Mátyás Laáb

Mátyás Laáb (Croatian: Matijaš Laáb) (ar. 1746 – 7 August 1823) was a Burgenland Croatian Roman Catholic priest, writer and translator. His work is the first translation of the New Testament in Burgenland Croatian.

Born was in Bezenye near Mosonmagyaróvár and the Slovakian border. His priestly vocation began in 1790 in the Bischopric of Győr. Six years was the parish of Hidegség, from 1797 by 1823 was priest in Neudorf bei Parndorf.

Laáb's aim was the reform of the Burgenland Croatian literary language. In 1812 present to his translation of the New Testament in Zagreb, but the Burgenland New Testament not published (the first published translation in Burgenland Croatian is the Novi Zakon from 1952 by Martin Meršić and Ivan Jakšić).

In addition Laáb have two catechisms.

Works

• Translation of the New Testament, 1812.
• Krátka summa velíkoga óbcsinszkoga katekízmusa za ucsnyu mláje druzsíne Gornyih Ug'rszki Horvátov (Small tenet of the Great Cathecism for the teaching of young Croatian families in Upper-Hungary), 1814.
• Véliki óbcsinszki katekizmus za Górnye Ugrszke Horváte (Great Cathecism for the Croats in Upper-Hungary), 1820.

Sources

• Nikola Benčić: Književnost gradišćanskih Hrvata, Zagreb 1998. ISBN 953-6260-05-0