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UKRAINIAN LANGUAGE LECTURESHIPS IN GERMANY
The Ukrainian Free University in Munich and the University of Greifswald are still considered to be the main centres for teaching the Ukrainian language in Germany within the framework of Ukrainian studies. However, in recent decades, the subject «Ukrainian language» has also been repeatedly included in the curricula of many German universities that conduct broader Slavic studies. These are institutes of Slavic studies in such cities as Bochum, Bamberg, Göttingen, Munich, Berlin, Oldenburg, Leipzig, Wittenberg, Munster, and others.
Interest in learning the Ukrainian language has grown especially since the Maidan events of 2014. For example, in 2015, the Humboldt University of Berlin launched a course in Ukrainian as a Foreign Language for Slavic studies students, organised an exchange of students under the Erasmus programme, held seminars for teachers of Ukrainian as a foreign language in Germany, etc. All of this has undoubtedly contributed to the dissemination of knowledge not only about the Ukrainian language, its grammar and vocabulary, but also about the history, culture and society of modern Ukraine. Students who mastered the Ukrainian language, even if only at a basic level, thus received the key to authentic sources of information about our country.
An excellent example of a successful outcome in learning Ukrainian is the publication of Valeriyan Pidmohylny's novel The City in German, whose translators include Lukas Joura. Lukas was one of the first students of the aforementioned Ukrainian course at Humboldt University, and later studied Ukrainian studies at the universities of Lviv and Kyiv.
Another important initiative is the launch of Ukrainian language courses in the so-called «People's Universities» (Volkshochschulen), which offer a wide range of courses for further personal development.
In October, the winter semester 2022/2023 began at German universities and it will certainly be a very significant one for the subject of Ukrainian as a foreign language. For example, the Language Centre of the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt am Main offers three courses for different levels of language proficiency - both for beginners and those who have studied Ukrainian before and have already passed the exam in this subject. One of the courses will be called «Ukrainian Studies: History, Culture, Society», which is designed as a kind of conversation club for those who speak Ukrainian and would like to improve their language skills.
In this context, it is worth mentioning another initiative of the European University of Viadrina - a two-week course in Ukrainian language for anyone who wants to discover Ukraine from the linguistic point of view. The course is open to both Viadrina employees and residents of the so-called Two Cities - Frankfurt am Oder in Germany and Slubice in Poland.
By the way: Since 2017, the European University Viadrina in Frankfurt am Oder has positioned itself as the only higher education institution in Brandenburg where the Ukrainian language is officially taught: 2017 - 2019 at the Language Centre, 2019 - 2022 at the Faculty of Cultural Studies and Social Sciences, and from the beginning of the winter semester 2022 again at the Viadrina Language Centre.
It should also be added that in 2018, the Chair of Ukrainian History (Entangled History of Ukraine), headed by Professor Andriy Portnov.
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