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Russians in Ukraine form the largest minority in that country, and the community forms the largest single Russian diaspora in the world. In the 2001 Ukrainian census, 8,334,100 identified themselves as ethnic Russians (17.3% of the total population)), thereby making up the largest diaspora of the ethnic Russian population.

Geography

Historically the majority of ethnic Russian population is concentrated in the east and south-east of the country. Many urban areas in other parts of Ukraine have a sizeable Russian population. In all oblasts of the country, with the exception of Crimea ethnic Russians constitute a minority. Procentage of Russian population in regions tend to go higher further east in the country.

Historic Background

Early history

The ancestors of ethnic group of Russians - Goriuns resided in Putyvl region (what is modern northern Ukraine) in the times of of from the times of ancient Slavs. New waves of Russian settlers came to the empty lands of Slobozhanschyna that the Russian state gained from the Tartars in 15—17 centuries.

In 1599 tsar Boris Godunov ordered to build Tsareborisov on the banks of Oskol River, the first city and the first fortress of Eastern Ukraine. To defend the terrains from Tatars` raid the Russians built the Belgorod defensive line (1635-1658), and the Ukrainians started fleding under its defense.

At the end of the 18th century, the Russian Empire captured large uninhabited steppe territories from the former Crimean Khanate. In order to keep them, a systematic colonization of land in what became known as New Russia (mainly Crimea, Taurida and around Odessa) began. Migrants from many ethnic groups (predominantly Ukrainians and Russians from Russia proper) came to this area. At the same time the discovery of coal in the Donets Basin also began a large industrialization and an influx of workers from other parts of the Russian Empire.

Nearly all major cities of the south and easter Ukraine were established in this period: Aleksandrovsk (now Zaporizhia; 1770), Yekaterinoslav (now Dnipropetrovsk; 1776), Kherson and Mariupol (1778), Sevastopol (1783), Simferopol and Melitopol (1784), Nikolayev (Mykolaiv; 1789), Odessa (1794), Lugansk (Luhansk; foundation of Luhansk plant in 1795).

Both Russians and Ukrainians made the bulk of the migrants — 31.8% and 42.0 % respectively. The population eventually became intermixed, and in the policy of Russification, the Russian identity dominated over mixed families and communities. The Russian Empire officially regarded Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians as Little, Great and White Russians, which, according to the Russian authorities belonged to a single Russian nation.

In the beginning of the 20th century the Russians were the largest ethnic group in the following cities: Kiev (54,2 %), Kharkiv (63,1 %), Odessa (49,09 %), Mykolaiv (66,33 %), Mariupol (63,22 %), Luhansk (68,16 %), Berdiansk (66,05 %), Kherson (47,21 %), Melitopol (42,8 %), Dnipropetrovsk (41,78 %), Kirovohrad (34,64 %), Pavlohrad (34,36 %), Simferopol (45,64 %), Feodisiya (46,84 %), Yalta (66,17 %), Kerch (57,8 %), Sevastopol (63,46 %), Chuhuiv (86 %).

October Revolution and Ukrainian SSR

Ukraine was a battleground during the Russian Civil War (1918-1922). Although macroscopically Ukraine was fought over by several powers (Austro-Hungary, Germany, Poland); Ukrainian People's Republic, the Anarchist Black Army as well as the Red Army and the White Army. The population of New Russia by large allied themselves only with the latter two. A large portion of men that made up the armies of Denikin and Wrangel came from New Russian volunteers (see Volunteer Army) . Nevertheless, most of the people in New Russia supported the Red Army and a big part supported the Black Army, because most of the residents of the area being Peasants and Workers, classes that opposed to the Tsar's regime.

The first census of the Russian Empire, conducted in 1897, showed extensive usage (and in some cases dominance) of the Ukrainian language (termed by imperial authorities as Little Russian) in the nine south-western Governorates and the Kuban Oblast. Thus when the Central Rada officials were oulining the future borders of the new Ukrainian state they took the results of the census in regards to the language and religion as determining factors. The ethnographic borders of Ukraine thus turned out to be almost twice as large as the original Cossack Hetmanate incorporated into Russia in the 17th century. .

The October Revolution also found its echo amongst the extensive working class and several Soviet Republics were formed by Bolsheviks of Ukraine: Ukainian People's Socialist Republic, Soviet Socialist Republic of Taurida, Odessa Soviet Republic and the Donetsk-Krivoy Rog Republic.

The Bolshevik government in Petrograd and later in Moscow supported military intervention against the Ukrainian People's Republic, which at different periods controlled most of the territory of the present-day Ukraine with the exception of Crimea. Althought there were differencies between Ukrainian Bolsheviks initially, which resulted in proclamation of several Soviet Republics in 1917, later, due in large part to pressure from Lenin and other Bolshevik leaders, one Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed. The UkSSR was de jure independent until the formation of the USSR in 1922 and survived until the break up of the Soviet Union in 1991. Lenin insisted that ignoring the national question in Ukraine was dangerous to their support among Ukrainian population and thus borders of the new UkSSR were established to the extent that the Ukrainian People's Republic was claiming in 1918. The new borders completely included New Russia, Donbas and other neighbouring provinces, which contained substantial number of ethnic Russians.

Early Soviet times

After the Red Army victory in 1923, Stalin identified two threats to the still weak Soviet state: Great Power Chauvinism (Russian chauvinism) and separatist nationalism.

In Ukraine's case, both threats came, respectfully, from the south and the east, and the traditional Ukrainian centre and west. This initiated a policy of Ukrainization, to simultaneously break the remains of the Russian nationalist sentiment and to gain favour of the Ukrainian population, thus recognizing their rights and their dominance of the republic.

Ukrainian language was mandatory for most jobs, and its teaching became compulsory in every school. By 1930 there were only three Russian language newspapers being printed in Ukraine and in places like Odessa where ethnic Ukrainian pupils made up only a third of school children, all schools taught in Ukrainian.

By the mid-1930s attitudes towards the policy of Ukrainisation had changed within the Soviet leadership. In 1933 when Stalin declared local natioinalism (not Russian chauvinism) was the main threat to Soviet unity. Consequently, a lot of changes introduced during the Ukrainisation period were reversed, Russian language schools, libraries and newspapers were restored and even increased in number. During this period Russian language was introduced in areas with predominantly Ukrainian population, and the amount of Russian language publications and periodicals was increased. The Russian Orthodox church remained the only Orthodox church allowed by the authorities to function in Ukraine.

Latter Soviet times

The territory of Ukraine was a battlefield during the World War II, and its population, including Russians, significantly decreased. The infrastructure was heavily damaged and it required human and capital resources to be rebuilt. A large portion of the wave of new migrants to industrialize, integrate and Sovietize these territories were ethnic Russians who mostly settled around industrial centers and military garrisons.

The artificial famine, the rapid industrialization, and the rebuilding of the World War II destruction prompted a new wave of migrants from the rest of the Soviet Union to settle in the Southern and Eastern Ukraine, thus increasing the proportion of the Russian speaking population.

Near the end of War, the entire population of Crimean Tatars (numbering up to a quarter of a million people) was expelled from their homeland in Crimea to Central Asia, under accusations of collaborations with Germans. After the ethnic cleansing a new influx of Russian and Ukrainian settlers started, thus increasing the ethnic Russian population of Crimea from 47.7% in 1937 to 61.6% in 1993; in the same time the ethnic Ukrainian population doubled from 12.8% in 1937 to 23.6%

In the majority of government offices and schools the preference was given to the Russian language, while the Ukrainian language also had government support and was taught in all schools in the Republic until the collapse of the Soviet Union. The prevelence of the Russian language in public life was so high that 1979 census showed that only one third of ethnic Russians spoke the Ukrainian language fluently. The policy of Russification continued unabated until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

In 1954, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued the decree on the transfer of the Crimean oblast from Russian SFSR to Ukrainian SSR. This action increased the ethnic Russian population of Ukraine by almost a million people. Some Russian politicians consider the transfer to be controversial. Controversies and legality of the transfer remained a sore point in relations between Ukraine and Russia for a few years, and in particular between the internal politics in Crimea. However, in a 1997 treaty between the Russian Federation and Ukraine, Russia recognized Ukraine's borders, and accepted Ukraine's sovereignty over Crimea.

Modern Ukraine

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union Ukraine became an independent state. The independence was supported by the referendum in all regions of Ukrainian SSR, including in those featuring large Russian population. Presently many ethnic Russians in Ukraine feel pressured, particularly by the new Ukrainization programme. The return of Crimean Tatars has resulted in several high-profile clashes over land ownership and employment rights . Also one of the most controversial issues was the reduction of schools with Russian language of education. In 1989 there were 4633 of them, and by 2001 this fell to 2001 or 11.8% of the total in the country. A significant number of Russian schools were converted into mixed schools in which there are classes with both Russian and Ukrainian language of education. By 2007, 20% of pupils in public schools studied in Russian classes. Some regions such as Rivne Oblast have no Russian schools left, but only Russian classes in the mixed Russian-Ukrainian schools. In the parliament (13 Convocation) 19.3% were Russians. Russian language in Ukraine dominates in certain areas — it is the language of most of Ukraine’s leading print newspapers.

While there are concerns over the status of the Russian language in the country, it continues to dominates in several regions and in nation's business, foreign movie translations, in leading Ukrainian magazines and other printed media. Different polls showed different attitude to the status of the Russian language, however, they also suggest that the language issue is seen as being quite unimportant by many citizens of Ukraine. On a cross-national survey involving ranking 30 important political issues, the legal status of the Russian language was ranked 26th, with only 8% of respondents (concentrated primarily in Crimea and Donetsk) feeling that this was an important issue.

Demographics

Trends

According to 2001 census the Russians are the largest ethnic group in Sevastopol (71,7 %) and Autonomous republic of Crimea (58 %), and also in some cities and raions: Donetsk (48,2 %), Makiyivka (50,8 %, Donetsk Oblast), Ternivka (52,9 %, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast), Krasnodon (63,3 %), Sverdlovsk (58,7 %), Stakhanov (50,1 %) Krasnodonskyi (51,7 %) and Stanychno-Luhanskyi (61,1 %) raions of Luhansk Oblast, Izmail (43,7 %, Odessa oblast), Putyvlskyi Raion (51,6 %, Sumy Oblast).Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page).

The Russian population was also hit by the factors that affected all the population of Ukraine, such as low birth rate and high death rate.

2001 census showed that 95.9 % of Russian consider the Russian languge to be native for them, 3.9 % named the Ukrainian to be their native language. The majority, 59.6 % of Ukrainian Russians were born in Ukraine. They constitute 22.4 % of all urban population and 6.9 % of rural population in the country. Women are 55.1 % of all Russians, men are 44.9 %. An average Russian in Ukraine have an age of 41.9 years. The imbalance in sexual and age structure intensifies in western and central regions. In these regions the Russians are concentrated in important administative, industrial and recreational centers, especially in the centers of oblast.

Politics

In several of Ukraine's elections, political parties that call for closer ties with Russia received higher percentage of votes in the areas, where Russian-speaking population predominate. Such parties like the Party of Regions, Communist Party of Ukraine and the Progressive Socialist Party are particularly popular in Crimea, Southern and Southeastern regions of Ukraine.

An analysis showed that "the percentage of the votes for Yushchenko and Yanukovych in 2004, as well as those for the orange and the white-blue in 2006, are mostly tightly linked... most of all, with the portion of the mono-ethnical Ukrainians and the bi-ethnical Russain-Ukrainians among the voters".

Culture

See also: Russian language in Ukraine

Famous Russians in Ukraine (from Ukraine)

See also

• Russian language in Ukraine
• Demographics of Ukraine

Footnotes and citations

1. "Results / General results of the census / National composition of population". 2001 Ukrainian Census. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
2. F.D. Klimchuk, About ethnoliguistic history of Left Bank of Dnieper (in conection to the ethnogenesis of Goriuns). Published in "Goriuns: history, language, culture" Proceedings of Internatinal scientific conferenc, (Institute of Linguistics, Russian Academy of Sciences, February 13, 2004)
3. ^ Russians in Ukraine
4. Дністрянський М.С. Етнополітична географія України. Лівів Літопис, видавництво ЛНУ імені Івана Франка, 2006, page 342 isbn = 966-700760-4
5. 1897 Census on Demoscope.ru Retrieved on 20th May 2007.
6. Den - Imperia i my, by Stanislav Kulchitsky, Vol. 9, 26 Jan. 2006. Retrieved on 19 March 2007.
7. ^ Ukraine: A History. Subtelny, Orest University of Toronto Press 2000, ISBN 0-8020-8390-0, 600
8. Dzerkalo Tyzhnya - Donetsk-Krivoy Rog Republic — illusions and practicals of nationalism, by Valeriy Soldatenko, 10 Dec. 2004. Retrieved on 19 March 2007.
9. "National Factors in Party and State Affairs -- Theses for the Twelfth Congress of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks), Approved by the Central Committee of the Party," URL
10. For more information, see Ukrainization in the UkSSR (1923-1931)
11. For more information see Russification
12. Терлюк І.Я. Росіяни західних областей України (1944—1996 р.р.) (Етносоціологічне дослідження). — Львів: Центр Європи, 1997.- С.25.
13. The Stalinist Penal System: A Statistical History of Soviet Repression and Terror
14. Ethnic Cleansing in the USSR, 1937-1949
15. Directory of resources on minority human rights and related problems of the transition period in Eastern and Central Europe. Demographic Balance and Migration Processes in Crimea. Retrieved June 3, 2007
16. Our Security Predicament, Vladimir P. Lukin, Foreign Policy, No. 88 (Autumn, 1992), pp. 57-75
17. http://www.podrobnosti.ua/society/2006/12/04/373924.html
18. http://www.regnum.ru/news/749712.html
19. "Tatars push to regain their historic lands in Crimea". Today's Zaman. 2006. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
20. A.Dokurcheva, E.Roberova, The use of Russian language in education in CIS and the Baltics.
21. Retrieved on 6th June 2007
22. Как соблюдается в Украине языковая Хартия?
23. http://www.nbuv.gov.ua/Articles/Kultnar/knp60_3/knp60t3_6-9.pdf
24. http://apopok.narod.ru/business.html
25. "TOLERANCE REDUCES NEED FOR RUSSIAN LANGUAGE LAW IN UKRAINE". Eurasia today. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
26. Громадський рух — Не будь байдужим. Ще не вмерла Україна ... круглий стіл.
27. Рождаемость в Украине самая низкая в Европе, Demoscope.ru, April 16-29, 2007 Template:Ru icon
28. Дністрянський М.С. Етнополітична географія України. Лівів, Літопис, видавництво ЛНУ імені Івана Франка, 2006, page 261 isbn = 966-700760-4
29. ^ Дністрянський М.С. Етнополітична географія України. Лівів, Літопис, видавництво ЛНУ імені Івана Франка, 2006, page 259 isbn = 966-700760-4
30. Some aspects of the social and political situation in Ukraine (2004-2006 elections)

External links

• Russian community in Ukraine Template:Ru icon
• Russian movement in Ukraine Template:Ru icon
• Russian Donbass Template:Ru icon

• Ethnic groups in Ukraine
• Russian diaspora