Matitsa Galitsko-Russkaia

a cultural and educational society in Galicia. Founded in 1848 in L’vov; patterned after similar societies that existed among other Slavic peoples (such as the Czechs, Slovenes, and Serbs). It struggled to increase the number of native-language schools. The society published popular manuals on crafts, as well as school textbooks and artistic works, in Russian and Ukrainian. Matitsa Galitsko-Russkaia disseminated the ideas of friendship and cooperation of the Ukrainians with the Russian people. Matitsa Galitsko-Russkaia was distinguished by its variegated social composition and the heterogeneous sociopolitical views of its members. It played an important role in the development of Ukrainian culture in Galicia. The society ceased to be active in the 1930’s.