The 14th Annual Litvak Days; Celebrating the Centenary of YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
A panel discussion followed by a concert
Litvak Days in London are an annual event which explores the rich cultural legacy of Lithuanian Jews in the UK and beyond. It is organised by the Lithuanian Embassy to the UK in collaboration with JW3. This year, which marks the 14th Litvak Days event, the panel discussion will be dedicated to a centenary of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, a global movement which included participation of the most important intellectual figures of the 20th century. The institute was established in Vilnius, had its branch in the UK, and currently operates in New York.
In spring 1925 the Yidisher visnshaftlekher institut (Yiddish Scientific Institute), known as YIVO, was established in Vilnius. At this time Yiddish was the native language of approximately 11 million people, and Jewish Vilna was world renowned as a centre of Yiddish culture. In Eastern Europe, secular Jewish Diaspora Nationalists promoted their own national life in the countries of their residence, creating a new movement that gave rise to a network of innovative cultural institutions. These culminated in the creation of YIVO, which became the centre of a global network of scholars and support groups. The efforts to rescue a portion of the institute’s collections during the Holocaust and transfer them to New York was no less of a monumental achievement. While YIVO continues its work today in New York, it remains a symbol of the rich heritage of the Vilna Jewish community.
With participation of Dr. Lara Lempertienė, head of the Judaica Research Centre of Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania and Dr. William Pimlott, researcher at the Birbeck Institute Study of Antisemitism
Image: copy of an original letter from the English branch of YIVO to the Vilnius‘ office, 1931. Courtesy Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania