Culture, in particular folk culture, preserves our distinct cultural heritages that were passed down from generation to generation. They can be found in our dialects, folklore, handicrafts, customs, cuisine. These are our voices, tastes, smells, experiences, sounds from the past, our intangible, nonmaterial connections to the past, to our predecessors.
When I moved to Ukraine, I had to learn a whole new Ukrainian vocabulary. It turned out that I had grown up speaking a Galician/diasporic Ukrainian, which used many dialectisms, Polonisms, and archaisms. To keep track of the differences between the two lexicons, as well as to document the way my […]
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My parents in Chicago have some neat posters from the late Soviet period announcing various artistic and cultural events in Kyiv. Poster from 1987 Performance of Kupala rituals at the Folk Architecture Museum in Kyiv Organized by the Ministry of Culture of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic Міністерство культури української […]
Late last year I had the opportunity to immerse myself in the atmosphere of Lviv’s interwar music scene at a live performance of a young band from Warsaw, which plays famous tunes from Poland’s 1920-1930s musical heritage. Warszawska Orkiestra Sentymentalna (Warsaw Sentimental Orchestra) comprises a group of young musicians united […]
A folk band from Przemyśl — Krajka, together with Ukrainian musicians — released a new album dedicated to the lands that lie along the current Polish-Ukrainian border. “The album contains traditional music from the Polish-Ukrainian borderland, from the regions of Kholm, Lubaczow, Przemyśl, to the Carpathian mountains and valleys. These lands were once […]
Two regions in the world are named Galicia—the one in east-central Europe that I have dedicated my blog to, and one in Spain’s northwest. Like the eastern Galicia, the one on the Iberian peninsula has a special musical, cultural, and linguistic heritage. Based out of this region is the group […]
DakhaBrakha is an “ethno-chaos” band from Kyiv, created in 2014. They have gained a following around the world, have toured extensively, and have even performed an NPR Tiny Desk Concert and as well as on KEXP. “Having experimented with Ukrainian folk music, the band has added rhythms of the surrounding […]
Burdon, formed in 2002 in Lviv, is a great example of a band that preserves and promotes folk music, allowing a new generation of people to enjoy and cherish the music of their ancestors. “We’re using acoustic folk instruments for the best reproduction of atmosphere of old dances which didn’t […]
“Presenting six young people who have created their own version of Polish folk punk! This band has found a welcome in the homes of elderly village musicians who see their traditions disappearing before the onslaught of urban life. They have taken these youngsters under their wing and have taught them […]
The western Ukrainian news outlet ZIK released a series of videos explaining the origins and meaning Galician words and phrases. Traveling around the region, including to Lviv, Ternopil, and the Hutsul region, the hosts tell interesting stories about the word as well as examples of its usage. Below are a […]
To supplement my “diaspora” dictionary, here’s a list of Galician culinary terms. Some I have on my list, but here are many more. ГАЛИЦЬКИЙ КУЛІНАРНИЙ СЛОВНИК -А- Аєрконьяк – яєчний лікер Андрути – перекладений вафельний торт, вафлі. Аниж – аніс Арак – алкоголь Афини – чорниці -Б- Баняк – горщик, […]
Recently on Facebook, “Пані Стефа” shared a post about Galician cuisine using Galician culinary vocabulary. I’m familiar with many but not all words. Original post found here. Баняк, ринка, миска і тареля в креденсі. Зупа з ляним тістом і росіл з клюсками, налиті кохлею в таріль. Салатка в салятерці. Мізерія […]
