Integration of architecture and culture on the example of National houses in the city of Chernivtsi

Abstract

Today, the preservation of historical and cultural heritage is a prerequisite for the development of the nation and its culture. National Houses were built with different architectural features of a particular community. The most important events of the national and cultural life of the city took place there, libraries and reading rooms, artistic groups, choirs, drama clubs, and theatres worked there. Later, public, political, educational, artistic, professional, and other organizations were formed there. The purpose of the publication is to study the development of the National Houses and the stages of formation of cultural trends in the multinational city of Chernivtsi. Chernivtsi is a multinational and multicultural city that has been shaped over the centuries by various historical factors. For more than a century and a half, the city has had five National Houses, which symbolized the five most powerful national groups: German, Polish, Ukrainian, Jewish and Romanian. The National Houses were built as meeting places. At the same time, they were meant to express the confidence and pride of the ethnic groups, each of which tried to present itself, its culture and economic strength in beautiful, presentable buildings. Analysing Ludwig West's map, it can be stated that the Ukrainian (1), Polish (2), Jewish (3), and German (4) National Houses built or rebuilt (between 1899 and 1910) are located in the central part of the city – Theatre Square, O. Kobylianska Street (Herren Gasse), and the corner of Ukrains`ka and Petrovich Streets (Schlangen Gasse / Petrowicz Gasse). The Romanian National House (5) (built in the 1940s) is located in a vacant area next to the Jewish National House on the Theatre Square (Elisabeth Platz).