Mohorjeva Družba – the Hermagoras Society, named for the first Bishop of Aquileia – is not just an ordinary publishing company. It’s an institution that has kept Slovenian culture alive even during the most trying political circumstances. Persecuted because of its cultural influence, it has nevertheless managed to leave a lasting legacy.

Mohorjeva Družba was founded in 1851 as the first Slovenian publishing company. It was the brainchild of Anton Martin Slomšek, a bishop and a leading intellectual of his day, and launched by a priest – Andrej Einspieler –, along with a linguist named Anton Janežič. Mohorjeva Družba was headquartered in Klagenfurt. Now located in Austria, Klagenfurt was, at the time, divided between the Slovenian and the German communities, and the Slovenians were attempting to hold their own in the face of German domination.

A proudly Catholic society, Mohorjeva Družba published both religious and secular works by some of the leading minds of the day. Over the years, a wide range of literature was sent out to members of the society across the Slovenian Lands. The company’s calendar became a Slovenian icon; it’s still published today.

After World War I, Klagenfurt found itself outside the newly created South Slav state, and the authorities of the Austrian Republic were increasingly hostile to the Slovenian publishing company, which they saw as a focal point of Slovenian culture. Mohorjeva Družba first moved to Prevalje, just across the newly created border and then, several years later, to the town of Celje.

Despite the move, the society’s political troubles were far from over. In Italy, the newly installed Fascist regime was determined to wipe out Slovenian culture and repress the Slovenian language. It banned all book imports from Yugoslavia, but Mohorjeva Družba responded to the new legislation by opening a subsidiary in the town of Gorizia, where the Slovenian minority was struggling to preserve its traditions. Soon, the subsidiary began to publish books in Gorizia, a development that gave the Slovenian community a much-needed boost at a time of increasing repression.

After World War II, Mohorjeva Družba was reestablished in Klagenfurt. Despite opposition from many in Austrian political world, the effort was assisted by the British occupying forces. Once up and running, the Klagenfurt-based branch of Mohorjeva Družba became very influential, especially since it was editorially independent from the Communist regime, while the Celje-based branch remained at the mercy of the Yugoslavs authorities.

Today, branches of Mohorjeva Družba exist in Celje, Ljubljana, Klagenfurt and Gorizia. One hundred fifteen years after it was founded, the publishing company remains a Slovenian cultural icon and a source of books for Slovenian-speaking households around the world.