Introduction

Biography

Son of a black­smith, Tra­nov­ský en­rolled at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Wit­ten­berg in 1607.

In 1616, he was or­dained, and spent his life teach­ing and preach­ing in Prague, Mo­ra­via, Si­le­sia (now Śląs­kie, Po­land), and Slo­va­kia.

He trans­lat­ed the Augs­burg Con­fess­ion in­to Slo­vak, but he is main­ly known for his Ci­tha­ra Sanc­tor­um (Harp of the Saints), the cor­ner­stone of Slo­vak hym­no­dy. Of its 400 hymns, some were trans­lat­ed from La­tin or Lu­ther­an cho­rales, but about 150 were Tra­nov­ský’s own work.