Hryhorii Galagan

Hryhoriy Pavlovych Galagan (; 15 August 1819 – 25 September 1888) was a landowner, philanthropist, ethnographer and communal leader of Ukrainophile orientation, who played a major role in Ukrainian cultural and social life under Russian imperial rule in the 19th century. In 1871 he established the Pavlo Galagan College in Kyiv, which now houses the National Museum of Literature of Ukraine.

Biography Hryhoriy Galagan was born in Sokyryntsi, Pryluky povit, Chernihiv Governorate (now part of Sribne settlement hromada, Chernihiv Oblast); according to other information, he was born in Kyiv. The progenitor of Galagan family was a member of Cossack starshyna, who sided with the Tsardom of Russia during the Great Northern War, refusing to join hetman Ivan Mazepa in his alliance with the Swedes. By the 19th century, the family had become major landowners in the Poltava and Chernihiv governorates of Left-bank Ukraine.

In 1840 Hryhoriy graduated from the law faculty of Saint Petersburg University. He eventually found employment at the Chernihiv Chamber of State Properties, and in 1858 became a member of the local committee concerned with the amelioration of serfs' lives. Galagan took part in creation of a draft project on the abolition of serfdom, and following its approval by authorities worked on its implementation. A proponent of democracy, starting from 1865 he became an activist of Poltava zemstvo, where he became known as a patron of education. Shevchenko and Kulish were frequent guests at Galagan's manor in Sokyryntsi, along with composer Mykola Lysenko and artist .

In memory of his son Pavlo, the last male descendant of Galagan family, who died at the age of 16, Hryhoriy established the Pavlo Galagan College in Kyiv. Despite the ban on Ukrainian education active during that time, the college provided extracurricular classes and exercises in Ukrainian language.

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