Studia Polensia, Vol. 8 No. 1, 2019.
Review article
https://doi.org/10.32728/studpol/2019.08.01.07
LIBURNIA AS A MANSION OF CENTRAL EUROPE: MEMOIRS AND LITERARY TESTIMONY BY IVANA BRLIĆ-MAŽURANIĆ
Vjekoslava Jurdana
orcid.org/0000-0003-2277-3795
; Juraj Dobrila University of Pula
Abstract
Liburnia is a geographic region along the eastern coast of Istria,
bordered by Učka, Preluk and Plomin Bay. Its linguistic and cultural
dimensions are strongly determined by its geological, geographical and
political uniqueness. In the middle of the 19 th century, this area began to
develop as an elite Central European tourist destination. Within the Austro-
Hungarian Monarchy, Opatija was a well-known Liburnian winter and
summer resort. Members of the royal families, composers and writers came
to visit Opatija, including the famous Croatian writer Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić.
Based on documents recently discovered in Ivana’s correspondence, this
paper documents and depicts her stays in Liburnia, which have not been
researched and written about before. Moreover, the recent literature related
to tourist and cultural history of Liburnia emphasizes numerous famous
guests who visited this area, but fails to mention Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić.
In addition to Ivana’s correspondence, this paper analyses her portrayal of
Liburnia based on her memoirs and lyrical prose. Her work is an expressive
testimony of the development of the culture of travel of the 19 th century
Central-European upper class. Ultimately, it is a valuable portrayal of
Liburnia at the end of the 19 th and beginning of the 20 th centuries, which
was the time of its intense tourist expansion.
Keywords
Liburnia; Central Europe; Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić; literary testimony; the culture of travel
Hrčak ID:
229190
URI
Publication date:
4.12.2019.
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