{"id":408,"date":"2024-04-03T23:39:47","date_gmt":"2024-04-03T20:39:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/meri\/"},"modified":"2024-04-04T00:10:08","modified_gmt":"2024-04-03T21:10:08","slug":"meri","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/m\/meri\/","title":{"rendered":"Lennart Meri"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tNon-fiction<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0\"Lennart<\/a><\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tAbout Lennart Meri<\/span><\/strong><\/a>\n<\/p>\n

Lennart Georg Meri (29 March 1929 in Tallinn \u2013 14 March 2006 in Tallinn) was an Estonian writer, film-maker, cultural historian, essayist, diplomat and politician, President of Estonia 1992-2001.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Lennart Meri\u2019s parents were the diplomat and later translator of William Shakespeare, Georg Meri, and Alice-Brigitta Engmann, who was of Estonian-Swedish extraction. Meri got his primary education in Germany and France: at the Coll\u00e8ge J\u00e9sus-Christ in Paris (1934-1935), at Public School number 164 in Berlin (1935-1938), and the Lyc\u00e9e Janson de Sailly in Paris (1938). Meri continued his studies in Tallinn at Westholm Gymnasium (1938-1940), and at primary schools number 30 (1940) and 22 (1941). The family was deported on 14. VI 1941 to Kirov oblast, where Meri continued his schooling at Yaranskiy secondary school (1944-1945). On his return to Tallinn, Meri studied at secondary school number 10 (1946-1948), and he acquired his higher education at the University of Tartu in the field of history, where he graduated cum laude<\/em> in 1953.<\/span>
\u00a0<\/span>
Meri worked for the Vanemuine Theatre as dramaturge and as a lecturer at Tartu Art School (1953-1955). From 1955 to 1961 he was editorial director of Finnish-language broadcasts and radio plays at Estonian Radio. At the Tallinn Film Studio he was a member of the editorial board (1963-1968), then a film director (1968-1971, 1986-1988). Meri took part in many expeditions (to the Carpathians, Central Asia, Eastern Siberia, Kamchatka, Altai, Taymyr, and the Mari, Mordvin and Komi republics).<\/span><\/p>\n

At the time of the Singing Revolution, Meri began his active political career: he was a member of the Cultural Council of the Estonian Creative Unions (1987), and in 1988 one of the organizers of the plenum of Creative Unions, he established the Estonian Institute, and was from 1988 to 1990 its director; he was Foreign Minister of the Republic of Estonia (1990-1992) and ambassador in Helsinki (April \u2013 October 1992), a member of the Writers\u2019 Union from 1963, a member of its board (1963-1992), its secretary (1985-1987), a Merited Writer of the Estonian SSR (1979); a member of the Filmmakers Union of the Estonian SSR (1966), an honorary member of the Finnish Writers\u2019 Union (1982), an honorary doctor of the Universities of Helsinki and of Lapland. In 1992 Meri was elected President of the Republic of Estonia and re-elected for a second term in September 1996.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meri began his literary career with articles on cultural history in the newspaper Edasi (1950), using the pseudonym J. Ellem. His main literary genre became the travel essay of a historical and cultural nature, about journeys in time and space. His first books are travelogues in the conventional sense: Kobrade ja karakurtide j\u00e4lgedes<\/em> (\u2018On the Path of Cobras and Steppe Spiders\u2019, 1959), describing a journey on foot through Central Asia; Laevapoisid rohelisel ookeanil<\/em> (\u2018Boat-boys on a Green Ocean\u2019, 1961), telling of a kayak journey in Siberia; Tulem\u00e4gede maale<\/em> (\u2018To the Land of Volcanoes\u2019, 1964), depicting a young scientists\u2019 expedition to Kamchatka, and a later, expanded version of it, L\u00e4henevad rannad<\/em> (\u2018Approaching Shores\u2019, 1977). Historical interludes and comparisons become more frequent from one work to another. His most translated work, Virmaliste v\u00e4raval<\/em> (\u2018At the Gate of the Northern Lights\u2019, 1974), is both a travel book and an account of the opening and discovery of the Northwest Passage. In the books H\u00f5bevalge<\/em> (\u2018Silver-white\u2019, 1976) and H\u00f5bevalgem<\/em> (\u2018More Silver-white\u2019, 1984) he brings to life the early maritime history of the Estonians, the catastrophe of the Kaali meteorite on Saaremaa and other historical events, mixing together historical sources from traditional knowledge, linguistic information and motifs from folklore. His account is strained by surprising hypotheses, the main one of which is that the ancient mariner Pytheas travelled as far as Saaremaa in his journeys and called it Thule.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meri\u2019s political articles and speeches, mainly concerned with the state of the Estonian nation and culture prior to the restoration of independence, and the aims of the Estonian state at the end of the 20th century, are eloquent essays of great power. As such they have aroused attention abroad too: more than 250 articles have been translated into various languages and published in journals in Europe, Asia and America. A selection of them has appeared in Estonia in the \u2018History of Estonian Thought\u2019 series, in the volumes Presidendik\u00f5ned<\/em> (\u2018Presidential Speeches\u2019, 1996), Riigimured<\/em> (\u2018Problems of the State\u2019, 201) and Poliitiline testament<\/em> (\u2018Political Testament\u2019, 2007).<\/span><\/p>\n

Meri\u2019s ethnographic-cultural films about Finno-Ugric peoples and cultures have won international acclaim: Veelinnurahvas<\/em> (\u2018People of the Water-bird\u2019, 1970), Linnutee tuuled<\/em> (\u2018Winds of the Milky Way\u2019, 1977), the partly staged Kaleva h\u00e4\u00e4led<\/em> (\u2018Voices of Kaleva\u2019, 1986), Toorumi pojad<\/em> (\u2018Sons of Toorum\u2019, 1991) and \u0160amaan<\/em> (\u2018Shaman\u2019, 1997). Meri also translated into Estonian works by Erich Maria Remarque, Graham Greene, Vercors, Pierre Boulle and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn.<\/span><\/p>\n

I. M. (Translated by C. M.)<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Books in Estonian<\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tNon-fiction<\/em><\/strong>
Kobrade ja karakurtide j\u00e4lgedes: Kesk-Aasia matkam\u00e4rkmeid<\/strong>. Illustreerinud Ants Viidalepp. Tallinn: Eesti Riiklik Kirjastus, 1959, 158 lk.
Laevapoisid rohelisel ookeanil<\/strong>. Illustreerinud A. Viidalepp. Tallinn: Eesti Riiklik Kirjastus, 1961, 175 lk.
Tulem\u00e4gede maale: reisip\u00e4evik 160. meridiaanilt<\/strong>. Kaane\u00fcmbris ja kaas: N. Korma\u0161ov. Tallinn: Eesti Riiklik Kirjastus, 1964, 264 lk.
Virmaliste v\u00e4raval<\/strong>. Illustreerinud Viive Tolli. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1974, 328 lk.
H\u00f5bevalge: reisikiri tuulest ja muinasluulest<\/strong>. Illustreerinud Heinrich Valk. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1976, 488 lk. [2., muudetud tr\u00fckk: \u2018H\u00f5bevalge: reisikiri suurest paugust, tuulest ja muinasluulest\u2019, koostanud ja toimetanud Urmas Sutrop ning Mart Meri. Tallinn, Tartu: Lennart Meri Euroopa Sihtasutus, 2008, 589 lk; 3., muudetud tr\u00fckk: \u2018H\u00f5bevalge: reisikiri suurest paugust, tuulest ja muinasluulest\u2019, koostanud ja toimetanud Urmas Sutrop ning Mart Meri; j\u00e4rels\u00f5nad: J\u00fcri Kivim\u00e4e, Urmas Sutrop, Tallinn: Eesti P\u00e4evaleht, Akadeemia, 2008, 614 pp.]
L\u00e4henevad rannad: reisid 130. ja 160. meridiaani vahel<\/strong>. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1977, 415 lk. [\u2018Tulem\u00e4gede maale\u2019 poole mahukam uusv\u00e4ljaanne.]
H\u00f5bevalgem: reisikiri suurest paugust, tuulest ja muinasluulest<\/strong>. Soome regiv\u00e4rsid t\u00f5lkinud Paul-Eerik Rummo; illustreerinud Kaljo P\u00f5llu. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1984, 216 lk. [2., muudetud tr\u00fckk: \u2018H\u00f5bevalge: reisikiri suurest paugust, tuulest ja muinasluulest\u2019, koostanud ja toimetanud Urmas Sutrop ning Mart Meri. Tallinn, Tartu: Lennart Meri Euroopa Sihtasutus, 2008, 589 lk; 3., muudetud tr\u00fckk: \u2018H\u00f5bevalge: reisikiri suurest paugust, tuulest ja muinasluulest\u2019, koostanud ja toimetanud Urmas Sutrop ning Mart Meri; j\u00e4rels\u00f5nad: J\u00fcri Kivim\u00e4e, Urmas Sutrop, Tallinn: Eesti P\u00e4evaleht, Akadeemia, 2008, 614 pp.]
Presidendik\u00f5ned<\/strong>. Eess\u00f5na: Hando Runnel; j\u00e4rels\u00f5na: Carl Bildt. Tartu: Ilmamaa, 1996, 591 lk. [Sari \u2018Eesti m\u00f5ttelugu\u2019. 2. tr: 2005.]
Riigimured<\/strong>. Koostaja ja j\u00e4rels\u00f5na: Toomas Kiho; eess\u00f5na: Hando Runnel. Tartu: Ilmamaa, 2001, 675 lk. [K\u00f5ned. Sari \u2018Eesti m\u00f5ttelugu\u2019.]
Poliitiline testament<\/strong>. Koostajad Toomas Hiio ja Mart Meri; osaliselt t\u00f5lkinud Toomas Hiio; toimetaja Urmas T\u00f5nisson. Tartu: Ilmamaa, 2007, 270 lk. [Sari \u2018Eesti m\u00f5ttelugu\u2019.]
Lennart Meri \u00fctlemisi<\/strong>. Koostanud Toomas Kiho. Tallinn: Tammerraamat, 2015, 192 lk.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Non-fiction\u00a0 About Lennart Meri Lennart Georg Meri (29 March 1929 in Tallinn \u2013 14 March 2006 in Tallinn) was an Estonian writer, film-maker, cultural historian, essayist, diplomat and politician, President of Estonia 1992-2001. Lennart Meri\u2019s parents were the diplomat and …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":0,"parent":642,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-408","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/408","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=408"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/408\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4666,"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/408\/revisions\/4666"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sisu.ut.ee\/ewod\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=408"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}