A peasant society in transition: Ukrainian peasants in five East Galician counties: 1880-1900

• Main Author: Hryniuk, Stella M.
• Other Authors: Gerus, Oleh (History)
• Published: 2013
• Subjects: Galicia; Ukrainians; peasantry; Podillia
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1993/20385

While late nineteenth century Galicia has been the subject of attention of many writers, past literature about East Galicia has generally given a limited and at times distorted picture of this region. It has rarely been treated separately, and generalizations about its society have been made, and perpetuated, on the basis of erroneous data or inadequate and/or unsystematic study of the sources. The picture which has emerged has been of a people living in extremes of political and socio-economic deprivation; particularly pervasive has been the view that material poverty was a general feature of that society. This dissertation challenged the accepted interpretations through an examination of some aspects of East Galicia, specifically focussing on the Ukrainian peasantry in five Southern Podillian counties. Contrary to the received version of its history there were evident signs of change and improvement. In the area of education, there were more elementary schools, more teachers, and the teaching of a more varied and modern curriculum; greater activities of the Ukrainian enlightenment societies; a growing popular didactic press and a large increase in the number of reading clubs. All of these contributed to substantial improvements in literacy and an expanded knowledge base for that society. The effect was most evident in the agricultural sector, the main source of income for the population. Average sizes of landholdings were not in any case as small as has been supposed. Significant improvements in yields of cereal grains and other field crops were achieved. Also there was a movement towards production of other commercial crops. Particularly significant was the increased attention devoted to animal husbandry by the smallholding peasants. Expansion of agricultural education contributed to the general improvement in agricultural productivity; particularly notable is the fact that larger numbers and better quality animals were being raised by the peasantry of the region. Better marketing opportunities were made available to the population of the region due to advances in communications, particularly railways. A wider network of maintained roads provided greater and easier access to both the major road and rail connections to other regions of Galicia and Europe. Dissemination of more health information and better nutrition contributed to increased quality and length of life. Mortality rates dropped, and major diseases, specifically cholera and smallpox, were more effectively contained. Along with adaptations to material changes in their environment, there came a perceptible change in attitudes on the part of the people of Southern Podillia. Even while traditional attachment to the Greek Catholic church and to communal self-reliance remained, there was a growing acceptance of innovative activities such as the establishment of consumer and producer cooperatives, fire insurance and communal credit associations. Especially proninent was the appearance of political awareness, particularly in respect of local political affairs. With increased knowledge and awareness came greater self-confidence and risk-taking, and an increased sense of control on the part of the peasantry over their own lives - in short, attributes of a modernizing population. Taken together, these developments show that Southern Podillian society was undergoing a transition from a static, subsistence-based society motivated by traditional behavior patterns, to a more mobile, forward-looking society. Many problems remained, but the legacy of the past historical interpretations of this society can no longer be sustained.