February 24, 2000

Czeslaw Milosz elected to the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts

February 24, 2000 (Berkeley, CA) -- The Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, the most prestigious scientific and cultural institution in Croatia, has elected Czeslaw Milosz corresponding member (socius epistolarius) of the historic academy.  Milosz joins an extensive network of distinguished scholars and practitioners of the arts and sciences in accepting this honor.

The Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts was established in 1866 after confirmation from the ruling Austro-Hungarian Empire, which Croatia was a constituent part of at the time.  The founding goal of the institution was to promote the arts and sciences within Croatia by providing an international forum from which prominent Croatian and South Slav leaders could share their research and insight with leading figures of the day.  After extensive efforts in the first half of the 19th century by Josip Juraj Strossmayer, Bishop of Djakovo, the Croatian Parliament passed a law adopting the Academy and confirmed Zagreb as its founding headquarters in 1861.  In 1866, Emperor Franz Josef I formally confirmed the establishment of the Academy and elected fourteen founding members, installing Bishop Strossmayer as patron and Franjo Racki as president.  For decades the Academy has fostered relationships and partnerships in academia throughout the world, publishing thousands of articles, books and monographs about myriad topics and prominent issues.  Today, in its 136th year, Ivo Padovan leads the Academy as its newest President.

H.E. Miomir Zuzul, Croatia's Ambassador to the United States, presented Czeslaw Milosz with the Academy's esteemed honor on the campus of the University of California at Berkeley.  In his remarks, Ambassador Zuzul thanked Milosz for his extensive contributions to poetry and literature, remembering his exceptional career and quoting several prominent passages from his works.  Milosz received several prominent honors for his contributions to the arts, including the European Literary Prize (1953), Kister Award (1967), Neustadt International Prize (1978) and the National Medal of Arts (1989).  In 1980, Milosz was awarded the famed Nobel Prize for Literature in recognition of his far-reaching and influential work.
 

# # #
 

Contact:    John I. Vasilj
                (202) 986-9479