# Natalie Kononenko

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Canadian professor of folklore

**Natalie Kononenko** was Professor and Kule Chair in Ukrainian Ethnography at the [University of Alberta](/source/University_of_Alberta)[1] until 2019, after which she is a Professor Emerita.[2] Kononenko is a major contributor to the study of Ukrainian blind minstrels as well as in the area of [witchcraft](/source/Witchcraft) in Slavic cultures. She attended [Radcliffe College](/source/Radcliffe_College) and [Harvard University](/source/Harvard_University).[3]

Her 1997 book *Ukrainian Minstrels: And the Blind Shall Sing* is a study of traditional Ukrainian blind, begging singers known as *[kobzar](/source/Kobzar)* and [*lirnyky*](/source/Lirnyk), who sang epic poetry called [duma](/source/Duma_(epic)). The book links these blind [minstrels](/source/Minstrel) to religious practice, and for the first time showed how women minstrels were also important to this oral, epic tradition.[4] The tradition of the blind minstrel is also connected to traditions in other cultures: for example the ancient Greek poet [Homer](/source/Homer) is often described as blind.[5] The first part of the book documents minstrels from 1850 to 1930,[5] while the second part of the book contains translations of songs, intitation rites and descriptions of religious festivals.[6] The book was praised as a significant contribution to the study of [oral literature](/source/Oral_literature),[6] but was also criticised for focusing on the lyrics and not the musical aspects of the tradition.[7]

In 2019, she published the book *Ukrainian Epic and Historical Song: Folklore in Context*, which was reviewed in several scholarly journals.[8][9][10]

Her 2025 book *Ukrainian Ritual on the Prairies: Growing a Ukrainian Canadian Identity* is about Ukrainian immigrants to Canada from the 1890s through the early 20th century.[11] The book drew upon her work from 2009-2019 with a group that documented Ukrainian churches, where they gathered photographs and hundreds of hours of interviews.[12]

## Publications

### Books

- Kononenko, N. (1990) *The Turkish Minstrel Tale Tradition*. Garland Publishing Inc. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-8240-2673-8](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8240-2673-8)

- Kononenko, N. (1997) *Ukrainian Minstrels: And the Blind Shall Sing*. M.E. Sharpe. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-7656-0144-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7656-0144-5)

- Suwyn, B. (1997) *The Magic Egg and Other Tales from Ukraine.* Edited and with an introduction by N. Kononenko. Libraries Unlimited, Inc. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [1-56308-425-2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-56308-425-2)

- Kononenko, N. (2007) *Slavic Folklore: A Handbook*. Greenwood Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-313-33610-2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-313-33610-2)

- Holloway, P., & Kukharenko, S. (2012). *The Paths of Folklore: Essays in Honor of Natalie Kononeko*. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0893573935](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0893573935)

- Kononenko, N. (2019). *Ukrainian Epic and Historical Song: Folklore in Context*. University of Toronto Press.[ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1487502638](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1487502638)

- Kononenko, N. (2023). *Ukrainian Ritual on the Prairies: Growing a Ukrainian Canadian Identity*. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0228016816](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0228016816)

### Journals and Periodicals

- Natalie Kononenko; The Politics of innocence: Soviet and Post-Soviet Animation on Folklore topics. *Journal of American Folklore* 1 October 2011; 124 (494): 272–294. doi: https://doi.org/10.5406/jamerfolk.124.494.0272

## See also

- [Blind musicians](/source/Blind_musicians)

- [Bandurist](/source/Bandurist)

- [Duma (epic)](/source/Duma_(epic))

- [Ukrainian fairy tale](/source/Ukrainian_fairy_tale)

- [History of Ukrainian Animation](/source/History_of_Ukrainian_animation)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:3_1-0)** Kule Folklore Centre (2019). ["Directors Annual Report for the Kule Folklore Centre"](https://www.ualberta.ca/en/kule-folklore-centre/media-library/documents/annual-reports/kufc-annual-report-2019.pdf) (PDF).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2020_report_2-0)** Kule Folklore Centre (2020). ["Directors Annual Report for the Kule Folklore Centre"](https://www.ualberta.ca/en/kule-folklore-centre/media-library/documents/annual-reports/kufc-annual-report-2020.pdf) (PDF).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["People Listing | Faculty of Arts"](https://www.ualberta.ca/arts/about/people-collection/natalie-kononenko).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Klymasz, Robert B. (1999). ["Ukrainian Minstrels: And the Blind Shall Sing. By Natalie Kononenko. Armonk, N.Y.: M. E. Sharpe, 1998. xvi, 360 pp. Appendix. Notes. Bibliography. Index. Photographs. Tables. Map. $62.95, hard bound. $25.95, paper"](https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0037677900055455/type/journal_article). *Slavic Review*. **58** (2): 475–476. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/2673104](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F2673104). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0037-6779](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0037-6779).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_5-1) Rahkonen, Carl (2000). ["Review of Ukrainian Minstrels: And the Blind Shall Sing"](https://www.jstor.org/stable/852541). *Ethnomusicology*. **44** (2): 339–341. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/852541](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F852541). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0014-1836](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0014-1836).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_6-1) Bailey, James (1999). ["Review of Ukrainian Minstrels: And the Blind Shall Sing"](https://www.jstor.org/stable/309876). *The Slavic and East European Journal*. **43** (3): 551–552. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/309876](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F309876). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0037-6752](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0037-6752).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Noll, William (2000). "Review: Ukrainian Minstrels: And the Blind Shall Sing". *Journal of Ukrainian Studies*. **25** (1–2): 237.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Rubchak, Marian J. (2020). ["Ukrainian Epic and Historical Song: Folklore in Context. By Natalie Kononenko. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2019. xvi, 330 pp. Notes. Bibliography. Index. $85.00, hard bound"](https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0037677920001175/type/journal_article). *Slavic Review*. **79** (2): 454–455. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1017/slr.2020.117](https://doi.org/10.1017%2Fslr.2020.117). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0037-6779](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0037-6779).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Rubchak, Marian J. (2020). ["Ukrainian Epic and Historical Song: Folklore in Context. By Natalie Kononenko. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2019. xvi, 330 pp. Notes. Bibliography. Index. $85.00, hard bound"](https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0037677920001175/type/journal_article). *Slavic Review*. **79** (2): 454–455. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1017/slr.2020.117](https://doi.org/10.1017%2Fslr.2020.117). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0037-6779](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0037-6779).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Rubchak, Marian J. (2020). ["Review of Ukrainian Epic and Historical Song: Folklore in Context"](https://www.jstor.org/stable/27059179). *Slavic Review*. **79** (2): 454–455. [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0037-6779](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0037-6779).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Lehr, John (2025). ["Review: Natalie Kononenko. Ukrainian Ritual on the Prairies: Growing a Ukrainian Canadian Identity. McGill-Queen's University Press. xii, 308. $34.95"](https://muse.jhu.edu/article/969789.). *University of Toronto Quarterly*. **94** (3).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-:0_12-0)** Petersen, Julia (2023-09-27). ["Kononenko documents Ukrainian-Canadian folkore, culture - Prince Albert Daily Herald"](https://paherald.sk.ca/kononenko-documents-ukrainian-canadian-folkore-culture/). *Price Albert Daily Herald*. Retrieved 2026-05-09.

## External links

- Natalie Kononenko: Faculty of Arts page at University of Alberta [https://www.ualberta.ca/en/kule-folklore-centre/about/people/natalie-kononenko.html](https://www.ualberta.ca/en/kule-folklore-centre/about/people/natalie-kononenko.html)

- List of papers on Academia [https://ualberta.academia.edu/NatalieKononenko](https://ualberta.academia.edu/NatalieKononenko)]

- Folklore Ukraine [https://www.artsrn.ualberta.ca/folkloreukraine/](https://www.artsrn.ualberta.ca/folkloreukraine/)

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