Uladzimir Duboŭka

Uladzimir Mikalahevič Dubouka (; ; 15 July 190020 March 1976) was a Belarusian poet, prose writer, linguist, and a literary critic.

Early life Dubouka was born on 15 July 1900 into a working family in Vilna Governorate. His grandfather was a farmer and his father a textile worker. He went to school from 1905 to 1912, then in 1912 he entered the specialized school, and in 1914 he enrolled to New Vilejka Teachers' Seminary, which was later moved to Nevel.

In 1918 he graduated and joined his family in Moscow, where they had moved in 1915. He enrolled in the MSU History and Philology Faculty, but after two months he had to abandon his studies and go to work to support his family. In 1921 Dubouka entered Valery Bryusov's . The years in the institute played a significant role in the development of his talent, aesthetic perception, and literature skills.

In 1922-1925 he was chief editor of Belarusian publication 'Government Bulletin' and in the same time served as Executive Secretary of the BSSR in the Soviet Union government. In that time he got to know Vladimir Mayakovsky and Sergei Yesenin.

Poetry Critics divide Dubouka's poetic career into two periods: between 1921—1930 and 1958—1976, where the first was more fruitful. His way as a poet officially started in 1921 when his poem 'Belarusian Sun' was published in the 'Sovetskaya Belorussiya' newspaper. In 1923 he published a book of poetry 'Stroma', then in 1925 'Where the Cypresses Stand' and 'Cane', 'Credo' in 1926 and 'Nalya' in 1927.

After 1958 he started working as a writer and translator, translating Shakespeare and Byron into Belarusian and writing tales and stories for children. In 1973 he published a memoir titled «Пялёсткі» (Petals). He suggested introducing «ö» instead of «ё» and using «ї» like in the Ukrainian.

Maksim Harecki and Volodymyr Sosiura named Dubouka the greatest poet of the post-revolution Belarus.

Exoneration and recognition Dubouka was exonerated during the Khrushchev Thaw in November 1957.

In 1958 he became a member of the Belarusian Union of Writers in 1958 and in 1962 a literary prize winner for the book of poetry "Polesian Rhapsody".