Josef Jung |
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Josef Jungmann (16 July 1773 in Hudlice, near Beroun – 14 November 1847 in Prague) was a Bohemian poet and linguist, and a leading figure of the Czech National Revival. Together with Josef Dobrovský, he is considered to be a creator of the modern Czech language.
Jungmann was the sixth child of a cobbler. In his youth, he wanted to become a priest. After he completed grammar school in 1788-1792 however, he went on to study Philosophy and Law. Beginning in 1799, he started teaching at a high school ("Gymnasium") in Litoměřice (Leitmeritz), which had a German majority at that time. In 1815, he moved to Prague, where he worked until 1845 in Old Town Academic Grammar School as a teacher of Czech. He earned a doctorate in Philosophy and Mathematics in 1817; he was a dean of the Faculty of Arts in 1827 and 1838. In 1840, he became a rector of the Charles University of Prague.
Jungmann was a rigorous advocate of the rebirth of written Czech language. In contrast to his teacher, Josef Dobrovský, he also wrote his works in Czech. In 1805, he published a translation of Chateaubriand's "Atala". By this, he intended to prove, that the Czech language is suitable for complicated artistic texts. Later, he published translations of Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Friedrich Schiller and John Milton. Jungmann’s original poems are few, but include two early Revival sonnets and the short narrative poem Oldřich a Božena.