General information about Ukraine provided by The Ukrainian National Association (UNA). See also Ukraine: FAQ Plus.

National anthem

Shche Ne Vmerla Ukrayina was published as a patriotic poem in 1863 by Pavlo Chubynsky, a Ukrainian ethnographer and civic leader. The music was written by V. Verbytsky and it was published with the score in 1885. Widely sung throughout Ukraine, it was recognized in 1917 as the anthem of the short-lived Ukrainian National Republic. It was replaced during the soviet era, but again adopted after independence.
[Excerpt from The Hippocrene Language and Travel Guide to Ukraine by Linda Hodges and George Chumak (Hippocrene, 1996).]

Click here for anthem text in Ukrainian and English.
Click to listen to the MIDI file version.

National Holidays of Ukraine

The following is a list of National Holidays celebrated in Ukraine.

Flag and Coat of Arms

Click to find out about the origins of the Ukrainian flag.
Click to find out about the Ukrainian Coat of Arms, the trident.

Click for a short summary of the history of Ukraine. See also the General Information section.

Origin of Kyiv

For the "Legend of the Founding of Kyiv 482 A.D." please check out Andrew Gregorovich's article on InfoUkes.

From Ukraine: A History, by Orest Subtelny, pg. 25.

"Scholars estimate that as early as the 6th-7th centuries, the Polianians, led by their semilegendary leader, Kyi, formed a strong tribal confederation that lorded over its neighbors and maintained close contacts with Byzantium. According to legend, it was Kyi, together with his brothers, Shchek and Khoriv, and sister, Lebid, who founded Kiev and gave it its name. Murky though our knowledge of this period is, it can be assumed that the East Slavs in general and the Polianians in particular were well on their way to laying the foundation for the vast political, commercial, and cultural entity that would be called Kievan Rus'."

There appears to some confusion on what the proper spelling is of the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv. It appears that the two most commonly used spellings are "Kiev" and "Kyiv". The topic of which spelling is correct is explored by Andrew Gregorovich in this article.

An addtitional short article by Andrew Gregorovich discusses the Cyrillic spelling of Kyiv in Old and Modern Ukrainian.

The question whether it is "politically correct" or more accurately "culturally correct" to refer to Ukraine as "Ukraine" or "the Ukraine" is explored by Andrew Gregorovich in this article. For those of you who want the answer right away, "the Ukraine" is incorrect while "Ukraine" is correct.

Taras Shevchenko is regarded as the national bard of Ukraine. Read a short biography here. A sample of his poetry is available and his art work.

Document Information

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Originally Composed: Friday February 28th, 1997.
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