Mykhailo Drahomanov
Encyclopedia
Mykhailo Petrovych Drahomanov ' onMouseout='HidePop("84499")' href="/topics/Hadiach">Hadiach
– July 2, 1895, Sofia
) was a Ukrainian
political theorist, economist
, historian
, philosopher, ethnographer and public figure in Kiev
. Born to a noble family of Petro Yakymovych Drahomanov who was of a Cossack descent. Mykhailo Drahomanov started his education at home, then studied at the Hadiach school, Poltava
senior school and Kiev University
. He was also an uncle of Larysa Kosach (Lesya Ukrainka
) the great Ukrainian poetess and brother - Olha Drahomanova-Kosach (Olena Pchilka
).
He lectured at Kiev University from 1870 to 1875, but because of the repressions against the Ukrainian movement peaking up in 1876 with Ems Ukaz
was forced to leave the Russian Empire
and emigrated to Geneva
. In emigration he continued his political, scholarly and publishing activities. In 1885–95, he was a professor at the University of Sofia. Drahomanov wrote the first systematic political program for the Ukrainian national movement. He himself defined his political convictions as "ethical socialism," and was deeply impressed by socialist literature as a teenager.
movement, briefly worked with peasants in Sunday school run by the members of Kiev hromada and developed his views on social question. In the early 1870s he was one of the younger leftist wing in Kiev hromada. While in exile he published the periodical Hromada
which was financed by the members of Kiev hromada but they broke up with him as his views were too radical for them. Mykhailo Drahomanov argued that in the Ukrainian case national movement had to address the social question. He was against narrow nationalist egocentrism and believed that nationality was just a form to achieve universal human ideals.
in the late 1870s, first of all Ivan Franko
and Mykhailo Pavlyk, both of whom accepted his ideas although reworked them later according to their own mould. In 1890 these intellectuals founded the first Ukrainian political party - Ruthenian-Ukrainian Radical Party
. The program-maximum of this party was socialist and therefore the party can be seen as one of the first socialist parties in Eastern Europe.
Drahomanov tried to popularize an orthographic reform, called the Drahomanivka
after him.
In 1991, the "Kievan State Pedagogical University Named After Mykhaylo Drahomanov" in Kiev was founded on the basis of the former "Kievan State Pedagogical University Named After Maxim Gorky
". In 1997, the university was granted "National University"-status.
Hadiach
Hadiach is a historic city in Poltava Oblast in the central-east part of Ukraine. Located on the Psel River the city is an administrative center of the Hadyatskyi Raion...
– July 2, 1895, Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
) was a Ukrainian
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
political theorist, economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, philosopher, ethnographer and public figure in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
. Born to a noble family of Petro Yakymovych Drahomanov who was of a Cossack descent. Mykhailo Drahomanov started his education at home, then studied at the Hadiach school, Poltava
Poltava
Poltava is a city in located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Poltava Oblast , as well as the surrounding Poltava Raion of the oblast. Poltava's estimated population is 298,652 ....
senior school and Kiev University
Kiev University
Taras Shevchenko University or officially the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv , colloquially known in Ukrainian as KNU is located in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is the third oldest university in Ukraine after the University of Lviv and Kharkiv University. Currently, its structure...
. He was also an uncle of Larysa Kosach (Lesya Ukrainka
Lesya Ukrainka
Larysa Petrivna Kosach-Kvitka better known under her literary pseudonym Lesya Ukrainka , was one of Ukraine's best-known poets and writers and the foremost woman writer in Ukrainian literature. She also was a political, civil, and female activist....
) the great Ukrainian poetess and brother - Olha Drahomanova-Kosach (Olena Pchilka
Olena Pchilka
Olha Petrivna Kosach , better known by her pen name Olena Pchilka, was a Ukrainian publisher, writer, ethnographer, interpreter, civil activist. Sister of Mykhailo Drahomanov-Early years:...
).
He lectured at Kiev University from 1870 to 1875, but because of the repressions against the Ukrainian movement peaking up in 1876 with Ems Ukaz
Ems Ukaz
The Ems Ukaz, or Ems Ukase , was a secret decree of Tsar Alexander II of Russia issued in 1876, banning the use of the Ukrainian language in print, with the exception of reprinting of old documents. The ukaz also forbade the import of Ukrainian publications and the staging of plays or lectures in...
was forced to leave the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and emigrated to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. In emigration he continued his political, scholarly and publishing activities. In 1885–95, he was a professor at the University of Sofia. Drahomanov wrote the first systematic political program for the Ukrainian national movement. He himself defined his political convictions as "ethical socialism," and was deeply impressed by socialist literature as a teenager.
Hromada
In the 1860s he was involved in the hromadaHromada
Hromada - association of the people united by mutual interest, position or goal, widely known in Ukraine.In history of Ukraine and Belarus such associations appeared first as peasant communes, which gathered their meetings for discussing and resolving current issues.Hromada means not only social...
movement, briefly worked with peasants in Sunday school run by the members of Kiev hromada and developed his views on social question. In the early 1870s he was one of the younger leftist wing in Kiev hromada. While in exile he published the periodical Hromada
Hromada
Hromada - association of the people united by mutual interest, position or goal, widely known in Ukraine.In history of Ukraine and Belarus such associations appeared first as peasant communes, which gathered their meetings for discussing and resolving current issues.Hromada means not only social...
which was financed by the members of Kiev hromada but they broke up with him as his views were too radical for them. Mykhailo Drahomanov argued that in the Ukrainian case national movement had to address the social question. He was against narrow nationalist egocentrism and believed that nationality was just a form to achieve universal human ideals.
Anarchism
As a figure of some importance in Russian and European socialism Drahomanov did not accept Marxist and social-democratic orientation because of his fear of centralization and state power but located himself on the anarchist wing of the movement. According to his vision the ideal future world will be one of "free unions," united with each other from below on some pragmatic basis. Drahomanov did not reject the revolution outright but usually spoke in favor of gradual reforms taking root among the society. He believed that Russia desperately needed a constitution with the next step being its reorganization into a federation.Anticlericalism
Drahomanov was anticlerical. He hoped that the spread of Protestant denominations among the Ukrainian peasants would contribute to the liberation of peasants.Legacy
The lasting legacy of Drahomanov can be discerned in the whole Ukrainian tradition of leftist political parties and political activism. He personally influenced a handful of younger Ukrainian intellectuals in Habsburg GaliciaKingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria was a crownland of the Habsburg Monarchy, the Austrian Empire, and Austria–Hungary from 1772 to 1918 .This historical region in eastern Central Europe is currently divided between Poland and Ukraine...
in the late 1870s, first of all Ivan Franko
Ivan Franko
Ivan Yakovych Franko was a Ukrainian poet, writer, social and literary critic, journalist, interpreter, economist, political activist, doctor of philosophy, the author of the first detective novels and modern poetry in the Ukrainian language....
and Mykhailo Pavlyk, both of whom accepted his ideas although reworked them later according to their own mould. In 1890 these intellectuals founded the first Ukrainian political party - Ruthenian-Ukrainian Radical Party
Ukrainian Radical Party
The Ukrainian Radical Party, , founded in October 1890 and based on the Radical movement in western Ukraine dating from the 1870s, was the first modern Ukrainian political party with a defined program, mass following, and registered membership...
. The program-maximum of this party was socialist and therefore the party can be seen as one of the first socialist parties in Eastern Europe.
Drahomanov tried to popularize an orthographic reform, called the Drahomanivka
Drahomanivka
Drahomanivka was a proposed reform of the Ukrainian alphabet and orthography, promoted by Mykhailo Drahomanov. This orthography was used in a few publications and in Drahomanov's correspondence, but due to cultural resistance and political persecution it was never able to catch on.This phonemic...
after him.
In 1991, the "Kievan State Pedagogical University Named After Mykhaylo Drahomanov" in Kiev was founded on the basis of the former "Kievan State Pedagogical University Named After Maxim Gorky
Maxim Gorky
Alexei Maximovich Peshkov , primarily known as Maxim Gorky , was a Russian and Soviet author, a founder of the Socialist Realism literary method and a political activist.-Early years:...
". In 1997, the university was granted "National University"-status.
Literature
- 1.Hornowa E. Problemy polskie w twórczości Michala Drahomanowa. – Wroclaw, 1978.
- 2.Rudnytsky Ivan L. Essays in Modern Ukrainian History / Ed. by P.L. Rudnytsky. – Edmonton: Canadian institute of Ukrainian studies, University of Alberta, 1987. – 499 p. Drahomanov as a Political Theorist – P. 203 – 253. The First Ukrainian Political Program: Mykhailo Drahomanovʼs “Introduction” to Hromada. – P. 255 – 281. Mykhailo Drahomanov and the Problem of Ukrainian-Jewish Relations. – P. 283 – 297.
External links
- Biography of Drahomanov at the Encyclopedia of UkraineEncyclopedia of UkraineThe Encyclopedia of Ukraine is an English language, free, online encyclopedia covering wide range of issueson Ukraine, including its history, people, geography, economy, culture etc....
- “Mykhaylo Drahomanov: A Symposium and Selected Writings”, ed. Ivan L. Rudnytsky, The Annals of the Ukrainian Academy of Arts and Sciences in the U.S., Vol. II, Spring, 1952.
- Biography of Drahomanov and his writings (in Ukrainian)
- The Orthodox Nationalist: Mykhailo Drahomanov audio