Curonian language or Old Curonian is an extinct language spoken by the Curonian tribe, who lived mainly on the Courland peninsula and along the nearby Baltic shores....

: Gulbis, Kakies, Kuite, Kukulitis, Pinkis, Strangulis, Detzkeit, Jakeit
Lithuanian
Lithuanian language
Lithuanian is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognized as one of the official languages of the European Union. There are about 2.96 million native Lithuanian speakers in Lithuania and about 170,000 abroad. Lithuanian is a Baltic language, closely related to Latvian, although they...

: Kalwis, Lauzeningks
Lithuanian or Latvian or Oldprussian: Dullis, Purwins
German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

: Kiehr, Schmidt
Protobaltic: Engelins
Samogitian: Pietsch
Old Prussian: Schadowski, Schekahn

Famous people

Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher from Königsberg , researching, lecturing and writing on philosophy and anthropology at the end of the 18th Century Enlightenment....

(1724–1804) had Kuršininkai roots from paternal side.
Ludwig Rhesa (1776–1840) translator, member of Lietuvininks movement.

External links

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