Svetozar Ćorović

Svetozar Ćorović (29 May 1875 – 17 April 1919) was a Bosnian Serb writer. In his books, he often wrote of life in Herzegovina and, more specifically, the city of Mostar. His brother was Vladimir Ćorović, a distinguished Serbian historian who was killed in 1941 during World War II in Greece.

Biography Svetozar Ćorović was born on 29 May 1875 in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was then a part of the Ottoman Empire, in Bosnian Serb family, where he completed elementary school and trade school. From 1887 he published various works in many newspapers and magazines such as Golub (The Pigeon), Neven, Bosanska Vila (Bosnian Fairy), Luča, Otadžbina (Fatherland) and Brankovo Kolo. He was an active member of the Society of Mostar called "Gusle". He also participated in other Serbian literary and cultural activities. He was the editor of Neretljanin calendar (1894, 1895), the initiator and editor of the first three issues of Zora (Dawn) magazine (1896–1901), member of the editorial board and associate of the Narod (People) newspaper (1907). His friends and peers in the field of culture at the time were Jovan Dučić and Aleksa Šantić. One of Šantić's sisters, Radojka (Persa) became Ćorović's wife.

During the annexation crisis of 1908 he fled to Italy from where he offered his services to the government of Kingdom of Serbia, but was subsequently elected as the delegate by the Bosnian Parliament in 1910. It cannot be denied that the patriotism exhibited by Ćorović and his brothers-at-arms was unquestionable, for little mercy was shown by the Hungarians to all those who fell into their hands. The severity of reprisal is itself the best testimony to the fear and anxiety inspired by the presence of active Serb soldiers from Bosnia and Herzegovina on the flanks and in rear of the invaders.

Ćorović's collected works were published in 10 volumes.

Works These circumstances of Ćorović's life, and the affection which he inspired in all those who knew him, added to something essentially romantic in the true sense in the man himself, have tended to surround Ćorović and his work with an aura of sentiment which has somewhat obscured the character of his actual achievement.

He published a dozen collections of short stories and almost as many novels and several plays. Works that particularly stand out include a novel Majčina Sultanija (1906) with an unusual figure of a provincial woman in the center of the story, Stojan Mutikaša (1907) which tells the story of a man who transforms from the poor peasant boy into a great merchant and villain, and Jarani (Buddies, 1911), which portrays the Muslim population of Herzegovina in times of unrest ahead of the termination of the Turkish authorities.

Selected works Ženidba Pere Karantana (Pero Karantan's Marriage, 1905) Majčina Sultanija (1906) Stojan Mutikaša (1907) U ćelijama (In The Cells, 1908) U Mraku (In the Dark, 1909) Jarani (1911 ) Zulumćar (1912) Kao vihor (Like a Whirlwind, 1918) Beleške jednog taoca (Notes of a Hostage, 1919)