Oleksandr Dukhnovych
Encyclopedia
Alexander Vasilyevich Dukhnovich was a priest
, poet
, writer
, pedagogue, and social activist of the Slavic peoples of the Carpathians. He is considered as the awakerner (Rusyn
: Будитиль) of the Rusyns
.
(now Eastern Slovakia
). The son of a Greek Catholic priest, he went to a Hungarian school in Uzhhorod
(1816 to 1821). Later Oleksandr studied philosophy at an academy in Košice
(1821–1823), and theology at the Theological Seminary in Uzhhorod
(1824–1827).
In (1827–1830 and 1832), Dukhnovych worked as an archivist and a teacher. Later, in 1833-1838, he worked as a Greek Catholic priest in remote villages of Carpathian Ruthenia
(present day Zakarpattia oblast
of Ukraine) and as a notary
in Uzhhorod (1838–1844). Dukhnovych started to write poems in his early years. He wrote in the Ruthenian
, Russian
, and Hungarian
languages. His early works are said to have been influenced by Hungarian Romanticism
.
Dukhnovych supported education and cultural revival of Carpathian Ruthenians. He saw his role as a defender of Ruthenian culture against Magyarization
. In 1850 Dukhnovych established the first Ruthenian cultural association, the Prešov
Literary Society. The society under his guidance published a series of books. His most famous patriotic poem Ia rusyn byl, ies'm i budu (I Was, Am, and Will Be a Ruthenian) was published as part of an anthology in 1851. This poem would later become the national anthem of Carpatho-Ruthenians. Dukhnovych also published a number of pedagogical and religious books, elementary school textbook and a Grammar. His most famous scholarly works were The History of the Eparchy of Prjašev (1877), originally published in Latin and later translated in Russian and English, and a History of Carpathian Ruthenians (1853).
His last years were devoted to development of education and schooling among local Ruthenians. In an effort to forestall the Magyarization
of the Ruthenian population Dukhnovych founded in Prešov
together with Adolf Dobryansky the St. John the Baptist Society (1862). On March 30, 1865 Dukhnovych died in Prešov
.
"he made everything so that forgotten Ruthenians revived spiritually". His views were based on Christian principles and idealism.
Dukhnovych also actively participated in the Russophile
movement in Western Ukraine at the end of the 19th century. Even though Dukhnovych wrote in the local language he did not believe it to be a separate language nor did he wish to contribute to a creation of a literary language of Carpathian Ruthenians
. Instead Dukhnovych wrote his scholarly works in a peculiar dialect called iazychie
made of Russian, Church-Slavonic and local Lemko-Rusyn.
He also believed Ruthenians to be one people with Russians and therefore advocated for closer cultural ties with Russia.
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, pedagogue, and social activist of the Slavic peoples of the Carpathians. He is considered as the awakerner (Rusyn
Rusyn language
Rusyn , also known in English as Ruthenian, is an East Slavic language variety spoken by the Rusyns of Central Europe. Some linguists treat it as a distinct language and it has its own ISO 639-3 code; others treat it as a dialect of Ukrainian...
: Будитиль) of the Rusyns
Rusyns
Carpatho-Rusyns are a primarily diasporic ethnic group who speak an Eastern Slavic language, or Ukrainian dialect, known as Rusyn. Carpatho-Rusyns descend from a minority of Ruthenians who did not adopt the use of the ethnonym "Ukrainian" in the early twentieth century...
.
Life
Oleksandr Dukhnovych was born in the village of TopoľaTopola
Topola is a town and municipality situated in the Šumadija region of Serbia. It was the place where Karađorđe, a Serbian revolutionary, was chosen as the leader of the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in 1804. The local St...
(now Eastern Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
). The son of a Greek Catholic priest, he went to a Hungarian school in Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod or Uzhgorod is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. It is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorodskyi Raion within the oblast...
(1816 to 1821). Later Oleksandr studied philosophy at an academy in Košice
Košice
Košice is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary...
(1821–1823), and theology at the Theological Seminary in Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod or Uzhgorod is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. It is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorodskyi Raion within the oblast...
(1824–1827).
In (1827–1830 and 1832), Dukhnovych worked as an archivist and a teacher. Later, in 1833-1838, he worked as a Greek Catholic priest in remote villages of Carpathian Ruthenia
Carpathian Ruthenia
Carpathian Ruthenia is a region in Eastern Europe, mostly located in western Ukraine's Zakarpattia Oblast , with smaller parts in easternmost Slovakia , Poland's Lemkovyna and Romanian Maramureş.It is...
(present day Zakarpattia oblast
Zakarpattia Oblast
The Zakarpattia Oblast is an administrative oblast located in southwestern Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Uzhhorod...
of Ukraine) and as a notary
Scrivener
A scrivener was traditionally a person who could read and write. This usually indicated secretarial and administrative duties such as dictation and keeping business, judicial, and history records for kings, nobles, temples, and cities...
in Uzhhorod (1838–1844). Dukhnovych started to write poems in his early years. He wrote in the Ruthenian
Ruthenian language
Ruthenian, or Old Ruthenian , is a term used for the varieties of Eastern Slavonic spoken in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later in the East Slavic territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth....
, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, and Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
languages. His early works are said to have been influenced by Hungarian Romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
.
Dukhnovych supported education and cultural revival of Carpathian Ruthenians. He saw his role as a defender of Ruthenian culture against Magyarization
Magyarization
Magyarization is a kind of assimilation or acculturation, a process by which non-Magyar elements came to adopt Magyar culture and language due to social pressure .Defiance or appeals to the Nationalities Law, met...
. In 1850 Dukhnovych established the first Ruthenian cultural association, the Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
Literary Society. The society under his guidance published a series of books. His most famous patriotic poem Ia rusyn byl, ies'm i budu (I Was, Am, and Will Be a Ruthenian) was published as part of an anthology in 1851. This poem would later become the national anthem of Carpatho-Ruthenians. Dukhnovych also published a number of pedagogical and religious books, elementary school textbook and a Grammar. His most famous scholarly works were The History of the Eparchy of Prjašev (1877), originally published in Latin and later translated in Russian and English, and a History of Carpathian Ruthenians (1853).
His last years were devoted to development of education and schooling among local Ruthenians. In an effort to forestall the Magyarization
Magyarization
Magyarization is a kind of assimilation or acculturation, a process by which non-Magyar elements came to adopt Magyar culture and language due to social pressure .Defiance or appeals to the Nationalities Law, met...
of the Ruthenian population Dukhnovych founded in Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
together with Adolf Dobryansky the St. John the Baptist Society (1862). On March 30, 1865 Dukhnovych died in Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
.
Assessment
Dukhnovych is regarded to be one of the outstanding Ukrainian and Ruthenian humanists and educators. In the words of Ivan FrankoIvan 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....
"he made everything so that forgotten Ruthenians revived spiritually". His views were based on Christian principles and idealism.
Dukhnovych also actively participated in the Russophile
Ukrainian Russophiles
The focus of this article is part of a general political movement in Western Ukraine of the nineteenth and early 20th century. The movement contained several competing branches: Moscowphiles, Ukrainophiles, Rusynphiles, and others....
movement in Western Ukraine at the end of the 19th century. Even though Dukhnovych wrote in the local language he did not believe it to be a separate language nor did he wish to contribute to a creation of a literary language of Carpathian Ruthenians
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
. Instead Dukhnovych wrote his scholarly works in a peculiar dialect called iazychie
Iazychie
Iazychie was a language used in nineteenth century by Ukrainian Russophiles to provide bridge between the local dialect and that of the standard literary Russian. Iazychie was used in their publications in East Galicia until twentieth century, when it was replaced with Russian...
made of Russian, Church-Slavonic and local Lemko-Rusyn.
He also believed Ruthenians to be one people with Russians and therefore advocated for closer cultural ties with Russia.
See also
- Alexander Duchnovič TheatreAlexander Duchnovic TheatreThe Alexander Duchnovič Theatre , located in Prešov, is the only Slovak theatre providing plays in the Rusyn language.-History:The Alexander Duchnovič Theatre was founded in 1945 as a Ukrainian national Theatre...
- RutheniaRutheniaRuthenia is the Latin word used onwards from the 13th century, describing lands of the Ancient Rus in European manuscripts. Its geographic and culturo-ethnic name at that time was applied to the parts of Eastern Europe. Essentially, the word is a false Latin rendering of the ancient place name Rus...
- Carpathian RutheniaCarpathian RutheniaCarpathian Ruthenia is a region in Eastern Europe, mostly located in western Ukraine's Zakarpattia Oblast , with smaller parts in easternmost Slovakia , Poland's Lemkovyna and Romanian Maramureş.It is...
- Carpatho-Rusyn SocietyCarpatho-Rusyn SocietyThe Carpatho-Rusyn Society is an American nonprofit organization promoting Rusyn culture in the United States, as well as in the traditional homeland in east Central Europe....