Was my grandfather Rusyn or Ukrainian?
Hello all,
Growing up, I was always taught by my grandfather that we're of Ukrainian and Slovak descent baptized in the East Catholic Church. My grandfather's father was a self-identified Greek Catholic from Galicia from Western Ukraine right by the border of Slovakia. My grandfather's mother identified as a Slovak Eastern Catholic who came from the border near Ukraine.
Now I was taught all my life that we're of Ukrainian/Slovak ancestry but looking at the map, it seems as if both my great grandpa and great grandma came from Rusyn dominated regions? My grandfather identified his ancestral language as a dialect of Ukrianian. He once told me how Slovak and Ukrainian languages are so similar and he can understand both languages.
My grandfather is no longer alive and I have no idea where in Ukraine or Slovakia they are from exactly. All my life my grandfather identified as a proud Ukrainian-American. I never even heard of the term Rusyn. Is this a common issue among the older generations of Rusyn to not identify as Rusyn? It's confusing to me personally. My father's side was always proudly Ukrainian while my mother is of Russian descent so this is more of a cultural awakening for me personally if my father's side was actually Rusyn. Any help is appreciated.