ŁANOWSKI Jerzy

Born on 5 June 1919 in Lwów (Lviv); son of the lawyer and bank official Feliks Łanowski, and the qualified teacher Wiktoria, née Piwocka. He is the younger brother of the translator Zygmunt Łanowski. After graduating from King Stefan Batory State Grammar School No. III in Lwów in 1937, he started a degree in Classical philology at the city's Jan Kazimierz University. He made his debut in July 1939 with a review of the translation of Ferdinand Mainzer's 1934 book Der Kampf um Caesars Erbe, which was published in Polish as Walka o dziedzictwo Cezara (and has appeared in English translation as Caesar's Mantle: The end of the Roman Republic [1936]). His review appeared in the journal "Wiadomości Historyczno-Dydaktyczne". In August 1939, he took up a post as secretary at the Printworks of the Ossoliński National Institute in Lwów. Following the outbreak of the Second World War and the Red Army's occupation of Lwów, he continued his studies at the city's Ivan Franko University. He married Emilia Łukasiewiczówna in 1941. During the German occupation of Lwów, he studied in secret while working as a labourer and porter. He also taught Latin on underground courses. Following the Nazi retreat from Lwów, he completed his studies at the Ivan Franko University, where he worked at the Chair of Classical Philology in 1944/45. In October 1945, he and his wife moved to Poland as part of population transfers, or repatriation to use the official terminology of the day. He settled in Wroclaw, taking up a post on 1 November that year as a junior assistant at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Wroclaw (UWr). He wrote another master's thesis, which he defended in May 1946. He was a co-founder and then member of the Wroclaw Circle of the Polish Philological Society (PTF), which maintained the traditions of the Lwów Circle. In 1968 he became a deputy member of the PTF's Central Council, while in 1984 he was its deputy chair, before serving as chair from 1986 to 1992. He was made an honorary member in 1985 and then honorary chair in 1998. In 1947, he was appointed technical secretary and then editor of the publications of PTF and the Polish Archaeological Society. His 1947 article Dziwne losy Menandra Ateńczyka (The Strange Fate of Menander the Athenian) marked the start of his collaboration with the periodical "Meander", where he published numerous articles and reviews in subsequent years. That year he also became a regular contributor to the monthly "Eos", which he went on to co-edit between 1956 and 1969 (serving as sole editor in 1967/68). He was awarded a doctoral degree in 1950 for his study De Monostichis Menandri quae dicuntur quaestiones selectae, which was supervised by Prof. Wiktor Steffen. His research focused on the literature, culture, scholarship and technology of the Hellenistic period, as well as on the reception of Classical culture in Polish literature. From 1951 he published translations and articles in the journal "Pamiętnik Literacki". He served as secretary of the editorial board of the yearbook "Archeologia" in 1952. In 1955, he was appointed senior lecturer, serving until 1984 as holder of the Chair (and later head of the Department) of Hellenic Studies at the Institute of Classical Philology at UWr. In 1955/56 he was also associate dean of the Faculty of Philology, while from 1956 to 1959 he was acting vice-rector for youth affairs at UWr. In 1956, he joined the Wroclaw Scientific Society (WTN), serving as its secretary general from 1961 to 1964, then as a member of its board, becoming head of its Department I, while serving as deputy chair in 1976. He was head of the editorial commission of the Society's A publication series. He published book reviews on antiquity in "Przegląd Kulturalny" between 1957 and 1960. He was a research fellow in France (1957) and Italy (1958/59). In 1958, he was appointed to the Committee on Ancient Culture of the Polish Academy of Sciences, serving on its praesidium, becoming its chair in 1984. He was active as a translator from Greek and Latin, focusing in particular on tragedies. He did much to popularize Classical culture, including as an author of radio talks. He was a reviewer and consultant for the authoritative publication series Biblioteka Narodowa (II series). He was appointed associate professor and dean of the Faculty of Philology at UWr in 1964. He served as deputy chair of the Voivodeship Council of the Society for Universal Knowledge (Towarzystwo Wiedzy Powszechnej – TWP), which promotes adult and public education. He joined TWP's Central Council and Scientific Council in 1969, while also serving as deputy chair of both the Voivodeship Council and Board. Between 1967 and 1985, he was editor of the journal "Zeszyty Naukowe Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego. Classica Wratislaviensia", where he also published numerous studies. From 1967 to 1972, and again from 1981 to 1990, he was acting director of the Institute of Classical Philology and Ancient Culture at UWr. In 1969, he was appointed to the Editorial Committee of the Library of Translations of Classical Literature (Biblioteka Przekładów z Literatury Antycznej) of the Polish Academy of Sciences. He founded and edited the periodical "Życie Uniwersytetu". He lectured in Classical philology, Polish philology, English philology and library studies at UWr, the Higher School of Education (WSP) in Opole and on the doctoral studies programme at Wroclaw Polytechnic (now Wroclaw University of Science and Technology). He also gave courses on Classical drama on the Directing Studies at the State Theatre School in Krakow and on the Acting Studies programme at the Polski Theatre in Wroclaw. He was a member of the Central Qualifications Commission for Academic Personnel Matters. In 1978/79 he published the popular essay series Gawędy antyczne (Classical Talks) in the London-based periodical "Wiadomości", while in 1981 he published a series of articles titled W pogoni za horyzontem (Chasing the Horizon) in the Solidarity-linked weekly newspaper supplement "Magazyn Tygodniowy Gazety Robotniczej". In 1981, he was awarded the City of Wroclaw Prize. He occasionally published poetry in Polish and Latin, signing his Latin verses using the name Georgius Arvalis. He was co-founder of the Polish-Greek Friendship Society. In 1985, he joined the EIRENE International Committee for Promoting Classical Studies in Socialist Countries. He was made a corresponding member of Section I of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences (PAU). In 1998, he received an honorary doctorate from the Adam Mickiewicz University (UAM) in Poznan. He was a member of the Council of the Polish Olympic Academy of the Polish Olympic Committee (PKOl). He was a member of the several international societies: Association Internationale des Papyrologues, Sociéte des Études Grecques, and Association Internationale des Études Byzantines. He twice received the 1st class Prize of the Minister of Science, Higher Education and Technology and 2nd class once. He received the Gold Cross of Merit in 1955, the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta in 1993, the Medal of the Commission of National Education and the Distinguished Teacher of the People's Republic of Poland (Zasłużony Nauczyciel PRL) honour. He died on 24 January 2000 in Wroclaw, where he is buried at the Osobowice Cemetery. He received the Golden Olympic Laurel award posthumously in 2001 from the Polish Olympic Committee for his literary oeuvre and in particular his book Święte igrzyska olimpijskie (The Holy Olympic Games). He was father to the doctor Wojciech (b. 1950).