Natalie Kononenko’s New Book Wins Clio Prize from Canadian Historical Association

Folklorist Natalie Kononenko wins the 2024 Clio Prize for her book, Ukrainian Ritual on the Prairies: Growing a Ukrainian Canadian Identity, published by McGill-Queen’s University Press. The Clio Prizes are awarded by the Canadian Historical Association to the best books in regional history.

Ukrainian Ritual on the Prairies draws on more than ten years of interviews and fieldwork, and it describes the culture of Ukrainian Canadians living in the prairie provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The Ukrainian church, an iconic though now rapidly disappearing feature of the prairie landscape, takes center stage as an instrument for the retention of Ukrainian identity and the development of a new culture. Kononenko explores the cultural elements of Ukrainian Canadian ritual practice, with an emphasis on family traditions surrounding marriage, birth, death, and religious holidays.

The book is also shortlisted for the 2024 KOBZAR™ Book Award.