Ostap Woloshchak: touches to the portrait

Abstract

In this work, a study of some constituent elements of the biography of the Ukrainian naturalist Ostap Voloshchak was carried out. His most important character traits are described and their role in overcoming life obstacles and achieving professional success is revealed. It has been established that Ostap Voloshchak belongs to the cohort of those people who achieved a notable position in science and society solely due to their own iron will and strength of spirit. It was emphasized that a distinctive feature of his character was reliance on his own strength and capabilities. Such a characteristic feature of this person as a desire for knowledge and work on personal development was also noted. It was found out that the key to Ostap Voloshchak’s academic success and international recognition was persistent systematic long-term activity in the field of natural science.

The article offers the author’s interpretation of facts from the life and scientific achievements of Ostap Voloshchak, and evaluates his contribution to Ukrainian and world science. It was found out that during the first period of his life – the Viennese period (1863-1884) – he obtained a second higher education, embarked on the path of scientific research, made his first trips to the mountains of several European countries and defended his thesis for the scientific degree of Doctor of Philosophy. It is emphasized that the second – Lviv (1884-1908) period – is the most important and fruitful in the scientific career of Ostap Voloshchak, in establishing him as an authoritative researcher of the world scale. It was then that he carried out systematic and long-term floristic studies of the vast territories of the Carpathians, proposed a new concept of botanical and geographical demarcation of the Eastern and Western Carpathians, published more than two dozen scientific works on the subject of research, worked tirelessly for 24 years at the higher technical institution of Lviv, known today as the National University «Lviv Polytechnic». It has been established that in the third period, again called the Viennese period (1909-1918), Ostap Voloshchak did not stop his fruitful scientific and research activities, and continued to publish the results of his work, at the same time he divided his very valuable herbarium between various scientific institutions and was honored to become valid a member of the Scientific Society named after T. Shevchenko. The opinion was expressed that the scientific heritage of this prominent naturalist should be recognized not only at the level of national science. This Ukrainian fully deserves to be in the cohort of world scientists.

The work also analyzed the facts of Ostap Voloshchak’s pro-Ukrainian activities, and clarified the level of his national consciousness. It was noted that both in his youth and in adulthood he was devoted to his people and showed a high national consciousness, as evidenced by his direct participation in the creation of the Viennese «Sich» – a center for nurturing Ukrainian identity, involvement in the founding of the Scientific Society named after T. Shevchenko – scientific national institution, patronage of the Ukrainian student society «Osnova» and other facts.