Ukraine

Ukraine is a country located in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which borders it to the east and north-east. Ukraine also shares borders with Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the south; and has a coastline along the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. The capital and largest city is Kiev.

History

The territory of modern Ukraine has been inhabited since 32,000 BC. During the Middle Ages, the area was a key centre of East Slavic culture, with the powerful state of Kievan Rus' forming the basis of Ukrainian identity. Following its fragmentation in the 13th century, the territory was contested, ruled and divided by a variety of powers, including Lithuania, Poland, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Russia. A Cossack republic emerged and prospered during the 17th and 18th centuries, but its territory was eventually split between Poland and the Russian Empire, and later merged fully into the Russian-dominated Soviet Union in the late 1940s as the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

Geography

Ukraine is a large country in Eastern Europe known for its Orthodox churches, Black Sea coastline and forested mountains. Its capital, Kiev, features the gold-domed St. Sophia's Cathedral, with 11th-century mosaics and frescoes. Overlooking the Dnieper River is the Kiev Pechersk Lavra monastery complex, a Christian pilgrimage site housing Scythian tomb relics and catacombs.

Economy

Ukraine's economy is classified as a emerging economy. It is an industrial-agrarian country with a well-developed industrial base and a rich farmland. The country is known for its production of high-technological goods and transport products, such as Antonov aircraft and various private and commercial vehicles.

Culture

Ukrainian culture is a composition of material and spiritual values of Ukrainian people that has formed throughout its history (Ukrainian history). It is closely intertwined with ethnic studies about ethnic Ukrainians and Ukrainian historiography which is focused on history of Kiev and region around it.

See also

• History of Ukraine
• Geography of Ukraine
• Economy of Ukraine
• Culture of Ukraine