More than 100 winners received awards of the 1st Republican competition of creative written works “What love I my native land for”. The solemn ceremony was held on March 26, 2021, in the Big Conference Hall of the Presidium of the NAS of Belarus.

Speaking to those present, the Chairman of the Presidium of the NAS of Belarus Vladimir Gusakov emphasized: “The competition not only the emphasizes feelings of deep love for our native land, but allowed us to see our present and future in a new way. In a difficult historical time, when our society is testing economic, political, social, epidemiological factors for strength, our people were able to create, dream, display their feelings in artistic creations, which gives the works especially emotional sound and even fills them with a special patriotic pathos”. The head of the competition, the Director of the Institute of Linguistics named after Yakub Kolas of the NAS Ihar Kapylou noted: “We were pleasantly surprised that during just two months more than 840 people took part in the competition. The age range is from six years old to 91. The youngest participant is Tsimafey Zenchyk from Vileyka, and the oldest participant is Irena Uladzimirauna Tsyulyunova from the villafe of Falvarki, Astravets district.”

As part of the Year of the Small Motherland in 2020, the Center for the Belarusian Culture, Language and Literature of the NAS of Belarus announced the 1st Republican competition of creative written works “What love I my native land for”. Residents of many cities and villages from all over Belarus respond to the proposed initiative. More than 800 works were submitted for the competition. According to the results of the competition, the authoritative jury selected the 200 best in 12 nominations: “From legends and fairy tales of past generations…”; “Native land inspires”; “Powerful power of poetry”; “Piggy bank of memories”; “Local history foresight”; “Past and present”; “The Language of My Motherland”; “Young Voices”; “Attachment to the Native Land”; “Native Landscapes”; “Treasures of the Native Land”.