Fedir Vovk as Founder of Ukrainian-Romanian Scientific Relations

Abstract

Fedir Vovk (1847–1918), a native of Poltava region and a professor at the Sorbonne University and the University of Petrograd, an illustrious Ukrainian anthropologist and archaeologist, made a significant contribution to the development of national and world scientific thinking. In particular, he is known as the discoverer of Mizin culture, editor of the works of Taras Shevchenko, an active promoter of Ukrainian culture in Europe. Based on the study of a significant ethnographic material collected from different countries, including Romania, Hungary, Russia, F. Vovk published in 1892 a unique work, “The Ritual and Traditions of Marriage in Ukraine”, and in 1916 – two works: “Anthropological Features of the Ukrainian People” and “Ethnographic Features of the Ukrainian People”. Through his works, he rejected the theories of several Russian imperial historians about the fact that Ukraine is only “a south of Russia”. Of particular importance for the scientific activity of F. Vovk was his stay in Romania during 1878–1882. The scientist studied, in particular, the Ukrainian settlements in Northern Dobrogea. As the eloquent scientific results of these studies were, for example, the works “The Trans-Danubian «Sicea» in local memories and stories” (1883) and “Ukrainian Fishing in Dobrogea” (1899). F. Vovk also collaborated with the well-known writer, translator, publicist and public activist Zamfir Arbore-Rally (1848–1933) and rightly entered the scientific annals as one of the founders of the Ukrainian-Romanian scientific and cultural relations of the late (political) stage of the national-cultural renaissance and development of state-building processes in Central and Eastern Europe.