helden. heroes. héros. 1.1 (2013): Vom Einfluss des epischen Helden auf die lettische Nation

All over the world the hero and the epic still play an important role for the cultural development and the forging of a national identity in individual societies. When considering Latvia one observes on the one hand what functions the epic has taken on and is still taking on today for cultural development and the nation. On the other hand, it is also being examined what aspects lead to a hero’s genesis or, rather, what patterns of interpretation allow the epic hero to become a cultural desideratum.