The Ukrainian language in HALYCHYNA school system in the interwar period

Abstract

The history of the Ukrainian literary language intertwines with the development of Ukrainian education. The establishment of Ukrainian schooling in Halychyna commenced in the late 19th century and persisted until the early 20th century. Throughout this period and until 1939, the Ukrainian population of Halychyna engaged in a relentless struggle for the right to receive education in their mother tongue across various types of schools, including public and private, primary, secondary, and vocational institutions. This struggle unfolded within the intricate framework of socio-political and socio-cultural conditions prevalent in Eastern Halychyna during the interwar period. During the First World War, the educational landscape underwent a period of total Russification. The occupying authorities imposed mandatory Russian language instruction in primary and secondary schools throughout Halychyna. This Russification agenda within the realm of education was reinforced by official documents explicitly proclaiming that “within the confines of Carpathian Rus, all higher, secondary, and elementary schools must promptly and exclusively adopt the Russian language”. During the years 1918-1919, the authorities of the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic dedicated significant efforts to ensure the effective organization of the educational system. They emphasized the compulsory inclusion of the Ukrainian language in all educational institutions and made substantial investments in training an adequate number of educators. By early 1919, there were 20 Ukrainian gymnasiums, three real schools, and seven teachers’ seminary schools. The period from 1919 to 1939 witnessed a heightened struggle by the Ukrainians of Halychyna to preserve their right to education in their native language, despite the oppressive Polish occupation of the western Ukrainian lands. Unfortunately, during this time, the number of primary and secondary schools offering instruction in the Ukrainian language experienced a steady decline. By the end of the interwar period, approximately 420 Ukrainian primary schools, 2,500 Utraquist schools, and 1,229 Polish schools with compulsory Ukrainian language studies remained operational in Eastern Halychyna. Additionally, there were 20 Ukrainian private gymnasiums and lyceums, along with 7 vocational schools. The concept of schooling in the native language brought together a community of dedicated and influential individuals, including scholars, educators, politicians, and cultural figures. United by a common goal, they worked tirelessly to develop textbooks and dictionaries suitable for schools at various levels. Despite the challenging conditions of the 1920s and 1930s, pedagogical and scientific societies, as well as educational journals, actively opposed the policy of Polonization in the realm of education. They championed the advancement of Ukrainian school terminology and advocated for the incorporation of essential spelling rules into the Ukrainian language curriculum. Key words: the Ukrainian language, schooling system of Halychyna, an interwar period, Russification, Polonization.