Ukrainian
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Ukrainian is spoken by 45 million people in Ukraine and throughout the world, in Russian, Belarus, Canada, USA, Poland, Kazakhstan, Moldova, and other countries. It is the third most commonly spoken Slavic language in the world, and it is related to such languages as Russian, Belarusian, Polish, and Croatian. Ukraine, once part of the Soviet Union, has been independent since 1991 and is currently officially pro-Western. It has a number of agreements with the EU, and, hopefully, will become an EU member in the foreseeable future.
Interest in Ukraine and its rich cultural legacy is rapidly growing. The capital city of Kyiv was the seat of medieval Kyiv Rus, a precursor to the Ukraine of today. Notable Ukrainians of the modern era include the artists Oleksandr Arkhypenko and Kazimir Malevich, the writer Mykola Gogol, the filmmaker Oleksandr Dovzhenko, the composer Mykola Leontovych (author of the world-renowned “Carol of the Bells”), the athletes Vitaly and Volodymyr Klitschko, the spacecraft engineer Serhyi Koroliov, and many others. Ukrainian revolutions – the 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2013–2014 Euromaidan – showed the world that Ukrainians strive for democratic values. Studying Ukraine’s legacy and history offers new insights into the culture and politics of Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and into the complex relations of Ukraine with Russia, a central theme of today’s news of the region.
UT Austin’s Department of Slavic and Eurasian Studies offers Beginning Ukrainian I and II (SEL 506 and SEL 507), as well as beginning Ukrainian for speakers of other Slavic languages (SEL 330), and conference courses in Intermediate and Advanced Ukrainian. Content courses on Ukraine include Dissent in the Ukrainian Literature of the 20th Century, Eastern European Women Writers (with several Ukrainian women writers in the curriculum), and a graduate seminar Post-Communist Protest in Ukraine and Eastern Europe.
A student at UT can minor in Ukrainian language or major in Russian, East European or Eurasian Studies.
The Center for Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies (CREEES) at UT offers competitive scholarships for undergraduates and graduates students from any department of college to fund study of Ukrainian language here at UT or in Ukraine.
Students with prior knowledge of Ukrainian who are looking to continue studying Ukrainian or trying to receive credit may contact the instructor, Dr. Oksana Lutsyshyna, or UT Testing Services for information on placement or credit.