Kalyna Country


The Kalyna Country ecomuseum is a heritage and eco-tourism district in East Central Alberta, Canada, named after the highbush cranberry plant, pronounced in the Ukrainian language. The Ukrainian folklore states: "Without Kalyna, there is no Ukraina".

Location and promotion

Kalyna Country bills itself as the "World's Largest Ecomuseum" at 20,000 square kilometers, or more than three times the size of Prince Edward Island. Its boundaries stretch across a broad area of Alberta east and north of Edmonton, including nearly all the areas traditionally considered part of Canada's first Ukrainian Block Settlement, the Edna-Star colony. The area has been described as being to Ukrainian Canadians what Cajun Country is to Cajun culture. At its peak, the area was the largest settlement of Ukrainians in the world outside of Eastern Europe.
Officially, Kalyna Country comprises Sturgeon County, Thorhild County, Smoky Lake County, the County of St. Paul No. 19, the County of Vermilion River, the County of Two Hills No. 21, the County of Minburn No. 27, Beaver County, Lamont County, and Strathcona County and many of the neighbouring urban municipalities, Indian reserves and Metis settlements.
Kalyna berries were a popular source of food amongst the early pioneers, fur traders and natives. Kalyna Country is a year-round playground with culture as diverse as the landscape that offers it. Here the Aspen Parkland and the Boreal Forest converge, split by the scenic North Saskatchewan River Valley, all amidst thousands of hectares of prime agricultural land.
The main attractions include:
The area is also famous for the Giants of the Prairies, a series of roadside attractions.
The museum is affiliated with: CMA, CHIN, and Virtual Museum of Canada.