Czech culture has been significantly influenced by the Slavic and Germanic culture( Germanic because Czechs had been controlled by Germans( and Austrians) for a long time) and Christianity.
In my opinion, it is a good idea to start this article talking about the Czech literature. The Czech language is quite an old language, which has been influenced by Germans. The oldest Czech written piece of literature is called“ Proglas”( Foreword). Well it wasn ' t even written in Czech, but it is considered to be the oldest Czech relic( language is „ Old Church Slavonic“). The Czech language was perfectly kept in these kind of relics, but it has been ruined in the 16 th century, when we got under the Austrian rule – Czech language was almost forgotten, but it has been remade during the times of the Czech National Revival – people like Karel Hynek Mácha( one of the greatest Czech poets of all times) helped the Czech language to be used again.
Enough for the literature, since it would take a long time to talk about all of this. Moving on to the Czech theatre. The theatre is quite similar to the literature, like all of the other spheres of our culture – it has started in the Middle ages, but has been interrupted by the 16 th century. The awakening came in the times of Czech National Revival, like the literature. One of the most known Czech playwrights is Zdeňek Svěrák( he will be mentioned once more with one of the most iconic Czech people). The most known Czech theatre is called“ The National Theatre”.
The next on my list is the Czech art. One of the oldest pieces of art here is“ Věstonická Venuše”( picture below the article) – it was a symbol of an ideal woman – she had to be strong enough to survive the birth, the statuette is almost 30 000 years old. Now what is interesting is that this piece of art is actually of Celtic origin. Our land was( at the times when it was created) inhabited by the Celts. On the other hand, one of the most known pieces of art in the Czech Republic is called“ The Slavic Epic”. Even though it is not so old( early 20 th century), it captures the whole slavic history. The creator of this is called“ Alfons Mucha”.
Moving on to the music. The Czech music is mostly known because of Antonín Dvořák and his work, Vltava( actual Czech river that flows through Prague), also called“ My Homeland”. Here you can listen to it on your own: https:// www. youtube. com / watch? v = uI8iTETiSqU
I ' ve taken this maybe too briefly, but to be honest, it would take very long to write down everything important and it has a lot to do with Czech history, which can be complicated for some people.
Last but not least, I ' d like to talk about Jára Cimrman( picture below). He was created mainly by Zdeněk Svěrák. Why created? Because he is not a human being. He is actually a fictional character. He is a prototype of an universal genius. He is meant to be one of the greatest teachers, sportsmen, inventors, mathematicians, philosophers... And what is really curious is the fact that he has been nominated and won the The Greatest Czech competition in 2005. Well I thank you for your patience reading this article, even though it has been taken very briefly. Enjoy some photos:
Bedřich Smetana Smetana