Slovenska Literatura (Mar 2019)
The unknown and obscure heritage of Franko-Slovakist
Abstract
This article aims to comprehensively analyze the unknown and obscure heritage of Franko-Slovakist, to find out the scientist’s contribution to the development of Slovak-Ukrainian cultural relations at the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. During the article creation, archival materials from Ivan Franko’s personal fund and the publication of Slovak literature from his library, which are stored in the Department of Manuscript Funds and Textology in T.G. Shevchenko Literature Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, were looked at through the prism of such methods as: comparative-historical, source-study, palaeographic, textual, historical-cultural, empirical (description) methods, analysis and synthesis. I. Franko in the study of Slovak writing at the end of the nineteenth century – the beginning of the twentieth century distinguished himself as a translator, literary critic and cultural figure. For the first time, the archival materials of the scientist represent the contribution of Ivan Franko to the development of Slovak-Ukrainian cultural relationships, study of Slovak literature, role of the scientist in its popularization onto Ukrainian territories.Among I. Franko unique archive materials are: three autographs of Kozák poem translation by S. Chalupka, a summary of V. Yagich’s lectures with records considering J. Collar and P. J. Šafárik, unpublished I. Franko’s commentary on V. Hnatiuk’s report Slovak Oprishnik Janoshik in folk poetry. Ivan Franko’s personal contacts with Slovakian activists are confirmed by letters to a writer P. Mudroň in 1895 and P. Tot from January 12, 1900. I. Franko’s fund also contains P. Hrabovsky’s translations from Slovak poets J. M. Hurban, V. Nebeski, A. Sládkovič, Ľ. Štúr, which were first published by the writer in Literary and Scientific Herald journal (1901, 1906). One of I. Franko’s heritage remarkable things is his library, which has 13 publications in Slovakian-studies with notes and marginal records of the owner.
