Juraj Tranovsky (1592 Tesin - 1637 Liptovsky Mikulas)
A native of today's Polish Tešín, he dedicated the life of a strong Lutheran faith. After the violent re-Catholicization, which exposed the population of Bohemia after the Battle of White Mountain in 1620, Tranovský became an exile. He found his home first in Poland, then in Slovakia. At the invitation of the Pongrácov family and the Okoličániov family, he came to Liptovský Mikuláš, where he worked for 6 years. He completed his most extensive and important work here - a collection of spiritual songs Cithara sanctorum. The first edition was published in 1636 and contained lyrics and melodies of 412 songs, of which more than 150 were translated or composed by Tranovský himself. After supplementing it with a collection of prayers, it was published under the name Tranovského kancionál. It was used in most Slovak evangelical churches with certain variations and gradually added up to 1300 songs until 1992. Rare copies of Cithary sanctorum can be seen in the historical library at the old evangelical parish on Tranovského street.
Slovak
Czech
Hungarian
German
