Bronys Savukynas, renowned Lithuanian linguist, translator, and editor-in-chief of Kulturos barai since 1991, died on Saturday 20 April in Vilnius. He was 78.

Savukynas's contribution to Lithuanian intellectual culture was considerable. Already a well-known academic, he joined the staff of Kulturos barai in 1968 and worked hard to make it the most open and critical journal possible during those difficult years. After the "singing revolution" in 1990, he re-created the journal, turning it into a publication of European intellectual format. He actively supported the idea of Kulturos barai joining the Eurozine network.

An author of numerous academic articles, an editor of eight collections of essays on language and semiotics, and author and co-author of several influential scholarly dictionaries, Bronys Savukynas was an active and prominent public figure in Lithuanian intellectual life right through to the last days of his life. In 2007 he was awarded the Culture and Arts Prize by the Lithuanian Government.

Almantas Samalavicius, Kulturos barai
Carl Henrik Fredriksson, Eurozine

Published 2008-04-22