Záborsky, Jonáš

Born Feb. 3, 1812, in Zagórz; died Jan. 23, 1876, in župčany. Slovak writer and playwright; a priest.

Záborský began his writing career in 1836 as the author of neoclassical poetry, but his main works—satires, stories, and novellas (Faustiad, 1864; The Panslavist Priest, 1870)—are examples of critical realism. He was the author of didactic comedies and serious dramas (The Foundling, 1867) and of tragedies on themes from the medieval history of Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, and Russia (The False Dmitriads). He was a master of the political epigram in verse (the collection Stings, 1870; published 1935) and in prose, cast as folk anecdotes (The Letters, Telegrams, and Conversations of the Artisan Fedor, 1861-69). He also wrote historical works, including The History of the Hungarian Kingdom.