Boian, Alberta

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Location of Boian in Alberta

Boian, is a community in Alberta, Canada. It is located in the floodplain of the North Saskatchewan River, 6 km east of Willingdon, in Two Hills County. It is the oldest Romanian settlement in Canada.

History

The first Romanian colons arrived here in late 19th century, most of them coming from Bucovina, a Romanian territory occupied at that time by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Today, most of the remaining inhabitants are of Romanian descent.

The village was named for Boian, the Romanian village in Bucovina, from where the settlers originated. In the fall of 1903, the community built a Romanian Orthodox Church, named by locals like the one in their homeland, "St Mary Orthodox Church". It was completed in the summer of 1905. By the year 1909, the need of a Romanian language school became more accentuated, and a small building was constructed in 1910, including almost all the subjects taught in Romania at the time.

The Romanians of Boian later encouraged their relatives from Edmonton or Calgary to move there, due to the fertile farmland, the lakes and forests.

Today, the Romanian school is a museum showcasing Romanian immigration in Alberta, photos of the first Romanian settlers in the area and the typical Romanian farmer's life in rural Canada. As well, the house of the local family Yurko has been moved to the Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village where it portrays the similarities and differences between Ukrainian Canadian and Romanian Canadian culture.

External links

* [http://romaniinalberta.com/boian/ Short history of Boian]
* [http://sfgheorghe.romanians.bc.ca/modules/myalbum/photo.php?lid=27 Photo gallery]