The Department of Romance Philology was established in 2016 by merging the Department of Spanish and Italian Philology and the Department of French Philology, whose university history began in 1971 and 1994, respectively. However, the Romance languages themselves have been taught at the Kyiv National University since the founding of the St. Volodymyr University (1834).
The head of the Department is PhD in Philology, Associate Professor Iryna Sytdykova.
Today the Department trains specialists in Spanish, Italian and French languages and has the most powerful personnel potential of Romance language scholars in Ukraine: 6 Professors, 18 Associate Professors, 6 DSc, 2 Doctors from the French University of Paul Valéry (Montpellier – III), 27 PhDs.
At different periods, outstanding philologists, translators, and linguists worked at the Department: O. Andriievska, O. Biletsky, B. Burbelo, and others (French section); Ye. Lytvynenko, A. Ivanytska (Kretova), I. Zvada, T. Yukova, A. Vicente-Rivas and others (Spanish-Italian section).
The scientific and research activities of the Department cover the following areas of Romance language studies: discourse studies; graphemics and orthographics; linguopragmatics; linguosemiotics; linguopoetics; linguoculturology; sociolinguistics; translation.
One of the Department’s key achievements is the collection of scientific papers “Problems of Semantics, Pragmatics and Cognitive Linguistics” (Editor-in-Chief: Prof. N. Korbozerova, Category B), which has been published continuously since 2001.
Lecturers of the Department have published over 100 textbooks approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, as well as numerous teaching manuals, practical assignments, and methodological guidelines for academic disciplines. Within the framework of the Department’s research project, more than 500 academic articles have been published in specialised collections and journals both in Ukraine and internationally.
The Department maintains active cooperation with the embassies of Argentina, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Canada, Mexico, and France.
Lecturers from Spain, Italy and France regularly teach at the Department. Within the framework of agreements between Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and the University of Granada (Spain), the University of Florence (Italy), and Paul Valéry University – Montpellier III (France), both teaching staff and students of the Department undertake internships at these institutions. A joint degree (double diploma) Master’s program was launched at the Department of Romance Philology in cooperation with Paul Valéry University – Montpellier III (France), as part of an inter-university agreement.
Since 1997, the Department has traditionally celebrated the International Day of La Francophonie with formal events, including international colloquia and round tables attended by ambassadors and representatives of the diplomatic corps of Francophone countries. In 2006, members of the Department initiated Ukraine’s accession to the International Organisation of La Francophonie.
The Department of Romance Philology, in partnership with the Embassy of Canada in Ukraine, has been organising an International Literary Translation Competition since 2006, aimed at secondary school pupils and university students.
The Department maintains close collaboration with the Embassies of Spain and France in Ukraine, particularly within the framework of international certification programs.
Faculty members are actively engaged in public and professional activities: in 1990, the Ukrainian Association of Teachers of French (UATF) was founded at the Department, followed in 2002 by the Francophone Association of Ukraine. Lecturers specializing in Spanish are members of the All-Ukrainian Public Organization “Association of Hispanists of Ukraine.”
With the support of its partners, the Department regularly organizes meetings and conferences for students and academic staff of the Educational and Scientific Institute of Philology and the University, featuring distinguished linguists, writers, cultural figures, and public intellectuals.
Over the years, the Department of Romance Philology and its predecessors have trained numerous specialists and master’s degree holders in Spanish, Italian, and French Philology. Among them are renowned philologists, scholars, educators, translators, diplomats, and professionals in the fields of science, culture, and various state institutions, who have been successfully working both in Ukraine and abroad.
People that worked at the Department at various times:
- Uhryn Tetiana
- Tsybko Alla
- Yuliia Andriichenko
- Kateryna Pityk