Writer, poet, physician, political activist, and publicist. One of the leading ideologues of the Ukrainian national movement in the first half of the 20th century.
Early YearsYurii Ivanovych Lypa was born on 5 May 1900 in Odesa into the family of renowned public figure and writer Ivan Lypa and his wife Mariia. Yurii spent his childhood and youth in Odesa. He received his primary education at Odesa Gymnasium No. 4 and later enrolled at the Novorossiysk University.
Public Activity and StruggleFrom an early age, Yurii Lypa was passionate about reading and writing, following in the footsteps of his father by composing prose, poetry, and articles. He also worked in journalism: he edited the Odesa newspaper Visnyk Odesy and collaborated with the publications Nova Rada (Kyiv) and Vilne Zhyttia (Odesa). In November 1918, he organized a student detachment on the French Boulevard to aid the forces of the Directorate of the Ukrainian People’s Republic in liberating Odesa. These events later found literary expression in his autobiographical novella Hryniv. Ivan Franko may be considered Yurii Lypa’s godfather in poetry.
Literary WorkYurii Lypa became one of the leaders of a young literary circle in Odesa. His first short story, The Past, appeared in Vilne Zhyttia, and his poem The Victorious March became the basis for a musical composition. In his historical studies, including Hetman Ivan Mazepa, The Kingdom of Kyiv in Bismarck’s Project and The Union for the Liberation of Ukraine, he explored Ukraine’s past, emphasizing its striving for statehood.

His works drew the attention of prominent critics — Mykhailo Pavlovskyi, Volodymyr Doroshenko, and Serhii Yefremov — who, despite noting occasional excessive tendentiousness, praised the depth of his knowledge and the individuality of his authorial style.
Emigration and Scholarly ActivityFollowing the revolutionary upheavals, Lypa was forced to leave Ukraine. He first lived in Poznań, where he studied at the Faculty of Medicine from 1922 to 1928, and later settled in Warsaw (1929–1943). Yurii Lypa married the artist Halyna Zakharyasevych, whom he met in Vienna while she was studying there. For some time, Yurii, his wife, and their two daughters lived in Poland, where he practiced medicine and became quite well known for successfully treating patients whom other doctors had been unable to help.

During this period, he actively worked as a publicist and literary scholar. His books The Battle for Ukrainian Literature, The Ukrainian Race, The Mission of Ukraine, The Black Sea Doctrine, and The Partition of Russia became foundational texts for Ukrainian geopolitical thought. His three poetry collections — Light, Severity, and I Believe — as well as the novel Cossacks in Muscovy and his dramatic poems embodied his vision of spiritual greatness, self-sacrifice, patriotism, and national dignity.

In 1940, he became one of the founders of the Ukrainian Black Sea Institute in Warsaw and planned to relocate it to Odesa. He also organized underground medical training courses during the war. His influence was so significant that the occupying authorities considered him the chief ideologist of the Ukrainian underground. Attempts were made by the German occupation authorities to establish contact with him, but Dr. Yurii Lypa rejected all proposals.
Death and MemoryOn 20 August 1944, in the Lviv region, Yurii Lypa was captured by NKVD agents and brutally murdered.

Today, his name is associated with self-sacrifice for Ukraine, and his works and research remain an important part of Ukrainian national and cultural heritage.