EN
This year January 26 was the Vilen Chornovolenko's eightieth birthday. He is one of the founders of Ukrainian sociology as a field of academic science. His career in humanities and social sciences amounts to a half a century of fruitful research, magistral and public activity. Socio-political atmosphere of the 1960's assigned him a role of mastermind in the new for Ukraine branch of social knowledge. Institutional formation of the Ukrainian sociology occurred to a great extent thanks to his efforts. Vilen Chornovolenko is a patriarch of the Kievan academic sociological community, who reared the pleiad of eminent scientists and took part in laying the foundation of traditions which are alive until now. Being quick on the uptake of innovations in development of sociology, he broke new ground of some perspective research trends on the problems of profession prestige, reproduction of brainpower, social and status stratification under conditions of transition to market economy and so on. In the set historical circumstances, Vilen Chornovolenko never lost an ability of critical mind, the innovative spirit, and democratic style of scientific dialogue with his colleagues and progeny.