Ulas Samchuk

Who is Ulas Samchuk?

Ulas Samchuk was a Ukrainian writer, publicist and journalist. He was born to a peasant family and started his education in Kremenets. Before he finished his secondary education, he was called up for service in the Polish Army in 1927, and later deserted in August of that year. He escaped to Germany, where he continued his studies at the University of Breslau and then at the Ukrainian Free University in Prague, where he graduated in 1931.

During World War II, Samchuk was the head of the civilian police of the Reichskommisariat in Rivne. From 1941–1943, he was editor of the Rivne newspaper Volyn', before fleeing to Germany in 1944, where he founded and headed the literary-artistic organization MUR until 1948. In 1948, he emigrated to Canada and became the leader of the Slovo Association of Ukrainian Writers in Exile.