Sofia Rusova
Sofia Rusova | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Sofia Lindfors 18 February 1856 Oleshnia, Chernigov Governorate, Russian Empire |
| Died | 5 February 1940 (aged 83) |
| Nationality | Ukrainian |
Sofia Rusova (née Lindfors), (18 February 1856 – 5 February 1940) was a Ukrainian pedagogue, author, women's rights advocate, and political activist.[1]
Early life
Sofia Lindfors-Rusova was born in the small village of Oleshnia,
Educator
Rusova is recognized as a prominent pedagogue and an advocate for national education.[1]
In 1871 Rusova’s father died, leaving Rusova, her 27-year-old sister Maria and 31-year-old brother Oleksander orphaned. Soon after, Rusova and her sister Maria moved in together. There were no existing kindergartens in Kyiv, and the sisters set out to study early childhood education and to eventually open a kindergarten. In 1872, they opened Kyiv's first kindergarten.[2]
Political activist
By the 1800s, the political and military institutions of Ukraine had been dismantled by the Russian Empire. Ukrainians were labeled “Little Russians” and treated as subordinates. Ukraine was reduced to provincial status. By the late 1800s the Russian Empire was promoting a fierce anti-Ukrainian sentiment.[3] The imperial regime under Tsar Alexander II issued the Ems Ukaz,[3] which outlawed the use of the Ukrainian language in print. The Ukrainian intelligentsia was determined to publish Taras Shevchenko’s complete Kobzar[4] in two volumes, including the parts of the text that had been censored and were virtually unknown in Ukraine. Rusova and her husband, Oleksander Rusov, spent time in Prague preparing the text for publication. Fedir Vovk, an anthropologist and archeologist, furnished Shevchenko’s manuscripts that he had purchased from Shevchenko's brothers with money donated by wealthy Ukrainians. At great personal risk, the couple brought the complete, published Kobzar back to Ukraine.[5]
The Rusov couple was exiled to
Legacy
Rusova promoted daycare, continuing education, human rights, and the political organization of the peasants. She escaped from
In 2016 a commemorative coin was minted in Ukraine in honor of the 160th anniversary of Rusova's birth.[7] A monument was installed on the school grounds in the town of Ripky. The Sofia Rusova School in Oleshnia, where Rusova was born, houses a modest museum[8] and hosts scholarly workshops dedicated to Rusova.
References
- ^ a b c d Kubiyovych, Volodymyr (1993). Encyclopedia of Ukraine. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
- ^ a b c Rusova, Sofia (1937). Moi spohady. Lviv, Ukraine.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b Subtelny, Orest (1988). Ukraine: A History. University of Toronto Press.
- ^ Shevchenko, Taras (2013). "The Complete Kobzar". issuu.com/glagoslav.
- ^ Rusov, Oleksander (2011). Shchodennyky ta spohady. Chernihiv, Ukraine.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Hupalo, Serhiy (2006-02-28). "The cross of a great Ukrainian woman". The Day (Kyiv).
- ^ "Sofia Rusova". National Bank of Ukraine. Archived from the original on 2018-05-07. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
- ^ "Opening of the Museum of Sofia Rusova in Chernihiv". Chernihiv Historical Museum of VV. Tarnovsky. 2013-10-01. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
