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[SHEVCHENKO, KULISH, OLEXANDRA PSIOL] Khata [i.e. A House]

Item #2327

Saint Petersburg: Izdav P.A. Kulish, 1860. XXII, 2, 215 pp. 20x13 cm. In 20th century cloth binding. Slightly rubbed, some soiling of pages, pale water stains, period ink inscription in Ukrainain on t.p. Overall in good condition.

First edition. In Ukrainain. Extremely rare.This literary almanac was initiated and published by eminent Ukrainian literary and philological figure Panteleimon Kulish (1819–1897), and went down in history as a milestone in Ukrainian literary comprehension. It includes works by the main representatives of Ukrainian prose and poetry at the time, among them one of the first Ukrianian female poets – Olexandra Psiol (1817-1887) with her famous ‘Ukraine has started crying’ verse.

He was born in the Chernihiv province, attended public lectures at Kyiv University but was refused to enroll in it officially, because he couldn’t provide any no noble documents. Nevertheless, in Kyiv he was influenced by Mykhailo Maksymovych who promoted Ukrainian national culture. Thanks to him, Kulish managed to publish his early writings. He was close to Taras Shevchenko, the latter became the groomsman at Kulish’s wedding ceremony. Since 1847, Panteleimon Kulish was banned from printing his works because of his activity as a member of the illegal anti-monarchist Brotherhood of Saints Cyril and Methodius. After arrest and exile, he was returned back to St Petersburg.
Kulish opened his own printing shop in Petersburg in 1857. There he published the book ‘Hramátka’ (1857) using the new Ukrainian orthography system, named after him kulishivka. He pioneered the orthography for the Ukrainian vernacular, based on phonetics, and the modern written Ukrainian language is based on his system.
In Saint Petersburg, Kulish hadn’t received permission to found a Ukrainian magazine of literature, history, ethnography and agriculture in 1858. Instead, he published the almanac “Khata” in February 1860. The second edition was released in May of the same year.


The content of the almanac consisted of poetry, stories, fables. The almanac includes works by Taras Shevchenko, Mark Vovchko (pseudonym of Maria Vilinska, in marriages Markovich and Lobach-Zhuchenko), Yevhen Hrebinka, Hanna Barvinok (pseudonym of the spouse of Kulish, Alexandra) and others. Among the verses are some firstly published works by Shevchenko entitled together ‘Kobzarsky Gostynets’ [Kobzar’s Present], poems ‘Pervotsvit’ [Primrose] by Iakiv Shchogoliv and Petro Kuz’menko, a collection of fables by Ye. Hrebinka, the first act of the drama ‘Furrows’ by Kulish. Among the stories are ‘The Magic’ by M. Vovchko, ‘Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining’ by H. Barvinok, ‘Grandpa Mina and Grandma Minikha’ by M. Nomys, ‘Gray Mare’ by Irodchuk (pseudonym of Kulish). Three poems by Olexandra Psiol were published without authorship, under the title ‘Three Maiden’s Tears’. They were dedicated to punished members of the Brotherhood of Saints Cyril and Methodius.

In a letter to Yakiv Kukharenko, Taras Shevchenko named this almanac “a forerunner of our future magazine ‘Osnova’”. The first Ukrainian magazine ‘Osnova’ [Basis] was published the following year by Kulish’s wife’s brother Vasyl Bilozersky.

Worldcat shows copies of 2nd ed. located in Harvard and Princeton Universities.

Price: $9,500.00

Status: On Hold