The Archive of Yulian Opilskyi in the Holdings of the Manuscript Depart­ment of Vasyl Stefanyk National Scientific Library of Ukraine in Lviv

The paper explores the structure and content of the personal archive of Yurii Lvovych Rudnytskyi (1884–1937), a renowned Ukrainian writer and educator, also known by his pseudonym Yulian Opilskyi. Compiled by his daughter, Anna Rudnytska, this archive was later gifted to the Manuscript Department of Vasyl Stefanyk National Scientific Library of Ukraine in Lviv by promi­nent Ukrainian scholar and economist Stepan Antonovych Davymuka. The archive includes two thematic inventories. The first inventory, “Biographical and family documents” (1853–2005), co­vers the lives of the entire Rudnytski family. The second inventory, “Creative documents and work materials” (1902–1935), focuses on the writer’s professional work. The first inventory contains 114 folios, while the second has 44 folios. Most documents are written in Ukrainian, Polish, and German. The study thoroughly and systematically examines Yu. Rudnytskyi’s biogra­phical, familial, and creative documents, along with work-related materials. It highlights the importance of these sources for a complete reconstruction of his life and a study of the Rudnytski family’s history. The analysis demonst­rates the value of this archival collection and its potential to offer scholars significant research opportunities and insights. This archive contains documents that illuminate the Austrian, Polish, and soviet periods of the family’s history. Consequently, the paper lays a foundation for a comprehensive proso­pographic study of the Rudnytski family. The availability of these archival documents offers a vital research opportu­nity for scholars across various disciplines – historians, literary scholars, experts in literary history, and others – and will serve as an essential resource for investigating the biography and work of Yu. Opilskyi and the history of his family. Keywords: Yulian Opilskyi, archive, Manuscript Department, Rudnytski fa­mily, prosopography.