Sverdlovsk ( uk, Свердловськ,
translit. ''Sverdlovs’k''; russian: Свердловск) is a
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in
Luhansk Oblast
Luhansk Oblast ( uk, Луга́нська о́бласть, translit=Luhanska oblast; russian: Луганская область, translit=Luganskaya oblast; also referred to as Luhanshchyna, uk, Луга́нщина) is the easternmost oblast ...
(
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
) of south-eastern
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
on the border with the
Russian Federation
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
. Serving as the
administrative center
An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or ...
of
Sverdlovsk Raion
Sverdlovsk Raion () is a raion (district) in Luhansk Oblast in eastern Ukraine. The administrative center of the raion is the town of Sverdlovsk, which is incorporated separately as a city of oblast significance and does not belong to the raion ...
(
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
), the city itself is incorporated as a
city of oblast significance, does not belong to the raion, and is located approximately 80 km from the oblast capital,
Luhansk
Luhansk (, ; uk, Луганськ, ), also known as Lugansk (, ; russian: Луганск, ), is a city in what is internationally recognised as Ukraine, although it is administered by Russia as capital of the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). A ...
. On 12 May 2016 it was renamed Dovzhansk (, translit. ''Dovzhansʹk'') by the Ukrainian government as part of
decommunization
Decommunization is the process of dismantling the legacies of communist state establishments, culture, and psychology in the post-communist countries. It is sometimes referred to as political cleansing. Although the term has been occasionally ...
. The city is controlled by the self-declared
Luhansk People's Republic
The Luhansk or Lugansk People's Republic (russian: Луга́нская Наро́дная Респу́блика, Luganskaya Narodnaya Respublika, ; abbreviated as LPR or LNR, rus, ЛНР) is a disputed entity created by Russian-backed ...
and the name change has not been enforced. Its population is estimated to be .
From the point of view of Ukrainian authorities Sverdlovsk, as Dovzhansk, serves the administrative center of
Dovzhansk Raion
Dovzhansk Raion ( uk, Довжанський район, russian: Должанский район) is a prospective raion (district) of Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. It was formally created in July 2020 as part of the reform of administrative divisions ...
.
Most of the city residents work in the
mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...
industry. The city municipality also includes the city of
Chervonopartyzansk
Chervonopartyzansk (, ) is a city in Sverdlovsk Municipality, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine. Population:
Geography
The city is located in southeastern Luhansk Oblast in the middle of the main Donets drainage divide that separates the watershed of ...
(Voznesenivka), six urban-type settlements, and several smaller settlements.
The city serves as an international gateway between Ukraine and Russia and has border checkpoint in Chervonopartyzansk.
History
The city tracks its roots from a small village in the headstream of
Dovzhyk River (Sharapka). At the end of the 18th century, it was granted by
Catherine II of Russia
, en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes
, house =
, father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst
, mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp
, birth_date =
, birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...
to
ataman
Ataman (variants: ''otaman'', ''wataman'', ''vataman''; Russian: атаман, uk, отаман) was a title of Cossack and haidamak leaders of various kinds. In the Russian Empire, the term was the official title of the supreme military comman ...
Vasyl Orlov
The name Basil (''royal, kingly'') comes from the male Greek name Vassilios (, female version ), which first appeared during the Hellenistic period. It is derived from "basileus" ( el, βασιλεύς, links=no), of greek origin, meaning "king", ...
as a reward for his excellent military service. The farmland took on the name Dovzhykove-Orlovske (Sharapkyne). Development of the area significantly expanded towards the end of the 19th century, after the discovery of
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when dea ...
in the
Donetsk region
The Donetsk Oblast ( ukr, Донецька область, Donetska oblast, ), also referred to as Donechchyna ( ukr, Донеччина, links=no), is an oblast of eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 mill ...
.
In 1938 a number of local settlements as well as the Sverdlov mine (today is part of the Sverdlovantratsyt company) were merged into the
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
of Sverdlovsk in memory of the
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
leader
Yakov Sverdlov
Yakov Mikhailovich Sverdlov (russian: Яков Михайлович Свердлов; 3 June Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O._S._22_May.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O. S ...
.
A local newspaper is published in the city since November 1938.
Starting mid-April 2014
pro-Russian separatists captured several towns in Luhansk Oblast; including Sverdlovsk.
Demographics
As of the
2001 census, the city's ethnic composition was as follows:
* Russians: 48.6%
* Ukrainians: 46%
* Others: 2.4%
* Belarusians: 1.2%
Gallery
File:Cinema is "Victory".JPG, "Victory" cinema
File:Palace of Culture (Sverdlovsk).JPG, Palace of Culture
File:The church of Saint Peter and Paul, Sverdlovsk.JPG, Church of Saint Peter and Paul
File:The chapel of Saint Barbara, Sverdlovsk.jpg, Chapel of Saint Barbara
File:Dolzhanskaya Station.jpg, Dovzhanska Train Station
File:Стадион шахтер в Свердловске.jpg, City stadium
References
External links
Official city page
City site* Bondar, O.
Sverdlovsk The history of cities and villages of the Ukrainian SSR
''The History of Cities and Villages of the Ukrainian SSR'' ( uk, Історія міст і сіл Української РСР) is a Ukrainian encyclopedia, published in 26 volumes. It provides knowledge about the history of all populated places ...
.
Cities in Luhansk Oblast
Sverdlovsk, Luhansk Oblast
Cities of regional significance in Ukraine
City name changes in Ukraine
Populated places established in 1938
Populated places established in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
Soviet toponymy in Ukraine
Don Host Oblast
{{Luhansk-geo-stub