Shypyntsi (; ), a village in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

, is located within

Chernivtsi Raion Chernivtsi Raion () is a raion (district) of Chernivtsi Oblast, Ukraine. It was created on 18 July 2020 as part of the reform of administrative divisions of Ukraine. Most of its territory is located in the historical region of Bukovina, while the ...

(district) of

Chernivtsi Chernivtsi (, ; , ;, , see also #Names, other names) is a city in southwestern Ukraine on the upper course of the Prut River. Formerly the capital of the historic region of Bukovina, which is now divided between Romania and Ukraine, Chernivt ...

Oblast An oblast ( or ) is a type of administrative division in Bulgaria and several post-Soviet states, including Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. Historically, it was used in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. The term ''oblast'' is often translated i ...

(province), about driving distance southwest of

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, and about northwest from the provincial capital of Chernivtsi. Shypyntsi is about from the Ukrainian/Romanian border, about from the Ukrainian/

Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...

n border, and about from the city of

Suceava Suceava () is a Municipiu, city in northeastern Romania. The seat of Suceava County, it is situated in the Historical regions of Romania, historical regions of Bukovina and Western Moldavia, Moldavia, northeastern Romania. It is the largest urban ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. Boxing champion Oleksander Usyk is from this village, which is located on the left bank of the

Prut River The Prut (also spelled in English as Pruth; , ) is a river in Eastern Europe. It is a left tributary of the Danube, and is long. Part of its course forms Romania's border with Moldova and Ukraine. Characteristics The Prut originates on the eas ...

, amid rolling hills covered with farms and forests, in the region generally known as the

Dniester Hills Dniester Hills (), also known as the Northern Moldavian Plateau () is a geographic area that comprises most of the northern Moldova, and parts of the Chernivtsi Oblast of Ukraine. Dniester Hills are the N and NE component of the Moldavian Platea ...

. It belongs to Kitsman urban hromada, one of the

hromada In Ukraine, a hromada () is the main type of municipality and the third level Administrative divisions of Ukraine, local self-government in Ukraine. The current hromadas were established by the Cabinet of ministers of Ukraine, Government of Uk ...

s of Ukraine. Until 18 July 2020, Shypyntsi belonged to Kitsman Raion. The raion was abolished in July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Chernivtsi Oblast to three. The area of Kitsman Raion was split between Chernivtsi Raion and

Vyzhnytsia Raion Vyzhnytsia Raion () is an administrative raion (district) in the southern part of Chernivtsi Oblast, located in the historical region of Bukovina, in western Ukraine, on the Romanian border. The region has an area of and centers on the city of Vy ...

, with Shypyntsi being transferred to Chernivtsi Raion. To the north of the village are the ancient ruins of a Cucuteni-Trypillian culture settlement, dating back to the 5th Millennium to early 4th Millennium BC. Archaeological excavation began at this site in the late 19th century by a team of Ukrainians: J. Shombathy, R. Kindle, F. Volkov, O. Kandyba and Tatiana Sergeyevna Passek. Houses, earthenware, and ceramic shards were discovered, and in 1938 Kandyba published a collection of images from this site of beautifully decorated pottery. This settlement was part of the Neolithic Cucuteni-Trypillian culture, which lasted from 5100 to 2750 BC, and which had some of the largest communities in the world at the time. The members of this society plowed their farms, raised livestock, hunted and fished, created textiles, and developed a beautiful and highly refined style of pottery with very intricate designs. Their settlements were built in oval or circular layouts, with concentric rows of houses interconnected to form rings around the center of the community, where often a sanctuary building would be found. They left behind a large number of clay figurines, many of which are regarded as Goddess fetishes. For over 2500 years their culture flourished with no evidence left behind that would indicate they experienced warfare. However, at the beginning of the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

their culture disappeared, the reasons for which are still debated, but possibly as a result of invaders coming from the Steppes to the east. The artifacts taken from the Shypyntsi ruins are kept in museums in Chernivtsi and Vienna.

References

{{Authority control Cucuteni–Trypillia culture Villages in Chernivtsi Raion Archaeological sites in Ukraine Prehistory of Southeastern Europe Neolithic Ukraine

See also

References