Famous People of Belarus

The Belarusian land gave birth to many famous people whose names are known all over the world.    The history of the Belarusian culture is more than one thousand years old. The names of such Belarusian thinkers as Euphrosyne Polotskaya and Kirill Turovsky have been known since ancient times. Since the 12th century we have known the name of the great Belarusian jeweler Lazar Bogsha and his priceless creation - the Cross of St. Euphrosyne, which was decorated with numerous precious stones.    The age of Renaissance enriched our culture with new names of great Belarusian statesmen, writers and printers. For example, Lev Sapega, the dynasty of Radzivil, Mikola Gusovsky and many others. The name of the first printer Francisak Skaryna and his followers Symon Budny and Vasil Tyapinsky are known throughout the world. In 2000 we celebrated the 510th anniversary of the birth of Dr. F. Skaryna, the first-printer and the first translator of the Bible into the native Belarusian language.    It goes without saying Belarusian literature has made a great contribution to world literature. The names of Yanka Kupala and Yakub Kolas, Maxim Bagdanovich, Kandrat Krapiva, Vladimir Korotkevich, Vasil Bykov are world famous. These names are followed by a number of other well-known writers and poets, such as K. Chorny , P. Brovka, I. Shamyakin, M. Tank, N. Gilevich, A. Adamovich. Their works are translated into many European languages. Many of Minsk streets are named after the Belarusian writers.    As for Belarusian art the names of K. Malevich, Mark Shagal, Ya. Drosdovich, A. Isachev, M. Savitsky and others are known far beyond the borders of our country.    The Belarusian culture is also famous for its ballet. The Opera and Ballet Theatre in Minsk is the center of the national Belarusian school of ballet. V. Elizaryev is one of the famous choreographers in the world. The national Belarusian theatre school is well-known too. The names of G. Makarova, S. Stanyuta, N. Eremenko, L. Filatov and other actors of the Y. Kupala Academic Theatre are also of great popularity abroad.    It's also a pleasure to mention the names of such famous Belarusian composers as N. Churkin, I. Luchenok, V. Alovnikov, A. Bogatyrev, N. Aladov. The Belarusian groups "Pesnyary", "Verasy", "Charovnitsa", "N.R.M." and dance group "Khoroshky" have been a great success in Europe.    Many prominent names in the history of Belarus of the 20th century are connected with two main events, the Great Patriotic War and space exploration. All Belarusians fought heroically defending their Motherland. But we are especially proud of the heroes of the last war: K. Zaslonov, E. Osipova, N. Gastello, V. Talalikhin, the defenders of Brest fortress and many others. In the family of cosmonauts there are also two Belarusians, A. Kovalyonok and P. Klimuk.    At the present day time, the time of revaluation of values, it's difficult to find heroes, especially among politicians. Time will put everything in its place and give everybody his due. But one thing is obvious: great times are created by great men. Their names are sure to become history whatever it may be.