Between Rebellion and Loyalty: Decisive Moments of Ukrainian History of the 17th and early 18th centuries in Modern Public Reception of Ukraine

Abstract

The purpose of the research paper is based on the processing of video materials on Ukrainian history of the period of the 17^th century of the beginning of the 18^th century, posted on the leading Ukrainian historical YouTube channels, to determine the top historical heroes and events that arouse the greatest interest from the audience.

The scientific novelty of the study consists in the first attempt at content analysis of the Ukrainian segment of YouTube of a historical orientation, defined by popular Ukrainian heroes and events of the 17^th century, which changed the historical and geopolitical development of Ukraine, by applying innovative computer methods.

Conclusions. As a result of the conducted research, it was found that among the video material we processed on Ukrainian historical YouTube channels, the top period of the 17^th century – the beginning of the 18^th century among the users of these channels is the period of the Cossack state. A period of political and social turbulence, wars of the Ukrainian Cossacks for the independence of the Ukrainian state and its geopolitical place in the contemporary arena of international relations. When looking for allies to fight for the independence of Ukraine at that time, there was a tendency to change them. Top historical heroes are Bohdan Khmelnytskyi and Ivan Mazepa, who for Ukrainians are the creators of Ukrainian statehood and fighters for its independence and foreign political influence.

One of the most popular topics is the Pereiaslav Agreement with Muscovy concluded by B. Khmelnytskyi, which became a key event in the transition of Ukraine from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to Muscovy. And it is this event that arouses the greatest interest among users of Ukrainian historical YouTube channels. In our opinion, this is explained by the desire of Ukrainians to understand the long-term mythologizing of this agreement, which was created by the Soviet authorities, as well as the conditions that led to the long-term loss of independence by Ukrainians. In this case, the top metaphor ‘The return of history’ is absolutely logical, which stems from the desire of users of Ukrainian historical YouTube channels, the number of which increased significantly in July-December 2023, to know a new perspective on Ukrainian history, and not the creation of imperial-Soviet ideology. This trend is especially observed with the beginning of the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, which significantly affected the perception of Ukrainians about their past. And this is actually the beginning of the formation of a new historical consciousness, which is the key to building a strong Ukrainian state.

Funding. The work was supported by the National Science Centre (Poland) under the research project ‘Historical narratives in Web 2.0 as a functional element of national identities in Central and Eastern Europe’, № UMO-2020/39/B/HS3/01237.