Figure of Tomash Masaryk in perception of Yakiv Ohorodnyk

Purpose of the work is to involve the little-known essay of public and political figure Yakiv Ohorodnyk “T. Masaryk and Ukraine” as source for studying the creative heritage of Ukrainian emigration in the Czechoslovak Republic and Ukrainian-Czech relations in the scientific circulation. The research methodology is based on the research principles of historicism, scientificity, objectivity, general scientific methods (historical and logical) and special historical methods (narrative and problem-chronological). The scientific novelty lies in the fact that for the first time the little-known essay by Yakiv Ohorodnyk “T. Masaryk and Ukraine”, which is stored in the personal file of the author in the Central State Archives of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine in Kyiv, is introduced into scientific circulation. The information potential of the document as one of the examples of the creative heritage of Ukrainian scientists in Czechoslovakia was analyzed. The main aspects of Yakiv Ohorodnyk's perception of the issue of Tomash Masaryk's attitude to Ukraine, coverage of the role of the first president of the Czechoslovak Republic in Ukrainian-Czech relations in 1901–1919 are highlighted. It is noted that they include the support of Ukrainian students in Prague in 1901, the first Ukrainian translation of his work “Ideals of Humanity”, a parliamentary speech by Tomash Masaryk in 1908 criticizing the abuses of the Polish administration in the elections in Galicia against Ukrainians, attempts to deny the Ukrainian national identity. Yakiv Ohorodnyk's essay also covers the stay of the Czech politician in Ukraine in 1917–1918 and his role in the annexation of Zakarpattia to the Czechoslovak Republic in 1918–1919. Conclusions. In general, the essay of Yakiv Ohorodnyk “T. Masaryk and Ukraine” is one of the evidences of the Ukrainian emigration's interest in the figure of the first president of the Czechoslovak Republic. The preparation of this essay was caused not only by a sense of gratitude for the support of refugees, but also by the desire to objectively show the role of this outstanding figure in history, in particular, in the development of Ukrainian-Czech relations.