Svidnitskii, Anatolii

Born Sept. 1 (13), 1834, in the village of Man’kovtsy, in what is now Bar Raion, Vinnitsa Oblast; died July 18 (30), 1871, in Kiev. Ukrainian writer.

The son of a priest, Svidnitskii studied at a theological seminary and at the University of Kiev (he did not graduate from the university). He published his first work in 1860. As a poet he was influenced by folk songs and the poetry of T. G. Shevchen-ko. His main work was the family chronicle The Liuboratskiis (1861–62; published 1886; complete edition, 1901). The chronicle is a realistic and critical portrayal of clerical life and of education and upbringing in ecclesiastical schools. This work was the first in the genre of the social novel in Ukrainian literature. Svidnitskii also wrote short stories in Russian.