Oral History >Famous Ukrainians

Introduction

While there simply is not enough space to include every Ukrainian who gained popularity or fame, the following is a collection of individuals who are very important to the country of Ukraine. Some of the names are legendary and can be traced back to the early history of Ukraine, while others have produced accomplishments in a more recent period.

Taras Shevchenko (1814-1861)

Taras Shevchenko is Ukraine's greatest and best known literary poet and painter. As a son of poor farmers, the young Shevchenko was virtually the slave of a wealthy family. Artists who knew the family, however, noticed his talent and helped buy Shevchenko's freedom. He was then able to study at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts with the Russian painter Karl Bryullov (1799-1852). After completing his studies at the Russian academy, Shevchenko continued to paint, but it was his poetry that brought him international fame. His most famous early work is the collection of poetry "Kobzar" (The Minstrel, 1840). Most poems in this romantic collection examine Ukraine's epic and heroic past and describe the Kozaks (Cossacks) and their wars with foreign invaders. Later, he turned his attention to more political themes and promoted an opposition to Russian imperialism. Further, he wrote poems that supported Ukrainian independence and nationalism, while calling for a revolution.

St. Vladimir I (958-1015)

Saint Vladimir I (Volodymyr) Svyatoslavich the Great was the Grand Duke of Kievan Rus' converted to Christianity in 988 and proceeded to have Kievan Rus' formally accept the religion. Vladimir I was the illegitimate son of Svyatoslav I who had relations with his housekeeper. Vladimir had seven wives and expanded education, judicial institutions, and aid to the poor. He and his wife Anne had the martyr sons Saint Boris and Saint Gleb (also known a Sts. Roman and David, from their baptismal names). Following the death of Anne in 1011, another marriage affiliated him with the German Holy Roman emperors. His daughter became the consort of Casimir I the Restorer of Poland (1016-58).

Princess Olga (890-969)

Princess Olga or St. Olga was the widow of Igor I, who was the prince of Kiev (877-945) and the grandmother of St. Vladimir I (956-1015). In the year 945, while attempting to collect excessive taxes, her husband Igor I, was assassinated by his subjects. Since their son was too young to rule, Olga served as ruler of the kingdom of Kievan Rus' from 945-964. Princess Olga spent a great deal of effort to avenge the death of her husband and had the murderers scaled to death and hundreds of their followers killed. She was the first royal Kievan to adopt Christianity and made great efforts to spread Christianity throughout the countryside, however, she was not able to convince her son Svyatoslav to embrace the Christian religion. In fact, it was not until her grandson St. Vladimir I, that Christianity was completely adopted by the people of Kievan Rus'.

Bohdan Khmelnytsky (1595-1657)

Bohdan Khmelnytsky was the leader of the Zaporozhzhian Cossacks (Kozaks) who organized a rebellion against Ukraine's Polish rulers in 1648. He was supported Crimea's Tatars and won the favour of Ukrainians which led to a massive uprising against the rule of the Poles. The Polish rulers were forced to make peace an agreed to an independent Cossack (Kozak) State within Ukraine. Later in 1651, war broke out again, however Khmelnytsky and his followers were not able to repeat their previous success. At the Pereyaslav Agreement, Khmelnytsky wanted help from the Russian Empire promising allegiance to the Russians who later invaded Poland, however, the Russians gradually took control of Ukrainian lands and continued to rule the region until 1917.

Stepan Bandera (1909-1950)

Stepan was a very patriotic Ukrainian and was the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists in the 1930s and 1940s. During World War II, he and his guerrilla army fought both Soviet and Nazi German authorities. Bandera considered both of these groups to be the enemy of Ukraine and was killed in Munich Germany allegedly by the Soviet secret service (KGB). The Soviets during the time felt he was a traitor given that he had fought against the Soviet rule, however, since the Independence of Ukraine in 1991, the life and legacy of this individual has been reexamined.

Lesia (Lesya) Ukrainka (Larysa Petrivna Kosach-Kvitka) (1871-1913)

Lesia Ukrainka was born in Novograd-Volynsky of Ukraine which was an area under the control of the Russian Empire. Her parents were both academics and promoted the language and culture of Ukraine in the household. For example, the family would only speak Ukrainian at home. Lesia and her siblings were taught at home by tutors in order to avoid the schools promoting Russian language and heritage. By the time she was eight years old, Lesia wrote her first poem entitled "Hope"; a reaction to the arrest and exile of her aunt. By age thirteen, her first published poem "Lily of the Valley" appeared in the journal "Zoria" in Lviv. During this period, she began to use her pseudonym "Lesia Ukrainka" as suggested by her mother. When she was seventeen, Lesia and her brother organized a literary circle called "Pleyada" (The Pleiades) in order to promote the development of Ukrainian literature and translating foreign classics into Ukrainian. Most of her work was published in western Ukraine (or the Austro-Hungarian Empire); Ukrainian publications were banned in the Russian Empire (eastern Ukraine). She continued to write and promote Ukraine until her death in 1913.