The dynamics of research: Exile scholars

World War II and the occupation of Latvia by Soviet, German, and finally again Soviet forces marked the transitional period in disciplinary history, resulting in two parallel research communities for almost half a century: one in Soviet Latvia and one in exile Latvian diasporas across the world. Both communities were initially developed by researchers already more or less active during the previous period and now adapting to a complex post-war situation, either exploiting Soviet ideology and methodology in the LSSR, or continuing nationally oriented research related to a state no longer in existence.

Subsequently, in the first decades after World War II exile Latvians generally continued their previous research, although, of course, the institutional basis, availability of materials and other conditions were different. Combining two roles, the one of displaced person and the other of scholar, exile scholarship represents yet another specific modification of knowledge production and its ideological connotations in the field of mythology research. Contributing to both causes of national identity and research resources, both the most voluminous editions of folksongs and folktales were re-published in Denmark and the USA (cf. p. 59–63). With the decades following the first post-war years came the next generation of the exile community, more integrated in Western research institutions and benefiting from the combination of local citizenship and original knowledge of a comparatively niche culture and language, adapting more recent methods and directions of research rather than directly continuing the agenda of the interwar-period.

Of the Latvian intellectuals, who, considering the threats to personal security and termination of academic practice, succeeded in going into exile, the most significant for the research of Latvian mythology were Kārlis Straubergs,

Arveds Švābe, and Haralds Biezais. The cases of both the former illustrate the changes of scholarly practices against the backdrop of radically changed social status, while Biezais, belonging to the younger generation, started his scholarly career anew. Švābe and Straubergs both left Latvia in 1944, after publishing their last works in their native country. Both were influential personalities in the Republic of Latvia (see. p. 126–130 and 130–133) with well-established inter-national relations, and both of them also took leading positions within the political structures of the exile community. Escaping the approaching battle front and the second Soviet occupation, Straubergs went directly to Sweden together with his wife and four children in autumn 1944. He soon took a position in the Institutet för folklivsforskning (the Folk-life Research Institute) at the Nordiska Museet (the Nordic Museum) in Stockholm. He became head of the influential Latvian organisation Latviešu Nacionālais fonds (the Latvian National Foundation), and after 1952 was also involved in the activities of the Latvijas Nacionālā Padome (the National Council of Latvia), later taking part in the foundation of the Latviešu Zemnieku savienība trimdā (the Latvian Peasants’ Union in Exile) as well as participating in the Latviešu Akadēmiskā organizācija (the Latvian Academic Organisation) and other public societies.

Straubergs died in Stockholm in 1962 and was re-buried in Latvia in 1990. In exile Straubergs continued working immediately: in 1946 he published an article on sacred woods and two articles on Swedish marriage in Swedish, as well as the book Lettisk folktro om de döda (Latvian folk beliefs on the dead, 1949), as well as research on werewolves in the Baltic region. An article on mythological space and the netherworld “Zur Jenseitstopographie” (“On Topography of the Netherworld”, 1957) was published in German in the Journal of Scandinavian Folklore. His voluminous treatise on Latvian folklore in English unfortunately remains unpublished. Straubergs was also one of the main editors of an edition of Latvian folksong in twelve tomes (1952–1956), also authoring sixteen articles on different folklore related themes included in this edition⁶⁶. One of strategies of exile scholarship is perfectly illustrated by Straubergs’ answer to the question about exile and the mission of exile Latvians’ in an interview: “I can speak only about myself, my job. It is like scholarly travel. Like the University of Latvia or Ministry of Education have commissioned me to do some scholarly task researching materials that are in the archives, museums, and libraries of this place” (Kārkliņš 2003: 319).

Arveds Švābe left Latvia in the same year, 1944, but arrived in Sweden by a different route. In august of 1940, the newly established Soviet institutions transformed the positions of vice-directors of the Institute of History of Latvia occupied by Švābe and Fricis Balodis, as well as the manager’s position occupied by Kārlis Straubergs, into formal duties without salary. In 1943, German officials prohibited Švābe from providing lectures and examining students at the University of Latvia, and later closed the Department of the

66 For reprints of the latter as well as selected bibliography see Straubergs 1995.

History of Latvia and fired the professor. The following year Švābe became a refugee in Germany, but there he was arrested and imprisoned in Dachau concentration camp. After release Švābe spent a few years in Germany, similarly to Straubergs, actively taking part in political life. First, he participated in the foundation of the Minhenes latviešu pagaidu komiteja (the Interim Committee of Latvians of Munich) and became its head. Further, Švābe was involved in the activities of other exile organisation like the Bavārijas Nacionālā komiteja (the National Committee of Bavaria), and in August of 1945 became one of the founders of the main political organisation of Latvian exile community worldwide, the Latviešu Centrālā komiteja (The Latvian Central Committee). In Germany Švābe was committed predominantly to literary activities, publishing poems and a novel, editing two newspapers and participating in poetry readings and other public events (cf. Švābe 1947). In 1949 Švābe moved to Sweden, joining Straubergs at the Folk-life Research Institute by taking the position of an archivist. In Sweden the previous editor of the fundamental Latviešu konversācijas vārdnīca (Latvian lexicon) became the editor of first three tomes of Latvju enciklopēdija (Latvian Encyclopaedia, 1950–1956), and together with Straubergs supervised the edition of Latvian folksongs in 12 tomes. His scholarly activities were mainly related to the history of Latvia, apart from several articles published in the folksong edition.

Most of these articles repeat Švābes’ publications on Latvian folksongs form the 1930s (p. 109–113) as well as continuing some themes already initiated in 1917 (e.g. war folksongs) and the conclusions of the last article published in Latvia in 1944 (Vilks 1944).

Among other exile scholars, theologian, priest, and historian of religion Haralds Biezais (1909–1995) was definitely the most influential researcher of Latvian mythology in this time. While still living in Latvia, during the interwar period his interests were mainly related to theology and clergy practice. After the Soviet occupation in 1944, Biezais left the country and went in exile to Sweden. In addition to clerical obligations, Biezais became an assistant at the chair of Systematic theology in the University of Uppsala, at the same time studying philosophy and history. Subsequently, the first of his main works in the field of Latvian mythology was his doctoral thesis Die Hauptgöttinnen der alten Letten (1955); this was later followed by the fundamental monographs Die Gottesgestalt der lettischen Volksreligion (1961), Die himmlische Götterfamilie der alten Letten (1972) and Lichtgott der alten Letten (1976), numerous articles, entries in encyclopaedias, and presentations at conferences. In 1971 Biezais started a professorship of religion history at the Faculty of Theology at the University of Åbo/Turku in Finland (p. 147–149). The last largest research into Latvian mythology in exile was published by Biezais’ colleague and spouse, folklorist working at University of Uppsala Liene Neulande (1921–2010). Her monograph based on dissertation Jumis, die Fruchtbarkeitsgottheit der alten Letten (1977) was also translated into Latvian and published with minor revisions in 2001 (Neulande 2001; cf. Sūrmane 2002).

Although many of the works of Latvian exile scholars continued the interwar tradition of research or discussion, with the national academia gone after World War II this is the first time in history when so many scholarly books and articles on Latvian mythology were published in foreign languages, thus introducing the subject matter to wider circles of international scholarship. Consequently, these texts serve as a stepping stone for further comparative research into Baltic mythology.