The free with the free, the equal with the equal! Ad fontes of Polish and Ukrainian Poetry and Culture (Historical-Literary Reconnaissance)

Abstract

The article outlines historical relations and cultural relationships that formed the inhabitants of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth over the centuries. Attention is paid to the etymology of the word "ukraine" and the history of this term, which appeared as a common name in the twelfth-century Ruthenian chronicles, and was used for the first time in the Kiev Chronicle (a text corresponding to Western European chronicles and diaries). The difficult Polish-Ukrainian history was sometimes recalled, but also the good relations between Poles and Ukrainians, which were based on tolerance and mutual respect for people's rights, built from the union in Krewo (August 14, 1385) to the union in Lublin (July 1, 1569). Putin's current aggression and Poland's support for Ukraine were mentioned. The common roots of Polish and Ukrainian poetry and culture were presented. The analysis and interpretation was carried out on the basis of selected works by Sebastian Fabian Klonowic, Szymon Szymonowic and the Zimorowic brothers - Szymon and Józef Bartłomiej. Literary motifs appearing in old Polish texts related to the tradition of Greco-Roman antiquity, old European poetry, and native tradition sanctioned by local customs and rituals were indicated. The analyzed works prove that the Renaissance and Baroque culture and literature of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, shaped under the influence of European heritage, have common roots. That fact situates this work in the circle of native and conventional values, but also universal.