K portrétu Mikuláša Mušinku

Mikuláš Mušinka (Mykola Mušinka, 1936) is a prominent figure in research on Slovak-Ukrainian cultural relations in the 20th century. As an ethnologist by professionhe was not only interested in folklore studies but also in linguistics, history of literatureand arts, bibliography. The paper presents the troubled life of Mikuláš Mušinka, hisenthusiasm for science and research, which he carried out despite the bans and politicalrestrictions. The paper records his stay in Kiev and his contacts with the representativesof the civic literary movement of so-called sexagenarians (I. Svitlyčnýj, I. Hončar, I.Dzjuba, L. Taňuk, V. Čornovol, B. Antonenko-Davydovyč, H. Kočur). It was due to thecontacts with them why he was accused by the KGB of undermining the authority ofthe former Soviet Union. An important point is Mušinka´s activities at the Researchfacility of Ukrainian studies at P. J. Šafárik University in Prešov as well as his efforts tocoordinate international Ukrainian studies research featuring fellow researchers fromWestern Europe, the USA, Canada and Ukraine. M. Mušinka has made a significantcontribution to research on and promotion of the cultural heritage of the Ukrainiansliving in the Prešov region and Zakarpattia.