BALTIC HERITAGE NETWORK Newsletter no. 3 (24) 2018 issn: 228-3390 In this issue: • Estonia Opens Memorial in Remembrance of Victims of Communism • First Summer Course for Estonian Dance Teachers Abroad • A Book on Lithuanian-Polish Relations • Reflections of the Worldwide Estonian Societies Festival “Sajaga seltsis” • The Order for Merits to Lithuania • Lithuanian and Estonian at IU Bloomington • Discussion on the Preservation of Lithuanian Identity Abroad • Ruta Karma was nominated for the BaltHerNet Conference in Tartu to Languages Award celebrate 100 years of the Baltic Republics • National Library of Lithuania at the and 10 years of our organization World Lithuanian Events in Vilnius The conference “New Beginnings of Baltic Diaspora” took place at the Estonian National Museum in Tartu from June 26-29. The conference Editor-in-Chief: Piret Noorhani Editor: Kristina Lupp was organized by the NGO Baltic Heritage Network with the help Designer: Kristina Lupp of partners including the Estonian National Museum, the Estonian The Baltic Heritage Newsletter is Literary Museum, Centre of Excellence in Estonian Studies, and the distributed quarterly, on-line. The next National Archives of Estonia. deadline for submissions is 15 November 2018. Please send all related enquiries The conference celebrated the 100th birthdays of the Republics of and submissions to Piret Noorhani: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The conference was also an opportunity [email protected] to examine the current and past experiences diaspora communities The Non-Profit Association Baltic Heritage Network was founded in Tartu on January have had opening and closing archives. The conference covered topics 11, 2008. NPA BaltHerNet was established such as creating new collections, promoting existing collections, to foster cooperation between national and questions regarding preservation and accessibility, as well as oral history private archives, museums, libraries, and institutions of research, public associations and family stories, writing memoirs, and the importance of passing and organizations collecting and studying history on to following generations. Speakers included academic the cultural heritage of the Baltic diaspora. researchers, memory institution specialists, in addition to hard-working It aims to facilitate the preservation and research of the historically valuable cultural volunteers, and representatives of diaspora community memory property of the Baltic diaspora, as well as institutions. to ensure accessibility of these materials to A total of 24 presentations were made at the Baltic diaspora gathering, the public. NPA BaltHerNet is also committed to Greetings were given by Anne-Ly Reimaa, the Head of International the organising of conferences, seminars Relations on Integration Issues at the Ministry of Culture, the Director and workshops, and to developing and of the Estonian National Museum, Alar Karis, and the President of administrating the electronic information website Baltic Heritage Network, a BaltHerNet, Piret Noorhani. The conference was opened by Uppsala multilingual electronic gateway for University professor Raimo Raag, whose opening speech focused on the information on the cultural heritage of the definitions of “new” and “old” in the context of community. Often the Baltic diaspora. development of new communities abroad gives previous generations www.balther.net within the community reason to consider the next generation to be ISSN 2228-3390 2018 NO . 3 (24) Baltic heritage network 2 new. Similarly, ethnic groups heritage of the Baltic University Kolevinskienė), and research give refugee communities their that was active in Hamburg about emigration through the own names. The 19th century and Pinneberg, Germany from educational programs at the emigration that took place for 1946 to 1949. The establishment National Library of Lithuania agrarian reasons was without a of the Baltic University was (Jolanta Budriuniene). The rest of doubt very different from the incredibly important, as it was the presentations examined the migratory wave that took place very successful in poor conditions activities of Estonian diaspora during and following the Second providing scholars who had left in Australia (Inno Salasoo, Maie World War. Each new wave of the Baltic countries academic Barrow, Terry Kass/Jüri Voan), migration has been accompanied work and simultaneously in the United States of America by the renaming of the previous providing an academic education (Ave Marie Blithe) and in Canada wave. Furthermore, the alteration to young Balts in DP camps. P. (Piret Noorhani). Lectures of terminology is also recognizable Heikkilä presented a lecture about focusing on Estonian memory over time (terms used early on, questions surrounding committees institution activities surrounding such as refugee or displaced fighting to free Estonia and their diaspora included: the research persons, change over time or activities at their peak during status of Siberian Estonians (Anu disappear entirely). Therefore, the 1950s and 1960s, when the Korb), the accessibility of film the diaspora lifestyle can be relationship between the Estonian heritage on topics of diaspora considered cyclical. Proferssor American National Committee (Ivi Tomingas), the heritage of Raag found that it is interesting to and Committee for a Free Estonia literary scholar Ivar Ivask (Aija analyze the conference title with was complicated, including power Sakova), the life works of author “beginnings” plural - was there struggles and attempts to outdo and artist Gunnar Neeme (Marin one similar beginning in the Baltic each other’s actions. K. Beķere Laak), and the literary relationship diaspora or rather many different introduced questions regarding between the diaspora and the ones depending on the ethnic the legal consistency of Baltic homeland following the Second group, destinations, period of countries since the end of Second World War (Anneli Mihkelev). migration, or other reasons related World War until the restoration Representative of the “Kogu Me to the field. of national continuity at the Lugu” (Collecting Our Story) Presentations by academic beginning of the 1990s. Although project Michaela Snopkova and representatives from abroad representatives of Baltic countries Tartu University professor and included Geert Franzenburg in the free world could not direct literary scholar Tiina Ann Kirss from the University of Münster, USA politics in the direction of gave overviews of capturing life Marcus Velke from the University the Baltic countries, the activities stories. Tiina reviewed the status of Bonn, Jüri Kivimäe who has of diplomats were important for of the incredible collaborative been a longtime professor at the preservation and recognition project “Minu elu ja armastus: the University of Toronto, Pauli of national continuity. Eesti Vabariik 100” (My Love Heikkilä from the University of This time there were 5 presentations and Life: Estonia 100). The Helsinki, and Kristīne Beķere at the conference about Latvian and first day ended with Helga from the Latvian Academy Lithuanian diaspora. Presentations Merits’ documentary about the of Sciences. G. Franzenburg covered an introduction of research Geislingen DP camp, which discussed the process of done on Siberian Latvians included children’s interviews and constructive memory, memory living in Krasnoyarsk region a thorough introduction from codes, and culture identity as based on the Latvian author the author. A guided tour of the a dynamic process that has a Melanija Vanaga’s work (Liene Estonian National Museum, the strong sense of belonging. M. Salmina), today’s composition opening of the exhibit “Food: A Velke spoke about the Baltic of Lithuanians in the ethnically Treasury of Estonian Heritage. community in post-war Bonn, Latvian settlement in the Šventoji Businesses and Factories in focusing on two distinguished region (Krišs Kapenieks), Latvian Toronto,” a visit to the National Baltic exile institutions, the lecturers at the Baltic University Archives of Estonia, and the Baltic Institute for Research and (Baiba Vanaga), the activities of opening reception of the exhibit Development and the Baltic the Lithuanian Authors’ Society dedicated to Gunnar Neeme at the Christian Students Union. J. in the United States of America Estonian Literary Museum all fit into Kivimäe gave an overview of the in the 1950-1970s (Žydronė the conference program. 2018 NO . 3 (24) Baltic heritage network 3 The conference lectures were available via livestream for all those who were curious and soon they will be available on Youtube (use the keywords Baltic Heritage Network to search). The NGO BaltHerNet Annual General Meeting also took place during the conference period and it was decided that the Chief Archivist of the Museum of Estonians Abroad, Piret Noorhani, will continue as the President of BaltHerNet. victimised? Communist crimes Photo: Kaarel Langemets The Board of Directors was and European memory” was held grandchildren,” the President of elected: Karin Kiisk (secretary, in Tallinn. the Republic said. Estonian National Museum), Vice-Presidents Kristine Bekere The memorial commemorating The opening of the Memorial (Latvian Academy of Sciences) Estonia’s victims of communism was followed by the high-level and Jolanta Budriuniene is dedicated to all Estonian people conference “Utopia unachieved (Martynas Mažvydas National who suffered under the terror despite millions victimised? Library of Lithuania), Board inflicted by the Soviet