The final, 13th volume of the academic edition "Latvian Folk Songs" — "Life in Communities. Evening of Life. Funerals" — has been published

The 13th volume of the academic edition "Latvian Folk Songs" (hereinafter – Ltdz), titled "Life in Communities. Evening of Life. Funerals," has been published, concluding one of the most ambitious projects in the history of Latvian folklore publishing and Latvian book culture in general.

Thematically, Ltdz Volume 13 is divided into two parts. The first part reflects life in marriage, contemplating various aspects — still relevant today — ranging from harmonious and loving relationships to violence and the damage caused by alcohol, as well as relationships after the wedding with the husband’s and wife’s relatives, and life in old age. The second part of the volume follows people’s views on illness and death, portraying funeral rituals — the final great honors in a person’s life. We invite you to explore 45,101 fascinating texts from this volume!

With this edition, the collection of more than one million songs preserved in the Archives of Latvian Folklore (LFK) becomes accessible to the public. This material was gathered after the publication of Krišjānis Barons’ arranged “Latvju dainas” (approximately 219,000 texts). Together, the two editions reflect the life of the song tradition among the people over a period of more than 100 years.

The publication of the 13th volume concludes over 60 years of work, carried out by several generations of LFK staff, transcending the boundaries of eras and political regimes. Its release coincides with the centenary of the Archives of Latvian Folklore, symbolically honoring the folk song as one of the cornerstones of the nation’s formation.

Like all previous volumes, Ltdz Volume 13 was produced in collaboration with the publishing house "Zinātne." The publication was made possible with financial support from the State Culture Capital Foundation and the budget subprogram 05.04.00 “Krišjānis Barons Dainu Cabinet” of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Latvia.