Jonas Trinkūnas
| Jonas Trinkūnas | |
|---|---|
Romuvan Krivis (High Priest) Jonas Trinkūnas at the 2009 Baltic historical re-enactment festival Apuolė-854
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| Born |
Jonas Jaunius Trinkūnas 28 February 1939 Klaipėda, Lithuania |
| Died | 20 January 2014 (aged 74) Vilnius, Lithuania |
| Occupation | Ethnologist and folklorist |
| Known for | Revival of the Romuvan religion |
Jonas Jaunius Trinkūnas (28 February 1939 – 20 January 2014) was the founder of Lithuania's pagan revival Romuva, as well as being an ethnologist and folklorist.
Trinkūnas was born in 1939 in Klaipėda. He finished primary school in Kaunas in 1957 and in 1965 he earned a degree in philology at the Faculty of Lithuanian Language and Literature of Vilnius University. While still a student, he founded the Society of Friends of India (Lithuanian: Indijos bičulių draugija). The Vedic traditions of India were what pushed him to search for the roots of Lithuanian culture and its spiritual meaning.
In 1967, Trinkūnas and his friends organised the first Rasos (Summer Solstice) celebration in Kernavė, which was met with disapproval by the Soviet authorities. Despite pressure from the KGB, Lithuanians organized folklore and ethnographic ensembles, lit the bonfires on Rasos and candles on Vėlinės (All Saints' Day)—symbols important to the cultural vitality of the nation. Trinkūnas was one of the founders of the Ethnographic Ramuva Society of Vilnius University. He studied folklore, traveled to Lithuanian villages for the purpose of writing down Lithuania's living culture, songs and traditions. His students and followers continue to call themselves ramuviai and žygeiviai (“travellers”).
From 1969 to 1973, Trinkūnas worked at the Faculty of Philology at Vilnius University as a post-graduate and lecturer. In 1973, for his folklore studies which were considered to be dissident activities, Trinkūnas was forced to leave the University. Until 1988 he was forbidden from engaging in any scientific research work and activities in his profession. Therefore, for more than two decades, Trinkūnas dedicated his life to studying the living traditions of Lithuania. Travelling from village to village, he listened to and learned their songs, stories, customs and beliefs. These experiences turned the Ramuva folklorist into a true believer of Romuva.
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