Roman Ivanovych Ivanychuk was born in the village of Tracz[uk], which was then part of the Second Polish Republic. It is now in Ukraine's western Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast.[2] His family was opposed to the occupation of Galicia by Nazi Germany, and his brother joined the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. Ivanychuk later said that he would have done the same if he had been old enough to fight.[3]
Ivanychuk began studying the Ukrainian language at the University of Lviv in 1948. Upon entering the university, he was denounced by staff for refusing to join the Komsomol and wearing a vyshyvanka. He was eventually expelled from the university and conscripted into the Soviet Army, serving from 1950 to 1953.[3] He graduated from the University of Lviv in 1957, and worked as a school teacher between 1957 and 1963.[1] Like many other Ukrainian linguists at the time, he taught at rural schools throughout Ukraine.[3] Ivanychuk began publishing short stories and novels in 1958. After 1963, he worked as an editor of the Zhovten magazine until 1990.[1]
In 1995, Ivanychuk became a professor at the University of Lviv, teaching there until his death.[1] He died in Lviv on 17 September 2016.[2] He was buried in Lychakiv Cemetery on 19 September.[4]
Bibliography
Ivanychuk wrote around 15 historical novels, and a number of short-story collections. Some of his books were translated into French and Russian.[6]
