8
Dec
Sándor Petöfi – 200
On 8 December, the Faculty of Social Sciences at Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani University, in partnership with the Hungarian Embassy in Georgia, commemorated the 200th anniversary of Sándor Petőfi's birth.
The university hosted a four-part event in the student space to introduce Georgian students to the life and works of this remarkable Hungarian poet.
Professor Eka Vardoshvili from Tbilisi State University, Professor Levan Gelashvili from the Shota Rustaveli Georgian Literature Institute, and Dr Árpád Éles, a Visiting Professor at Tbilisi State University from ELTE (Hungary), each presented individual research papers. Their topics included Sándor Petőfi's poetry, Georgian translations and publications of his works, his family and romantic interests, as well as his political and revolutionary activities.
SabaUni students Vasil Dogonadze, George Khvareshia, and David Shvelidze performed a selection of Georgian translations of Petőfi's most famous poems, accompanied by live piano music.
After a coffee break, attendees enjoyed a screening of the 1973 animated adaptation of Petőfi's epic, "Johnny Corncob" (János Vitéz), directed by Marcell Jankovics.
The anniversary concluded on a delightful note, as Dr Árpád Éles, the Hungarian Professor of Georgian Studies, treated the Georgian audience to a tasting of the renowned Hungarian national dish, goulash.
