BOOK NOTE: Commemorative book records Ukrainian presence in Louvain

"Louvain 1930-1985," Zenon Tatarsky, ed., Association of Ukrainian Students at the University of Louvain. Toronto: Basilian Press, 2001, 547 pp. in Ukrainian, with summaries in English, Flemish, and French.

by Dr. Daria Markus

It was not a whiff of a madeleine cookie that sent a group of former Ukrainian students of the University of Louvain, as it did Proust, on a road of remembrance of things past, but a hard realization that, unrecorded, a page of history could be lost. Hence, the commemorative book of the Ukrainian presence for over 50 years at one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Western Europe - the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium.

The university, founded in 1425, became famous in the early 16th century when Erasmus, regarded as the greatest intellectual of his time in Western Europe, made Louvain his permanent residence. There were other famous names associated with the university, and though none of the Ukrainians really matched their grandeur, nevertheless, the University of Louvain is the alma mater of many distinguished Ukrainians, including a former editor of The Ukrainian Weekly, Walter Dushnyck, two metropolitans (Volodymyr Sterniuk and Maxim Hermaniuk), a bishop (Volodymyr Malanchuk), as well as a score of prominent Ukrainian community leaders, professionals, scholars, scientists, writers and poets who, at one time or another, were a part of the Ukrainian student community in Louvain.

There were three distinct periods in the history of Ukrainian students at the University. In the 1920s, on the initiative of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, first to arrive were theology students. Soon afterwards grants were given also to lay students from western Ukraine. The war put a stop to the influx of new candidates.

A second period, 1945-1959, included students who were young refugees in Western European countries, predominantly Germany and Austria, and also, towards the end, some American- and Canadian-born or -raised students. Two came even from far-off Panama. With very few exceptions, they, like their predecessors, had to face a language barrier and survive on meager stipends they received from various charities and foundations.

A new generation arrived in the 1960s through 1980s. Many of them were born in Belgium or France, their knowledge of the French language was better than that of Ukrainian, and quite a few of them were children of the former Louvanists. All in all, 295 students passed through the corridors of Louvain University.

Zenon Tatarsky, in addition to his work as editor of the volume, has written a number of articles in the book, among them an outstanding presentation of the early pre-war period based on the archival materials of Andrii Kishka. Over 30 authors contributed to the making of the book that documents student activities and events, and includes short biographical outlines.

These are supplemented by photographs, copies of documents and other materials, and, finally, with a statistical data sheet on the who, when, and what of Ukrainian students.

The book presents reliable information in an orderly manner, provides an in-depth analysis, and contains a comprehensive historical overview that both relates directly to the students and contributes to a better understanding of that period within the larger context of Ukrainian history.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, January 6, 2002, No. 1, Vol. LXX

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