Every year in early spring, on March 9 and 10, Ukraine and the world celebrate Shevchenko’s Days, which fall on the anniversaries of the birth and death of the famous Ukrainian poet, prose writer, painter Taras Shevchenko.

 

He has become a symbol of freedom, justice and endurance for every citizen of Ukraine, a symbol of the Ukrainian national movement and revival.

 

Taras Shevchenko was born on March 9, 1814 in the village of Moryntsi, Cherkasy oblast, in a family of serfs. At the age of 24, the poet’s friends bought his freedom from serfdom. Despite a difficult life in captivity, Taras Shevchenko loved Ukraine, which at the time was part of the Russian Empire, and wanted to see it free. Over the years, his work and image have inspired Ukrainian patriots to fight for the future of Ukraine.

 

The most famous works of Shevchenko are a collection of poems “Kobzar”, poems “Haidamaky”, “The Caucasus”, “Testament”, “I was thirteen”, “Cherry orchard near the house” and others.

 

Taras Shevchenko died on March 10, 1861. The poet was buried, as he himself wished, on Chernecha Hill above the Dnipro river near Kaniv in Ukraine.

 

Since 1918, the commemoration of the great Kobzar on March 9 has become annual and national in our country.

 

Also, by UNESCO’s decision, Taras Shevchenko’s anniversaries have been celebrated in all countries around the world. Shevchenko’s works have been translated into more than a hundred languages. His world fame is evidenced by the monuments erected in different cities around world: Bucharest, Washington, New York, Paris and others. Today in Ukraine 164 settlements are named after Taras Shevchenko.

 

To mark the anniversary, flower-laying and other ceremonies will be held throughout Ukraine and around the world at the Shevchenko monuments.