Ukraine Facts For Kids

Ukraine Facts for Kids

The name Ukraine is believed to originally mean "borderland" or "region". In English 'The Ukraine' used to be the form used now it is just called 'Ukraine'.

• Ukraine has an area of 603,628 km² (233,062 mi²), which makes it the largest country with its entirety within Europe.
  

• Ukraine shares land borders with 7 countries, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova.
  
  

• The official language of Ukraine is Ukrainian, it is the dominant language spoken in western and central cities and many rural areas of the country. Most native Ukrainian speakers know Russian as a second language. In eastern and southern cities Russian is the most spoken language.
  

• Over 44.5 million people live in Ukraine (44,573,205) as of July 2013.
  

• The capital city of Ukraine is Keiv, which is home to over 2.8 million people.
  

• The highest point in Ukraine is the Hora Hoverla at 2,061 metres (6,762 ft), it is located in the Carpathian Mountains. The only other mountain ranges are the Crimean Mountains in the south. The central heartland of Ukraine is a large flat rich-soiled area known as the steppe.
  

• Ukraine became an independent country on the 24th August 1991 following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
  

• As of 2011, Ukraine was the world's third-largest grain exporter and used to be called the breadbasket of the Soviet Union. The country also has large deposits of natural resources including iron, coal, gas, oil, manganese and other metals.
  

• The Ukraine currency is called the Hryvnia.
  

• The world's worst nuclear power plant accident, the 1986 Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster, took place in the now abandoned Ukrainian town of Pripyat.
  

• Ukraine has many interesting animals including lynxes, wolves, wild boar, brown bears, beavers, otters, hamsters and gophers. Carp, bream and catfish are common fish species, while Great White Pelicans are native to south-west areas.
  

• Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Ukraine, the two most successful clubs teams are rivals FC Dynamo Kyiv and FC Shakhtar Donetsk. Ukraine co-hosted the 2012 UEFA Euro's with Poland.
  

• Ukrainian brothers Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko have both held world heavyweight boxing titles.
  

• Traditional Ukrainian dishes include varenyky and pierogi dumpling dishes, soup called borsch and famous specialities named after the capital city such as Chicken Kiev and the dessert Kiev Cake.
  

• For more information, check out maps of Ukraine or take a closer look at the Ukrainian flag.