Handicrafts as a form of preserving Ukrainian folk art (based on statistical materials from Kharkiv province in the second half of the 19th – early 20th century)

This article explores the handicrafts of Kharkiv province in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries as a sociocultural phenomenon that combined the economic practices of the rural population with the preservation of Ukrainian folk culture. Under the conditions of imperial Russification, industrialization, and cultural unification, handicraft production became one of the everyday forms of resistance, embodying traditional artisanal techniques, symbolism, aesthetics, and local production practices. The author examines handicrafts not only as a form of small-scale production but also as a carrier of intangible cultural heritage. Special attention is given to how weaving, woodworking, and pottery served as means for transmitting Ukrainian identity codes in everyday life. Handicraft labor acted as a tool for social survival – particularly in contexts of land scarcity and instability – and simultaneously as a channel for preserving historical memory. Based on statistical data from provincial committees and documents of the Commission for the Study of Handicrafts, the article analyzes the scale of handicraft activity, its social structure, and the state’s role in regulating or neglecting this sector. Particular focus is placed on the presentation of Ukrainian handicraft products at the All-Russian Agricultural Exhibition in Kharkiv in 1887, which demonstrated both the demand for peasant-made goods and the distinctiveness of local traditions. The article emphasizes the role of handicrafts as a space where economy and culture were inseparable. The study takes an interdisciplinary approach, combining historical, cultural, socio-economic, and microhistorical perspectives. In this framework, handicrafts emerge as a vital element of national tradition that persisted despite imperial pressure.