aaus-list @ ukrainianstudies.org -- [aaus-list] [Fwd: Question of Ukrainian National Identity]

[Diana Howansky <dhh2@columbia.edu>]

Dear Dr. Samu,

I am forwarding your email to the listserve of the American Association 
for Ukrainian Studies, in the hope that one of the professors/members is 
knowledgeable about Maria Bashkirtseva and can answer your questions 
about her identity more accurately.

Sincerely,
Diana

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Question of Ukrainian National Identity
Date: Tue, 15 May 2007 14:18:31 -0400
From: Margaret Anne Samu <margaret.samu@nyu.edu>
To: dhh2@columbia.edu

Dear Ms. Howansky,

Since I have been receiving your postings on Ukranian events from 
Columbia (probably the Harriman Institute list), I am wondering if you 
or one of your colleagues would be able to help me with some basic 
questions about Ukrainian national identity in the second half of the 
19th century.  Please feel free to forward this message to anyone who 
might be able to advise me

I have been asked to review a new book about Maria Bashkirtseva, the 
artist and diarist (1858-1884).  (Since she spent most of her life in 
France and is buried in Paris, she is usually called Marie 
Bashkirtseff.)  As a specialist in Russian art history, I am finding 
myself puzzled about her nationality.  Most accounts of her life call 
her Ukrainian at the outset, then proceed to refer to her as Russian.  A 
2003 Russian biography of Bashkirtseva claims her as Russian.  According 
to all I have read, even she and her family described themselves as 
Russian, though they referred to Ukraine as home.

Was it common for Ukrainians to call themselves Russian in the 19th 
century?  Or was her family perhaps of Russian origin, living in Ukraine 
(can one tell by  their surname?)?  None of the sources address this 
question, including the book I'm trying to review. My understanding is 
that Ukrainians have (and had) a strong, distinct national identity 
apart from Russians, so the slippage from Ukrainian to Russian in all 
the sources on Bashkirtseva is a bit confusing to me.

Many thanks for your advice.

Sincerely,
Margaret Samu

___________________________
Margaret Samu
Ph.D. Candidate in Art History
Institute of Fine Arts, NYU
1 East 78th Street
New York, NY  10021


-- 
Diana Howansky
Staff Associate
Ukrainian Studies Program
Columbia University
Room 1208, MC3345
420 W. 118th Street
New York, NY  10027
(212) 854-4697
ukrainianstudies@columbia.edu
http://www.harrimaninstitute.org/programs/ukrainian_studies_program.html