|
Thursday, 8 March 2007
+++
2005 Ambassador of Hellenism lectures on Kavafis, Kazantzakis and Hellenism in the Romanian Sphere +++
Addressing an audience of scholars, journalists, foreign dignitaries, and other distinguished guests at an event organized by the Kokkalis Foundation in Athens, renowned writer and founder of the Romanian Society of Greek Studies, Elena Lazar captivated the audience with her literary incursion into the origins and evolution of Hellenism in the Romanian culture.
In 2005, Elena Lazar was awarded the title of Ambassador of Hellenism in recognition of her contribution to the study of Hellenism. Elena Lazar's efforts are an example to the wider region, especially given the dire constraints of political and economic transition in Romania, a period of very limited resources when little attention is usually paid to intellectual life.
It is difficult to define a culture, and it is even more difficult to discern the effects of cultural interaction between peoples, Lazar said. Cultural interaction between the Hellenes and the Romanian people was not always linear and harmonious but rather it underwent different phases. The writer's rich account of Hellenism in Romania illustrated that cultural interaction resulted from the combining elements of shared history, from education in the Greek language, and from the interchange of ideas in religious circles. In their cultural relations, Greece and Romania learned about each other as much as they learned about their own identity.
Elena Lazar's extensive work as a writer and a translator constitutes a remarkable contribution to disseminating the multiple aspects of neo-Hellenic culture and the neo-Hellenic literary phenomenon in Romania and in the wider Southeast European region.
About the Kokkalis Foundation
The Kokkalis Foundation was established in 1998 as a non-profit organization in Athens, Greece. It carries a broad regional vision and aims to contribute to many areas of the public, social, and cultural life in Southeastern and East-Central Europe, by undertaking actions that enrich the human capital in the region and building links between various institutions with parallel goals.
For more information please visit: http://www.kokkalisfoundation.gr.
|
