New Research on Early Modern Ukraine: Foreword (original) (raw)

East/West: Journal of Ukrainian Studies

Conferences and panels have become an "ordinary way of life" for researchers, and it may appear idle to remember one of the hundreds of similar academic gatherings in Slavic and Ukrainian studies. Nonetheless, the conference held on 14-15 January 2019 in Naples is worth recalling. Today, as we continue to fight the COVID-19 virus, we may remember those days as a happy period when people could freely travel, talk, socialize, and discuss ideas, findings, and plans in the field each one of us knows and loves. The stay in Naples was beautiful, enhanced by some sightseeing and gastronomical pleasures. Thanks to Maria Grazia Bartolini and other members of the Italian Association for Ukrainian Studies (AISU)-Alessandro Achilli, Simone Attilio Bellezza, and Marco Puleri-we had a remarkable pre-dinner drink in a charming coffee shop in the very heart of Naples's intricate (and intriguing) downtown. It seems like ages ago, but those days are engraved in my memory as a recent joyful event. I wish to express here my gratitude to the mentioned Italian scholars of the younger generation, who organized the event, which was sponsored by the University of Naples Federico II, the Italian Association for Ukrainian Studies, and the Italian Association of Slavists (AIS). I am also grateful to the participants who came from various countries and represented, on the one side, the crème de la crème of Ukrainian studies, and on the other, some of the most promising scholars of the future-the generation in their 30s and 40s-who will continue the job of us "elders." Fortunately, they change, revise, and introduce new methods, ideas, and points of view. I am personally very proud of my former students-not only the best ones whom some colleagues know well, but also the dozens of other students who took just one course on Ukrainian literature and language out of simple curiosity, stimulated by the events of the 2000s and 2010s, by the Orange Revolution of 2004-05 and the Euromaidan/Revolution of Dignity of 2013-14. With very few exceptions, they were all Italians, a point which, in my view, is extremely important for a healthy development of sound research and teaching of Ukrainian literature, language, and culture in Italy and beyond. The conference in Naples was remarkable, mainly for the high quality of the presentations. Allow me to name such outstanding specialists as George