Skip to content
Call Us Today! 212-533-4646 | MON-FRI 12PM - 4PM (EST)
DONATE
SUBSCRIBE
Search for:
About Us
Publications
FAQ
Annual Report 2023
Annual Report 2022
Annual Report 2021
Initiatives
Advocate
Educate
Cultivate
Care
News
Newsletters
Sign Up For Our Newsletter
Join UNWLA
Become a Member
Volunteer With Us
Donate to UNWLA
Members Portal
Calendar
Shop to Support Ukraine
Search for:
1
2-3
4-5
6-7
8-9
10-11
12-13
14-15
16-17
18-19
20-21
22-23
24-25
26-27
28-29
30-31
32-33
34-35
36-37
38-39
40
For some reason, Ukrainians are very fond of the term "aphorism," which like its synonyms, refers to a short, concise sentence containing some important truth or precept, a statement universally accepted as true. An aphorist, a person who creates an aphorism, can be compared to a goldsmith forging a piece of gold jewelry. The aphorist coins the aphorism just as the goldsmith creates the gold jewelry. The gold of the aphorist is language; the quality of the workmanship lies in the way he puts a thought into a combination of ordinary words. Ukrainian aphorisms, therefore, are the gold coins of Ukrainian tradition and Ukrainian national identity. Sometimes the aphorism is so good that people use it all the time. People may forget the name of the aphorist, but never forget a good aphorism, which then falls into the public domain, becoming a "proverb" or a "maxim." Ukrainian Aphorisms, from the Xth Century to the XXth Century, features 100 aphorists most representative of ten centuries of Ukrainian thought, wit, and wisdom. Of the 100 named, 96 men and 4 women, most are poets, writers, educators, critics, or journalists. There is one cinematographer, Olexander Dovzhenko, and a host of contributors who became writers while working as doctors, engineers, military men and civil servants. Regardless of their occupation, they were all people of vision, actively involved in the life and the future of the Ukrainian community. Some have even been elected by the people to serve in official governmental posts. Among these are poet Ivan Drach (b. 1936), Pavlo Movchan (b. 1939), and Boris Olijnyk (b. 1935). Of the four women listed among the aphorists, two are still living: Lina Kostenko (b. 1930) [180-183] and Oksana Zabuzhko (b. 1960) [299-301]. Two are deceased: Lesya Ukrainka (1871-1913) and Olena Teliha (1906-1942). Statistically speaking, the average number of pages allowed for the majority of authors is 2 pages, and 58 of the 100 aphorists fall into this category. As to the others, the following graph illustrates the dist ribution: 12 people 1 page 13 people 3 pages 8 people 4 pages 3 persons 5 pages 2 persons 6 pages 4 people 8- 21pages The four aphorists allotted eight pages or more are Leonid Suhorukhov (8 pages), Olexander Perliuk (13 pages), Volodymyr Cherniak (14 pages), and Andrij Koval' (21 pages). Some of the aphorists included in the volume are familiar and expected (Taras Shevchenko, Ivan Franko, Hryhoriy Skovoroda). Others are sure to become famous. One of these is a simple Ukrainian Joe. The description that follows his name and dates (Olexander Sukhomlyn, 1955-1997), is "robitnyk" - a simple, ordinary laborer. We are told nothing more and there is no way we can discover just who this Olexander Sukhomlyn was. Who were his parents? Did he have brothers and sisters? Where did he live? At what kind of job did he work? Was he married? Did he have children? Did he write his aphorisms or did someone collect them? Where were they found? So many questions for which we do not at present have any answers. But in the reader’s mind, Olexander Sukhomlyn, who passed away at the age of 42, has already reached fame. For while all we have of him is a collection of 52 aphorisms, it is a truly wonderful gathering of foods for thought. His aphorisms ennoble him and make him heroic. We imagine him expressing his wisdom, probably as he worked on an assembly line, or harvesting wheat in the fields, or maybe during his lunch breaks, or at a gathering of friends. His last name, Sukho-mlyn, suggests dryness and a mill ...a windmill perhaps or water mill that has nothing to grind. And yet, he was busily grinding words into sentences to produce food for thought just like a mill grinds grains of wheat into flour that produce food for the body. The following aphorisms are a selection from the three pages attributed to him: 1. We find royalists who have no idea of what a king is. 2. Happiness is not as sweet as its expectation. 3. Since they were the ones burning the bridges they did not think of calling the firefighters. 4. In the land of idiots, even professionals can befound. 5. Some learn from their mistakes and other make money on them. 6. The more conscience, the fewer possibilities. 7. Sometimes it is better to be the hero of a novel than its author! 8. One must fight for happiness, misery comes by itself 9. The best publicity is the word "forbidden!" 10. There is no taller wall in the world than the wall of Indifference. 11. They say eyes are the mirror of the soul ...A greater mirror is the tongue! 12. Some die because of love, and others become philo sophers. 13. A small lie is a lie. A big lie — that ’ spolitics. 14. Men love women because o f their beauty. Women love men because of their potential. 15. Nothing is more dangerous to one's teeth than a big mouth. 16. They declared him crazy: everywhere and to every one he was only telling the truth. Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
Page load link
Go to Top
1 
2-3 
4-5 
6-7 
8-9 
10-11 
12-13 
14-15 
16-17 
18-19 
20-21 
22-23 
24-25 
26-27 
28-29 
30-31 
32-33 
34-35 
36-37 
38-39 
40 
