MIKELIS ŠAPALAS (1827–1884) – SURINKIMININKŲ HIMNODIJOS KŪRĖJAS

Mikelis Šapalas (1827-1884), a teacher in Lankupiai and a Prussian-Lithuanian literary figure, edited a small collection of hymns called Naujos nobaʒnos Giesmes (New Devotional Hymns), which was published 1860 in Memel (Klaipėda) at the Vaikinis printing house. The aim of this article is to expand on the repertoire of Šapalas’ hymn book, and to consider the reasons for the choice of hymns, the extent to which the repertoire was influenced by the activities of the missions organised by the Protestants, and the social issues of the time. The article also seeks to show the importance of the collection to later hymnody works.