Acta Historica Universitatis Klaipedensis

On the basis of an analysis of legal documents, the article reviews the reglamentation of funeral rites in Prussia in the 16th to the 18th c. with the aim of disclosing the content of the legal orders and the intensity of reglamentation in the field of funeral. On the other hand, the regulation implemented by the Church and the state is sought to be reviewed as one of the components and consequences of the process of confessionalization.

The article reviews the historical causes of multilingualism in Klaipėda Region and the reflection of language combinations in the objects of confessional heritage, mainly in the epitaphs recorded in the Old Lutheran cemeteries of Klaipėda Region. The specificity of the confessional heritage in the context of Lithuania is disclosed by comparing some specific characteristics of the Old cemetery (the tradition of cross erection, the use of languages in epitaphs) to the Old cemetery artefacts in other Lithuanian regions.

The article reviews tombstone inscriptions of Klaipėda Region cemeteries of the late 19th to mid-20th c. from a linguistic viewpoint. The inscriptions are German or Lithuanian, less frequently bilingual (in German and Lithuanian on the same tombstone). The greatest attention is paid to the Lithuanian inscriptions, with the focus on their vocabulary and morphology. Moreover, the principal linguistic characteristics of personal names are discussed.

The object of the research is German epitaphs in the old cemeteries of Klaipėda Region. German inscriptions are compared to Lithuanian ones on the basis of the historical-comparative method with the aim of disclosing their textological and linguistic characteristics. The analysis of inscriptions on German tombstones showed that, compared to Lithuanian tombstones, the attributes indicating the relationship of the deceased to family members were used more frequently. The profession of the deceased was indicated more often than in Lithuanian epitaphs. Starting with the 20s of the 20th century, the constructions of extended appositions were less frequent, and the epitaphs became more concise. Laconicism of linguistic expression and of the structure of the epitaphs restrained their linguistic diversity and the potential for linguistic research. The analysis considered the brief language of the epitaphs as the facts of the living language, whereas Bible and canticle citations were not studied. A few examples of dialecticisms and archaisms were identified, e.g. an archaic form of the verb geben: es giebt. Vowel reduction, a phenomenon characteristic of the High German dialect, was identified. The present article did not discuss the principle of Germanization of Lithuanian names, surnames, or place names, as well as the distribution of German epitaphs over the localities of Klaipėda Region. New data are expected that may promote linguistic research.

The epigraphs of the Evangelical Lutheran cemeteries of Klaipėda provide rich information. They present exhaustive data on the buried person: full dates of their births and deaths, names, surnames, and maiden names of married women; sometimes even the place of origin or the social-professional status is indicated. Beside the personal data, the epigraphs contain farewell or sacred texts addressed to the dead. The ethnic Evangelical Lutheran cemeteries in Klaipėda Region significantly suffered during the historical and political events unfavourable for them. The majority of tombstones and crosses were totally destroyed and cannot be reconstructed. Unique information about the population of the Region was lost forever. In the article, the author analyzes the data presented in epigraphs: the distribution of the dead by gender and age, high infant/ children mortality rates, and other.

The article focuses on the state of the old cemeteries in Klaipėda Region and their place in the system of the local culture heritage. All that shall be revealed by actualizing the issue as an outcome of World War 2, when the Region lost almost all local population who were substituted for by settlers with the culture and religion alien to the land. The historical-confessional characteristics of legal evolution of the old cemeteries of the region are discussed by disclosing the transfer of their legal-administrative subordination from church to municipal jurisdiction. General characteristics and problems of the relationship of the new settlers with the old heritage are discussed. The value of the cemeteries in terms of heritage protection is emphasized.

The article presents research materials collected by means of surveys of the old Lietuvininkai (residents of Prussian Lithuania) and settlers of the post-war period who lived in the vicinity of the old Lutheran cemeteries; that affected the character of their lifestyle, traditional moral attitudes, and economic activity in one or another way. The major part of the information was collected during summer expeditions to the villages of Saugai rural administrative unit, Šilutė district, in the summer of 2012. Authentic stories and memories of the origin and development of specific cemeteries, burial customs and habits, and the issues of cemetery care or neglecting are published and discussed. The summaries provide the views of the surveyed respondents of the immediate and further prospects of the survival of the said cemeteries.

The article deals with the diversity of herbaceous and ligneous ornamental plant species and their distribution in the old cemeteries of Klaipėda Region. Studies were carried out in 40 cemeteries of Šilutė district, during the vegetation period in 2012. The cemeteries differed in their area, the intensity of their use, and care. In the majority of cases, one to ten species of ornamental plants were found. The largest diversity of ornamental plant species (over 20) were found in the currently used and cared for cemeteries in Mantvydai I and Kukorai. The total number of ornamental plants species established in the cemeteries was under 60. Among the ligneous plants, the common lilacs (Syringa vulgaris L.) and thuja (Thuja occidentalis L.) prevailed. Among the herbaceous ornamental plants, several species and varieties of plantain lily (Hosta L.), common columbine (Aquilegia vulgaris L.), and lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis L.) prevailed.

The article focuses on ethical dilemmas caused by accidentally found artefacts from the necropolises of Klaipėda Region that no longer have clear attribute references (tombstones or details of their decoration, epitaph tables, fragments of crosses, etc). The problems are related to the identification of such findings, the establishment of their environmental protection and museum value (whether they are to be protected, exhibited, or valueless), their potential use (as objects of research or of technological interest, memorial objects, raw materials for restoration, etc.), and their fate. As proved by experience, part of the artefacts are a valuable source of information about the materials used by the craftsmen of the 19th to mid-20th c., details of decoration, the skills, and technological and colourist resolutions. The artefacts with no clear attribute references can be used for instrumental analysis: for the identification of the composition and structure of ceramics, metal, paints, and glaze; however, the fate of an artefact primarily depends on the moral decision of a person who found (appropriated, or dismantled) it.