Verbal Expressions of Reverence for St. John of Nepomuk in Vilém Bitnar's Saint-John-Questionnaire

Verbal Expressions of Reverence for St. John of Nepomuk in Vilém Bitnar's Saint-John- Questionnaire The goal of this thesis is a description of verbal expressions of reverence (legends, songs, prayers etc.) for St. John of Nepomuk in the Czech lands, which were collected by Výbor svatojanský in the questionnaire edited by Vilém Bitnar. This questionnaire was sent out to Czech and Moravian parishes at the occasion of the 200th anniversary of canonization of St. John of Nepomuk in 1929 and now it is deposited in the Literary Archive of the Museum of Czech Literature in Bitnar's estate. The mutual points in the questionnaire are seeked as well as regional specifics. These are situated into context of trends in religious life in the Czech lands in 1920s in general and also of relationship between contemporary Czech society and the Roman Catholic Church with reverence for St. John of Nepomuk. Bitnar's questionnaire is also situated into context of other Bitnar's scientific and publication activities. Keywords Hagiography; hymnology; St. John of Nepomuk; Vilém Bitnar; religiousness; legend; religious song; First Czechoslovak Republi