Viktor Krupa

Viktor Krupa (December 23, 1936, Nové Mesto nad Váhom – February 14, 2021, Bratislava) was a Slovak linguist who worked in the fields of general and oriental linguistics, typology, folklore, and Japanology. He translated from oriental literatures, especially mythology and oral traditions.

He was the most prominent Slovak expert on the culture of Oceania, and from 1990 to 2006, he served as the director of the Oriental Studies Cabinet at the Slovak Academy of Sciences.

For over thirty years, he focused on linguistics, religious studies, and mythology, particularly Polynesian. After completing his university studies in Russian and Slovak at the Comenius University Faculty of Arts in Bratislava in 1959, he went on several extended stays abroad, including Hawaii and New Zealand in 1965-1966 (Wenner-Gren Foundation scholarship in New York), the United States in 1969 (National Science Foundation scholarship in Washington, D.C.), universities in Münster and Tübingen, Germany in 1970-1971 (Alexander von Humboldt Foundation scholarship), and New Zealand again in 1988 (University of Auckland scholarship).

He published numerous books in English (in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom), Russian, and Slovak (e.g., "Polynesian Myths" [1973], "Japanese Myths" [1979], "Ways of the Gods" [1988], "Polynesians" [1988]). His publications "Morpheme and Word in Maori" (The Hague, 1966), "The Maori Language" (Moscow, 1968), and "The Polynesian Languages" (Routledge & Kegan Paul; London, Boston, Melbourne, and Henley, 1982) are highly regarded in international academic circles. In 1983, he co-authored "Languages of the World" with Jozef Genzor and Ladislav Drozdík.

In 1996, he published the book "Legends and Myths of Polynesia/Polynesian Cosmogony (Myths of World Creation)" with CAD Press Bratislava. In 2007, CAD PRESS released his translation of "Kojiki - Japanese Myths." Viktor Krupa was also a prolific translator from English literature, translating works by Rudyard Kipling, Edward Gibbon, Jonathan Swift, Mark Twain, T.S. Eliot, Daniel Defoe, and others.

Works

The Maori Language. Moscow: Nauka, 1967. 76 pp.
Beyond Seven Seas. Bratislava: Vydavateľstvo SAV, 110 pp.
The Mysterious Case of Captain Laperouse. Bratislava: Mladé letá, 1975. 187 pp.
In Search of the Last Paradise: Voyages of Discovery to the Pacific in Illustrations. Bratislava: Tatran, 1978. 228 pp.
A Picturesque Journey Around the World: According to the Diaries of Otto Kotzebue, Chief Commander of the Expedition, Adelbert von Chamisso, Writer and Naturalist, and Louis Choris, Painter. Bratislava: Obzor, 1980. 152 pp.
Unity and Variability of Language: A Systemic Approach and So-Called Exotic Languages. Bratislava: Veda, vydavateľstvo SAV, 1981. 167 pp.
[GENZOR, Jozef - DROZDÍK, Ladislav - co-authors]: Languages of the World. Bratislava: Obzor, 1983. 512 pp.
Polynesians. Bratislava: Obzor, 1988. 172 pp.
[GENZOR, Jozef - co-author]: Scripts of the World. Bratislava: Obzor, 1989. 360 pp.
Transformations and Returns: Paths to the Emancipation of Literature from Asia and Africa. Bratislava: Slovenský spisovateľ, 1989. 258 pp.
Metaphor at the Intersection of Scientific Disciplines. Bratislava: Tatran, 1990. 184 pp.
[HORVÁTH, Peter - co-author]: Language - Unknown Tool. Bratislava: Slovenský spisovateľ, 1991. 164 pp.
[GENZOR, Jozef - co-author]: Languages of the World in Space and Time. Bratislava: Veda, vydavateľstvo SAV, 1996 [2nd edition]. 356 pp. ISBN 80-224-0459-4
Legends and Myths of Polynesia: Polynesian Cosmogony (Myths of World Creation). [Translated from Slovak by F. H. Richard] Brno: CAD Press, 1998. 164 pp.
East and West in Contacts and Confrontations. Bratislava: Veda, vydavateľstvo SAV, 1999. 114 pp. ISBN 80-224-0592-2
Geopolitical Specifics of World Regions: Africa and Asia. Bratislava: Comenius University, 1999. 247 pp. ISBN 802231207X
Nations and Cultures of Island Southeast Asia and Oceania. Bratislava: Slovak Academic Press, 2006. 285 pp. ISBN 80-8095-000-8
Australia and Oceania: Tradition - Culture - Music. Bratislava: ASCO Art & Science, 2009. 296 pp. ISBN 80-8882-046-8
Language Movements in Time and Space: From Globalization to Revitalization. Bratislava: Igor Iliť - Rádioprint, 2010. 108 pp.

Translations

Giants of the Steps: Maori Tales. [Selected and translated by Viktor Krupa] Bratislava: Mladé letá, 1965.
Ibis and the Moon: Tales from the South Seas. [Selected and translated by Viktor Krupa] Bratislava: Mladé letá, 1972. 153 pp.

Tales of the Jade Mountains: Polynesian Tales. [Translated and retold by Viktor Krupa] Bratislava: Mladé letá, 1973. 165 pp.
Flowers of Waves: Selections from Old Japanese Poetry. (Co-translator: Ľubomír Feldek) Bratislava: Slovenský spisovateľ, 1985. 87 pp.
ARMSTRONG, Karen: The History of Myths. Bratislava: Slovart, 2005. 134 pp.
BORDEN, CH. A.: Sailed with Captain Cook. Bratislava: Mladé letá, 1970. 171 pp.
BROMFIELD, Louis: Night in Bombay. Bratislava: Litera, 1990. 294 pp.
CLAVELL, James: Taipan: A Novel of Hong Kong. Bratislava: Pravda, 1987. 725 pp.
CONRAD, Joseph: Heart of Darkness. Bratislava: Mladé letá, 1964. 240 pp.
GIBBON, Edward: The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Bratislava: Tatran, 1983 [1st edition], 456 pp.
HUIZINGA, Johan: The Autumn of the Middle Ages: Homo Ludens. Bratislava: Tatran, 1990. 376 pp.
KAWABATA, Yasunari: Sleeping Beauties. Bratislava: Slovenský spisovateľ, 1971. 475 pp.
KING, Stephen: Cujo. Bratislava: Gemini, 1992. 255 pp.
MANLEY, Bill (ed.): Seventy Great Mysteries of Ancient Egypt. Bratislava: Slovart, 2004. 304 pp.
MILLER, Arthur: A View from the Bridge. Bratislava: Slovenský spisovateľ, 1991. -702 pp.
PINKER, Steven: Words and Rules: The Ingredients of Language. Bratislava: Kalligram, 2003. 415 pp.
SUGGS, Robert C.: Mysteries of the Polynesian Islands. Bratislava: Obzor, 1966.
TWAIN, Mark: Letters from the Earth. Bratislava: Vydavateľstvo politickej literatúry, 1968. 235 pp.
VANCE, Peggy: Gauguin. Bratislava: INA, 1996. 144 pp.
WAMBAUGH, Joseph: The Onion Field. Bratislava: Slovenský spisovateľ, 1986. 455 pp.
ZIEHR, Wilhelm: Hell in Paradise. Bratislava: Obzor, 1984. 320 pp.

External links

Legends and Myths of Polynesia - http://www.cadpress.sk/polynesie.htm
Interview with Viktor Krupa

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