Ukrainians

Ukrainians
українці
ukraintsi

Ukrainians celebrating the Ukrainian Independence Day in Kiev
Total population
38.9 million-57.5 million
Regions with significant populations
Majority populations Ukraine 37,541,693 Minority populations Russia 1,927,988 Canada 1,251,170 United States 939,759 Brazil 500,000 Kazakhstan 313,698 Argentina 300,000
Languages
Ukrainian (native) Russian (also spoken)
Religion
Ukrainian Orthodox Church Greek Catholic Roman Catholic Irreligious Protestant others
Related ethnic groups
Belarusians, Rusyns, Russians, East Slavs, other Slavs

Under construction........

Ukrainians (Ukrainian: українці, ukraintsi) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. The Ukrainians are of the major ethnic groups to have descended from the ancient Rus' (mostly the Kyivan Rus' or Kievan Rus'), and are closely related to Belarusians and Rusyns.

The Ukrainian identity is regarded to have originated in the Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia, an important post-Kyivan Rus' state covering modern-day western Ukraine and all of Belarus, as well as the Cossack Hetmanate. The historical association with Galicia still lasts today, where western Ukraine is considered a bastion of Ukrainian ultra-nationalism.

Outside of the Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia and the Cossack Hetamanate, the Ukrainians were subject to rule and dominion by competing empires, mostly notably Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Austro-Hungarian and Russian rule. During the days of Austro-Hungarian rule (mostly effecting western Ukraine), they were known as Ruthenians. Due to being descended from the Kyivan Rus', a chunk of the heritage and prestige of the Ukrainian people often intertwines and overlaps with Russians. Due to the various turbulent political episodes that have occurred on modern Ukrainian territory (even more World War I such as the poverty in Galicia during Austro-Hungarian rule), many Ukrainians migrated to the west, where Canada now boasts the largest overseas Ukrainian community in the Western world, followed by the United States, though due to the close historical relations, Russia and Poland currently has the largest overseas Ukrainian community, both Ukrainian citizens and people of Ukrainian ancestry.

In the late 1800s, Ukrainian national cultural revival took fold in the various empires inhabited by ethnic Ukrainians and after the end of World War I is when Ukrainians finally attempted to once-again, form their own states. At that point, many Ukrainian-speaking states and governments were formed in the hotly contested territory, however Ukrainians would ultimately find themselves under Soviet occupation until the 1990s, when Ukraine would finally emerge as an independent state.

Ukrainians were prominent in society in the respective empires that ruled over then, namely the Russian and Austro-Hungarian Empires, as well as the Soviet Union, where many famous artists, military leaders and elite of those historical nations were Ukrainians or of Ukrainian origin. Ukrainians are well-known for their association with Cossack culture, equestrian-based heritage, which received political autonomy in both the Russian and Austro-Hungarian Empires. In addition, Ukrainian people and culture also has Polish influence, due historical interactions and geographic changes of Ukraine and Poland’s borders overtime.

Etymology

The term Ukraine and Ukrainians are said to have derived from the Slavic term u-kraine meaning home-land. During Polish-Lithuanian and Austro-Hungarian rule, Ukrainians and Belarusians were referred to as Ruthenians.

Within the Russian Empire, as part of systematic discrimination of non-ethnic Russian peoples, Ukrainian culture and identity was suppressed, and they were known as "Little Russians".

History

Origins and Ancestry

Ukrainians share similar origins with Belarusians, Rusyns and Russians, they are an East Slavic ethnic group. Slavs, Vikings, Varangians, Greeks, Turks and Mongols settled in what is now Ukraine and Russia, but it is ultimately the Varangian Vikings that would later rule Kyiv and establish what is known as the Kyivan Rus'. Ukrainians are descended from the general Slavic migrations from the 6th and 7th centuries, from the Prague-Penkova-Kolochin cultures. Later, Eastern Slavic tribes divided into what can be considered "proto-Ukrainian" tribes, namely the Volhynians, Derevilianians and Pollanians (a tribe whose history is also shared by the Poles, or Polish people - a Western Slavic group). Also, Ukraine and parts of southern Russia were settled by a Turkic Muslim group known as the Bulgars and later the Khazars, a Turkic Jewish group. This is known as Old Great Bulgaria, and Volga Bulgaria in case of Russia or the slang "Volgaria". 

Kyivan Rus'

The city of Kyiv (formerly spelled as "Kiev" prior to the 2022 Russian invasion) was established during the time when area around the mid- and low-Dnipro was the part of

Historical map of Kievan Rus' and territory of Ukraine: last 20 years of the state (1220–1240).

the Khazar state. This  information came from local legends because no written chronicles from that period are left. What is known as the Kyivan Rus'/Kievan Rus' is the first major Eastern Slavic civilization, that Ukrainians, Belarusians and Russians are descended from.

Prior to its estalishment, the various Slavic tribes of modern-day Ukraine were subject to the ruling Khazarian Empire. It isn't until the arrival of Varangians (a Nordic Viking group) that the Slavic tribes started to solidify and unify. According to Ruthenian chronicles, such as the Primary Chronicle, a Slavicized Varangian prince who ruled the Slavic Novgorod (today in Russia), extended his control into the Dnipro (also spelled Dneiper) River. Prince Oleg's descendents were also known as the Rurikids. In 882, Oleg conquered Kyiv from the Khazars. The Kyivan Rus' emerged in the lucrative trade of its natural resources, namely furs, beeswax, honey and slaves due to the abundance of these goods. It maintained trade relations with the Volga Bulgars, Khazars, and even Central Asia, China and the Middle East. These trade relations with the eastern world allowed the Kyivan Rus' to thrive as a major civilization.

Christianization and Rus-Byzantine relations

Christianity reached the Ukrainian people (or their ancestors) via contact and even wars with other major Christian European empires, such as the Byzantine Empire. After the Rus' attack on Constantinople in 860, Patriarch Photius sent missionaries to convert the Slavs to Christianity. This was achieved by Cyril and Methodius, who introduced the infamous Greek Glagolitic-based Cyrllic alphabet used in Slavic or Slavic-influenced countries today. The East Slavs had no orthography, and therefore, Slavonic alphabet was introduced.

Olga (or Olha in Ukrainian), who ruled as regent of Kyiv for her husband in 945 became an early convert to Christianity, however his son, Sviatoslav remained a pagan.

The first major Christian ruler of the Kyivan Rus' was Volodymyr (or Vladimir) the Great, in 988, and married a Byznatine princess, Anna, the sister of Emperor Basil III. It is from the reign of Volodymyr the Great that the Rurikids transformed into a Christian dynasty, entranched in Eastern Orthodox tradition. Volodymyr would became canonized as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox tradition.

Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia 1199-1349

The Kingdom, originally Principality of Galicia-Volhynia was formed in 1199 by Roman the Great, the Prince of Volodymyr-in-Volhynia. After the death of Vladimir II Yaroslavich, Prince of Galicia, Roman united the Principalities of Galicia and Volhynia into one state. In 1204, Roman captured Kiev, aligned himself with Poland, Hungary and the Byzantine Empire, marrying a Byzantine noblewoman, effectively emerging as one of the most powerful princes of the Rus'.

In 1205, Roman was killed in battle after turning against his former Polish allies, thus the region fell into war between Poland and Hungary. In 1221, Mstislav Mstislavovich liberated Galicia-Volhynia from the Hungarians. Daniel Romanovych, or Daniel of Galicia, re-united Galicia and Volhynia after defeating Polish and Hungarian forces in Yaroslav, and in 1245 built an alliance with the Golden Horde, ruled by Batu Khan - but it was all ruse, meant for the sole benefit of Galicia-Volhynia. That same year, he was recognized as king by the Pope, officially beginning the Kingdom of Galicia-Volhynia (Ukrainian: Галицько-Волинське князівство). However, it also become historically known as the Kingdom of Ruthenia (Old East Slavic: Королѣвство Русь, Korolěvstvo Rusĭ; Ukrainian: Королівство Русь, Korolivstvo Rus).

Literature and culture flourished under Danylo's reign, and the Kingdom of Ruthenia had become one of the most powerful eastern-central European states. The Galician-Volhynian Chronicle was written during this era, a historical work in Old Ruthenian. Trade relations and routes were established with other nations, including Poland, Germany and even the Baltics.

Danylo died in 1264 and was succeeded by his son Lev, who moved the capital of Lviv in 1272. Lev allied with the Mongols, and invaded Poland with them, and in spite of bringing back much spoils of war, did not capture much Polish territory. He was also defeated in battle against the Lithuanians from 1274 to 1276, resulting in the loss of territories, such as Black Rus', but managed to defeat Hungary and Poland and in 1292, Lublin became part of the Kingdom.

By 1323, after a series of wars against the Lithuanians and Mongols, the Rurikid lineage of Ruthenia went extinct with all the princes dying in battle. Volhynia came under Lithuanian control, but the Ruthenian boyars retained control of Galicia. In 1349, the Poles successfully invaded Galicia, in 1349, Galicia was no longer an independent state.

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

After the Union of Lublin in 1569 and the formation of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Ukraine fell under Polish administration, becoming part of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. The period immediately following the creation of the Commonwealth saw a huge revitalisation in colonisation efforts. Many new cities and villages were founded.

New schools spread the ideas of the Renaissance; Polish peasants arrived in great numbers and quickly became mixed with the local population; during this time, most of Ukrainian nobles became polonised and converted to Catholicism, and while most Ruthenian-speaking peasants remained within the Eastern Orthodox Church, social tension rose.

Ruthenian peasants (Ukrainians and some from other nations) who fled efforts to force them into serfdom came to be known as Cossacks and earned a reputation for their fierce martial spirit. Some Cossacks were hired by the Commonwealth (became 'register Cossacks') as soldiers to protect the southeastern borders of Poland from Tatars or took part in campaigns abroad (like Petro Konashevych-Sahaidachny in the battle of Khotyn 1621). Cossack units were also active in wars between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Tsardom of Russia.

Cossack Revolution

The 1648 Ukrainian Cossack (Kozak) rebellion and war of independence (Khmelnytsky Uprising), which started an era known as the Ruin (in Polish history as The Deluge), undermined the foundations and stability

The Hetmanate in 1654 (against the backdrop of contemporary Ukraine)

of the Commonwealth. The nascent Cossack state, the Cossack Hetmanate, usually viewed as precursor of Ukraine, found itself in a three-sided military and diplomatic rivalry with the Ottoman Turks, who controlled the Tatars to the south, the Commonwealth of Poland and Lithuania, and the rising Russia to the East.

The reconstituted Ukrainian state, having recently fought a bitter war with Poland, sought a treaty of protection with Russia in 1654. This agreement was known as the Treaty of Pereyaslav. Commonwealth authorities then sought compromise with the Ukrainian Cossack state by signing the Treaty of Hadiach in 1658, but — after thirteen years of incessant warfare — the agreement was later superseded by 1667 Polish-Russian Treaty of Andrusovo, which divided Ukrainian territory between the Commonwealth and Russia. Under Russia, the Cossacks initially retained official autonomy in the Hetmanate. For a time, they also maintained a semi-independent republic in Zaporozhia, and a colony on the Russian frontier in Sloboda Ukraine.

Russian Empire and Austria-Hungary

Tsarist rule over central Ukraine gradually replaced 'protection' over the subsequent decades. After the

Administrative divisions of Russian Empire superimposed on map of Ukraine

Partitions of Poland in 1772, 1793 and 1795, the extreme west of Ukraine fell under the control of the Austrians, with the rest as part of the Russian Empire. As a result of Russo-Turkish Wars the Ottoman Empire's control receded from south-central Ukraine, while the rule of Hungary over the Transcarpathian region continued. Ukrainian writers and intellectuals were inspired by the nationalistic spirit stirring other European peoples existing under other imperial governments and became determined to revive the Ukrainian linguistic and cultural traditions and re-establish a Ukrainian nation-state, a movement that became known as Ukrainophilism.

railway station of Fastiv before 1917, in Russian Empire.

Russia, fearing separatism, imposed strict limits on attempts to elevate the Ukrainian language and culture, even banning its use and study. This led to an exodus of a number of Ukrainian intellectuals into Western Ukraine. However, many Ukrainians accepted their fate in the Russian Empire and some were to achieve a great success there. Many Russian writers, composers, painters and architects of the 19th century were of Ukrainian descent. Probably the most notable were Nikolai Gogol, one of the greatest writers in the history of Russian literature, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, one of the greatest composers in the history of Russian music, whose father came of Ukrainian Cossack stock.

The fate of the Ukrainians was far different under the Austrian Empire where they found themselves in the pawn position of the Russian-Austrian power struggle for the Central and Southern Europe. Unlike in Russia, most of the elite that ruled Galicia were of Austrian or Polish descent, with the Ruthenians being almost exclusively kept in peasantry. During the 19th century, Russophilia was a common occurrence among the Slavic population, but the mass exodus of Ukrainian intellectuals escaping from Russian repression in Eastern Ukraine, as well as the intervention of Austrian authorities, caused the movement to be replaced by Ukrainophilia, which would then cross-over into the Russian Empire. With the start of World War I, all those supporting Russia were rounded up by Austrian forces and held in a concentration camp at Talerhof where many died.

Anarchic Period and Divison of the Ukrainian People

When World War I and series of revolutions across the Europe including the October Revolution in Russia shattered many existing empires such as Austria and Russia, while people of Ukraine were caught in the middle. Between 1917 and 1919, several separate Ukrainian republics manifested independence, the anarchist Free Territory, the monarchist Ukrainan State (Third Hetamanate) the Ukrainian People's Republic, the West Ukrainian People's Republic, and numerous Bolshevik revkoms. As the area of Ukraine fell into warfare and anarchy, it was also fought over by German and Austrian forces, the Red Army of Bolshevik Russia, the White Forces of General Denikin, the Polish Army, anarchists led by Nestor Makhno. K iev itself was occupied by many different armies. The city was captured by the Bolsheviks on February 9, 1918, by the Germans on March 2, 1918, by the Bolsheviks a second time on February 5, 1919, by the White Army on August 31, 1919, by Bolsheviks for a third time on December 15, 1919, by the Polish Army on May 6, 1920, and finally by the Bolsheviks for the fourth time on June 12, 1920. The defeat in the Polish-Ukrainian War and then the failure of the Piłsudski's and Petliura's Warsaw agreement of 1920 to oust the Bolsheviks during the Kiev Operation led almost to the occupation of Poland itself. In course of the new Polish-Soviet War purpose of which changed from the 1920 led to the signing of the Peace of Riga in March 1921, and after which the part of Ukraine west of Zbruch had been incorporated into Poland, and the east became part of the Soviet Union as the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic & Soviet Union 1919-1991

The Ukrainian national idea lived on during the inter-war years and was even spread to a large territory with traditionally mixed population in the east and south that became part of the Ukrainian

A 1934 photo of the DnieproGES hydropower plant, a heavyweight of Soviet industrialization in Ukraine.

Soviet republic. The Ukrainian culture even enjoyed a revival due to Bolshevik concessions in the early Soviet years (until early-1930s) known as the policy of Korenization ("indigenisation"). In these years, an impressive Ukrainization program was implemented throughout the republic. The rapidly developed Ukrainian language based education system dramatically raised the literacy of the Ukrainophone rural population. Simultaneously, the newly-literate ethnic Ukrainians migrated to the cities, which became rapidly largely Ukrainianised—in both population and in education. Similarly expansive was an increase in Ukrainian language publishing and overall eruption of Ukrainian cultural life. At the same time, the usage of Ukrainian was continuously encouraged in the workplace and in the government affairs as the recruitment of indigenous cadre was implemented as part of the korenisation policies. While initially, the party and government apparatus was mostly Russian-speaking, by the end of 1920s the ethnic Ukrainians composed over one half of the membership in the Ukrainian communist party, the number strengthened by accession of Borotbists, a formerly indigenously Ukrainian "independentist" and non-Bolshevik communist party. Despite the ongoing Soviet Union-wide antireligious campaign, the Ukrainian national Orthodox church was created called the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC). The Bolshevik government initially saw the national church as a tool in their goal to suppress the Russian Orthodox Church always viewed with the great suspicion by the regime for its being the cornerstone of pre-revolutionary Russian Empire and the initially strong opposition it took towards the regime change. Therefore, the government tolerated the new Ukrainian national church for some time and the UAOC gained a wide following among the Ukrainian peasantry.

The Holodomor 1932-1933

The korenization politices of the early Interwar Period did not last long. Not only was Ukrainian language and culture again, persecuted in favor of Russification (hypocritically under an "anti-nationalist" regime), but one of the worst man-made famines. Beginning in 1932, the Ukrainians suffered one the worse atrocities under Soviet rule. Known the Holodomor, it was a man-made famine in the Ukrainian SSR in 1932 and 1933. During the famine, which is also known as the "Terror-Famine in Ukraine" and "Famine-Genocide in Ukraine", millions of citizens of Ukrainian

Pedestrians walking past bodies of starved peasants on a street in Kharkiv, 1933

SSR, the majority of whom were Ukrainians, died of starvation in a peacetime catastrophe unprecedented in the history of Ukraine. Since 2006, the Holodomor has been recognized by Ukraine and several other countries as a genocide of the Ukrainian people.

Early estimates of the death toll by scholars and government officials varied greatly; anywhere from 1.8 to 12 million ethnic Ukrainians were said to have perished as a result of the famine. Recent research has since narrowed the estimates to between 2.4 and 7.5 million. The exact number of deaths is hard to determine, due to a lack of records, but the number increases significantly when the deaths inside heavily Ukrainian-populated Kuban are included. Older estimates are still often cited in political commentary. According to the decision of Kyiv Appellation Court, the demographic losses due to the famine amounted to 10 million, with 3.9 million famine deaths, and a 6.1 million birth deficit.

Scholars disagree on the relative importance of natural factors and bad economic policies as causes of the famine and the degree to which the destruction of the Ukrainian peasantry was premeditated on the part of Joseph Stalin. Using Holodomor in reference to the famine emphasizes its man-made aspects, arguing that actions such as rejection of outside aid, confiscation of all household foodstuffs, and restriction of population movement confer intent, defining the famine as genocide; the loss of life has been compared to the Holocaust. If Soviet policies and actions were conclusively documented as intending to eradicate the rise of Ukrainian nationalism, they would fall under the legal definition of genocide. In the absence of absolute documentary proof of intent, scholars have also made the argument that the Holodomor was ultimately a consequence of the economic problems associated with radical economic changes implemented during the period of liquidation of private property and Soviet industrialization.

World War II 1941-1945

In the stages leading to the Second World War, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union raced for Polish

Burned out buildings in Kiev during the Second World War

territory. Armies from both nations invaded Poland, dividing the territory amongst themselves. The two also signed the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, also known as the German-Soviet Nonagression Pact. This was a promise on paper that the Germans and Soviets would not intervene into one another's borders, especially in Poland. The Germans eventually abrigated the pact and invaded the Soviet Union in the summer of 1941 and launched Operation Barbarossa. The Ukrainians at first welcomed the German invaders as liberators, due to their suffering under the brutal Stalinist regime. The Red Army was very unsuccessful in stopping the German juggernaut, and the Ukrainians suffered harsh and brutal military losses to the Germams as they penetrated deep into Soviet territory. The Red Army suffered one of its worst defeats on August 26, 1941. Part of a German encirclement that began on August 23, the entire Southwestern Front of the Red Army was surrounded in Kiev by German soldiers. Despite a fierce attempted resistance, the Soviets were crushed. While many Soviet soldiers escaped, about 616,000 were captured. After the Germans were defeated in Stalingrad, Leningrad and Moscow following a very stubborn resistance from the Soviets, they were continually pushed back by the Soviets. In 1943, the Germans attempted a counterattack in Kiev but were defeated by the Soviets, thus putting Kiev back into Soviet hands. 

Many civilians fell victim to atrocities, forced labor, and even massacres of whole villages in reprisal for attacks against German forces. Of the estimated eleven million Soviet troops who fell in battle against the Germans, about 16% (1.7 million) were ethnic Ukrainians.

During a period of March 1943 to the end of 1944 Ukrainian Insurgent Army committed several massacres on Polish civilian population in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia having every signs of genocide (Massacres of Poles in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia). The death toll numbered up to 100 000, mostly children and women.

In 1944, the Ukrainians were involved in the Soviet offensive to liberate the Yugoslav city of Belgrade from German and Axis occupation. The 3rd Ukrainian Front, along with Bulgarian forces (a former Axis puppet, now defected to the Soviet sphere) were part of the coalition of other Allied armies that liberated Belgrade.

Cold War 1946-1992

During the Cold War, Ukraine continued to exist as a Soviet republic and was a key state.  Over the next decades, the Ukrainian republic not only surpassed pre-war levels of industry and production but also was the spearhead of Soviet power. Ukraine became the centre of Soviet arms industry and high-tech research. The republic was also turned into a Soviet military outpost in the cold war, a territory crowded by military bases packed with the most up-to-date weapons systems. Such an important role resulted in a major influence of the local elite.  The products of the rapidly developed high-tech industry in Ukraine were largely directed for military consumption, similarly to much of the Soviet economy, and the supply and quality of consumer goods remained low compared even to the neighboring countries of the Eastern bloc. A state-regulated system of production and consumption lead to gradual decrease of quality of life and growing "shadowisation" of retail infrastructure as well as of corruption. 

Chernobyl Disaster - April 26, 1986

On Saturday, 26 April 1986 at reactor number four of the Chernobyl plant, near the Ukrainian city of Pripyat,

The ghost city of Pripyat in Ukraine

there was a sudden and unexpected power surge, and when an emergency shutdown was attempted, an exponentially larger spike in power output occurred, which led to a reactor vessel rupture and a series of steam explosions. These events exposed the graphite moderator of the reactor to air, causing it to ignite. The resulting fire sent a plume of highly radioactive fallout into the atmosphere and over an extensive geographical area, including Pripyat. The plume drifted over large parts of the western Soviet Union and Europe. From 1986 to 2000, 350,400 people were evacuated and resettled from the most severely contaminated areas of Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine.

The iconic ferries wheel in Pripyat, popular in many video games

An explosion and fire released large quantities of radioactive particles into the atmosphere, which spread over much of the western USSR and Europe.

The Chernobyl disaster is widely considered to have been the worst nuclear power plant accident in history, and is one of only two classified as a level 7 event (the maximum classification) on the International Nuclear Event Scale (the other being the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011). The battle to contain the contamination and avert a greater catastrophe ultimately involved over 500,000 workers and cost an estimated 18 billion rubles. 31 people died during the accident itself, and long-term effects such as cancers and deformities are still being accounted for.

Independance from the Soviet Union - 1990

On 16 July 1990, the new parliament adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine. The declaration established the principles of the self-determination of the Ukrainian nation, its democracy, political and economic independence, and the priority of Ukrainian law on the Ukrainian territory over Soviet law. In August 1991, a conservative faction among the Communist leaders of the Soviet Union attempted a coup to remove Mikhail Gorbachev and to restore the Communist party's power. After the attempt failed, on 24 August 1991 the Ukrainian parliament adopted the Act of Independence in which the parliament declared Ukraine as an independent democratic state.

The Ukrainian people experienced deeper economic slowdown than some of the other former Soviet Republics. During the recession, Ukraine lost 60% of its GDP from 1991 to 1999, and suffered five-digit inflation rates. Dissatisfied with the economic conditions, as well as the amounts of crime and corruption in Ukraine, Ukrainians protested and organized strikes.

The Ukrainian economy stabilized by the end of the 1990s. A new currency, the hryvnia, was introduced in 1996. Since 2000, the country has enjoyed steady real economic growth averaging about seven percent annually. A new Constitution of Ukraine was adopted under second President Leonid Kuchma in 1996, which turned Ukraine into a semi-presidential republic and established a stable political system. Kuchma was, however, criticised by opponents for corruption, electoral fraud, discouraging free speech and concentrating too much power in his office. He also repeatedly transferred public property into the hands of loyal oligarchs.

Political life inside post-Soviet Ukraine was not easy, due to the political struggle between Russophobic, Russophilic and neutral Ukrainian political groups. In addition, Ukrainians had still dealt with much corruption,

2004 Revolution

In 2004, Viktor Yanukovych, then Prime Minister, was declared the winner of the presidential elections, which had been largely rigged, as the Supreme Court of Ukraine later ruled. The results caused a public outcry in support of the opposition candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, who challenged the outcome of the elections. This resulted in the peaceful "Orange Revolution", bringing Viktor Yushchenko and Yulia Tymoshenko to power, while casting Viktor Yanukovych in opposition.

Yanukovych returned to a position of power in 2006, when he became Prime Minister in the Alliance of National Unity, until snap elections in September 2007 made Tymoshenko Prime Minister again.

Disputes with Russia over debts for natural gas briefly stopped all gas supplies to Ukraine in 2006 and again in 2009, leading to gas shortages in several other European countries.

Viktor Yanukovych was elected President in 2010 with 48% of votes.

2014 Revolution

The Euromaidan protests started in November 2013, when Ukrainian citizens demanded stronger integration with the European Union. The demonstrations were prompted by the refusal to sign an association agreement with the EU, which Yanukovych described as being disadvantageous to Ukraine. Over time, Euromaidan has come to describe a wave of ongoing demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, the scope of which has evolved to include calls for the resignation of President Yanukovych and his government. Violence escalated after 16 January 2014 when the government accepted Bondarenko-Oliynyk laws, also known as Anti-Protest Laws. Anti-government demonstrators occupied buildings in the centre of Kiev, including the Justice Ministry building and riots left 98 dead and thousands injured on Feb 18–20. Due to violent protests on 22 February 2014, Members of Parliament found the president unable to fulfill his duties and exercised 'constitutional powers' to set an election for 25 May to select his replacement.

On March 1st, Russia's parliament approved a request from President Vladimir Putin permitting the deployment Russian troops in Ukraine.

2022 Russian invasion

On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. In what was going to be regarded by the Russians as a quick victory, eventually spread out a prolonged conflict due to stiff and successful Ukrainian resistance. At this point in the history of the Ukrainian people, de-Russification began to fully spearhead, with the government mandating that no geographical places name can be tied to Russia, as well as the destruction of Soviet and Russian monuments. In addition, most of Ukraine's geographical locations are now internationally known by their Ukrainian spelling (for example Kyiv instead of Kiev, Dnipro instead of Dneiper).

The causalities of the war have resulted in catastrophic statistics for both sides, with a large number of Ukrainians falling victim to Russian attacks, or having to flee their homeland altogether. According to Ukrainian government sources, over 30,000 Ukrainians have sustained causalities, and above 24,000 according to the United Nations, but this too includes ethnic Russians living in Ukraine (especially in the disputed regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, home to pro-Russian separatist governments). In spite of these tragic circumstances, the Ukrainian people have found much support from the international community. Kherson, Mikholaiv, Bakhmut and Zaporizhzhia have been the hotbeds of engagement, as well as Donetsk.

Language

Pages of the "Lenten Triodion", written in 1646 by Metropolitan Petro Mohyla - he was the first to write books in Ukrainian

The Ukrainian language belongs to the East Slavic subfamily of the Slavic languages, and is Ukraine's official state language. It is one of the three languages that have descended from the ancient Ruthenian language, with the other two being Belarusian and Rusyn. However, Ukrainian is the most successfully-recovered, largest and active language descended from Ancient Ruthenian (to which the language was actually referred to as Ruthenian at one point). It is a rather well-known language and is the third most-spoken Slavic language. The Ukrainian language is well-known for its well preservation of Old East Slavic, retaining much of its Ruthenian roots. Ukrainian language and culture underwent periods of support, as well as persecution, blossomed during the days of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, although underwent persecution during the Imperial Russian period where Ukrainians were designated as Little Russians. During the days of the Russian Empire it was the second-most spoken language, and during the Soviet days, it was the second most-spoken Slavic language apart from Russian. In spite of receiving a brief period of Soviet support during the early days of the Ukrainian SSR, it again, underwent persecution under the Stalinist regime. There are approximately just above 30,000,000 speakers of the Ukrainian language. After independence from the Soviet Union, Ukrainian language had underwent successful revival, as it had been dwindling in its use due to the overbearing influence of Russian.

Many Ukrainians can still speak Russian, while also an East Slavic language is more distant in spite of the common comparisons, this is due to Ukraine having been part of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union and up until the 2022 invasion, remained heavily influential in Ukraine, be it business, media or entertainment, especially in the big cities of the east and south. Popular poets such as Nikolai Gogol, in spite of being ethnically Ukrainian, wrote extensively in Russian. After the 2014 invasion of Crimea, and the 2022 invasion of Ukraine however, there has been a massive de-Russification pogrom in the country, and all official recognition of Russian have been stripped, through many Ukrainians are still Russophone.

Ukrainian and Russian are both written in the Cyrillic script, however the two variants are differentiated.

Religion

Ukrainian religion is for the most part, dominated by Eastern Christianity. The majority of Ukrainians follow the Eastern Orthodox Church, with the Greek Catholic Church having the second-highest part, both religions are part of Ukrainian spiritual heritage. Within Ukraine herself, the two main Orthodox factions are the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, governed by the Patriarchate of Kyiv, and other controlled by the Moscow Patriarchate, however the latter has had many of its activities banned across Ukrainian cities thanks the 2022 Russian invasion. The Patriarchate of Kyiv became defunct when it merged with the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church to form the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The Orthodox Church of Ukraine was granted independence by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople in 2019, under the leadership of Metropolitan Epiphanius I, which caused the Patriarch of Moscow to split ties with Constantinople. However following a dispute between Epiphanius I and Patriarch Filaret I, the Kyiv Patriarchate again split, and remains an unrecognized faction.

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is the second-largest Christian denomination, mostly inhabiting western Ukraine, due to being under Polish-Lithuanian influence, where many Poles and Roman Catholics also live. It was historically known as the Ruthenian Uniate Church and is also known by other names simply such as the Ukrainian Catholic Church (Ukrainian: Українська Католицька Церква) and Kyivan Catholic Church (Ukrainian: Київська Католицька Церква).

Many Ukrainians are also irreligious, this is due in part from the influences of the Soviet days, where religion was heavily discouraged.

Art

The rushnyk pattern, example from a Ukrainian cloth

Ukrainians have a rich traditional art heritage deeply rooted in Slavic folk customs, and shares similarities with other Slavic peoples, and have a notoriety for further-embracing ancient East Slavic customs. One of the defining and distinguishing of Ukrainian art tradition as their heavy use of textiles and embroidery.

The rushnyk (рушник) is a traditional and decorative cloth, used in a cermonial rites - from birth and death. Made with linen or hemp, it is a rectangular, but is also incorporated in clothing, even the flag of Belarus bears the designs of a rushnyk. Aside from Ukrainians and Belarusians, the rushnyk is also part of Russian art.

The vyshyanka (вишива́нка) is unique to Ukrainians and Belarusians, and is an embroidered clothing, and bears the same importance to both groups as the kilt to Scotts or moccasins to Native Americans. Normally, black, red and white are colors used for vyshyankas, with designs resembling the rushnyk.

For men, traditional dress includes Kozhukh, Kontusz, Żupan and Sharovary. For women, traditional dress includes Vyshyvanka, Kozhushanka, Ochipok for married women, and Ukrainian wreath for unmarried girls.

Ukrainian embroidery varies depending on the region of origin, and the designs have a long history of motifs, compositions, choice of colors, and types of stitches. Use of color is very important and has roots in Ukrainian folklore. Embroidery motifs found in different parts of Ukraine are preserved in the Rushnyk Museum in Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi.

National dress is woven and highly decorated. Weaving with handmade looms is still practiced in the village of Krupove, situated in Rivne Oblast. The village is the birthplace of two famous personalities in the scene of national crafts fabrication. Nina Myhailivna and Uliana Petrivna with international recognition. In order to preserve this traditional knowledge, the village is planning to open a local weaving center, museum, and weaving school.

Pysanky

One of the most well-known of Ukrainian craft outside of embroidery is the pysanka (писанка) or pysnaky in plural, an Easter egg made of wax-resist material that has become a national symbol of Ukraine. The Ukrainian-Canadian community has also erected a statue of a pisanka in Vegreville, Alberta. However, egg-decorating is also a part of traditional Hungarian, Romanian and even Lithuanian culture. Aside from the Easter tradition, Ukrainian pisankas are also said to ward off evil.

Architecture

St. Michael Cathedral in Kiev

Ukrainian architecture is of Orthodox-Slavic influence, but mostly neo-Byzantine with neo-Classical influence from the Imperial Russian era. Ukrainian architecture highly reflects Byanztine, Greek and Russian architecture. Cities across Ukraine are filled with beautiful towering Orthodox cathedrals.

The great churches of the Rus', built after the adoption of Christianity in 988, were the first examples of monumental architecture in the East Slavic lands. The architectural style of the Kievan state, which quickly established itself, was strongly influenced by the Byzantine. Early Eastern Orthodox churches were mainly made of wood, with the simplest form of church becoming known as a cell church. Major cathedrals often featured scores of small domes, which led some art historians to take this as an indication of the appearance of pre-Christian pagan Slavic temples. Several examples of these churches survive to this day, however in the course of the 16th-18th centuries, many were externally rebuilt in the Ukrainian Baroque style (see below). Examples include the grand St. Sophia of Kiev - the year 1017 is the earliest record of foundation laid, Church of the Saviour at Berestove - built from 1113–1125, and the St. Cyril's Church, circa 12th century. All can still be found in the Ukrainian capital. Several buildings were reconstructed during the late-19th century, including the Assumption Cathedral in Volodymyr-Volynskyi, built in 1160 and reconstructed in 1896-1900, the Paraskevi church in Chernihiv, built in 1201 with reconstruction done in the late 1940s, and the Golden gates in Kiev, built in 1037 and reconstructed in 1982. The latter's reconstruction was dismissed by some art and architecture historians as a revivalist fantasy.

Little secular or vernacular architecture of Kievan Rus' has survived.

Cuisine

Chicken Kiev

Food is an important part to the Ukrainian culture. Special foods are used at Easter, as well as Christmas. During Christmas, for example, people prepare kutia, which is a mixture of cooked wheat groats, poppy seeds, honey, and special sweet breads. An average Ukrainian diet consists of fish, cheese, and a variety of sausages. Head cheese is also quite popular in Ukraine, as well as Kolbasa, a type of sausage. Typically bread is a core part of every meal, and must be included for the meal to be "complete." During Christmas, for example, it is the tradition to have a twelve-course meal. Included at Easter are the famous pysanky, which are colored and patterned eggs. Making these eggs is a long process, and they used for display at the center of the table rather than consumed.

Kutia

Ukrainians often toast to good health, linger over their meal, and engage in lively conversation with family and friends. Often they will drink tea (chai), wine, or coffee afterwards with a simple dessert, such as a fruit pastry.

Popular foods in Ukraine include salo, borscht (national soup), sarmale, chicken kiev, pierogi, pilaf, vareniki, pączki, and crêpe.

Pilaf is a rice dish originated from Turkey, that can come in any variety of flavors and toppings. 

Borcsht soup

Borscht, is a very popular soup made with beetroot as the main ingredient. In some countries, tomato is used as the main ingredient, while beetroot acts as a secondary ingredient. Other, non-beet varieties also exist, such as the tomato paste-based orange borscht and green borscht (sorrel soup). Potatoes and cabbage are also standard; some regions have green borscht where cabbage is substituted with green spinach. It is considered a national dish in Ukraine.

Salo is food made with cured slaps of fat back, also popular in Russia and Belarus.

Chicken Kiev (котлета по-київськи) is a popular breaded cutlet dish of boneless chicken breast pounded and rolled around cold garlic butter with herbs, then breaded and either fried or baked, though this dish originated in the Russian Empire of French influence.

Wine and alcoholic drinks are also essential to Ukrainian cuisine, particularly wine.

The korovai (коровай) is a specialty bread, also present in Belarusian, Russian, Bulgarian and Polish cuisines. It is often the bread used in the Slavic "bread and salt" ceremonies, during weddings and other special events. The bread and salt tradition is very common in Slavic cultures, used as a sign of hospitality, goodwill and welcoming towards guests. Often-not, korovai is served on rushnyk cloth.

Notable Ukrainians or People of Ukrainian Origin

Religious figures

Juliana Olshanskaya Юліанія Ольшанська	Eastern Orthodox saint, and one of the Seven Saints of Volhynia, her body was said to have been incorruptible, although she was born of noble origin, she was said to have been highly religious. She is a Saint associated with healing. She however, hails from a noble family of Belarusian and Lithuanian origin.
Josaphat Kuntsevych Йосафат Кунцевич	Monk and Ruthenian Catholic archeparh, and a martry of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, canonized as a Saint after reported miracles, he is one of the most famous martyrs who perished due to anti-Catholic violence, and is a saint within the Ukrainian Catholic Church and Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.
Paisius Velichkovsky Петро Могила	Monk and saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church, who is known in the Slavic world for introducing the staretsdom, he translated a large number of Greek texts into Church Slavonic, namely the Philokalia, and drew large amounts of followers, some famous Russians such as the naval commanders became his personal disciples (and too became a venerated saint, but within the Russian church).
Petro Mohyla Паїсій Величковський	Metropolitan of and Saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church, he ruled as the Metropolitan of Kiev, Galicia and all Rus from 1933 and 1946 and was a leading figure in the history of book-printing in Ukraine especially in terms of religion during an era where Latin and Greek were the liturgical languages, he one of the first to print in the Ukrainian language, developing fundementals for both the Ukrainian and Russian languages, printing Christian texts in Ukrainian and even advocating for sermons to be conducted in Ukrainian, he established a large network of schools around Ukraine such as the Slavonic-Greek-Latin Academy in Vinnytsia.
Theopan Prokopovich Феофан Прокопович	An archbishop and statesman in the Russian Empire, of Ukrainian descent. He elaborated and implemented Peter the Great's reform of the Russian Orthodox Church. One of the founding fathers of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Prokopovich wrote much religious verse and some of the most enduring sermons in the Russian language.
Klymentiy Sheptytsky Климентій Шептицький	Studite monk of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, he is most famous for saving the Jews during the Holocaust and was posthumously awarded the title Righteous Among the Nations by Israel in 1995, he also remained resiliant resisting through Soviet persecution, as well as pressure to submit towards the then pro-Soviet Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Andrey Sheptytsky Андрей Шептицький	Brother of Klymentiy Sheptytsky, a Metropolitan Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, leading a spiritual career that would embolden Greek Catholics during the 20th century, he led and empowered the Greek Catholics through six (or chronologically seven) political regimes that ruled over Ukraine, namely the Austro-Hungarian and Russian Empires, independent Ukrainian republic, Polish, Soviet and Nazi rule. Many institutions in Ukraine bear his name.
Epiphanius I of Ukraine Епіфаній I України	Current primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was granted autocephaly and independence from the Moscow Patriarchate in 2019, he was elected the first primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine when it was granted independence or tomos by the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, and had also served as the Metropolitan Bishop of Pereyaslav and Bila Tserkva of one of the church's predecessors that merged to form the modern united church.

Rulers, Politicians and Heads of State

Daniel of Galicia Данило Галицький	A King of Ruthenia, Prince of Galicia (Halych) (1205–1255), Peremyshl (1211), and Volodymyr (1212–1231). He was crowned by a papal archbishop in Dorohochyn 1253 as the first King of Rus' (1253–1264).
Roxelana Роксолана	Known commonly by other names such as "Haseki Hürrem Sultan" (literally means "The Ruthenian", the legal wife and haseki sultan of Suleiman the Magnificent and the mother of several Ottoman sultans and figures, she was one of the most powerful women in Ottoman history and a prominent figure during the era known as the Sultanate of Women. She achieved power and influenced the politics of the Ottoman Empire through her husband and played an active role in state affairs of the Empire, she was an ethnic Ukrainian
Bohdan Khmelnytsky Богдан Хмельницький	The Hetman (head of state) of the Zaporozhian Host of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (now part of Ukraine). He led an uprising against the Commonwealth and its magnates (1648–1654) which resulted in the creation of a Cossack state. In 1654, he concluded the Treaty of Pereyaslav with the Tsardom of Russia.
Ivan Mazepa Іван Мазепа	Cossack Hetman of the Hetmanate in Left-bank Ukraine, from 1687–1708, the Prince of the Holy Roman Empire. He was famous as a patron of the arts, and also played an important role in the Battle of Poltava where after learning of Peter I's intent to relieve him as acting Hetman of Ukraine and replace him with Alexander Menshikov, he deserted his army and sided with Charles of Sweden. The politicization of this desertion has held a lasting legacy in both Russian and Ukrainian national history.
Symon Petliura Си́мон Петлю́ра	A Ukrainian nationalist, military leader, publicist, writer, journalist, politician who was the statesman of the Ukrainian People's Republic, and national leader who led Ukraine's struggle for independence following the Russian Revolution of 1917 (1918-1921).
Pavlo Skoropadskyi Павло Скоропадський	A Ukrainian Cossack military and Imperial Russian military veteran, who attempted to form a monarchial Ukrainian State becoming the Hetman of Ukraine. He served in the Russo-Japanese War and World War I, and became one of the only monarchists of modern Ukraine.
Mykhailo Hrushevsky Михайло Грушевський	Ukrainian politician and statesman who was also an academician and historian, who was one of the most important leaders of the Ukrainian national revival, as an acamdeician his writing deviated from Russocentric historical point of views of the history of ancient Rus', wrote in the Ukrainian language, he later became the head of the Central Rada of the Ukrainian independent government formed amid the Russian Civil War.
Yevhen Petrushevych Євге́н Петруше́вич	Ukrainian lawyer and politician, who became the president of the Western Ukrainian National Republic, one of the attempted independent Ukrainian states formed after World War I, he continued to live in the Ukrainian SSR.
Grigory Petrovsky Григо́рій Петро́вський	Ukrainian Soviet politician, who is known for his participation in the Treaty on the Creation of the USSR, as well as the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, he also spearheaded Stalin's collectivization and was the leader of the Communist Party of Ukraine until 1938. The city of Dnipro once bore his name, (Dnipropetrovsk) before it was changed as a result of de-Russification due to Ukraine's war with Russia.
Viktor Yushchenko Віктор Ющенко	A Ukrainian politician who served as the third president of Ukraine, he is known for attempting to seriously orient Ukraine towards the west and a hopeful NATO membership, he also had a career in the banking industry and is most famous for being one of the key figures of the Orange Revolution, meant to fight corruption and for further European integration
Yulia Tymoshenko Ю́лія Тимоше́нко	A Ukrainian politician and businesswoman. She co-led the Orange Revolution and was the first female Prime Minister of Ukraine, serving from 24 January to 8 September 2005 and again from 18 December 2007 to 11 March 2010. She is the leader of the All-Ukrainian Union "Fatherland" political party, which received the second most votes in the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election, winning 101 of parliament's 450 seats]

Artists

Hryhorii Skovoroda Григорій Сковорода	A Ukrainian philosopher, poet, teacher and composer who lived in the Russian Empire and who made important contributions to Russian philosophy and culture. He lived and worked in Ukraine and passionately and consciously identified with its people, differentiating them from those of Russia and condemning Russia's interference in his homeland, he also contributed to Russian philosophy and is known as "Russian Socrates"
Dmitry Bortniansky Дмитро Бортнянський	A composer and conductor of the Russian Empire of Ukrainian origin. Bortniansky is best known today for his liturgical works and his prolific contributions to the genre of choral concertos. He was one of the "Golden Three" of his era, along with Artemy Vedel and Maksym Berezovsky.
Ivan Kotliarevsky Іван Котляревський	A Ukrainian writer, poet and playwright, social activist, regarded as the pioneer of modern Ukrainian literature. Kotlyarevsky was a veteran of the Russo-Turkish and Napoleonic Wars, partaking in the Siege of Izmail in the former and organizing the 5th Ukrainian Cossack Regiment in the latter.
Nikolai Gogol Мико́ла Го́голь	A Ukrainian-born Russian dramatist, novelist and short story writer. Considered by his contemporaries one of the preeminent figures of the natural school of Russian literary realism, later critics have found in Gogol's work a fundamentally romantic sensibility, with strains of Surrealism and the grotesque. He is of Polish and Ukrainian Cosasck descent.
Taras Shavchenko Тара́с Шевче́нко	A Ukrainian poet, writer, artist, public and political figure, as well as folklorist and ethnographer. He is also known under the book name Kobzar. That was his most famous literary work, a collection of poems entitled Kobzar. His literary heritage is regarded to be the foundation of modern Ukrainian literature and, to a large extent, the modern Ukrainian language.
Leysa Ukrainka Леся Українка	A Ukrainian poet, one of Ukraine's best-known poets and writers and the foremost woman writer in Ukrainian literature. She also was a political, civil, and female activist.
Ivan Franko Іван Франко	A Ukrainian poet, writer, social and literary critic, journalist, interpreter, economist, political activist, doctor of philosophy, ethnographer, the author of the first detective novels and modern poetry in the Ukrainian language.
Daria Werbowy Дарія Вербова	A Ukrainian Canadian model. She is perhaps best known as a spokesperson for the French beauty brand Lancôme. She was born in Poland to ethnic Ukrainian parents, and holds dual Ukrainian and Canadian citizenship. She ranked No. 6 on Forbes "The World's Top-Earning Models" list, with estimated earnings of $4.5 million between May 2010 and May 2011.
Karina Smirnoff Карiна Смiрнова	A Ukrainian-American professional ballroom dancer. She is best known to the general public as a professional dancer on Dancing with the Stars, she is a five-time U.S. National Champion, World Trophy Champion, and Asian Open Champion. Smirnoff has won the title at the UK Open, is a three-time champion at the US Open, two-time champion at the Asian Open, five-time champion at the Dutch Open, and five-time US National Professional Champion.
Ruslana Lyzhychko Руслана Лижичко	A Ukrainian singer, songwriter, dancer, producer and activist. One of Ukraine's most successful modern-day artists, she is a winner of the World Music Award, Eurovision Song Contest Award and People's Artist of Ukraine. She is the first person from the former Soviet Union to recieve a platinum disc. She was also deeply involved in politics and human rights movement, serving as an MP in the Verkhovna Rada for Oour Ukraine Party, and was part of the Eurmaidan protests, she is of partial Russian descent from her mother.

Military

Ivan Paskevich Іван Паскевич	An imperial Russian military leader of Ukrainian origin (Zaprozhian Cossack). For his victories, he was made Count of Erivan in 1828 and Namestnik of the Kingdom of Poland in 1831. He attained the rank of field marshal in the Russian army, and later in the Prussian and Austrian armies, he was born into a Ukrainian cossack family
Mykhailo Pavlenko Михайло Павленко	Supreme Commander of the Ukrainian Galician Army, as well of the Ukrainian People's Republic (headed by Symon Petliura), he is also an veteran of the Imperial Russian military (as well as his father) and also contains partial Georgian ancestry through his aristocratic mother, during the Second World War he collaborated with Nazi Germany.
Lyudmila Pavlichenko Людмила Павліченко	A Soviet sniper during World War II whose main achievements came during the Battle of Sevastopol. Credited with 309 kills, she is regarded as the most successful female sniper in history, she is a Ukrainian native from Kyiv, after World War II she was a senior researcher for the Soviet Navy.
Victor Kravchenko Ві́ктор Кра́вченко	A Ukrainian defector from the Soviet Union, who is most famous for writing books about life in the Soviet Union, with his most famous being I Chose Freedom. He served as a captain in the Soviet Army before deserting his post, and migrating to the United States.
Stepan Bandera Степа́н Банде́ра	A Ukrainian paramilitary fighter, who was the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, he is most known for his collaboration with the Axis against the Soviet Union during Germany's invasion, and while many Ukrainian nationalists consider him a hero, his collaboration with the Axis has his legacy tarnished as a fascist and a Nazi.
Semyon Tymoshenko Семе́н Тимоше́нко	Soviet military commander of Ukrainian ethnicity, and Marshal of the Soviet Union who was one of the most important Red Army commanders during World War II, he is known for turning the tides for the Soviets during the Winter War, his counteroffensive against the Germans in Rostov gave him international acclaim, he was also the commander of the Northwestern Front during the beginning stages of the Soviet-German war.
Andrey Yeryomenko Андрій Єрьоменко	Soviet general of Ukrainian ethnicity, and Marshal of the Soviet Union was well known for planning the successful defense of Stalingrad, he would also command the Soviet armies that liberated western Hungary and eastern Czechoslovakia in 1945.

Academia and Sciences

Petro Prokopovych Петро Прокопович	Ukrainian beekeeper, who was the inventor of the movable frame hive, and was responsible for making great strides in beekeeping. His most important inventions include the seperate hive frame, queen excluder between brood and honey chambers and was also famous for the "bee beard" model
Ivan Puluj Іва́н Пулю́й	Ukrainian physicist and inventor, who was known for championing an early form of X-rays and medical imaging, unfortunately his works were neglected until the 1920s, he was also a known supporter of Ukrainian cultural awakening, translating Christian works into Ukrainian and supporting the opening of a Ukrainian university in Lviv during Austro-Hungarian rule
Sergei Korolev Сергі́й Корольо́в	A Soviet engineer who was the lead rocket engineer and spacecraft designer in the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the 1950s and 1960s. He is considered by many as the father of practical astronautics. He was born to a Ukrainian mother and a Russian father in the Ukrainian SSR.
Stephen Timoshenko Степан Тимошенко	An engineer from the Russian Empire of Ukrainian ethnicity and later the US reputed to be the father of modern engineering mechanics. A founding member of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Tymoshenko wrote seminal works in the areas of engineering mechanics, elasticity and strength of materials, many of which are still widely used today.

Athletes

Vitali Klitschko Віта́лій Кличко́	A Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer. He is the leader of the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform and a Member of the Ukrainian Parliament. He is the former WBC, WBO and The Ring magazine heavyweight champion and has been conferred as Champion Emeritus by the WBC. Klitschko was known for his powerful punches and durable chin. With an 87.23% knockout percentage rate, he holds the second best knockout-to-fight ratio of any champion in heavyweight boxing history, after Rocky Marciano's 87.76% and is the 8th longest reigning heavyweight champion of all time. He has never been knocked down in any professional boxing bout.
Wladimir Klitschko Володи́мир Кличко́	A Ukrainian former professional boxer, known as one of the best heavyweight champions of all time, he was known for his strategic knock-out power, he reigne 4,382 days a heavyweight champion and held the record for having beaten the most opponents for the heavyweight championship. Along with his brother Vitali, 2004-2005 was an era in heavyweight boxing known as the "Klitscko era".
Andriy Shavchenko Андрі́й Шевче́нко	A former Ukrainian footballer and politician. He is the third-highest goalscorer in Champions League history with 59 goals as of 10 March 2011, behind Filippo Inzaghi (70) and Raúl (77). Shevchenko is ranked as the third top goalscorer in all European competitions with 67 goals.

Sources

|}