A presentation about what every foreigner should know about Ukraine

1. UKRAINE
What every foreigner needs
to know

2. UKRAINE: AN INTRODUCTION
Ukraine is a beautiful
country with a rich
culture, friendly people,
and unique landscape.
The National Flag
Symbol of
Ukraine: Tryzub
(trident
[Тризуб])

3. WHERE IS UKRAINE?
• Located in Eastern Europe,
bordering the Black Sea,
between Poland, Romania,
and Moldova in the west
and Russia in the east
• Ukraine is slightly smaller
than the state of Texas

4. NATIONALITIES AND
POPULATION
•Population: 44,573,205 (July 2013)
•People native to Ukraine are known as Ukrainians. The
country is also host to a range of minorities including
Russian, Belarusian, Moldovan, Crimean Tatar, Romani,
and Jewish
Ethnic Ukrainians
Crimean Tatars
Ukrainia
n
Hasidic
Jews

5. RELIGI
ON
•Interestingly, the
majority of the
population identifies as
atheist or without
religion.
•This is largely due to
the former Soviet
Union’s ban on
organized religion and
policy of teaching
atheism in schools.
•The most
common
religion in
Ukraine is
Orthodox
Christianity
Saint Andrew's Church of Kiev

6. PRESIDENT
The current
president of Ukraine
is Viktor Yanukovych
(Янукович Віктор
Федорович) who
has
held this position
since February 25,
2010

7. WEATHER AND CLIMATE
•Ukraine has a wide range of
weather patterns which
occur according to the
season:
owindy and rainy in spring
and fall
owinters vary from cool
along the Black Sea to
cold farther inland (Ukraine
is famous for it’s harsh
winters)
osummers are warm across
the greater part of the
country, and it is hot in the
south.

8. NOTABLE PLACES
Ukraine has a number of
breathtaking cities, buildings,
and landscapes

9. •The metropolitan features beautiful
architecture exemplified through
impressive churches such as the
Holy Sophia Cathedral and Kiev
Pechersk Lavra.
•Museums also make interesting
destinations with famous ones
including; The Museum of the Great
Patriotic War which commemorates
Ukraine’s participation in World War
II; and for fans of Eastern European
art there is The National Art Museum
of Ukraine.
•Monuments and landmarks in the
country’s capitol include The Gold
Gates of Kiev and The M. M.
Gryshko National Botanical Garden.
CAPIT
AL
•The capitol of Ukraine is Kiev
(sometimes written as Kyiv) (Київ)
and is also the country’s largest city.

10. HOLY SOPHIA CATHEDRAL
(СОФІЙСЬКИЙ СОБОР)
The Bell Tower
One of the city’s best known landmarks which
serves as a beautiful monument with
breathtaking religious artwork inside as well as a
museum.
The inside of the
expansive cathedral

11. • also known as the Kiev Monastery of the Caves, is a historic Orthodox Christian
monastery.
• contains numerous architectural monuments, ranging from bell towers to cathedrals to
underground cave systems and strong stone fortification walls
Inside the caves of Pechersk
Lavra
Kiev Pechersk Lavra (Києво-Печерська
лавра)

12. THE MUSEUM OF THE GREAT
PATRIOTIC WAR (НАЦІОНАЛЬНИЙ МУЗЕЙ ІСТОРІЇ
ВЕЛИКОЇ ВІТЧИЗНЯНОЇ ВІЙНИ 1941-1945 РОКІВ)
•The Ukrainian State Museum
of the Great Patriotic War of
1941-1945 was established
in commemoration of 30th
anniversary of Ukraine's
liberation from the Nazi
invaders on Pechersk hills in
the former Klovsky Palace on
17 October 1974.
•one of the largest museums
in Ukraine (over 300
thousand exhibits) centered
around the now famous 62meter tall Motherland statue,
which has become one of the
best recognized landmarks of
Kiev

13. Archangel. Ternopil
Region
Artist: Anonymous
Mid-18th century
A Girl with Apples
Artist: Oksana Pavlenko
A Kiss
Artist: Vsevolod Maksymovych
1910-1914
A Chaplet Divination Artist: Ivan Sokolov 1890
The National
Art Museum of
Ukraine
(Національний
Художній Музей
• The current
exhibition
України)
includes over
20 thousand
pieces from
Ukrainian,
Russian, and
international
artists

14. THE GOLD GATES
OF KIEV (ЗОЛОТІ
ВОРОТА)
•a major landmark of Ancient
Kiev and historic gateway in
the olden city fortress
•serves as a museum and
can be found on the corner
of Volodymyr street and
Yaroslaviv Val Street
(Yaroslav's Moat)

15. THE M. M. GRYSHKO NATIONAL
BOTAGARDEN NICAL (НАЦІОНАЛЬНИЙ
БОТАНІЧНИЙ САД ІМ. М.М. ГРИШКА)
• The garden
has
hothouses,
conservatorie
s,
greenhouses
and rosaries
•
• covers 1.3 km² (120 hectares) and contains
13,000 types of trees, shrubs, flowers and other
plants from all over the world
It has many
coniferous trees
and honey
locusts, and
flowers such as
peonies, roses,
magnolias, and
bushes including
lilacs

16. BEYOND THE CAPITAL
Beyond Kiev, Ukraine offers a wide
range of beautiful places to visit.
Visitors are recommended to see the
peninsula Crimea located on the
Black Sea and the port city of Odessa
in the south; The Carpathian
Mountains and the city of Lviv in the
west.

17. CRIMEA (КРИМ) & THE
BLACK SEA (ЧОРНЕ
МОРЕ)
•
•
possesses significant historical and natural resources and is a region
where it is possible to find practically any type of landscape; mountain
range, plateau, grassland, and caves
serves as a destination full of restaurants, resorts, and fishing

18. ODESSA
СА) : THE
(
PORT CITY
• a major seaport
and transportation
hub located on the
northwestern shore
of the Black Sea
• famous as being
the unofficial “party
city” of Ukraine,
Odessa has an
energetic night life
scene

19. CARPATHIAN
OUNTAINS (КАРПАТИ)
•consist of a chain of mountain ranges
that stretch in an arc from the Czech
Republic (3%) in the northwest through
Slovakia (17%), Poland (10%), Hungary
(4%) and Ukraine (11%) to Romania
(53%) in the east and on to the Iron
Gates on the River Danube between
Romania and Serbia (2%) in the south
•The highest range within the
Carpathians is the Tatras, on the border
of Poland and Slovakia, where the
highest peaks exceed 2,600 m (8,530 ft).
•Ukraine contains the central portion of
the mountains
•popular destination for ski lovers
a small but growing
population of
bears, wolves, and
lynx exist on the
mountains

20. Lviv (Львів): The "Little
Paris of Ukraine"
• regarded as one of the main cultural centres of
Ukraine
• evidence of the city’s cultural richness include a large
number of theaters, concert halls, creative unions,
and also high number of many artistic activities (more
than 100 festivals annually, 60 museums, 10 theaters)
• it’s old buildings and cobblestone roads have survived
Soviet and Nazi occupations during World War II
largely unscathed
The city
celebrates a
special
chocolate
holiday on
the 8th of
March. The
festivities
include:
• a creation of the longest chocolate
cake
• master classes on cooking of
chocolate
• tasting of chocolate
• factory masterpieces «sculptures
with chocolate»
• “Chocolate Market Square” with real
chocolate fountains
• children games and competitions
• performances of orchestra “Halytski
Surmy”
• musical groups
• theatrical groups
Features Western European
style architecture
The city is famous for it’s coffee
and chocolate

21. THE CULTURE AND
PEOPLE OF UKRAINE
With it’s rich and extensive
history, Ukraine has
developed a unique flavor
across all spheres of life

22. UKRAINIAN DANCE
(УКРАЇНСЬКИЙ •ТAНEЦЬ) is
Ukrainian Dance
•
•
•
Kolomyjka (кoлoмийкa): folk dance
danced as a tradition on certain
holidays, during festivities, or simply for
fun
In Ukraine's rural west, it is a popular
dance for weddings
often described as
energetic, fastpaced, and
entertaining
• it is a characteristic
example of
Ukrainian culture
instantly recognized
and highly
appreciated
throughout the
world
•
•
Hopak (
к): the national dance of Ukraine
The name hopak is derived from the verb
hopaty (Ukrainian: гопати) which means "to
jump," as well as the corresponding
exclamation, “hop!” (Ukrainian: гоп) which
can be uttered during a jump as an
expression of surprise or amazement

23. ники)
Syrniki (сирники)
Holubtsi (голубці)
Paska (Паска)
UKRAINIAN
CUISINE
Kholodets (Холодець)
Varenyky (
(УКРАЇНСЬКА КУХНЯ)
Olivye (Олів'є)
• The food of
Ukraine is a
hallmark of
the culture.
• There are a
wide array of
dishes with
the most
famous
being
Borsch
(борщ), a
soup made
from beets,
potatoes,
cabbage,
and other
ingredients.

24. UKRAINIAN LITERATURE: TARAS
SHEVCHENKO (
С
РОВИЧ
НКО)
a Ukrainian poet and artist
Ukrainians are extremely proud of this
historical figure, often naming
buildings, streets, and other structures
after him
There is a Shevchenko National
Prize, also known as the Ukrainian
State literary and artistic award
His writings formed the foundation for
the modern Ukrainian literature to a
degree that he is also considered the
founder of the modern written
Ukrainian language
Testament (Zapovit)
(first stanza)
When I am dead, bury
me
In my beloved Ukraine,
My tomb upon a grave
mound high
Amid the spreading
plain,
So that the fields, the
boundless steppes,
The Dnieper's plunging
shore
My eyes could see, my
ears could hear
The mighty river roar.
Заповіт
Як умру, то
поховайте
Мене на
могилі,
Серед степу
широкого,
На Вкраїні
милій,
Щоб лани
широкополі,
І Дніпро, і кручі
Було видно,
було чути,
Як реве
ревучий.

25. Folk embroidery is symbolic and
connected with a great number of:
UKRAINIAN
EMBROIDERY
(ВИШИВКА)
•has a rich history in Ukraine,
and has long appeared in
Ukrainian folk dress as well as
playing a part in traditional
Ukrainian weddings and other
celebrations
beliefs regarding
protection and fertility
myths
superstitions

26. • Football (футбол) is the most popular sport in Ukraine
• Major cities have their own football teams or clubs, as they’re more commonly
known
• The most famous city rivalry exists between Kiev’s Dynamo Kiev team (left) and
Donetsk’s Shakhtar Donetsk (right)
• The national team has participated in UEFA competitions for several years and
the country hosted the 2012 UEFA European Championship, which took place in
the cities of Kiev, Kharkiv, Donestk, and Lviv
FOOTBALL: IT’S A BIG
DEAL HERE
Huge crowds swarm to football
stadiums to root for their favorite
teams

27. UNIQUE HOLIDAYS ( СВЯТО) IN
UKRAINE
Other than the typical holidays that are
•
celebrated globally (Christmas, New Year’s,
etc.), Ukraine features some uniquely regional
celebrations
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ivan Kupala Day (Іван Купала) takes place on the night between 6 and 7 July
An interesting feature of this holiday involves Ukrainians believing that as they
jumped over a fire, they get rid of illnesses, evil and barrenness
Ukrainian men and women may also jump over the fire holding each other hands if
they are in love, a practice which is believed to lead to a happy marriage
Epiphany Day (Хрещення День) is celebrated on the 19th of
January
Ukrainians cut a cross in the ice, put wooden cross vertically and
pour beet drink upon it so that it turns red, and decorates it with
flowers and pine branches
Epiphany water was considered to be universal medicine from all
the diseases
If a person dunks themselves in the water, it is believed that they
will be healthy for the rest of the year

28. THAT’S ALL, FOLKS!
Please come and visit this fascinating country! Ukraine welcomes you.