Honorary titles of Ukraine () are meritorious awards of

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 ...

. Most of them are state awards and practically all were transformed from the same titles of the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...

Types

There are several degrees for honorary titles which are also designated for various carrier (industry) fields. The top honorary title of Ukraine is the

Hero of Ukraine A Hero of Ukraine (HOU; ) is the highest national decoration that can be conferred upon an individual citizen by the president of Ukraine. The decoration was created in 1998 by President Leonid Kuchma. As of 6 June 2025, the total number of re ...

that is accompanied by either Order of the Gold Star for military recognition and Order of the State for civilian recognition. The more common honorary titles are People's or Merited with People's titles being considered of slightly higher tier over Merited. These titles are accompanied by a respective identification badge, gilded silver - for People's titles and silver - for Merited titles. Along with them there are some top sport titles that are also considered Merited, but are regulated differently. Aside the above-mentioned titles there are number of other titles such as the Mother-Heroine which particularly is an equally respected along with honorary titles. The accompanied badge for the Mother-Heroine title is made of brass. Another honorary title is the

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...

that stays with its holder for the rest of one's life. Honorary titles are also created in number of companies and organizations as well as city administrations among which are honorary presidents, honorary citizens and others. Since the 2022 Russian full scale invasion of Ukraine, there was introduced the Soviet-type award granted to cities, defenders of which distinguished themselves in fight against military aggression. Previously in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

a similar award was granted to cities in the aftermath of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Hero titles

, successor of the

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

and the

Hero of Socialist Labor The Hero of Socialist Labour () was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It represented the highest degree of distinction in the USSR and was awarded for exceptional achievements in Soviet ...

* Mother-Heroine, successor of the Mother-Heroine of the Soviet Union *

Hero City of Ukraine Hero City of Ukraine (, ) is a Ukrainian honorary title awarded for outstanding heroism during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It was awarded to ten cities in March 2022. This symbolic distinction for a city corresponds to the distinction of ...

, successor of the Hero City (Soviet Union)

People's titles

People's Artist of Ukraine People's Artist of Ukraine () is an honorary title awarded by the government of Ukraine. It is the highest title awarded to outstanding performing artists whose merits are exceptional in the sphere of the development of the performing arts, inc ...

* People's Architect of Ukraine * People's Teacher of Ukraine * People's Painter of Ukraine

Merited titles

These titles have also been translated as "Honored" rather than "Merited". However, since

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

is awarded for highest merits (, zasluhy), honorary titles are translated as Merited ({{langx, uk, заслужений, zasluzhenyi). *

Merited Artist of Ukraine Honored Artist of Ukraine (; also translated as Honored (Performing) Artist of Ukraine or Merited (Performing) Artist of Ukraine) is a state honorary title of decoration of the Ukrainian government. Originally awarded by the Ukrainian SSR, the ...

* Honored Architect of Ukraine * Honored Builder of Ukraine * Honored Inventor of Ukraine * Honored Teacher of Ukraine * Honored Mining Engineer of Ukraine * Honored Arts Functionary of Ukraine * Honored Science and Technology Functionary of Ukraine * Honored Donor of Ukraine * Merited Economist of Ukraine * Honored Power Engineer of Ukraine *

Merited Journalist of Ukraine The Honored Journalist (also translated as The Merited Journalist of Ukraine, ) is an honorary title bestowed by Ukraine (before 1991 by the Ukrainian SSR) for "vital contribution" in the country's journalism. The title is awarded by the Presiden ...

Sports titles

* Merited Coach of Ukraine * Merited Master of Sports of Ukraine * Master of Sports of Ukraine, World Class (type of sports) / Grandmaster of Ukraine * Master of Sports of Ukraine (type of sports)

Other titles

Guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

, elite military formations and Naval ships * Academic, to theaters of drama or music * National (

National Opera of Ukraine The Kyiv Opera group in Ukraine was formally established in the summer of 1867, and is the third oldest opera in Ukraine, after Odesa Opera and Lviv Opera. The Kyiv Opera Company perform Kyiv Opera House, named after Taras Shevchenko. Hist ...

Olimpiysky National Sports Complex The Olympic Stadium (also known as Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex; , ) is a multi-use sports and recreation facility in Kyiv, Ukraine, located on the slopes of the city's central Cherepanova Hora (Cherepanov Hill), Pecherskyi District. Th ...

National Space Agency of Ukraine The State Space Agency of Ukraine (SSAU; ) is the Ukrainian government agency responsible for space policy and programs. It was formed on 29 February 1992, and was based on the Soviet space program infrastructure that remained in Ukraine foll ...

National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine The National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU; , ; ''NAN Ukrainy'') is a self-governing state-funded organization in Ukraine that is the main center of development of Science and technology in Ukraine, science and technology by coordinatin ...

, others)

Discontinued titles

There are many titles that were discontinued among which are the Exemplary titles, Distinguished titles (Distinguished Corn Producer of Ukraine, Distinguished Agricultural Machine Operator of Ukraine and others). * Honorary Firefighter-Volunteer of Ukraine

External links

Provisions on honorary titles of Ukraine
Ukase of the President of Ukraine. Official document.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; , ''BSE'') is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Great Russian Enc ...

.
Forum on distinctions of the Ukrainian SSR
Collectors forum "Sammler.ru".