The author considers the process of nucleation and formation of the ideas of unity and independence of Ukraine among Galician youth in the late 19th - early 20th centuries. Emphasis is placed on the circumstances and socio-cultural and political background that influenced the formation of these ideas in Galician society. The author has identified the factors that stimulated the national self-identification of Ukrainian youth - high school and university students. Spreading and popularization of the works of Ukrainian poets and writers from the Dnieper region, especially Taras Shevchenko, as a symbol of Ukrainian lands unity in the early 20th century, cultural and educational activities of the secret students' clubs, students' interest in the political life of the region, participation in it despite government ban fostered youth awareness of being a single national organism. As a result, at the beginning of the 20th century, Ukrainian identity became appropriate for a growing number of students. This is evidenced by the gradual displacement from use among youth of ethnonyms "Rusyn," "Ruthenian" and their replacement by the name "Ukrainian". The appearance of the radical movement, the nationalization of its youth wing, and the clear formulation of the purpose – the political independence of the Ukrainian nation, had a significant influence on the formation of independence and unity ideas. The study demonstrated that the publication of Yulian Bachynsky's work "Ukraina Irredenta," its considerable popularity among students, the struggle for the creation of Ukrainian university in Lviv contributed to the establishment of ideas of independence and unity among the youth as the highest goal of the national and political aspirations of Ukrainians.
Keywords: Unity, independence, youth, self-identification, Rusyn, Ukrainian, Galicia.
THE IDEAS OF UNITY AND INDEPENDENCE AMONG THE UKRAINIAN YOUTH OF GALICIA IN THE LATE 19th – EARLY 20th CENTURY