The Latvian Literary Society (German: Lettisch-literärische Gesellschaft, Latvian: Latviešu literārā biedrība), also called The Society of Latvian Friends (Latviešu draugu biedrība) was founded in 1824 by Baltic Germans, mainly pastors. The goal of the Society was to investigate the Latvian language, folklore and culture. At the time, when the Society was organized, hardly any Latvian educated in a higher education existed, and nobody researched their language or folklore. The society published a periodical which looked at scholarly studies and ethnographical research. The organization was dissolved in 1941 by Soviet authorities after the occupation of Latvia. Source: Wikipedia (en)