Petro Jacyk Central & East European Resource Centre

Spring is here!
And that means that the latest edition of the PJRC update is here too!
Keep an eye out for this 17th edition around Robarts , or come pick up a copy at our desk on the third floor.

Only while supplies last, so be sure to get your copy!

Read online here: https://archive.org/details/pjrc-update-spring-2026-web/mode/2up

The PJRC team wishes everyone a very happy Easter!

Here is a sample of some of the beautiful books on Easter themes we have from 🇭🇷🇩🇪🇵🇱🇺🇦🇨🇿🇱🇹

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This week’s post showcases a unique item we found in the stacks!

Printed in 1834, this three-volume travelogue follows the journey through Central Asia of Sir Alexander Burnes (cousin of Scottish poet Robert Burnes). Burnes, shown here wearing traditional Uzbek clothing, travelled throughout the region as a diplomat and translator until his assassination in Kabul in 1841.

His engravings are priceless depictions of the region, such as the image of the giant ancient Buddhas of Bamiyan, destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.

Just one of the treasures found by chance in the Robarts Stacks!

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🤔Did you know that UTL gets regular and frequent deliveries of diaspora and European newspapers?

Here at the PJRC we keep a display of the latest newspapers and magazines from 2026. Feel free to drop by and browse the latest issues from the Ukrainian, Croatian, and Serbian diasporas in North America and Czech and Slovak newspapers shipped from Europe.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for, we can bring up a newspaper from our large repository.
For any help finding materials, feel free to stop by the PJRC where our friendly team can show you how to use the online research guides and find exactly the materials you are looking for!

Hey UofT! Come check out the new acquisitions on display at the PJRC!
This display is very graphics-heavy, featuring so many bright illustrations; even if you don’t understand the languages, they’re still very cool! There is bound to be something interesting for everyone!
Make sure to stop by and have a look!
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This week, we were reminded of the power of archives during some work with the Peter Potichnyj collection at the UofT Archives.
Here is just a small snapshot from the experience of Ukrainian scounts (Plast) in Regensburg, Germany from 1949/1950. Regensburg was one of the largest centres for Ukrainian Displaced Persons (DP) camps after WWII. From here, many refugees went on to strengthen Ukrainian diasporas across North America, bringing Plast with them.

germany

We are so immensely proud to have been featured by in a recent article about our Slavic resources coordinator, Ksenya Kiebuzinski!

Although our centre is small, we are happy that our work is seen and appreciated, especially amidst Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. This article brings to light just a segment of the impactful work going on at

The full article can be found here:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/u-of-t-library-helps-preserve-ukrainian-voices-as-war-rages-on-if-it-was/article_122a57e5-e5a3-42c9-9e6f-80be2f4fa774.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=copy-link&utm_campaign=user-share

Hey UofT!

Last week, our library teamed with .uoft to host our now annual pierogi event!!

We had a great time and engaged in meaningful conversation on how our clubs can work together in the future on more awesome events!

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One of the privileges of working at the PJRC is having access to so many rare books.
Czech out (pardon the pun) these rare Czech editions from the fin-de-siècle! So aesthetically pleasing!

Hey UofT!!

We’re calling all students interested in getting to know the Eastern European student community to a joint lunch with the Ukrainian, Polish, Estonian, and Romanian student clubs, organized by the Petro Jacyk library.

Join us for some delicious pierogis, drinks, and snacks, and get a chance to speak with like-minded students. 🥟

Sign-up link can be found here:
https://libcal.library.utoronto.ca/event/3985887