The National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War is here, which offers both indoor and outdoor displays of military history and equipment surrounded by verdant hills overlooking the Dnieper river. The most popular songs are “How not to love you, Kyiv of mine?” and “Kyiv Waltz”. Renowned Ukrainian composer Oleksandr Bilash wrote an operetta called “Legend of Kyiv”.
Cityscape
The city is close to the mouth of the Desna River and the Kyiv Reservoir in the north, and the Kaniv Reservoir in the south. Both the Dnieper and Desna rivers are navigable at Kyiv, although regulated by the reservoir shipping locks and limited by winter freeze-over. The city boomed again during the years of Soviet industrialization as its population grew rapidly and many industrial giants were established, some of which exist today. It connects the historic Uppertown, and the lower commercial neighborhood of Podil through the steep Saint Volodymyr Hill overseeing the Dnieper River. Under Oleksandr Omelchenko (mayor from 1999 to 2006), there were further plans for the merger of some districts and revision of their boundaries, and the total number of districts had been planned to be decreased from 10 to 7. With the election of the new mayor-elect (Leonid Chernovetskyi) in 2006, these plans were shelved.
- Presently, only one rail bridge out of two is available for intense train traffic.
- The national government has delegated responsibility for water and sanitation services to local authorities.[157] Kyivvodokanal [uk] is a private joint-stock company that provides such services to Kyiv.
- The medical faculty of Saint Vladimir University, separated into an independent institution in 1919–1921 during the Soviet period, became the Bogomolets National Medical University in 1995.
- (Shevchenko worked as a field researcher and editor for the geography department).
- Kyiv retained through centuries its cultural importance and even at times of relative decay, it remained the centre of primary importance of Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
University education
The city suffered significant destruction during World War II but quickly recovered in the postwar years, remaining the Soviet Union’s third-largest city. It corresponds to the Semitic sin “tooth.” The Greek treatment of the sibilants that occur in the Semitic alphabet is somewhat complicated. The Semitic samech appears in Greek as Ξ (xi) with the value in early times of /ss/, later and more generally of /x/ or /ks/. The name samech, however, which through its Aramaic form became in Greek Σ (sigma), was applied to the letter that corresponded to Semitic sin and stood for /s/. Semitic ssade appears in the early alphabets of Thera and Corinth in a form that represents /s/.
Economy
One of Kyiv’s widely recognized modern landmarks is the highly visible giant Mother Ukraine statue made of titanium standing at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War on the Right bank of the Dnieper. Other notable sites is the cylindrical Salut hotel, across from Glory Square and the eternal flame at the World War Two memorial Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the House with Chimaeras. The last district reform took place in 2001 when the number of districts was decreased from 14 to 10. Kyiv recovered economically in the post-war years, becoming once again the third-most important city of the Soviet Union.
Infrastructure
On Independence Square in the city centre, two monuments elevate two of the city protectors; the historic protector of Kyiv Michael Archangel atop a reconstruction of one of the old city’s gates and a modern invention, the goddess-protector Berehynia atop a tall column. Kyiv hosts many universities, the major ones being Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University,[139] the National Technical University “Kyiv Polytechnic Institute”,[140] Kyiv-Mohyla Academy[141] and the Kyiv National University of Trade and Economics. Of these, the Mohyla Academy is the oldest, founded as a theological school in 1632, but Shevchenko University, founded in 1834, is the oldest in continuous operation. The total number of institutions of higher education in Kyiv approaches 200,[142] allowing young people to pursue almost any line of study. While education traditionally remains largely in the hands of the state there are several accredited private institutions in the city.
History
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union and Ukrainian independence in 1991, Kyiv remained Ukraine’s capital and experienced a steady influx of ethnic Ukrainian migrants from other regions of the country.[13] During the country’s transformation to a market economy and electoral democracy, Kyiv has continued to be Ukraine’s largest and wealthiest city. Its armament-dependent industrial output fell after the Soviet collapse, adversely affecting science and technology, but new sectors of the economy such as services and finance facilitated Kyiv’s growth in salaries and investment, as well as providing continuous funding for the development of housing and urban infrastructure. Kyiv emerged as the most pro-Western region of Ukraine; parties advocating tighter integration with the European Union dominate during elections. Kyiv was the historic cultural centre of the East Slavic civilization and a major cradle for the Christianization of Kievan Rus. Kyiv retained through centuries its cultural importance and even at times of relative decay, it remained the centre of primary importance of Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
The Dnieper River naturally divides Kyiv into the Right Bank and the Left Bank areas. Historically on the western right bank of the river, the city expanded into the left bank only in the 20th century. Most of Kyiv’s attractions as well as the majority of business and governmental institutions are on the right bank.
Kyiv fortress is the 19th-century fortification buildings situated in Ukrainian capital Kyiv, that once belonged to western Russian fortresses. These structures (once a united complex) were built in the Pechersk and neighbourhoods by the Russian army. Kyiv is known as a green city with two botanical gardens and numerous large and small parks.
These alphabets have no sigma, while those that have sigma do not have the Semitic ssade. The national government has delegated responsibility for water and sanitation services to local authorities.[157] Kyivvodokanal [uk] is a private joint-stock company that provides such services to Kyiv. The length of water supply networks is 4231 km, of which 1798 km are dilapidated. Kyivteploenergo [uk] operates a centralized heating system, which provides heating and hot water to customers through a network of pipes that distribute hot water from centralized heating plants to buildings throughout the city. It operates a 2700 km network, two of the largest combined heat and power plants in Ukraine CHP-5 and CHP-6, as well as the only waste incineration plant Energia (plant) [uk] operating in Ukraine. Construction is underway for turning the large Darnytsia railway station on the left-bank part of Kyiv into a long-distance passenger hub, which may ease traffic at the central station.[152] Bridges over the Dnieper River are another problem restricting the development of city’s railway system.
Presently, only one rail bridge out of two is available for intense train traffic. A new combined rail-auto bridge is under construction, as a part of Darnytsia project. The historic tram system was the first electric tramway in the former Russian Empire and the third one in Europe after the Berlin Straßembahn and the Budapest tramway. The tram system consists of 139.9 km (86.9 mi) of track,[147] including 14 km (8.7 mi) two Rapid Tram lines, served by 21 routes with the use of 523 tram cars. Once a well maintained and widely used method of transport, the system is now gradually being phased out in favor of buses and trolleybuses.
In 2010, the city accounted for 18% of national retail sales and 24% of all construction activity.[127][128][129][130] Real estate is one of the major forces in Kyiv’s economy. Average prices of apartments are the highest in the country and among the highest in eastern Europe.[131] Kyiv also ranks high in terms of commercial real estate and has Ukraine’s tallest office buildings (such as Gulliver and Parus) and some of Ukraine’s biggest shopping malls (such as Dream Town and Ocean Plaza). Some of the buildings are restored and turned into a museum called the Kyiv Fortress, while others are in use in various military and commercial installations. The name Zoloti Vorota (Golden Gate) is also used for a nearby theatre and a station of the Kyiv Metro. The small Ukrainian National Chernobyl Museum acts as both a memorial and historical center devoted to the events surrounding the 1986 Chernobyl disaster and its effect on the Ukrainian people, the environment, and subsequent attitudes toward the safety of nuclear power as a whole.
The older and higher western part of the city sits on numerous wooded hills (Kyiv Hills), with ravines and small rivers. Kyiv’s geographical relief contributed to its toponyms, such as Podil (“lower”), Pechersk (“caves”), and uzviz (a steep street, “descent”). Kyiv is a part of the larger Dnieper Upland adjoining the western bank of the Dnieper in its mid-flow, and which contributes to the city’s elevation change. The city has a developed railroad infrastructure including a long-distance passenger station, 6 cargo stations, depots, and repairing facilities. Particularly, the Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi railway station is the city’s only long-distance passenger terminal (vokzal).
There was a Greek minuscule form c of the 9th century ce, and this may be the source both of the Cyrillic c and of the lunate sigma used in some fonts of modern Greek type. Kyiv represents the focal point of Ukraine’s “national roads” system, thus linked by road to all cities of the country. All public road transport (except for some minibuses) is operated by the united Kyivpastrans municipal company. Scientific research is conducted in many institutes of higher education and, additionally, in many research institutes affiliated with the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences. Kyiv is home to Ukraine’s ministry of education and science, and is also noted for its contributions to medical and computer science research.
The plans of building massive monuments (of Vladimir Lenin and Stalin) were also abandoned, due to lack of money (in the 1930s–1950s) and because of Kyiv’s hilly landscape.[100] Experiencing rapid population growth between the 1970s and the mid-1990s, the city has continued its consistent growth after the turn of the millennium. As a result, Kyiv’s central districts provide a dotted contrast of new, modern buildings among the pale yellows, blues, and greys of older apartments. Urban sprawl has gradually reduced, while population densities of suburbs has increased. It is also prestigious to own a property in newly constructed buildings in the Kharkivskyi neighborhood or Obolon along the Dnieper.
In 1834, the Russian government established Saint Vladimir University, now called the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv after the Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko (1814–1861). (Shevchenko worked as a field researcher and editor for the geography department). The medical faculty of Saint Vladimir University, separated into an independent institution in 1919–1921 during the Soviet period, became the Bogomolets National Medical University in 1995. The Primary Chronicle states that at some point during the late 9th or early 10th century Askold and Dir, who may have been of Viking or Varangian descent, ruled in Kyiv.
Its sacred sites, which include the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra (the Monastery of the Caves) and the Saint Sophia Cathedral are probably the most famous. Attracting pilgrims for centuries and now recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, they remain the primary religious centres as well as major tourist attractions. The above-mentioned sites are also part of the Seven Wonders of Ukraine collection. Originally on the west bank, today Kyiv is on both sides of the Dnieper, which flows southwards through the city towards the Black Sea.
There are large industrial and green areas in both the Right Bank and the Left Bank. Occupied by Russian troops since the 1654 Treaty of Pereyaslav, Kyiv became a part of the Tsardom of Russia from 1667 on the Truce of Andrusovo and enjoyed a degree of autonomy. None of the Polish-Russian treaties concerning Kyiv have ever been ratified.[50] In the Russian Empire, Kyiv was a primary Christian centre, attracting pilgrims, and the cradle of many of the empire’s most important religious figures, but until the 19th century, the city’s commercial importance remained marginal. At the city’s southern outskirts, near the historic Pyrohiv village, there is an outdoor museum officially called the Museum of Folk Architecture and Life of Ukraine. This territory houses several “mini-villages” that represent by region the traditional rural architecture of Ukraine.
They were murdered by Oleg of Novgorod in 882, but some historians, such as Omeljan Pritsak and Constantine Zuckerman, dispute that, arguing that Khazar rule continued as late as the 920s, leaving historical documents such as the Kievan Letter and Schechter Letter. At least three Arabic-speaking 10th century geographers who traveled the area mention the city of Zānbat as the chief city of the Russes. Among them are ibn Rustah, Abu Sa’id Gardezi, and an author of the Hudud al-‘Alam. The texts of those authors were discovered by Russian orientalist Alexander Tumansky. The etymology of Sambat has been argued by many historians, including Grigoriy Ilyinsky, Nikolay Karamzin, Jan Potocki, Nikolay Lambin, Joachim Lelewel, and Guðbrandur Vigfússon.