Literature
Few Latvian artistic figures or works are internationally known. The
country's literature was kickstarted in the 19th century with the writing
of a national epic poem called Lacplesis (The Bear Slayer) by Andrejs
Pumpurs, which was based on traditional folk tales. The giant of Latvian
literature is Janis Rainis, whom Latvians claim might have enjoyed the
acclaim of Shakespeare or Goethe had he written in a less obscure
language.
Latvian verses known as dainas are often short and poetic and have been
compared to the Japanese haiku. In the 19th century, great collections of
folk lyrics and tunes were made by Krisjanis Barons. In fact, over 1.4
million folk lyrics and 30,000 tunes have been written down in Latvia.
Art
The first major Latvian painter was Janis Rozentals, who painted scenes
of peasant life and portraits in the early 20th century. Vilhelms Purvitis
and Janis Valters were the outstanding landscape artists of the time.
Karlis Rudevics, a leading figure in Latvia's Gypsy community, is known
for his translations of Gypsy poetry and his striking paintings inspired
by Gypsy legends.
Language
Latvian is one of only two surviving languages of the Baltic branch of
the Indo-European language family, and speakers of Latvian regard it as an
endangered species. Just over half the people in the country speak it as
their first language. The language spoken in east and west Latvia has
dialectical differences from the standard Latvian spoken in the central
portion of the country.
Food
Smoked foods - particularly fish - are popular in Latvia, as are dairy
products, eggs, potatoes and grains. Smoked flounder, eel, herring and
pilchards are staples of the country's diet, while specially preserved
lampreys are a Latvian delicacy. Soups and sausage are also popular. In
summer and autumn, fresh berry pies and tarts are abundant. Latvia's
leading beer is Aldaris, but the concoction that prompts the most
curiosity is Riga Black Balsam, a thick, jet-black, 45-proof mixture that
tastes downright revolting. It's been produced only in Latvia since 1755.
Dances
Have a look at this pdf-file for information about the dance
Sudmalinas
To read the file you need the free software Adobe Reader from
Adobe or another pdf-viewer.
The Adobe Reader you can find on the homepage from
Adobe under Support -
Downloads.
National Anthem
To listen the national anthem click
here.
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