Taras Shevchenko

Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko (Ukrainian: Тарас Григорович Шевченко) (March 9, 1814 [O.S. February 25] – March 10, 1861 [O.S. February 26]) was a Ukrainian poet, also an artist and a humanist. His literary heritage is regarded to be the foundation of modern Ukrainian literature and, to a large extent, of modern Ukrainian language. Shevchenko also wrote in Russian and left several masterpiece paintings. Image File history File links Shevch_classic. ... Image File history File links Shevch_classic. ... March 9 is the 68th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (69th in Leap years). ... 1814 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... In Britain and countries of the British Empire, Old Style or O.S. after a date means that the date is in the Julian calendar, in use in those countries until 1752; New Style or N.S. means that the date is in the Gregorian calendar, adopted on 14 September... March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in leap years). ... 1861 is a common year starting on Tuesday. ... In Britain and countries of the British Empire, Old Style or O.S. after a date means that the date is in the Julian calendar, in use in those countries until 1752; New Style or N.S. means that the date is in the Gregorian calendar, adopted on 14 September... A poet is some one who writes poetry. ... Look up artist in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Humanist may refer to: a scholar or academic in the Humanities a proponent of the group of ethical stances referred to as Humanism a long-running email discussion list on humanities computing in typography, a group of sans-serif typefaces with some calligraphic features, such as Humana, Optima, Frutiger, Johnston... Ukrainian literature is literature written in the Ukrainian language. ... Ukrainian (украї́нська мо́ва, ukrayinska mova, ) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. ...

Life

Self-portrait of Taras Shevchenko, 1840

Born into a serf family in the village of Moryntsi, of Kiev guberniya (then a part of the Russian Empire), Shevchenko was orphaned at the age of eleven. He was taught how to read by a village precentor, and loved to draw at every opportunity. Shevchenko served his owner P. Engelhardt in Vilnius (1828–31) and then Saint Petersburg. Self portrait of Taras Shevchenko, done as a student of the Academy of Art in St. ... Self portrait of Taras Shevchenko, done as a student of the Academy of Art in St. ... The origins of serfdom in Russia are traced to Kievan Rus in the 11th century. ... Moryntsi (Ukrainian: ) is a village (selo) in central Ukraine. ... Location Map of Ukraine with Kyiv highlighted. ... Guberniya (Russian: ) (also gubernia, guberniia, gubernya) was a major administrative subdivision of the Imperial Russia, usually translated as governorate or province. ... Official language Russian Official Religion Russian Orthodox Christianity Capital Saint Petersburg (Petrograd 1914-1924) Area Approx. ... A Precentor is a person, usually a clergy member, who is in charge of preparing worship services. ... Ethnographic region AukÅ¡taitija County Vilnius County Municipality Vilnius city municipality Coordinates Number of elderates 20 Capital of Lithuania Vilnius County Vilnius city municipality Vilnius district municipality Population 540,318 in 2005 (1st)} First mentioned 1323 Granted city rights 1387 Vilna redirects here. ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and...

Engelhardt noticed Shevchenko's artistic talent, and in Saint Petersburg he apprenticed him to the painter V. Shiriaev for four years. There he met the Ukrainian artist Ivan Soshenko, who introduced him to other compatriots, such as Yevhen Hrebinka and Vasyl Hryhorovych, and to the Russian painter Alexey Venetsianov. Through these men Shevchenko also met the famous painter and professor Karl Briullov, who donated his portrait of the Russian poet Vasily Zhukovsky as a lottery prize, whose proceeds were used to buy Shevchenko's freedom on 5 May 1838. Self-portrait, 1811 Alexey Gavrilovich Venetsianov (Russian: ; 18 February 1780–04 January 1840) was a Russian painter, renown for his paintings devoted to the peasant life and ordinary people. ... Karl Pavlovich Briullov (Карл Павлович Брюллов), called by his friends the Great Karl (December 12, 1799, St Petersburg - June 11, 1852, Rome), was the first Russian painter of international standing. ... Russian literature refers to the literature of Russia or its émigrés, and to the Russian-language literature of several independent nations once a part of what was historically Russia or the Soviet Union. ... On the publication of Pushkins first major work in 1820, Zhukovsky presented the younger poet with this famous portrait of himself, over the inscription: To the victorious disciple from his vanquished tutor. Vasily Andreyevich Zhukovsky (29 Jan/9 Feb 1783, Mishenskoe near Tula - 12/24 Apr 1852, Baden-Baden... | Jöns Jakob Berzelius, discoverer of protein 1838 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

First Successes

In the same year Shevchenko was accepted as a student into the Academy of Arts in the workshop of Karl Briullov. The next year he became a resident student at the Association for the Encouragement of Artists. At the annual examinations at the Imperial Academy of Arts, Shevchenko was given a Silver Medal for a landscape. In 1840 he again received the Silver Medal, this time for his first oil painting, The Beggar Boy Giving Bread to a Dog. Karl Pavlovich Briullov (Карл Павлович Брюллов), called by his friends the Great Karl (December 12, 1799, St Petersburg - June 11, 1852, Rome), was the first Russian painter of international standing. ... The edifice for the academy was built in 1764-89 to a design by Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe and Alexander F. Kokorinov. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

He began writing poetry while he was a serf and in 1840 his first collection of poetry, Kobzar, was published. Ivan Franko, the renowned Ukrainian poet in the generation after Shevchenko, had this to say of the compilation: "[Kobzar] immediately revealed, as it were, a new world of poetry. It burst forth like a spring of clear, cold water, and sparkled with a clarity, breadth and elegance of artistic expression not previously known in Ukrainian writing." 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A kobzar (kобзар in Ukrainian) was a Ukrainian wandering bard of Cossack times, who played a stringed instrument called a kobza to accompany the recitation of epic dumas. ... Ivan Franko Ivan Franko (Іван Франко) (August 15, 1856 – May 28, 1916) was a Ukrainian poet and writer, social and literary critic, journalist, economist, and political activist. ...

In 1841 the epic poem Haidamaky was released. In September 1841 Shevchenko was awarded his third Silver Medal for The Gypsy Fortune Teller. Shevchenko also wrote plays. In 1842 he released a part of the tragedy Nykyta Hayday and in 1843 he completed the drama Nazar Stodolya. 1841 is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1842 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1843 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

While residing in Saint Petersburg, Shevchenko made three trips to Ukraine, in 1843, 1845, and 1846. The difficult conditions under which his countrymen lived had a profound impact on the poet-painter. Shevchenko visited his still enserfed siblings and other relatives, met with prominent Ukrainian writers and intellectuals such as: Hrebinka, Panteleimon Kulish, and Mykhailo Maksymovych, and was befriended by the princely Repnin family especially Varvara Repnina. Hrebinka (Ukrainian: ) is a city in Poltava Oblast, Ukraine. ... Panteleymon Kulish (also spelt Panteleimon or Pantelejmon KuliÅ¡, Ukrainian: , August 7, 1819 â€“ February 14, 1897) was a Ukrainian writer, critic, poet, folklorist, and translater. ... Coat of arms of the Repnin family Repnin (Russian: Репнин), the name of an old Russian princely family of Rurikid stock. ...

In 1844, distressed by the tsarist oppression and destruction of Ukraine, Shevchenko decided to capture some of his homeland’s historical ruins and cultural monuments in an album of etchings, which he called Picturesque Ukraine. 1844 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Exile

Self-portrait as a soldier, 1847

On March 22, 1845, the Council of the Academy of Arts decided to grant Shevchenko the title of artist. He again travelled to Ukraine where he met the historian, Mykola Kostomarov and other members of the Brotherhood of Saints Cyril and Methodius, a secret political society, created to advocate a wide set of political reforms in the Russian Empire. Upon the society's suppression by the authorities, Shevchenko was arrested along with other members on April 5, 1847. Although he probably wasn't an official member of the Brotherhood, during the search his poem "The Dream" ("Son") was found. This poem criticized imperial rule and therefore was considered extremely dangerous. Image File history File links Shevch_soldat. ... Image File history File links Shevch_soldat. ... March 22 is the 81st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (82nd in leap years). ... 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Nikolai Ivanovich Kostomarov (Russian: ; Ukrainian: ) (May 16, 1817, vil. ... The Brotherhood of Saints Cyril and Methodius was a short-lived secret political society that existed in Kiev, Ukraine, at the time a part of the Russian Empire. ... April 5 is the 95th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (96th in leap years). ... 1847 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Shevchenko was sent to prison in St. Petersburg. He was exiled as a private with the Russian military at Orenburg in far reaches of the Russian Empire. Tsar Nicholas I, confirming his sentence, wrote, "Under the strictest surveillance, with a ban on writing and painting." It was not until 1857 that Shevchenko finally returned from exile after receiving a pardon, though he was not permitted to return to St. Petersburg but was exiled to Nizhniy Novgorod. In May, 1859, Shevchenko got permission to go to Ukraine. He intended to buy a plot of land not far from the village of Pekariv and settle in Ukraine. In July he was arrested on a charge of blasphemy, but was released and ordered to return to St. Petersburg. A private is a military soldier of the lowest military rank (equivalent to Nato Rank Grades OR-1 to OR-3 depending on the force served in). ... Orenburg (Russian: ) is a city on the Ural River and the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast in the Volga Federal District of Russia. ... Monomakhs Cap symbol of Russian autocracy, the crown of Russian grand princes and tsars Czar and tzar redirect here. ... Nicholas I of Russia (Russian: Николай I Павлович, Nikolai I Pavlovich), July 6 (June 25, Old Style), 1796–March 2 (February 18, Old Style), 1855), was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855 and king of Poland from 1825 until 1831. ... 1857 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Area  - Total 260,000 mi² Population  - City (2003)  - Metropolitan 1,334,249 2 million approx. ... 1859 (MDCCCLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar). ... Look up blasphemy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Death of Shevchenko

Taras Sevchenko spent the last years of his life working on new poetry, paintings, and engravings, as well as editing his older works. But after his difficult years in exile his final illness proved too much. Shevchenko died in St. Petersburg on March 10, 1861. He was first buried at the Smolensk Cemetery in St. Petersburg. However, fulfilling Shevchenko's wish, as expressed in his poem "Testament" (Zapovit), to be buried in Ukraine, his friends arranged to transfer his remains by train to Moscow and then by horse-drawn wagon to his native land. Shevchenko's remains were buried on May 8 on Chernecha Hora (Monk's Hill) (now Tarasova Hora or Taras' Hill) by the Dnieper river near Kaniv. A tall mound was erected over his grave, now a memorial part of the Kaniv Museum-Preserve. May 8 is the 128th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (129th in leap years). ... The Dnieper River (also: Dnepr, Dniapro, or Dnipro) is a river (2,290 km length) which flows from Russia through Belarus and then Ukraine. ... Kaniv (Polish: Kaniów) is a town on the Dnipro River in Ukraine where the Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko is buried. ...

Dogged by terrible misfortune in love and life, the poet died seven days before the Emancipation of Serfs was announced. His works and life are revered by Ukrainians and his impact on Ukrainian literature is immense. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Ukrainian literature is literature written in the Ukrainian language. ...

Heritage and legacy

Impact

Taras Shevchenko monument in Luhansk, Ukraine

Taras Shevchenko has a unique place in Ukrainian cultural history and in world literature. His writings formed the foundation for modern Ukrainian literature. Shevchenko's poetry contributed greatly to the growth of Ukrainian national consciousness, and his influence on various facets of Ukrainian intellectual, literary, and national life is still felt to this day. Influenced by Romanticism, Shevchenko managed to find his own manner of poetic expression that encompassed themes and ideas germane to Ukraine and his personal vision of its past and future. Image File history File links Shevchenko_Luhansk. ... Image File history File links Shevchenko_Luhansk. ... Lugansk (Ukrainian: Луганськ, Luhansk; Russian: Луга́нск, Lugansk) is a city in southeastern Ukraine. ... Ukrainian literature is literature written in the Ukrainian language. ... Romanticism was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in late 18th century Western Europe. ...

Monuments and Memorials

There are many monuments to Shevchenko throughout Ukraine, most notably at his memorial in Kaniv and in the center of Kiev, just across the Kiev University that bears his name. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Ukrainian cities replaced their statues of Lenin with statues of Taras Shevchenko. Other monuments to Shevchenko have been and are being built in many countries, including most of the ex-Soviet republics. Under initiative of local Ukrainian diasporas, there are several memorial societies and monuments to him throughout Canada and the United States, most notably a monument in Washington, D.C., near Dupont Circle at 23rd and P Streets, NW. In Paris a Shevchenko square is located in the heart of the central Saint-Germain-des-Prés district. Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... The term Ukrainian diaspora refers to the global community of ethnic Ukrainians, usually more specifically those who maintain some kind of connection, even if ephemeral, to the land of their ancestors and maintain their feeling of Ukrainian national identity within local community. ... Nickname: DC, The District Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Location of Washington, D.C., in relation to the states Maryland and Virginia. ... Aerial photograph of Dupont Circle. ...   City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country France Région ÃŽle-de-France Département Paris (75) Subdivisions 20 arrondissements Mayor Bertrand Delanoë  (PS) (since 2001) City Statistics Land area... Saint-Germain-des-Prés is an area of the VIe arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. ...

There is also a monument of him in Kharkiv, Ukraine in front of Shevchenko park. Location Map of Ukraine with Kharkiv highlighted. ...

The city of Aktau in Kazakhstan was named Shevchenko from 1964 until Kazakhstan's independence in 1992. Aktau is a city in Kazakhstan and a seaport to the Caspian Sea. ...

The town of Vita, Manitoba was originally named Shevchenko in his honor. The K-12 Shevchenko School still remains. A bust of Shevchenko stands inside the front doors. Motto: Gloriosus et Liber (Latin: Glorious and free) Official languages English and French, per mandate of the Constitution Act 1982 Flower Prairie Crocus Tree White Spruce Bird Great Grey Owl Capital Winnipeg Largest city Winnipeg Lieutenant-Governor John Harvard Premier Gary Doer (NDP) Parliamentary representation  - House seat  - Senate seats 14...

Statue of Taras Shevchenko in Kyiv, Ukraine Image File history File links TarasShevchenkoKyiv. ... Kiev (Київ, Kyiv, in Ukrainian; Киев, Kiev, in Russian) is the capital and largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper river. ...

Statue of Taras Shevchenko in Lviv, Ukraine Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1200x1600, 296 KB) Summary Description: Statue of Taras Shevchenko in Lviv, Ukraine. ... Motto: Semper fidelis Location Map of Ukraine with Lviv. ...

Taras Shevchenko Monument in Washington, D.C. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1024x768, 645 KB) Taras Shevchenko Monument in Washington, D.C. File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Taras Shevchenko Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from... Nickname: DC, The District Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Location of Washington, D.C., in relation to the states Maryland and Virginia. ...

Taras Shevchenko Place Street Sign in New York City, NY Image File history File links TarasShevchenkoPlace. ... Nickname: Big Apple, City that never Sleeps Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs Bronx (The Bronx) New York (Manhattan) Queens (Queens) Kings (Brooklyn) Richmond (Staten Island) Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area    - City 1,214. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ...

Example of poetry

Testament (Ukrainian: Zapovit)

When I am dead, bury me

In my beloved Ukraine,

My tomb upon a grave mound high

Amid the spreading plain,

So that the fields, the boundless steppes,

The Dnieper's plunging shore

My eyes could see, my ears could hear

The mighty river roar.

When from Ukraine the Dnieper bears

Into the deep blue sea

The blood of foes ... then will I leave

These hills and fertile fields --

I'll leave them all and fly away

To the abode of God,

And then I'll pray .... But till that day

I nothing know of God.

Oh bury me, then rise ye up

And break your heavy chains

And water with the tyrants' blood

The freedom you have gained.

And in the great new family,

The family of the free,

With softly spoken, kindly word

Remember also me.

25 December 1845, Pereyaslav

Translated by John Weir Toronto, 1961

The Dnieper River - is the biggest river in Ukraine, a national symbol. Pereyaslav is the former name of towns in Ukraine and Russia: Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi in Ukraine. ... The Dnieper River (also: Dnepr, Dniapro, or Dnipro) is a river (2,290 km length) which flows from Russia through Belarus and then Ukraine. ...

Popular culture

English pop group New Order released a live video in 1983 entitled "Taras Shevchenko" (see New Order discography). The concert was recorded in the Ukrainian National Home in New York City, and featured the famous self-portrait (as shown above) on its cover. Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... New Order are an English rock group formed in 1980 by the surviving members of Joy Division following the suicide of singer Ian Curtis. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... // Note that many New Order singles were not available on their albums at the time of their release. ... Nickname: Big Apple, City that never Sleeps Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs Bronx (The Bronx) New York (Manhattan) Queens (Queens) Kings (Brooklyn) Richmond (Staten Island) Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area    - City 1,214. ...

Ukrainian nationalist black metal band Drudkh write lyrics inspired by Shevchenko's works. Black metal started in the early 1980s with bands such as Venom, Bathory, Celtic Frost, Mercyful Fate, and Hellhammer. ... Drudkhs The Swan Road Drudkh, meaning wood in Sanskrit, is an atmospheric black metal band from Ukraine formed by the leading member of Hate Forest and Astrofaes; Roman Saenko, and Yuriy Sinitsky of Lucifugum and Definition Sane. ...

References

• Shevchenko, Taras Hryhorovych (1951, 1953 [trans. 2005]). “Zapovit’ (Testament)”, Kobzar, Translated by Roman Vinnichuk, URSR: The Academy of learning.

A kobzar (kобзар in Ukrainian) was a Ukrainian wandering bard of Cossack times, who played a stringed instrument called a kobza to accompany the recitation of epic dumas. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Taras Shevchenko

• Taras Shevchenko Museum, Canada
• Detailed Biography in Encyclopedia of Ukraine
• Detailed Biography at The Taras Shevchenko Museum of Canada Web-Site
• English Translations of the Poetry of Taras Shevchenko
• Shevchenko Monument In Washington, D.C., USA
• Self portraits of Taras Shevchenko
• Shevchenko Monument In Oakvile, ON, Canada
• Shevchenko Monument In Tashkent, Kazakhstan
• Shevchenko Monument In Palermo, Italy