Edna-Star colony

The Edna-Star colony, in east-central Alberta, Canada, is the largest and oldest of the Ukrainian Canadian block settlements.

The colony was founded by a group of Ukrainian settlers led by Iwan Pylypow in 1892 (although he himself did not arrive until the next year). Pylypow's first farm was near the present-day village of Star, Alberta, then called Edna, and the name Edna-Star was applied to the whole area retospectively. Most of the settlers were from Pylypow's home village of Nebyliv, Ukraine and the area was sometimes called the Nebyliv colony in their honour, although later settlers were from other areas of Austrian-controlled Ukraine.

Within the boundaries of the settlement block, up to 80% of the population is of Ukrainian origin.

As well many of the non-Ukrainian immigrants to the area, also came from the Austrian crownlands of Galicia and Bukovina where the Ukrainians originated. These included Poles, Romanians, Germans, and Jews.

In fact Pylypow chose the area because of the existing Galician German settlement nearby at Josephburg. Ukrainians in Galicia were used to working with their German neighbours in the "Old Country" and many could speak some German. For new settlers, having a place to earn cash wages until their farm became productive was also extremely important, and the Germans were the logical place to turn.

Another prime concern of the settlers was timber. They typically chose heavily-wooded areas, much to the consternation of Anglo-Canadian authorities. The Ukrainians were willing to sacrifice time and effort to clear the land, and would even take lands of poor soil quality in order to secure treed land. This was because there was a severe wood shortage in Austrian Ukraine, and peasants became reliant on the "pan" (landlord) for the precious commodity. In Canada the settlers vowed never to suffer this fate again.

Today the area is part of the Kalyna Country ecomuseum, which preserves and showcases Ukrainian Canadian culture. It is also home to the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village which contains pioneer buildings from all across the area.

Principal present-day towns

* Mundare, Alberta
* Vegreville, Alberta
* Lamont, Alberta