Our heart bleeds for the brave Ukranian people and their fight against Russian barbarism. Presidet Zelenskyy is right. This fight is more than a fight for Ukraine. It is a fight for free people everywhere. The resistance of the heroic Ukranian people in the face of such overwhleaminh military might is asstonishing. It is only matched by the depths of Russian barbrism. The fact that the Russian people appear to support the massive invasion of an independent border nation is equally as astonishing. Nothing captures the heroic Ukranian resistabnce more than little 7 year old Ameli Anisovych. Her song from a frozen Kyiv bomb shelter went viral. Amelia is now safe in Poland after fleeing Kyiv with her grandmother and brother Misha. The seven-year-old escaped from Kyiv shortly after her video went viral, arousing huge huge internet attention. Amelia was soon back, resplendent in a Ukrania folk dress and sharing her beautiful, innocent voice once again. She confidently stood on a stage facing a huge audience, opening a major charity event in Poland with the Ukrainian national anthem--"Ukraine". "Ukraine is not yet dead, nor its glory and freedom, ...." Tragically there are countless Amelias and Mishas still in Ukraine being bombed and shelled by the Russian Army.
|
Ukraine is a Slavic country in southeastern Europe. The Russian and Ukranian people are realted etnically and speak asimilar language. The history of Ukraine is closely tied Russia to in recent years. The first important Slavic state was Kiev. This was in part organized by Viking invaders traveling south along Russia's great rivers. The Mongols destroyed the Kiev state (13th century). What is now Russian came under Mongol/Tartar domination. Ukraine came under Lithuanian/Polish domination. With the rise of the Russian Empire, the Tsars expanded their influence into eastern Ukraine (17th century). With the Polish partitions the Tsars seized most of Western Ukraine (18th century). We have little information at this time on boys' clothing in the Ukraine. Given the country's historical experience, we assume that clothing styles were similar to those worn in Russia and Poland. One destinuishing feature is destinctive embrodery often used to trim clothing. .
The Ukraine is a Slavic state in southeastern Europe. For years it was known as 'the Ukraine'. In English, 'the' kis applied to a region, such as the Southwest. This was used for Ukraine as partnof the Russian Emoire like the Baltics or the Causcauses. Ukraine is located on the vast Eurasian steppe and includes some of the richest black soil farm land in the world as well as important mineral resources. There are no important geographic barriers between the Ukraine and Russia, a fact that has had a major impact on Ukranian history. Ukraiune is the second largest country in Europe. The capital is Kyiv (Kiev), located on the Dnieper River which cuts through the middle of the country and flows into the Black Sea.
Eastern Europe outside the Balkans was virtually unknown to the ancient world except for Greek colonies along the Black Sea. The Ukraine in aicient times was populated by many nomadic peoples. The first important Slavic state was Kiev wgich emmerged in the early medieval period. Prince Vladamir of Kiev decided that an established religion was necessary for the Kievian state. He reportedly assessed several possibilities before deciding on Greek Orthodoxy. The Mongols destroyed the Kiev state (13th century). What is now Russian came under Mongol/Tartar domination. The Ukraine came under Lithuanian/Polish domination. There are of course ethnic ties which have linguistic and cultural connotations. The Poles, Russians, and Ukranians are all Slavs. This has not precluded the development of significant national identities. Moscow emerged as an important center under Mongol control. With the rise of the resulting Russian Empire, the Tsars expanded their influence into the eastern Ukraine (17th century). The modern history of the Ukraine has been closely tied to Russia. With the Polish partitions the Tsars seized most of the Western Ukraine as well (18th century). The Ukraine failed to achieve independence during the Russian Civil War (1919-21). Under Soviet control, Stalin attempted to destroy Ukranian national identity, most notably by engineering a terrible famine as part of the collectivization effort (1932-33). The Germans attempted to do the same during World War II when the Ukraine was the site of savage fighting and terrible atrocities. The Ukraine finally achieved independence as a result of the dissolution of the Soviet Union (1992).
Ukraine for most of its history had an agricultural economy. It bcame known as the 'Breadbasket of Europe' for its fertile black soil and huge grain harvests. This developed in to a mixed agrcultural/industrial economy during the Soviet era (20th century). It is now becoming a service-oriented country. The early economic history is not well known because the origin pf the Slavic people is not well understood. The timing of the Slavic migrations is not known with ant certainty but roughly extended from about 1000 BC to about 1000 AD. The West Slavs are the Slavic tribes which settled in Central Europe after the East Germanic tribes had migrated west. The Steppe tribes pushing the Germans like the Huns and Avars also moved west. Some authors believe that the Pripet Marshes served as a refuge from aggressive warriir Steppe peooles. The marshes are located in the basins of the Pripyat and Dnieper Rivers (southern Belarus and the northern Ukraine). They were univiting sandy, water-logged forests. At this stage the Slavs primarilysibisted primarily on hunting and fishing and only secondarily on agriculture. ,This was not where the Steppe raiders found it easy to find and raid settlements. Here the Slavs sheltered. It thus isolated area, the Slavs developed independently of other Indo-European peoples. This teraine may also also partially expalin the development of political unity among the Slavs. The movement West of the Germans and firece Steppe people left large areas of Eastern Europe open for settlement and agricultural development. The East Slavs trace their national origins to the tribal unions of Kievan Rus' and Rus' Khaganate (10th century). The history of the Slavs was impacted by the rise of Magyars who moved from the southern Ural Mountains and settled into the rich grrasskands that is now Hungary. This drove a wedge between the northern and southern Slavs. The Slavs never formed a strong unified state. And Kievian Rus was destroyed by the Mongols (13th century). Lithuania gained dominance over the area and introduced Catholcism into a largely Orthodox area. The Poles superced Lithuanian rule (14th century). It was the Poles that strongly introduced the feudal system that at the time was primarily dominant in Western Europe. The enserfment of the peasantry bproceeded and the economic situatiin of the peasantry steadily deteriorated. A free land-holding peasantry still existed into the late Lithuanian period. This rapidly changed under Polish rule. As towns began to appear in the late medieval era, ethnic Ukranians were common a minority in towns populated by Poles, Germans, Jews, and eventually Russians. Catherine II became Russian Empress (1762). The Tsarist Army conquered southern Ukraine. The lack earth soil established a granar� and export base for the Tsarist Empire. Odessa was founded on the Black Sea (1794). Odessa became the second most important trade center in the Tsarist empire only exceeded by St. Petersburg on the Baltic. The indusrailization of the Ukraine began during the Tsarist era (19th century) based on the coal at the Donbass and iron ore at the Dnjepr. It was in fact the major engine of industrialization in Tsarist Russia. This attracted many Russian workers to the eastern Ukraine. Kiew emerged as the trade and administration center. Ukraine's rail network spread out from Kiev. Ukranians remained largely a poor rural peaasntry. After the Revolution, Stalin's First Five Year Plan focused on the Ukraine, both industry a nd agriculture. It included the mechanization and collectivization of agriculture. When the peaantry resisted, he engunered a geoicidal faminem, essentially murdering 5 million people--the Holodomor. Among them many of the best farmers in the Soviet Union. It would take decades to discover. Ukraine became indepedent (1992). Major industries include coal, electric power, machinery, chemicals, food processing, woodworking, and tourism. The failure of Soviet era enterprises and breaking linls with Russia has affected the industrial sector. Ukraine is so important to the Russian economy that Russian President Putin is working to undermine Ukranian independence. A major problem is Ukranian dependence on Russian energy supplies.
We have little information on Ukranian clothing before modern times. By the 19th centurry many Ukranian peasants were serfs with limited rights and opportunities. The serfs were finally emancipated (1861). We see boys weaing collar-buttoninh tunics which came to be called Russian blouses in the West where it became apopular style at he turn-of-the 20th century. Boys also wore baggy trousers and commonly went barefoot. We do nnot see substantial numbers of images until photography appeared in the Tsarist Empire. The earliest images we have found in any numbers are CHVs (1860s). Most of these images are of the well-to-do or commfortablke middle class in the ciuties. People in the cities dressed differently than the largely Ukranian peaasantry. We see the popular European styles like suits, including sailor suits. Often the children wearing these outfits were not ethnic Ukranian boys but other grouos like Russians, Poles, Germans, and Jews who dominated Ukranian cities, the actual mix varying geographically. Ukraine has undergone renching changes in modern times, inclusing Tsarism ( -1917), Communism (1919-91), NAZIism (1941-44), independence (1992- ). This included two of the most brutal dictaors in history (Stalin anf Hitler) both of which targeted the very existence of the Ukranian peoole. All of this has meant tremendous change and adjustment. Only with the last few decades of the Tsarist Empire do we have a photograohic record. Fashion trends are a small part of what happened, but very real and to an extent reflect and illustrate the momentos changes at play in Ukranian society. Issues continue in Ukraine as Russia is determined to prevent Ukraine from becoming a modern, independent liberal democracy.
We have little information at this time on boys' clothing in Ukraine. Until 1992, Uktaine was part of the Tsarist Empire or the Soviet Union, so styles were strongly influenced by Russian styles. Given the country's historical experience, we assume that clothing styles were similar to those worn in Russia and Poland. Our Ukraine archive is still very small which has limited our examination of specific garments and styles. Photography is affected by economics so generally we see few photograohs in Eastern Eutope ghan Western Europe. We see tunic outfits during the Tsarist era, a style based on peasant dress. Poverty as in Russia affected dress. Near slavery serfdom dominated rural areas for several centurires. There was also a German influence, in part adopted by royalty and aristocrats during the Tsarist era. This is why we sees so many sailor suits. Socialist economics kept Uktanians poor duing much of the 20th century even as Western Europe reached unprcedented levels of prosperity. . After World War II, both Russia and Ulraine began to be affected by a kind of general European styles that largely overwhhealmed country stles, styles thatvwere in poart influenced by America like jeans. Today it is virtually impossible to identify countries solely by looking at garments and styles. The basic styles and garments are now European wide.
We do not yet know much about Ukranian families. We do note one farm family that migrated from the Ukraine in the early 1930s.
We do not yet have much information on boys' activities in the Ukraine. One subject of interest is holidays. The two most important because of Ukraine's Christian heritage are Easter and Christmas. A new holiday is Ibdependence Day. We have begun to collect information on Ukranian holidays.
There are a wide range of institutions which are involved with children. These instittions have for several centurues were associated with the Tsarist Empire. Welfare activiyies were primarily conducted by churches. Allmof this changed with the Russian Revolutuon and Ukraine became part of the Soviet Union (1917-91). Turmoil and the Russian Civil War followed. There was a need for orphanages. The Soviet Union was the world's first totalitarin state. As such there was a much wider range of institutuons to care for children than had been the case during the Tsarit era. The education system was expanded. We do not yet have information on orphnages. The Soviets lunched an atheist campign. Many churches were closed. Priests and nuns were arrested. Churches were not permitted to have any programs atracting chilkdren or wefare programs. Many children benefitted from the expanding state institution programs, but if they were part of groups deemed hostile to Communism, they could become the target of the powerful Soviet state and secret police organizations like the NKVD. This became the case for the Ukranian peasantry when Stalin launched his first Five Year Plan with its collectivization program. Ukranian peasants attempted to hold on to their land and Ctholic faiuth. The children of peasants driven from their land, often in the dead of winter, were in no way aided by Soviet orphanges. Stalin condycted a genicidal campaign. The Young Piooneer Movement was orgnized, but only limited resources were devoted to it. An even worse fate was in store for the Ukraniabs when the Gernmns invded (1941), but the red army victory prevented anoother genocidal program. After World War II, Ukraine was treated more normally as a Soviet SSR. The Soviets continued to expabd the eucation system. We still know very little about orphanages. The NAZIs targeted civilans, primarily the Jews at first, but the ukranin people were to be next. More civiliabs than soldiers died in the war. There must hve been a great need for ophanhages. The Young Pioneer Program was expanded. The Soviet economy did not develop a prosperous economy because of the socialist economy. The country was disolved and Ukraine like most of the Soviets SSRs opted for independenc (1992).
The Slavs were a pagan people. Prince Vladimir the Great of Kiev accepted conversion to Orthodox Christianity (988 AD). This brought the Rus under the influence of the Byzantine Empire and Orthodox Christianity. Vladimir's conversion brought a period of mass baptisms converting the Rus to Christianity. The Ukrainian Orthodox Christians converted scripture and the liturgy into Slavonic. This helped make he religion more accessible to the people. Today
At the time, the population was largely iliterate. Thus most of the early converts had only the most basic understanding of Chritianity. Amd as often ocuured, elements of their pgan culture became incorporated in Ukranian Orthodox practice. This is most clearly seen in the Easter celebrations still commonly practised. Over the millenium that followed conversion, imense changes swept over the Ukraine. Ukrainians have, howver, through it all remained Orthodox Christias. Christianity continues to be main religion of the modern Ukraine. Despite the Soviet atheism campign, some 70 percent of Ukrainians professing a religion identify themselves as Orthodox, but they are split between the Kiev and Moscow Patriarchate. Religion in thevUkraniane was significantly affected in the 20th centuty, bith by Stalin nd Hitker. In addition to Stalin's brital atheist campign, Stalin ordered the NKVD and other Communist Party organs to murder millions of devout Ukranian Orthox Christians in the dreadful Ukranian Famine he engineered. There are several other religions, mostly other Christian faiths. A Jewish minority developed in the Ukraine during the Medieval era and Jews were driven from Western Europe, but was murdered by the NAZIs during the World War II Holocaust. Many Ukranian families today have a Bible, but because of Soviet atheist campigns, some 60 percent of Ukranians according to one assessment are not religious. Few Ukranians today were brought up in the Church and taught elemenys of their faith, except by parents in the home. The Ukranian Orthodox Church is split between Russian Orthodox in the east and the rest of the country. Russiab Orthodox akso tend to speak Russian. Ukranian Orthodox tend to speak Ukranian and hhave a more western outlook. This split is playing out in Ukranian politics today with Russian President Putin using it in an effort to maintain Russia's hold on the country. Notably democeacy has had a more difficult time flourishing under Russian Orthodoxy which some say is more tolerant of political utocracy. And we see this playing out in theUkraine today with the Ukranian Orthoox (Kiev Patriarchate) and Catholics in the west more committed to democracy and independence. Besides Orthodox Christians, there are Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Christians, Ukrainian Catholics, Protestants,Jews as well as a number of small religious groups. The Orthodox Church is not as dominant as in Russia. As a result there is a more tolerant religious atmosphere in the Ukraine. Minority religious groups seldom experience persecution.
The Eurasian Steppe has few natuaral barriers and centuries of goverance within a larger imperial system has been condusive for the mixing of people. As a result a large mumbers of ethnic minorities are found in Ukraine this has varied regionally and over time. The Ukraine has been called a nationalizing state, still in the process of developing a unifying �Ukrainian� identity. This is the result of centuries of existence within imperial structures and the lack of a Ukranian national state. It is unclear at this time how this will affect the various minority groups in the Ukraine. This process has consequences for Ukraine minority groups and for the stability of the new Ukranian state. [Korostelina] Many Russians both in the Ukraine and Russia itself see the growth of Ukranian national identity as a threat because they have never fully accepted the disolution of the Soviet Union. The largest minority group is the Russians (15-20 percent). The Ukraine's long history as part of the Tsarist Empire and the long border with Russia explains the Russian presence. The Russian minority poses a lot of potentially thory problems. They are concentrated in the eastern Ukraine and the Crimean Peninsula which was only recently transferred to the Ukraine (1954). And many Russians see themselves as not a minority in a Ukranian state, but the dominant ethnic group of a larger Russian-Ukrainian state. And many Russians in Russia itself have this outlook. Another important minority is the Crimean Tartars. After the Red Army liberated the Crimean during Worls War II, Stalin ordered the Crimean tartars deported (May 1944). Most were transported under terrible conditions to Central Asia. After the War and Stalin's death, some managed to return. There is also a romas (gypsie) minority. The Ukraine's substantial Jewish population was destroyed by the Germans during World War II. There was a small Greek population in Odessa of ancient origins. The ancient Greeks were notable mariners and traders and established trading colonies at various Black Sea sites. And throughout the Middle Ages, Greek-oriented Byzantium and Constantinople was the regional trading center. There are a large number of additiional, but generally small ethnic minorities in the Ukraine.
Ukraine has a long history, but rarely as an independennt country. Its history has been larfgely associated with Russia, in pat becauuse of common Slavic identity. The first Russian state was tge Rus which established a state in the Ukraine and was the first to be Christianized. The most commin way of defining Russian regions are eastern, central, soutgern, and western. Over time the eastern regions have become stronglyRussufied. And te Rusification procss across Ukraine was advanced by Stalin during the Soviet era. especially the Ukranian famine enginered by th NKVD on Sralin's orders. West, East, South and Central Ukraine are often used. There is no clear demarkation as to which provinces (Oblasts) are included in these three genberal regions. Eastern Ukraine generally means the Don basin, Sloboda Ukraine, and continental Taurida regions. The northeast is very strongly Russified.
South Ukraine is usually sesignated as including the whole Taurida, the Kryvyi Rih basin, and the regions of Mykolayiv and Odessa oblasts. Some authors include the Don basin, especially the adjacent land to the Azov Sea. Khrischev to simplify administration added the Crimea witha large Russian population. Western Ukraine usually means means the historic region of Galicia and may include a mix of Volhynia, Podolia, Transcarpathia, and Bukovina. Central Ukraine is a more vague terms and is variously described. Often it it consists of the prvince not included in the three other regions.
Ukranians were part of the European emigration to the Americas in the late-19th and early-20th centurty. Not many ethnic Russians participate, but many other groups in the Tsarist empire did. We are not sure yet he domensions of the Ukranian emigrtion, but it included both Chritians and Jews. We believe that the lrgest numbers went to America and Canada, but we are just beginning to find some information on Ukranian emigration.
We have archived an umber of Ukranian photographs. As far as we can see, during both the Tsarist and Soviet era, there is no difference betweem Russian and Ukranian photography. As Ukraine was controlled and government from Moscow, regulations and trends were essentially the same. The same is true fir Bylorussia as well. Unless the location is indicated, it is virtually impossible to differentiate Russian, Bylorussian, and Ukranian photographs. The only exception is folk costuming and detailing and even here it is not always possible. Perhaps Russian and Ukranian readers will have some insights here. As we have launched upon these photographic sections primarily in an effort to date undated photographs, we are not going to build a separate Russian and Ukraniuan photographic section. If we discover a difference, we will revisit this decesionm but at this time we will have just one photographic section for Russia and the Ukraine.
Korostelina, Karyna. Research Professor and Fulbright New Century Scholar Fellow at George Mason Universtiy. , and a former Regional Exchange Scholar at the Kennan Institute. Kennan Institute talk, 2003.
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site:
[Introduction]
[Activities]
[Biographies]
[Chronology]
[Cloth and textiles]
[Clothing styles]
[Countries]
[Topics]
[Bibliographies]
[Contributions]
[FAQs]
[Glossaries]
[Images]
[Links]
[Registration]
[Tools]
[Boys' Clothing Home]
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing national pages:
[Return to the Main European country page]
[Return to the Main countries page]
[Return to the Jewish ethnic page]
[Afghanistan]
[Belgium]
[Czechoslovakia]
[England]
[Estonia]
[France]
[Germany]
[Hungary]
[Italy]
[Japan]
[Latvia]
[Lithuania]
[Mexico]
[New Zealand]
[Norway]
[Poland]
[Romania]
[Russia]
[Tajikistan]
[Turkey]
[United States]
[Uzbekistan]
