How people from Belarus conquer the world

What do you think unites all these people Marc Chagall, Isaac Asimov, Kirk Douglas? In fact, they were all born in Belarus! Many of them have become famous far beyond the country's borders, their contribution to world culture, politics and other areas of life is difficult to overestimate. We will tell about interesting Belarusians, who in varying degrees have affected global politics and culture.

      The most famous Belarusians: contribution to the world history

       

One of the most significant figures in our history is Francisk Skaryna. He is the first Belarusian printer and an outstanding scientist fr om Polotsk . He first published the Bible in the old Belarusian language in 1517 in Vilna. Francisk Skaryna studied in Polotsk at the Bernardine monastery, then moved to Krakow, where he received a Bachelor in philosophy. Later, Skorina went to the Italian Padua, where he passed the exams as an external student and received a Doctor of Medicine. The university is proud of such a student, so the walls of the institution is still decorated with the portrait of this prominent Belarusian.

          The books of Skaryna have:

  • author comments that helped ordinary Belarusians understand the essence of Scripture,
  • introductions filled with humanistic and educational thoughts,
  • illustrations.

Francis made an invaluable contribution to the development of printing and Old Belarusian language.


Tadeush Kosciuszko is a national hero of four countries: the USA, Poland, Lithuania and Belarus, an Honorary Citizen of France. His biography is full of events:

  • born in 1746 in the village of Kossovo (GDL),
  • studied in Poland and France,
  • participated in the war of independence in the United States in 1776,
  • after the second division of the Rzecz Pospolita, Tadeush Kostiushko organized and led the Polish revolt  in 1794
  • after the defeat of the revolt he lived in France and Switzerland.

The current museum is located in Kostyushko’s hometown in Belarus. He is remembered and honored until now, and in Poland he is depicted even on banknotes!



          Perhaps one of the most famous Belarusians in the art world is Marc Chagall. His contribution to the development of world painting is difficult to overestimate. Marc Chagall's hometown is Vitebsk. He was born here in 1887 and carried love for the city on the Dvina through his entire life. The artist received his first education at home, then he went to St. Petersburg. In 1911 he received a scholarship and moved to Paris, which later became his second homeland. The biography of Marc Chagall has everything :

  1. Love. The muse of a lifetime Chagall was his wife Bella. All the female images in his paintings he painted inspired by his wife.
  2. Recognition. The Erasmus Prize, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor, solo exhibitions in the Tretyakov Gallery - this is only a small part of his merits.
  3. Travels. The artist visited many countries in his life Belarus, Russia, France, Lithuania, America, but he carried through his life the “Vitebsk” motives, admiration for this city and love for it. For example, the famous painting “Above the City”, wh ere Marc Chagall and his precious Bella fly over Vitebsk ...


         The development of world literature cannot be imagined without one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time - Isaac Asimov, nee Isaac Ozimov. He was born in the village of Petrovichi, Mogilev region in 1920, in three years he ended up in the USA. Isaac Asimov is a multiple winner of prestigious literary awards, for example, Hugo and Nebula, author of more than 500 books. He belongs to the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Arthur Clark and Robert Heinlein. Many of the terms invented by him have become part of the modern language, for example, robotics, positron, psychohistory, etc.



Prominent people of Belarus: contribution to world politics

Do you know that the first president of Israel was a native of Belarus? Several of the most famous Belarusians related to the political life of this country:

  • Chaim Weizman was the first President of Israel. He hailed from the agro-town Motol near Pinsk;
  • Shimon Peres was native of the village of Vishnevo, Minsk Region, held the post of president, twice held the post of Israeli Prime Minister;
  • Ariel Sharon was another prime minister with Belarusian roots. He was born in Israel, but his parents were from Belarus.

The most unexpected person on our list is Donald Trump's father-in-law, Jared Kushner. As it turned out, his grandmother was from Novogrudok.


Contribution to the development of Hollywood

The owner of the film company with one of the most memorable screensavers in the history of cinema - came from Minsk!


 Lazar Meir after emigration changed his name to Louis Barth Meyer. He founded the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studios, stood at the origins of Hollywood and the prestigious Oscar award. Following his American dream, he went from being a scrap metal dealer to one of the pioneers of the world film industry.

Many famous Hollywood actors have Belarusian roots:

  • actor Kirk Douglas, whose birth name was Iser Danilovich, was born in New York. His parents came from the small town of Chausy, Mogilev region;
  • Liza Kudrow - the star of the popular TV series “Friends” even visited her historic homeland and was in Vileyka, Ivye and Minsk, because her grandmother and grandfather hailed from the village of Ivye, Vileika District:
  • Even Indiana Jones has Belarusian roots! Grandmother and grandfather of Harisson Ford came from Minsk.