Bilen'kyj S. A Role of M.O. Maksymovych's Activities in Formation of the Ukrainian Academic Traditions and the Ukrainian Studies in Kyiv University, 1834 - 1845.

The thesis concerns the administrative and scholarly activities of Mykhailo Maksymovych in 1834 - 1845 as a rector and professor of Russian Literature and Folklore in Kyiv University. Those activities are exposed to the formation of the 19th century Ukrainian academic traditions as well as Ukrainian studies. The thesis also explores the functioning of Kyiv University on several levels: institutional history, sociology of academic body and biography studies. The foundation of Kyiv University in 1834 became one more example of all European phenomenon of political absolutism combined with philosophical idealism and religious mysticism. Kyiv University was founded as a result of specific Russian cultural politics toward Polish-speaking gentry of the Right-Bank Ukraine. The thesis traces the institutional developments of Kyiv University including social preconditions for producing humanitarian knowledge, discursive objects of some of the humanities, corporal ethics, academic communications, pedagogical tech niques and so on. It highlights the specific academic and political role of Mykhailo Maksymovych in Kyiv University. He was a representative of the Russian government in Kyiv University and in the Kyiv educational district. Maksymovych as a rector influenced some of the Kyiv academic practices that turned out to be crucial for the Ukrainian scholarly community until today. Among those traditions, the exclusive rector's authority in managing all academic problems; rectorship as a combination of state, scholarly as well as symbolic functions; coexistence of education and research within the university; construction of the Ukrainian identity as a primary concern of the Ukrainian intellectuals; presence of the Other in Ukrainian scholarship and academic community. While in Kyiv, Maksymovych contributed to the humanities in Ukraine despite his being involved in Russian academic community. Professor Maksymovych by taking part in academic life created a new model of institutionalization for the Ukrainian men of lett ers and caused the Romantic "Ukrainian project" to be born. Author analyzes the scholarly approaches of Mykhailo Maksymovych and stressed their crucial role for developing Ukrainian studies. The reconstruction of Maksymovych's manuscript legacy proved that he, when studying Russian literary history and theory, draw much attention to the specific Ukrainian topics. It was uncommon for the 19th century university discourse to concentrate on the problems of the non-dominant groups of the Empire. He succeeded in tracing the unique Ukrainian cultural tradition in East-European history beginning with the Mediae aevi and up to literary and polemist activity of some of the Ukrainian clergymen of the early 19th century. The main object of his scholarly interest was old - Ukrainian literature and its expression in folk materials. Among the texts of the very importance for him the first place possessed so called Ihor's Tale that was the combination of mediaeval literacy and folk tradition. Maksymovych had no doubts about authenticity of that literary monument. He sought to find the connections between this tale and Ukrainian folk poetry. Maksymovych as a professor of Russian Literature and Folklore introduced the specific regional objects of studies into Kyiv scholarly discourse. Those objects were consequently developed and transformed by the younger Ukrainian intellectuals into series of independent disciplines in the field of Ukrainian past and modern culture. Those disciplines, also known as the Ukrainian studies, became the corner stone of the modern Ukrainian identity providing it with symbolic characteristics and serving as a legitimate basis for political aspirations of the compatriots. In East-European context the interest of regional scholars to native history and their love of antiquity promoted political actions of more radical successors. Many of those early 19th century patriots were forgotten in course of history. The influence of Mykhailo Maksymivych's activities was felt much later - when some Ukrainian Roma nticists called "peasant-lovers" ("khlopomany") manifested their spiritual connections with previous generations of the Ukrainian patriots and, first of all, with Maksymovych. In studying the Maksymovych's activities in Kyiv University we trace the origins of the Ukrainian academic discourse as well as cultural-political movement in the eve of the Modernization.