Are Ukrainians (not) radical to de-Russification?

The concept of de-Russification in the early 1990s and today is different. Over the years, Ukrainians have changed their attitude toward Russian culture and ideology. Immediately after Ukraine regained its independence in 1991, streets and educational institutions were renamed, but this was not a widespread phenomenon.

With the start of the full-scale invasion, attitudes toward everything Russian changed dramatically compared to 2020. Back then, only 30% of Ukrainians approved of the renaming.

Since the start of the full-scale war, about 2,200 toponyms have been renamed. In particular, every fifth street has been renamed in Pavlohrad, Dnipropetrovsk region.

The authorities do not fully tolerate the process of de-Russification, and the position of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy depends not so much on the context as on the person to be de-Russified.  

"Let's not forget that different regions have different attitudes. We support the process of decommunization, which has already started, but we cannot order cultural institutions what to do," says Oleksandr Tkachenko, Minister of Culture and Information Policy.

We talk about the historical reasons for de-Russification, the attitude of Ukrainians, and the government's response to the destruction of Russian ideology in Ukraine.

The history of Russian-Ukrainian armed confrontations is long and goes back several centuries. Vladlen Maraiev, a historian and author of the History Without Myths channel, believes that after Ukraine regained its independence in 1991, Ukrainians treated Russians better than Russians treated Ukrainians. The Russian government was instilling hatred toward Ukrainians in their citizens and psychologically preparing for war.

Streets, libraries, and cultural institutions were named not in honor of the Ukrainian intelligentsia but in honor of Russians, even those who participated in repressions against the Ukrainian people. By influencing the public space in this way, the Russian authorities tried to destroy the cultural heritage and memory of Ukrainians.

In particular, toponyms in honor of representatives of Russian science and culture appeared on the map of Ukrainian cities mainly to show that the city belonged to the Russian cultural space. They were used to promote and assert Russian dominance.

For years, the Russian government used "monumental propaganda" as part of its policy. This name was proposed by Lenin, who signed the decree "On Republic's Monuments" in April 1918.

After that, monuments to the leaders of the socialist revolution began to be erected in Ukraine, regardless of their artistic value. The Ukrainian urban space was filled with Soviet leaders' monuments of the same type, which replaced Ukrainian personalities.

In different years, it was even forbidden to gather near monuments or burial places of Ukrainian figures and to celebrate traditional Ukrainian holidays. For example, on January 12-14, 1972, KGB officers in Kyiv and Lviv arrested 14 people because their addresses were on lists of carolers.

The communist authorities also destroyed places that reminded of certain historical events. An example is the Kurenivka tragedy. At the site of the mass shooting of the Jewish population in Babyn Yar, the Soviet authorities did not erect a single memorial but only covered it with waste from a brick factory to make a place for entertainment.

As a result, during the construction, a mudflow occurred due to a broken dam, which flooded Kurenivka (a residential area in Kyiv). The number of victims was concealed, and the deaths were forbidden to be mentioned.

In Crimea, after the deportation of the Crimean Tatars, two decrees were issued (in 1945 and 1948), which renamed 80% of toponyms that originated from the Crimean Tatar language. Thus, Qarasuvbazar became Bilohirsk, Aqmescit became Simferopol, Yañı Qapu became Krasnoperekopsk, and so on.

Nevertheless, after the collapse of the USSR, Russian names remained in Ukrainian space.

It was only on December 8, 2013, during the Revolution of Dignity in Kyiv, that activists toppled a monument to Lenin. This triggered a chain reaction, and the "Leninopad" ("Leninfall") began — a wave of dismantling and damage to monuments to Lenin and other Soviet political figures.

On August 2, 2022, the Ministry of Culture compiled a list of the most common "Russian" urban names that are recommended for renaming. For example, the writer Alexandr Pushkin. In his works, he praised Russian monarchs and was a chauvinist and an imperialist.

Or Valery Chkalov, a Soviet test pilot, Hero of the Soviet Union. He had nothing to do with Ukrainian aviation. Or Ivan Michurin, born in the Ryazan Governorate. He was a biologist and the founder of the scientific selection of berries, fruit, and other crops in the USSR. He was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1931.

There are no objective reasons to preserve urban names or monuments. The Russian figures in whose honor the streets were renamed had no connection to Ukraine. Most of them are figures of local significance, little-known in the world, and part of purely Russian space.

During the full-scale invasion and temporary occupation, Russians showed that street names matter to them. The Kherson publication Most wrote that during the occupation of Kherson, the Russian military pointed out that "Kherson is a Russian city." Why? Because "the names of the streets, which are evidence of Russian history, have been preserved there."

The occupation authorities of the temporarily occupied districts of Zaporizhzhia region reported that they allegedly planned to "return the former names to streets, alleys, and parks, as well as restore historical monuments destroyed from 2014 to 2022."  

In addition, the Russians considered returning the allegedly historical name of Mariupol — Zhdanov (1948-1989). In addition, some streets were renamed: Morskyi Boulevard was renamed Komsomolsky Boulevard; Meotyda Boulevard was renamed 50 years of October (Revolution — ed.) Boulevard; Svobody Avenue was renamed Leningradskyi Avenue. The monument to the Holodomor victims was also dismantled.

Culturologist Mariam Naiem has previously explained that monuments connect the past with the present, demonstrating what emphases and values were important to people of the past.  

As long as there are monuments and place names, historical figures live on. Monuments and street names are centers of collective and individual memory, a way to engrave social ideals and a method to make them eternal, which the Soviet government did for a long time by marking space according to its ideology.

Monuments and street names are part of a city's image, and their elements influence us both individually and socially. When we live on a street named after Russian ideologues, we normalize invasive behavior in our minds.

"The Ukraine of 2022 cannot have monuments to Russian monarchs in its cities or have works by Russian imperialist writers in the school curriculum. We cannot build a new Ukraine using old meanings," said Mariam Naiem.

For example, in Lviv, there is a Maidan Heroes Street, and in Kyiv, there is a European Square, which bear democratic values in their names.

Vladlen Maraiev notes that it is also important to use the term "de-Russianization" instead of "de-Russification."

"'De-Russianization' is a rejection of the Russian imperial heritage, but not of the heritage of Rus, which was the historical predecessor of Ukraine," the historian says.

According to the Razumkov Center, as of January 2023, 59% of Ukrainians support renaming toponyms associated with the Russian Empire, the USSR, and modern Russia.

"At this point, Ukrainians are quite radical about de-Russianization. But not all of them. A part of society maintains moderate views, and a distinct minority is openly pro-Russian. This is a direct consequence of the full-scale invasion, which led a large part of society to identify everything Russian with the enemy," Vladlen Maraiev said.

For example, the staff of the Petro Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine opposed the removal of the Russian composer's name from the institution's name.

In 2022, more than 230 city objects with names related to Russia were renamed in Kyiv.

"The names of the capital's urban facilities should not bear the names of Russian and Soviet figures," says Volodymyr Bondarenko, secretary of the Kyiv City Council.

The draft amendments to the Law of Ukraine "On Geographical Names" also prohibit naming names that glorify, perpetuate, promote, or symbolize Russia.

However, the Minister of Culture is in favor of preserving Bulgakov's streets (he was born in Kyiv but humiliated Ukrainians in his works) and calls him "a famous writer with a legacy that belongs to the world literary heritage." According to him, studying Russian authors in schools should be banned, and streets should be renamed. However, he singles out those who are allegedly "authors of the world cultural heritage."

De-Russification is not just about renaming streets or demolishing monuments. Russian artists who promoted Russian politics have been present in Ukrainian society for a long time. Some of them, despite calling Crimea Russian and supporting Putin's policies, have been awarded the title of Merited Artists of Ukraine.

Ukraine is now rethinking its past and developing various projects to reject Russian culture and instead promote authentic Ukrainian culture.