The Ems Ukase (1876), which prohibited publications in Ukrainian, brought about the first editions outside Russia-ruled Ukraine- Oleksander Rusov's (Prague, 1876) and the Shevchenko Scientific Society's (Lviv, 1893). The most notable are the Osnova (1861–2) and D. Subsequently many editions of Kobzar were published, each of which included previously unpublished poems.

Shevchenko's exile, when he was forbidden to write, and the strict censorship of his poetry made it impossible for a complete edition of his works to appear until after his death. It has acquired a meaning symbolic of the Ukrainian literary and national rebirth because of the national spirit of Shevchenko's poetry and of the fact that two other editions of his works incorporating the title ‘Kobzar’ but including newer works appeared during his lifetime: Chyhyrynskii Kobzar i Haidamaky (The Chyhyryn Kobzar and Haidamaky, Saint Petersburg, 1844) and Kobzar Tarasa Shevchenka (The Kobzar of Taras Shevchenko, Saint Petersburg, 1860 an offset facsimile appeared in 1981). The title has, with time, been applied to Shevchenko's poetic works in general. Martos in Saint Petersburg in 1840 (the most recent offset facsimile in 1976). Originally the title of the first collection of poems by Taras Shevchenko, consisting of eight poems, mainly Romantic ballads, published by P. Kobzar(literally the ‘kobza player’ or ‘minstrel’).

Kobzar by Taras Shevchenko