Encyclopedia of Bohemian and Czech-American Biography


Book Description

As the Czech ambassador to the United States, H. E. Petr Gandalovic noted in his foreword to this bookMla Rechcgl has written a monumental workrepresenting a culmination of his life achievement as a historian of Czech America. The Encyclopedia of Bohemian and Czech-American Biography is a unique and unparalleled publication. The enormity of this undertaking is reflected in the fact that it covers a universe, starting a few decades after the discovery of the New World, through the escapades and significant contributions of Bohemian Jesuits and Moravian Brethren in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and the mass migration of the Czechs after the revolutionary year of 1848 up to the early years of the twentieth century and the influx of refugees from Nazism and Communism. The encyclopedia has been planned as a representative, comprehensive, and authoritative reference tool, encompassing over 7,500 biographies. This prodigious and unparalleled encyclopedic vademecum, reflecting enduring contributions of notable Americans with Czech roots, is not only an invaluable tool for all researchers and students of Czech-American history, but also a cart blanche for the Czech Republic, which considers Czech Americans as their own and as a part of its magnificent cultural history.




Encyclopedia of Bohemian and Czech-American Biography


Book Description

As the Czech ambassador to the United States, H. E. Petr Gandalovic noted in his foreword to this book that Mla Rechcgl has written a monumental work representing a culmination of his life achievement as a historian of Czech America. The Encyclopedia of Bohemian and Czech American Biography is a unique and unparalleled publication. The enormity of this undertaking is reflected in the fact that it covers a universe, starting a few decades after the discovery of the New World, through the escapades and significant contributions of Bohemian Jesuits and Moravian brethren in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the mass migration of the Czechs after the revolutionary year of 1848, and up to the early years of the twentieth century and the influx of refugees from Nazism and communism. The encyclopedia has been planned as a representative, a comprehensive and authoritative reference tool, encompassing over 7,500 biographies. This prodigious and unparalleled encyclopedic vade mecum, reflecting enduring contributions of notable Americans with Czech roots, is not only an invaluable tool for all researchers and students of Czech American history but is also a carte blanche for the Czech Republic, which considers Czech Americans as their own and as a part of its magnificent cultural history.




Czechs, Germans, Jews?


Book Description

The phenomenon of national identities, always a key issue in the modern history of Bohemian Jewry, was particularly complex because of the marginal differences that existed between the available choices. Considerable overlap was evident in the programs of the various national movements and it was possible to change one's national identity or even to opt for more than one such identity without necessarily experiencing any far-reaching consequences in everyday life. Based on many hitherto unknown archival sources from the Czech Republic, Israel and Austria, the author's research reveals the inner dynamic of each of the national movements and maps out the three most important constructions of national identity within Bohemian Jewry - the German-Jewish, the Czech-Jewish and the Zionist. This book provides a needed framework for understanding the rich history of German- and Czech-Jewish politics and culture in Bohemia and is a notable contribution to the historiography of Bohemian, Czechoslovak and central European Jewry.




Beyond the Sea of Beer


Book Description

This is a comprehensive history of immigrants from the historic lands of the Bohemian Crown and its successor states, including Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic, based on the painstaking lifetime research of the author. The reader will find lots of new information in this book that is not available elsewhere. The title of the book comes from a popular song of the famous Czech artistic duo, Voskovec and Werich, who described America in those words when they lived here, reflecting on their love for this country. It covers the period starting soon after the discovery of the New World to date. The emphasis is on the US, although Canada and Latin America are also covered. It covers the arrival and the settlement of the immigrants in various states and regions of America, their harsh beginnings, the establishment of their communities, and their organization. A separate section is devoted to the contributions of notable individuals in different areas of human endeavor, including Bohemians, Moravians, Bohemian Jews, and the Slovaks. These people excelled in just about every facet of human undertaking. Even though a total number of these immigrants were fewer than other ethnic groups, their accomplishments were phenomenal. Nothing like this has ever been published since the time Thomas Capek wrote his classic The Cechs (Bohemians) in America some one hundred years ago.




A History of the Czech Lands


Book Description

Born January 1, 1993 after it split with Slovakia, the Czech Republic is one of the youngest members of the European Union. Despite its youth as a nation, this land and the areas just outside its modern borders boasts an ancient and intricate past. With A History of the Czech Lands, editors Jaroslav Pánek and Oldrich Tuma—along with several scholars from the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and Charles University—provide one of the most complete historical accounts of this region to date. Pánek and Tuma’s history begins in the Neolithic era and follows the development of the state as it transformed into the Kingdom of Bohemia during the ninth century, into Czechoslovakia after World War I, and finally into the Czech Republic. Such a tumultuous political past arises in part from a fascinating native people, and A History of the Czech Lands profiles the Czechs in great detail, delving into past and present traditions and explaining how generation after generation adapted to a perpetually changing government and economy. In addition, Pánek and Tuma examine the many minorities that now call these lands home—Jews, Slovaks, Poles, Germans, Ukrainians, and others—and how each group’s migration to the region has contributed to life in the Czech Republic today. The first study in English with this scope and ambition, A History of the Czech Lands is essential for scholars of Slavic, Central, and East European studies and a must-read for those who trace their ancestry to these lands