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Ukraine emerges as the concept of a nation, and the Ukrainians as a nationality, with the Ukrainian National Revival in the mid-18th century, in the wake of the peasant revolt of 1768/1769 and the eventual partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
- Overview
- Learn about the history of Ukraine and its relationship with Russia
Ukraine, Country, eastern Europe. Area: 233,032 sq mi (603,549 sq km). Population: (2024 est.) 42,787,000. Capital: Kyiv (Kiev). Ukrainians make up more than three-fourths of the population of Ukraine; there is a significant minority of Russians. Languages: Ukrainian (official), Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian, Belarusian, Bulgarian. Religions: Christianity (mostly Eastern Orthodox; also other Christians, Roman Catholic, Protestant), Islam. Currency: hryvnya.
Ukraine consists of level plains and the Carpathian Mountains, which extend through the western region for more than 150 mi (240 km). The Dnieper (Dnipro), Southern Buh (Pivdennyy Buh), Donets, and Dniester (Dnistro) are the major rivers. The Donets Basin in the east-central region is one of the major heavy-industrial and mining-metallurgical complexes of Europe. There iron ore and coal are mined, and natural gas, petroleum, iron, and steel are produced. Ukraine is a major producer of winter wheat and sugar beets.
Ukraine is a unitary multiparty republic with one legislative body; its head of state is the president, and the head of government is the prime minister.
Different parts of the area that is today Ukraine were invaded and occupied in the 1st millennium bce by the Cimmerians, Scythians, and Sarmatians and in the 1st millennium ce by the Goths, Huns, Bulgars, Avars, Khazars, and Magyars (Hungarians). Slavic tribes settled there after the 4th century. Kyiv was the chief town. The Mongol conquest in the mid-13th century decisively ended Kyivan power.
From the 14th to the 18th century, portions of Ukraine were ruled by Lithuania, Poland, and Russia. In addition, Cossacks controlled a largely self-governing territory known as the Hetmanate. Most of Ukraine fell to Russian rule in the 18th century.
In the aftermath of World War I and the Russian Revolution of 1917, most of the Ukrainian region became a republic of the Soviet Union, though parts of western Ukraine were divided between Poland, Romania, and Czechoslovakia. Ukraine suffered a severe famine, called the Holodomor, in 1932–33 under Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Overrun by Axis armies in 1941 during World War II, Ukraine was further devastated before being retaken by the Soviets in 1944. By the end of the war, the borders of the Ukrainian S.S.R. had been redrawn to include the western Ukrainian territories.
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History of Ukraine, a survey of the important events and people in the history of Ukraine from ancient times to the present. From prehistoric times, migration and settlement patterns in the territories of present-day Ukraine varied fundamentally along the lines of three geographic zones.
Ukraine - Soviet Union, Independence, Revolution: From prehistoric times, migration and settlement patterns in the territories of present-day Ukraine varied fundamentally along the lines of three geographic zones.
Feb 12, 2022 · A timeline of Ukraine's history Since breaking from the Soviet Union, Ukraine has wavered between the influences of Moscow and the West, surviving scandal and conflict with its democracy...
- Becky Sullivan
Mar 8, 2022 · Ukraine never had a tradition of genuine statehood. Modern Ukraine was entirely created by Russia. That claim ignores the centuries of history through which modern Ukraine took shape. It...
Feb 25, 2022 · The real and imagined history of Ukraine. Vladimir Putin says Ukraine isn’t a country. Yale historian Timothy Synder explains why he’s wrong.
