Great Ukrainian Poet – Taras Shevchenko

195^th Anniversary since his Birth

The Ukrainian Canadian community scattered across Canada honours annually in March, Taras Shevchenko – the greatest Ukrainian literary figure, a major artist who drew and painted, and freedom fighter. Celebrations in March (the month of his birth and death) include concerts, symposia and academic presentations by members of Ukrainian organizations, churches and especially youth groups. Similar celebrations also take place in Ukraine every March.

Taras Shevchenko was born on March 9, 1814 into a Ukrainian serf family in Central Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire. In  St. Petersburg, he engaged in the formal study of art. In 1838, proceeds from a special art commission were utilised to buy Shevchenko’s freedom from serfdom. He continued to draw and paint for the next decade; winning several major awards.

Shevchenko also had a love for writing poetry while a serf and still after his personal emancipation. He wrote in the Ukrainian  vernacular, popular in rural Ukraine but considered an inferior “tongue” by the Russians. He did this to recognize the importance of the Ukrainian language and culture as self-identification traits against the political and monolingual policies of the Russians.

In 1840, he published a collection of poems entitled Kobzar that became a great success due to its “clarity, breadth and elegance  of artistic expression not previously known in Ukrainian literature” (Ivan Franko). Later he wrote the epic poem Haidamaky (1841), the tragedy Nykyta Hayday (1842) and the drama, Nazar Stodolya (1843).

All of this was accomplished living in St. Petersburg, Russia, but Shevchenko never forgot about Ukraine. He visited Ukraine in 1843, 1845 and 1846 and witnessed the difficult political, economic and social conditions of his countrymen which had a major impact on his writings and art. On his 1845 trip to Ukraine, Shevchenko made friends with prominent Ukrainian intellectuals and joined the Brotherhood of Ss. Cyril and Methodius – a secret political organization that aspired Ukrainians to liberate Ukraine from Russia. In 1847, their Brotherhood was suppressed by the Russian authorities and Shevchenko was arrested and imprisoned. During a search of his belongings, the poem Son (The Dream) was discovered, which is a critique of Russian Imperial rule in Ukraine. Thus he was imprisoned in St. Petersburg and then sent to Orenburg (near the Ural Mountains) with the decree that “he was not to write or paint and to be placed under the strictest surveillance.”

After the difficult years of exile and imprisonment, Shevchenko’s health deteriorated and on March 10, 1861, he passed away in St. Petersburg. Initially, he was buried in Smolensk Cemetery in St. Petersburg, but later his friends arranged the transfer of his remains to Kaniv, Ukraine, south of the capital Kyiv and he was interred high on a hill on the banks of the Dnipro River. Today, a museum exists at this site.

Taras Shevchenko’s works and life are revered and honoured by Ukrainians in Ukraine and the Diaspora. His literary impact on Ukrainian literature was immense and he is known as the father of the modern written Ukrainian language. His poetry with its patriotic themes contributed immensely to the growth and development of Ukrainian national consciousness. His volume of poems Kobzar has been reprinted many times including versions in Canada. For Ukrainian Canadian settlers, this was a most important book that was brought to Canada from Central and Eastern Europe among their meagre possessions and was read widely. His poem Zapovit (My Testament) is often studied and recited by children and youth across Canada at celebrations honouring Taras Shevchenko.

Many statues of Taras Shevchenko have been erected in Ukraine and around the world, beginning with the memorial monument at his burial site in Kaniv, Ukraine. On the 100^th Anniversary of his repose in 1961, the Ukrainian Canadian Congress erected a monument statue on the Manitoba Legislative Grounds in Winnipeg. On that occasion, then Premier of Manitoba, the Honourable Duff Roblin announced to the Ukrainian Canadian community that permission was granted again to have the Ukrainian language taught in Manitoba schools, where the number of students was sufficient. This policy was subsequently repeated in the Provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta. Today, Taras Shevchenko’s language is still taught in numerous schools of the Canadian Prairies.

Again in 2009, Ukrainian Canadians honour Taras Shevchenko – the “poet laureate” of Ukraine with concerts and celebrations and in so doing pay homage to one of the most important figures in Ukrainian history.

For more information, contact Prof. Roman Yereniuk, Acting Director for the Centre for Ukrainian Studies at the University of Manitoba, tel.: 204-474-8907 or email cucs@cc.umanitoba.ca