Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies launches Hrushevsky volume (10/05/97)

Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies launches Hrushevsky volume

EDMONTON - The Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Alberta has launched the first volume, in translation, of Mykhailo Hrushevsky's "The History of Ukraine-Rus'." The publication of the life work of Ukraine's greatest historian is an ambitious project for the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (CIUS), which has committed itself to translating and publishing Hrushevsky's entire work in 10 volumes at an estimated cost of $6 million. It is the largest project ever undertaken by CIUS Press, which is located at the University of Toronto and is headed by Dr. Maxim Tarnawsky.

A significant event for Ukrainians in their homeland as well as abroad, the translation of "The History of Ukraine-Rus'," the most significant history of Ukraine written to date, serves not only as a basis for developing Ukrainian historical studies, but also for understanding the new independent nation.

"Hrushevsky realized when he undertook the writing of Ukrainian history that this was not only a scholarly undertaking, but an affirmation of Ukraine as a nation," explained Dr. Frank Sysyn, editor-in-chief, head of the Hrushevsky Translation Project and director of the Peter Jacyk Center. "This explains why the Soviets tried so hard to suppress his work and why Ukrainian democrats have tried so hard to get it republished in the late 1980s," he added.

Hrushevsky's history was banned in Ukraine by the Soviets in the 1930s and the author exiled to Russia where he died under mysterious circumstances in 1934. It was only after Ukraine regained its independence that "The History of Ukraine-Rus'" reappeared. In 1991, 100,000 copies of the first volume were reprinted and almost immediately soldout, a phenomenal response when one considers that sales of 5,000 copies puts a book on the bestseller list in Canada.

Vigorously researched, "The History of Ukraine-Rus'" extensively documents the history of Ukraine and its people from ancient times to the mid-17th century. With its sweeping scope and comprehensive bibliography, the history is indispensable to the study of Eastern European, Russian, Balkan and Middle Eastern history. It is invaluable to anyone interested in the history of the Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, Jewish, Scandinavian, Greek and other peoples, the rise and fall of Kyivan-Rus', the Byzantine period, the meeting of Christianity with Islam, and the perennial problems of conquest, war and revolution, and nation-building. Later volumes of "The History of Ukraine-Rus'" have become, in many instances, the only source of historic documents and writings that were lost during widespread destruction of Ukrainian libraries and archives by wars and repressive regimes.

"This is an outstanding and major work, which firmly established the University of Alberta as the indisputable international leader in Ukrainian studies," said University of Alberta President Dr. Roderick Fraser, and "it satisfies a hunger felt by the Ukrainian people and scholars worldwide for knowledge of the nation's history and its impact on people from Ancient Greece to Scandinavia."

The first volume covers the history of Ukraine from the earliest Slavic settlements to the rise of the Rus' state and the acceptance of Christianity. Preparing the book for publication was a complex, demanding task involving a team of eight international scholars who had to check, among other things, 1,500 bibliographic sources in 30 different languages, and to update Hrushevsky's scholarship and views. Translator Marta Skorupsky, a former Edmontonian now residing in New York, had to research the period thoroughly and even familiarize herself with classical Greek in order to translate Hrushevsky accurately and in fluent, contemporary English. Five translators and a research team from Canada, the U.S., Great Britain, Ukraine and Poland are working on the other nine volumes, and the next one is scheduled to go to press in April 1998.

The Hrushevsky Translation Project represents a major commitment of staff and resources for the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, specifically for the Peter Jacyk Center for Ukrainian Historical Research located at CIUS. The center was established in 1989 through a $1 million endowment by Toronto businessman and philanthropist Peter Jacyk, and matched two-to-one by the government of Alberta. The Ukrainian community has also extended strong support by contributing nearly half of the estimated $1.5 million needed in private funding to help cover production costs. The Petro Jacyk Education Foundation in Toronto has assisted in raising $600,000 from individual donors, and the Canadian Foundation for Ukrainian Studies has contributed an additional $50,000. The first volume was sponsored by Petro and Ivanna Stelmach of Mississauga, Ontario, who donated $100,000.

The translation of this historic work is timely given the resurgence of Western interest in Ukraine and Eastern Europe in general. It is an important accomplishment for CIUS and an important follow-up to the $5 million, five-volume Encyclopedia of Ukraine project completed by the institute four years ago.

The first launch of the book was held in Edmonton on Thursday, September 18, at the Timms Center for the Performing Arts, University of Alberta.

For further information, contact: Dr. Frank Sysyn, Canadian Institute Studies for Ukrainian Studies, (403) 492-2972.

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