Witold Taszycki und die Sorabistik

Witold Taszycki and Sorbian Studies Witold Taszycki was one of the best-known Polish experts in Sorbian studies of his time. He became enthusiastic about Sorbs at a young age. In 1916 he joined the Maćica Serbska. Twice, in 1922 and 1923, he visited Lusatia. His most important linguistic work, explicitly devoted to Sorbian and directly related to his habilitation process, deals with the position of the Sorbian language within the West Slavic linguistic area. After analysing selected historical phonetic features, he divides this main group of Slavic into two original subgroups: Lechitic-Sorbian and Czech-Slovakian. His other major philological-linguistic works on Sorbian language remain unfinished, including the edition of the Wolfenbüttel Lower Sorbian Psalter and the hymnal and the catechism of Albinus Mollerus. Taszycki wrote several reviews of works written by other experts in Sorbian studies. Some of these reviews are quite critical. Taszycki was also interested in Sorbian culture and literature. In particular, he dealt with the reception of Sienkiewicz’s works among the Sorbs and published an annotated edition of letters by Jan Arnošt Smoler and Michał Hórnik to Kraszewski. In addition, as a university lecturer, he gave several lectures on Sorbian and the Sorbs. His knowledge of Sorbian has also been incorporated into his general onomastic works.