Day of Ukrainian writing and language

On October 27, the Day of Ukrainian Writing and Language, we reflect on Ukraine’s long struggle to preserve its language and culture, both often suppressed by occupying forces. Our upcoming book “Under Black Banners”, written originally in Ukrainian, highlights this fight. Set during the Ukrainian Revolution (1917-1922), the novel portrays how using the Ukrainian language was not just a cultural act, but a bold statement of defiance against oppression.

FROM OUR UPCOMING BOOK:

“Ah, Fedosiy,” she sighed, “you’re familiar with anarchy, but you don’t know that the Ukrainian language is the language of a great nation, not just of peasants! You’re advocating for a global revolution, wanting to teach people how to live, but you don’t even know your own roots. You belittle our people by calling them peasants. The Tsarist regime forbade you from reading Ukrainian books, so you wouldn’t know our history, our nation’s sufferings, and so you wouldn’t rise for its liberation. That’s why you weren’t given Shevchenko to read, not because his language is ‘peasant-like’. Would you like to read ‘Kobzar’?” With that, Evdokia pulled an old book from her shelf. It was an 1895 edition of “Kobzar” which her father secretly read to his children on long winter evenings in the village.”

Historical Oppression of the Ukrainian Language

During the period covered in the novel, the Ukrainian Revolution (1917-1922), Ukrainians were fighting not only for political independence but also for the right to maintain their language and culture. Ukrainian language has been oppressed since the 17th (!) century. The Russian Empire and later the Soviet Union imposed harsh policies of Russification, suppressing the Ukrainian language in schools, media, and public life. This suppression was designed to erase Ukrainian national identity, merging it into a “greater” Russian identity. Ukrainian-language publications were banned, and intellectuals promoting Ukrainian culture were persecuted. This theme remains relevant today as Ukraine continues to resist aggression and maintain its cultural and linguistic identity in the face of external threats. The language that was once repressed has now become a powerful symbol of Ukraine’s enduring fight for sovereignty.

This quote from “Under Black Banners” is great evidence of the banning of books in Ukrainian:

“Before the revolution, the full publication of Shevchenko’s “Kobzar” was banned. With Shevchenko’s “Testament”, “Kobzar” was deemed a seditious book. Owning a copy could result in an administrative exile beyond the borders of Ukraine to “not so distant places.” Yet, despite its ban, “Kobzar” still found its way to Ukrainian readers. Proof of this was evident when news reached Dibrivka about the Tsar’s abdication. On that very day, his portraits were taken down, and in their place, portraits of T. G. Shevchenko were hung. From where and by whom these portraits came was a mystery. But one thing was clear – someone had secretly kept these rather large portraits. Elementary school students, from the second to fourth grades, began copying Shevchenko’s “Testament” the day after the portraits were displayed. It was unknown who first brought them to a particular school. What was known was that they were copied by students during breaks, indicating that it wasn’t the teachers who had introduced them to the school.

Within two to three days of the revolution, there wasn’t a single remote peasant school whose students weren’t familiar with the “Testament” and later, “Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished” (“Shche ne vmerla Ukraina.”)”

Some facts about what Russians are doing on the occupied lands:

‼️ In the occupied territories, the Russians are implementing the Russification of educational institutions, with the elimination of the teaching of the Ukrainian language, Ukrainian literature, and the history of Ukraine.

‼️ Russian troops in the temporarily occupied territories seize and destroy Ukrainian literature and textbooks on the history of Ukraine.

‼️ On the territory of Crimea, the occupying Russian authorities in 2022 introduced so-called retraining camps for teachers from the Kherson, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhia regions with the aim of transferring them to “Russian education standards.”

‼️ In the temporarily occupied territories, the Russians remove Ukrainian books from the collections of general and school libraries and burn them in boiler rooms.

‼️ Abducted children are forced to learn Russian.

‼️ And many other things, we only listed the facts known to everyone. Many crimes remain unpublished.

Relevance to the Current War

The historical struggles in “Under Black Banners” mirror the present conflict in Ukraine, where Russia’s invasion threatens Ukrainian identity. In occupied areas, Ukrainian language and culture are suppressed, with Ukrainian banned in schools and towns renamed. Some Ukrainians have been imprisoned or killed for resisting this cultural erasure. In the face of these attacks, the Ukrainian people’s determination to protect their language is reminiscent of their revolutionary ancestors. Just as they did in the early 20th century, Ukrainians today continue to defend their right to exist as a nation, with their own language and culture intact.

The novel provides a compelling lens through which we can view the current war, illustrating that Ukraine’s fight for linguistic and cultural survival is not new but part of a long historical continuum. As Ukrainians are once again killed for speaking their language, the relevance of the themes in “Under Black Banners” becomes even clearer.

FROM OUR UPCOMING BOOK (set in 1917-1921):

Evdokia was deeply involved with the local “Prosvita,” an organisation that, at the time, was a hub for Ukrainian cultural and political life in Dibrivtsi, as well as in other villages and towns throughout Ukraine. Members of “Prosvita” wore yellow and blue badges featuring a trident  in the centre. She explained to Fedosiy the emblem’s significance. In conclusion, she said:  “If we all unite, recognising our ancestry and acknowledging our bonds, then with the strength of our entire nation, we can rebuild an independent Ukrainian State.”

Debunking Stereotypes About the Ukrainian Language Imposed by Russian Propaganda

1. Stereotype: Ukrainian Originates from Russian

Debunked: This is a false narrative often spread by Russian propaganda. Ukrainian did not evolve from Russian. Both languages share a common ancestor in Old East Slavic, spoken in Kyivan Rus, but they diverged into distinct languages centuries ago. Ukrainian developed independently, with its own linguistic evolution, rules, and literary history. It’s a distinct language, not a derivative of Russian.

2. Stereotype: Ukrainian is Just a Collection of Dialects or Surzhyk

Debunked: Russian propaganda regularly undermines Ukrainian by labelling it as a collection of dialects or dismissing it as “Surzhyk,” a blend of Ukrainian and Russian. In reality, Ukrainian is a fully standardised language with its own rich literary and grammatical tradition, distinct from Russian.  Additionally, the false claim that Ukrainian is merely a regional dialect of Russian ignores the fact that it is spoken by over 40 million people and serves as Ukraine’s official language in government, education, and media.

So what is Surzhyk really? Firstly, Surzhyk is a derogatory name for all Ukrainian dialects. That is, this term denies even the possibility of the existence of dialects in Ukrainian language. According to his principles, Ukrainian language is a dialect of Russian and it is Surzhyk. Surzhyk emerged due to decades of forced Russification but does not represent the Ukrainian language. 

3. Stereotype: Ukrainian is Essentially the Same as Russian
Debunked: Ukrainian and Russian are part of the East Slavic language family, but they are not “the same.” While they share some vocabulary, Ukrainian has more in common with Belarusian and even Polish than with Russian. The grammatical structures, pronunciation, and many vocabulary words are quite different. Ukrainian, for instance, uses letters like “ґ,” “є,” “і,” and “ї” that do not exist in Russian, further demonstrating its distinct phonetic and written systems.

4. Stereotype: Eastern Ukraine “Always” Spoke Russian
Debunked: This myth is a result of Soviet-era Russification policies, where the Ukrainian language was suppressed, especially in urban areas of Eastern Ukraine. Historically, Ukrainian was spoken throughout Ukraine, including the east. Over time, Russian became more common in some areas due to forced policies, but Ukrainian was still widely used, particularly in rural regions. Today, Ukrainian is experiencing a resurgence, even in traditionally Russian-speaking areas, as people reclaim their national identity.

5. Stereotype: Ukrainian is a “Peasant” Language
Debunked: Russian propaganda has often labelled Ukrainian as a “peasant” language to diminish its value. However, Ukrainian has a rich literary and intellectual tradition, with writers like Taras Shevchenko, Lesya Ukrainka, and Ivan Franko shaping Ukrainian literature and national identity. Spoken by millions across all social classes, it is also the language of government, education, and culture.

Similarly, Russian is regularly portrayed as “superior” for intellectual expression, but Ukrainian’s literary depth, with contributions from Ivan Kotliarevsky and others, proves its capacity for sophisticated artistic and intellectual expression.

6. Stereotype: Ukrainians Don’t Care About Their Language
Debunked: The resilience of the Ukrainian language, despite centuries of suppression by the Russian Empire and Soviet Union, proves the opposite. Ukrainians have fought hard to preserve their language, even in the face of repression. Today, language is a key part of Ukrainian identity and a symbol of national pride and resistance. With the resurgence of Ukrainian-language media, education, and literature, it is clear that Ukrainians deeply value and care about their language.

In summary, these stereotypes, propagated by Russian disinformation, seek to delegitimise the Ukrainian language and undermine Ukrainian national identity. The reality is that Ukrainian is a fully developed, vibrant, and historically rich language, distinct from Russian, and deeply cherished by the people of Ukraine.

With the beginning of the full-scale invasion, for many, language became an element of separation between Ukrainians and Russians. Therefore, Russian is now perceived as hostile in many places. But it was like that before:

FROM OUR UPCOMING BOOK:

“It should be mentioned that the teachers of Dibrivka, all ten of them, were Ukrainians, and most were nationally conscious. Therefore, they saw Mitla, who spoke only in Russian, as a traitor to their nation.”

Thank you for your support, and for standing with Ukraine in its struggle for freedom and cultural preservation. Together, we can work to ensure that Ukraine’s story continues to be told and that its people are able to live and speak their language freely.

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‘Under Black Banners’ is

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