386

A HISTORY OF BOHEMIAN

LITERATURE

The Croatian languages, and some minor dialects. second part contains the history of the Polish and Bohemian literatures, and notes on the now nearly extinct The book dialects of the Slavs of Northern Germany. became antiquated even during Safafili's lifetime, and he planned a new revised and enlarged edition, which was to have been published in Bohemian. Failing health and other occupations prevented Safafik from carrying out this work. Even in its first state the book, which was only reprinted after Safafik's death, long remained the standard authority on the little-known subject of which it treats. It is only since Mr. Pypin and Mr. Spasovic published in 1865 their (Russian) History of the Slav Literatures that Safafik's work can be considered as Another fruit of Safafik's residence in the superseded. South Slav countries was his Serbische Lesekdrner, an historical and critical analysis of the then little-known Servian language. This book also was written in German. During his stay at Prague, Safafik produced his most important work, which rendered him famous in all I refer to the Starozitnosti Slovanski Slav countries. (" Slavic Antiquity "), which was published in 1837. The book — written in Bohemian — is an attempt to record the history and culture of the Slavs in the earliest times. The subject, still very obscure, was then entirely unexSafafik intended the work to consist of two plored. parts, but only the first, which is purely historical, was completed. Of the second part, only some essays on the ancient ethnography and archaeology of the Slavs were The historical work, which Safafik again published. divided into two parts, deals, in the first, with the history of the Slav race from the time of Herodotus to the fall of the West Roman empire. The second part continues