Lviv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Lvivshchyna (, ), is an

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 ...

in western

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 ...

. The

capital Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...

of the oblast is the city of

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

. The current population is

History

Name

The region is named after the city of

which was founded by

Daniel of Galicia Daniel Romanovich (1201–1264) was Prince of Galicia (1205–1207; 1211–1212; 1230–1232; 1233–1234; 1238–1264), Prince of Volhynia, Volhynia (1205–1208; 1215–1238), Grand Prince of Kiev (1240), and King of Ruthenia (1253–1264). B ...

, the

King of Galicia Galicia (Spain), Galicia is an autonomous community and historical nationality in modern-day northwestern Spain on the Iberian Peninsula, which was a major part of the Roman province known as Gallaecia prior to 409. It consists of the province ...

, in the 13th century, where it became the capital of Galicia-Volhynia. Daniel named the city after his son,

Leo Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually mas ...

. During this time, the general region around Lviv was known as Galicia–Volhynia — one of the strongest and most stable kingdoms in Eastern Europe of that time.

Early history

The oblast's strategic position at the heart of central Europe and as the gateway to the

Carpathians The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians () are a range of mountains forming an arc across Central Europe and Southeast Europe. Roughly long, it is the third-longest European mountain range after the Urals at and the Scandinavian Mountains ...

has caused it to change hands many times over the centuries. In the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...

, the territory was inhabited by the

Lendians The Lendians () were a Lechitic tribe who lived in the area of East Lesser Poland and Cherven Cities between the 7th and 11th centuries. Since they were documented primarily by foreign authors whose knowledge of Central and East Europe geogra ...

, an old Polish tribe. It was ruled variously by

Great Moravia Great Moravia (; , ''Meghálī Moravía''; ; ; , ), or simply Moravia, was the first major state that was predominantly West Slavic to emerge in the area of Central Europe, possibly including territories which are today part of the Czech Repub ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...

, the

Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia The Principality or, from 1253, Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, also known as the Kingdom of Ruthenia, Kingdom of Rus', or Kingdom of Russia, also Halych–Volhynian Kingdom was a medieval state in Eastern Europe which existed from 1199 to 1349. I ...

(circa 1200 to 1340; from 1246 under the suzerainty of the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as ''Ulug Ulus'' ( in Turkic) was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the division of ...

), and then ruled by the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

and

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

(1340 to 1772). Apart from the Polish and Ruthenian population, there were sizeable

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

and

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

communities in

and

Brody Brody (, ; ; ; ) is a city in Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It is located in the valley of the upper Styr, Styr River, approximately northeast of the oblast capital, Lviv. Brody hosts the administrati ...

during Polish rule. Following the

First Partition of Poland The First Partition of Poland took place in 1772 as the first of three partitions that eventually ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. The growth of power in the Russian Empire threatened the Kingdom of Prussia an ...

it passed to the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

(1772 to 1918), then the

West Ukrainian People's Republic The West Ukrainian People's Republic (; West Ukrainian People's Republic#Name, see other names) was a short-lived state that controlled most of Eastern Galicia from November 1918 to July 1919. It included major cities of Lviv, Ternopil, Kolom ...

and

(1919 to 1939), when it was part of the

Lwów Voivodeship Lwów Voivodeship () was an administrative unit of interwar Poland (1918–1939). Because of the Nazi invasion of Poland in accordance with the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, it became occupied by both the Wehrmacht and the Red Army in Septem ...

of the Second Republic of Poland. The region's historically dominant Ukrainian population declared the area to be a part of an independent

in November 1918 until June 1919, but this endured only briefly. Local autonomy was provided in international treaties but later on those were not honoured by the Polish government and the area experienced much ethnic tension between the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

and Ukrainian populations.

Establishment

The oblast was created as part of the

Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic 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. ...

on 4 December 1939 following the Soviet invasion of eastern Poland and annexation of Eastern Galicia and Volhynia. Several

NKVD prisoner massacres The NKVD prisoner massacres were a series of mass executions of political prisoners carried out by the NKVD, the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs of the Soviet Union, across Eastern Europe, primarily in Poland, Ukraine, the Baltic states ...

were committed in the area in 1941, including at

Sambir Sambir (, ; ; ) is a city in Sambir Raion, Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It serves as the Capital city, administrative center of Sambir Raion (Raion, district) and is located close to the border with Poland. Sambir hosts the administration of Sambir urba ...

and

Dobromyl Dobromyl (, ; ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city in Sambir Raion, Lviv Oblast, in western Ukraine. It is located some 5 kilometers from the border with Poland. It hosts the administration of Dobromyl urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukrai ...

. It was occupied by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

from 1941 to 1944 following the start of

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

, where most of the local Jewish population were killed. The Germans also established several

prisoner-of-war camps A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

with multiple

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, or violence, including death or other forms of ...

subcamps in the region for

Soviet 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 ...

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

and Belgian POWs, who were subjected to beatings, hunger, epidemics and executions, resulting in a high death rate. Following the end 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 ...

, the region remained in Soviet hands as was arranged in the

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

and

Yalta Yalta (: ) is a resort town, resort city on the south coast of the Crimean Peninsula surrounded by the Black Sea. It serves as the administrative center of Yalta Municipality, one of the regions within Crimea. Yalta, along with the rest of Crime ...

conferences. Most local Poles were expelled and Ukrainians expelled from Poland arrived. As a result of the

1951 Polish–Soviet territorial exchange The 1951 Polish-Soviet territorial exchange, also known as the Polish-Soviet border adjustment treaty of 1951, was a border agreement signed in Moscow between the Republic of Poland and the Soviet Union. It involved approximately of land along ...

the area of

Belz Belz (, ; ; ) is a small city in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine, located near the border with Poland between the Solokiya River (a tributary of the Bug River) and the Richytsia stream. Belz hosts the administration of Belz urban hromada, one of ...

passed from Poland to the Lviv Oblast, whereas the area of

Ustrzyki Dolne Ustrzyki Dolne (; , ) is a town in south-eastern Poland, situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999) close to the border with Ukraine. It is the capital of Bieszczady County, with 9,383 inhabitants (02.06.2009). In existence since the ...

passed from the

Drohobych Oblast Drohobych Oblast () was an oblast of the Ukrainian SSR from December 4, 1939 to May 21, 1959. It had an area of and, as of 1956, had a population of 853,000. History Drohobych Oblast was one of six oblasts (the other five are Lviv Oblast, Rivne ...

to Poland. In 1959, Drohobych Oblast was incorporated into Lviv Oblast.

Present day

Given its historical development, Lviv Oblast is one of the least

Russified Russification (), Russianisation or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians adopt Russian culture and Russian language either voluntarily or as a result of a deliberate state policy. Russification was at times ...

and

Sovietized Sovietization ( ) is the adoption of a political system based on the model of soviets (workers' councils) or the adoption of a way of life, mentality, and culture modeled after the Soviet Union. A notable wave of Sovietization (in the second mea ...

parts of Ukraine, with much of its Polish and

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

heritage still visible today. In Ukraine today, there are three provinces (

oblasts 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 ...

) that formed the eastern part of the

Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, also known as Austrian Galicia or colloquially Austrian Poland, was a constituent possession of the Habsburg monarchy in the historical region of Galicia (Eastern Europe), Galicia in Eastern Europe. The Cr ...

. Two of these, Lviv Oblast and

Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast (), also referred to as Ivano-Frankivshchyna () or simply Frankivshchyna, is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (region) in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Ivano-Frankivsk. It has a pop ...

were entirely contained in the kingdom; the third oblast of

Ternopil Ternopil, known until 1944 mostly as Tarnopol, is a city in western Ukraine, located on the banks of the Seret River. Ternopil is one of the major cities of Western Ukraine and the historical regions of Galicia and Podolia. The populatio ...

was mainly in the kingdom apart from four of its most northerly counties (raions). The counties of the Kingdom of Galicia remained largely unchanged when they were incorporated into successor states; with minor changes as detailed below, the current counties are almost co-extensive with those of the Kingdom. During the 2014

Euromaidan Euromaidan ( ; , , ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protests in Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in Kyiv. The p ...

protests, the region is also notable for having declared independence from the central government led by

Viktor Yanukovych Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych (born 9 July 1950) is a Ukrainian politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 to 2014. He also served as the prime minister of Ukraine several times between 2002 and 2007 and was a member of t ...

who started to use active military force against protestors. During Ukraine's

decommunization Decommunization in former communist states is the process of purging former communist high officials and eliminating communist symbols. It is sometimes referred to as political cleansing. Although the term has been occasionally used during t ...

process that accelerated after 2014, Lviv Oblast became the first region of Ukraine to remove all its Soviet-era monuments by January 2024.

Geography

The terrain of Lviv Oblast is highly varied. The southern part is occupied by the low

Beskids The Beskids or Beskid Mountains (, , , (), ()) are a series of mountain ranges in the Carpathians, stretching from the Czech Republic in the west along the border of Poland with Slovakia up to Ukraine in the east. The highest mountain in the Be ...

mountain chains running parallel to each other from northwest to southeast and covered with secondary

coniferous Conifers () are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a sin ...

forests as part of the Eastern

; the highest point is Pikui (1408 m). North from there are the wide upper

Dniester The Dniester ( ) is a transboundary river in Eastern Europe. It runs first through Ukraine and then through Moldova (from which it more or less separates the breakaway territory of Transnistria), finally discharging into the Black Sea on Uk ...

river valley and much smaller upper

San River The San (; ''Sian''; ) is a river in southeastern Poland and western Ukraine. It is a tributary of the river Vistula. With a length of , the San is the 6th-longest Polish river. It has a basin area of 16,877 km2, of which 14,426 k ...

valley. These rivers have flat bottoms covered with alluvial deposits, and are susceptible to

flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

s. Between these valleys and Beskyd lies the Precarpathian upland covered with deciduous forests, with well-known

mineral spa Mineral spas are spa resorts developed around naturally occurring mineral springs. Like seaside resorts, they are mainly used recreationally although they also figured prominently in prescientific medicine. Origins Spas were used for mille ...

resorts (see

Truskavets Truskavets (, ; ) is a city in Drohobych Raion, western Ukraine's Lviv Oblast (region), near the border with Poland. It hosts the administration of Truskavets urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The population is approximately Tru ...

Morshyn Morshyn (, ; ) is a small city located at the Eastern Carpathian Foothills within Ukraine's Stryi Raion, Lviv Oblast (region). It hosts the administration of Morshyn urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The population is Overview ...

). It's also the area of one of the earliest industrial

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...

and gas extraction. These deposits are all but depleted by now. In the central part of the region lie Roztochchia, Opillia, and part of the

Podolia Podolia or Podillia is a historic region in Eastern Europe located in the west-central and southwestern parts of Ukraine and northeastern Moldova (i.e. northern Transnistria). Podolia is bordered by the Dniester River and Boh River. It features ...

uplands. Rich

sulphur Sulfur (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundance of the chemical ...

deposits were mined here during the Soviet era. Roztocze is densely forested, while Opillia and Podolia (being covered with

loess A loess (, ; from ) is a clastic rock, clastic, predominantly silt-sized sediment that is formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. Ten percent of Earth's land area is covered by loesses or similar deposition (geology), deposits. A loess ...

on which fertile soils develop) are densely populated and mostly covered by arable land. In the central-north part of the region lies the Small Polesia lowland, geographically isolated from the rest of

Polesia Polesia, also called Polissia, Polesie, or Polesye, is a natural (geographic) and historical region in Eastern Europe within the East European Plain, including the Belarus–Ukraine border region and part of eastern Poland. This region shou ...

but with similar terrain and landscapes (flat plains with sandy

fluvioglacial deposits Fluvioglacial landforms or glaciofluvial landforms are those that result from the associated erosion and deposition of sediments caused by glacial meltwater. Glaciers contain suspended sediment loads, much of which is initially picked up from the ...

and

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

forests). The far North of the region lies on the

Volhynia Volhynia or Volynia ( ; see #Names and etymology, below) is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between southeastern Poland, southwestern Belarus, and northwestern Ukraine. The borders of the region are not clearly defined, but in ...

upland, which is also covered with

; coal is mined in this area. File:Вигляд на Розточчя згори.jpg, Roztochchia Biosphere Reserve File:Сколівські Бескиди. Вид на Тухольку..JPG,

Skole Beskids The Skole Beskids (; ) is a mountain range in western Ukraine, belonging to the set of ranges called the Eastern Beskids of the Outer Eastern Carpathians, Eastern Beskids, within the Outer Eastern Carpathians. The mountains are composed primary ...

. View of the village

Tukholka Tukholka (, ) is a village (''selo'') in Stryi Raion, Lviv Oblast, in western Ukraine. The village Tukholka is located in the Ukrainian Carpathians within the limits of the Eastern Beskids of the Outer Eastern Carpathians, Eastern Beskids (Skole ...

. File:Sielec 009-Sielec 011.jpg, Grassy flatlands with rolling hills in the

Drohobych Raion Drohobych Raion () is a raion (district) of Lviv Oblast (region) of western Ukraine. Its administrative center is Drohobych. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions of Lviv Oblast was re ...

File:Вид з гори Парашка.jpg, Mount Parashka, the highest peak of the Parashka Range in the Skole Beskids File:Zashkiv1.JPG, Zashkiv village in the former

Lviv Raion Lviv Raion () is a raion (district) of Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It was created on 18 July 2020 as part of the reform of administrative divisions of Ukraine. The center of the raion is the city of Lviv. Four abolished raions, Horodok, Peremyshliany, ...

File:Вариант Тустани.jpg, Ukrainian Carpathians within the Lviv Oblast File:М 06-3.jpg, Motorway in

Stryi Raion Stryi Raion () is a raion (district) in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is Stryi. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions of Lviv Oblast was reduced to seven, a ...

Climate

The climate of Lviv Oblast is moderately cool and humid. The average January temperatures range from in the

to in the

and

valleys while in July the average temperatures are from in the Carpathians to in Roztochchia and in the lower part of the

valley. The average annual precipitation is in the lowlands, in the highlands and up to in the Carpathians, with the majority of precipitation occurring in summer. Prolonged

drought A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, ...

s are uncommon, while strong rainfalls can cause

s in river valleys. Severe winds during storms can also cause damage, especially in the highlands. The climate is favourable for the cultivation of

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

winter wheat Winter wheat (usually ''Common wheat, Triticum aestivum'') are strains of wheat that are planted in the autumn to germinate and develop into young plants that remain in the vegetative phase during the winter and resume growth in early spring. C ...

flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. In 2022, France produced 75% of t ...

rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of '' Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.& ...

apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

s, and for

dairy farming Dairy farming is a class of agriculture for the long-term production of milk, which is processed (either on the farm or at a dairy plant, either of which may be called a dairy) for the eventual sale of a dairy product. Dairy farming has a h ...

. It is still too cold to successfully cultivate

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a species of large annual forb of the daisy family Asteraceae. The common sunflower is harvested for its edible oily seeds, which are often eaten as a snack food. They are also used in the pr ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...

melon A melon is any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae with sweet, edible, and fleshy fruit. It can also specifically refer to ''Cucumis melo'', commonly known as the "true melon" or simply "melon". The term "melon" can apply to both the p ...

watermelon The watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, that has a large, edible fruit. It is a Glossary of botanical terms#scandent, scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, and is plant breeding ...

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and Agriculture, cultivated in China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and the glossy-skinned, non-fuzzy varieties called necta ...

es in Lviv Oblast. In the

conditions are favourable for

Alpine skiing Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel Ski binding, bindings, unlike other types of skiing (Cross-country skiing, cross-country, Telemark skiing, Telemark, or ski jumping) ...

3–4 months a year.

Demographics

According to the

2001 Ukrainian census The 2001 Ukrainian census is to date the only census of the population of independent Ukraine. It was conducted by the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine on 5 December 2001, twelve years after the last Soviet Union census in 1989.ethnic Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the second largest ethno-linguistic community. At around 46 million worldwide, Ukr ...

accounted for 94.8% of the population of Lviv Oblast,

ethnic Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

for 3.6%, and ethnic Poles for 0.7%. Notably, the comparison of the 2001 Ukrainian census (mentioned above), with the last Soviet census of 1989 reveals that in those 12 years the number of Poles in the Lviv Oblast declined by 29.7% which, in the opinion of "Wspólnota Polska" Society defies explanation, and could possibly be attributed to the intensive

Ukrainization Ukrainization or Ukrainisation ( ) is a policy or practice of increasing the usage and facilitating the development of the Ukrainian language and promoting other elements of Ukrainian culture in various spheres of public life such as education, ...

of the Roman Catholic Church.

Language

Lviv Oblast was one of the few oblasts of the Ukrainian SSR where the share of Ukrainian speakers was increasing despite the

Russification of Ukraine The Russification of Ukraine (; ) was a system of measures, actions and legislations undertaken by the Imperial Russian, later Soviet, and present-day authorities of the Russian Federation to strengthen Russian national, political and linguis ...

carried out in the USSR. Native language of the population of Lviv Oblast according to the results of population censuses: Native language of the population of the raions, cities, and city councils of Lviv Oblast according to the

2001 Ukrainian census The 2001 Ukrainian census is to date the only census of the population of independent Ukraine. It was conducted by the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine on 5 December 2001, twelve years after the last Soviet Union census in 1989.Ukrainian is the only official language on the whole territory of Lviv Oblast. On 18 September 2018, a moratorium on the public use of Russian-language cultural products was imposed in Lviv Oblast by a decision of the

Lviv Oblast Council The Lviv Oblast Council or Lviv Regional Council () is the regional council (parliament) of the Lviv Oblast (region) located in western Ukraine. Legislative framework The Regional Council is a local self-government body representing the common ...

. According to a poll conducted by ''

Rating A rating is an evaluation or assessment of something, in terms of a metric (e.g. quality, quantity, a combination of both,...). Rating or rating system may also refer to: Business and economics * Credit rating, estimating the credit worthiness ...

'' from 16 November to 10 December 2018 as part of the project «Portraits of Regions», 90% of the residents of Lviv Oblast believed that the Ukrainian language should be the only state language on the entire territory of Ukraine. 7% believed that Ukrainian should be the only state language, while Russian should be the second official language in some regions of the country. 1% believed that Russian should become the second state language of the country. 2% found it difficult to answer. On 20 September 2022, Lviv Oblast Council approved the «Comprehensive Programme for Strengthening of the Ukrainian Language for 2023—2026», the main objectives of which are to strengthen the positions of the Ukrainian language in various spheres of public life in the oblast and to Ukrainianize the refugees from other regions of Ukraine. According to the research of the ''Content Analysis Centre'', conducted from 15 August to 15 September 2024, the topic of which was the ratio of Ukrainian and Russian languages in the Ukrainian segment of

social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...

, 93.9% of posts from Lviv Oblast were written in Ukrainian (87.3% in 2023, 86.0% in 2022, 52.4% in 2020), while 6.1% were written in Russian (12.7% in 2023, 14.0% in 2022, 47.6% in 2020). After Ukraine declared independence in 1991, Lviv Oblast, as well as Ukraine as a whole, experienced a gradual

of the education system, which had been

during the Soviet era. Dynamics of the ratio of the languages of instruction in general secondary education institutions in Lviv Oblast: According to the

State Statistics Service of Ukraine State Statistics Committee of Ukraine (, ''Derzhavnyi Komitet Statystyky Ukrainy'') is the government agency responsible for collection and dissemination of statistics in Ukraine. For brevity, it was also referred to as ''Derzhkomstat''. In 2010, ...

, in the 2023—2024 school year, of the 286,111 pupils in general secondary education institutions in Lviv Oblast, 285,367 (99.74%) were studying in classes where Ukrainian was the language of instruction, while 744 (0.26%) were studying in classes where

was the language of instruction.

Age structure

: ''0-14 years:'' 15.7% (male 202,923/female 193,000) : ''15-64 years:'' 70.0% (male 867,699/female 897,788) : ''65 years and over:'' 14.3% (male 122,906/female 238,016) (2013 official)

Median age

: ''total:'' 38.0 years : ''male:'' 35.2 years : ''female:'' 40.9 years (2013 official)

Politics

Governors

*Chairmen of the Executive Committee *Representative of the President *Heads of the Administration

Subdivisions

Until the big district reform on July 18, 2020, Lviv Oblast was administratively subdivided into 20

raions A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is co ...

(

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

s), as well as 9 city (

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

) which are directly subordinate to the oblast government:

Boryslav Boryslav (, ; ) is a city located on the Tysmenytsia (river), Tysmenytsia (a tributary of the Dniester), in Drohobych Raion, Lviv Oblast (Oblast, region) of western Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Boryslav urban hromada, one of the hroma ...

Sheptytskyi Sheptytskyi (, ), formerly Chervonohrad (, ), historically Krystynopol, is a historical mining town and the administrative center of Sheptytskyi Raion, Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Sheptytskyi urban hromada, one ...

Drohobych Drohobych ( ; ; ) is a city in the south of Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Drohobych Raion and hosts the administration of Drohobych urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. In 1939–1941 and 1944–1959 it w ...

Novyi Rozdil Novyi Rozdil (, ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city in Stryi Raion, Lviv Oblast (oblast, region) of Ukraine. Novyi Rozdil hosts the administration of Novyi Rozdil urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Population: 29,643 - 76.1% total p ...

Stryi Stryi (, ; ) is a city in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It is located in the left bank of the Stryi (river), Stryi River, approximately south of Lviv in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains. It serves as the administrative center of Stryi R ...

, and the administrative center of the oblast,

On 18 July 2020, the number of districts was reduced to seven. These are: #

(Дрогобицький район), the center is in the town of

; #

(Львівський район), the center is in the city of

; #

Sambir Raion Sambir Raion () is a raion (district) in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine. Its capital (political), administrative center is Sambir. Population: It was established in 1965. On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the numb ...

(Самбірський район), the center is in the town of

; #

Sheptytskyi Raion Sheptytskyi Raion () is a raion (district) of Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It was known as Chervonohrad Raion () from 2020 until 2024. The center of the raion is the city of Sheptytskyi. Population: History From the 12th century, the area that is now ...

(Шептицький район), the center is in the town of

Sheptytsky Szeptycki (feminine: Szeptycka) is a Polish-language surname. It belongs to the Polish noble Szeptycki family. The Ukrainian-language spelling of the surname is Sheptytskyi (; feminine: Sheptytska). The name is also sometimes rendered as Sheptytsky ...

; #

(Стрийський район), the center is in the town of

; #

Yavoriv Raion Yavoriv Raion () is a raion (district) in Lviv Oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is Yavoriv. It was established in 1939. Its estimated population is On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number ...

(Яворівський район), the center is in the town of

Yavoriv Yavoriv (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It is situated about from the Poland, Polish border. It serves as the administrative centre of Yavoriv Raion and is situated approximately west of the oblast capital, Lviv. Yavoriv ...

; # Zolochiv Raion (Золочівський район), the center is in the town of Zolochiv. In addition, there are the city raions of the city of Lviv. Galicia administrative1914

Religion

Fifty-nine percent of the religious organisations active in the Lviv Oblast adhere to the

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) is a Major archiepiscopal church, major archiepiscopal ''sui iuris'' ("autonomous") Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Catholic church that is based in Ukraine. As a particular church of the Cathol ...

. The

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC; (UAPTs)) was one of the three major Eastern Orthodox churches in Ukraine in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, together with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP) ...

is the second largest religious body. The followers of the

Latin Church The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical ...

and the

Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), commonly referred to by the exonym Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), is an Eastern Orthodox church in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church was officially formed in 1990 in pla ...

are mostly from the Polish, and Russian or non-Galician Ukrainian minorities respectively. File:Жолква. Василианский монастырь..jpg, Zhovkva. Temple of the Sacred Heart of Jesus File:Peterpaulchurch.jpg, Church of Sts. Peter & Paul in Sokal File:Стрийський костел.jpg, Church of Our Lady Protectress in

File:Борислав. Церква св. Анни. Cerkiew Sw. Anny (do r. 1945 kosciol Sw. Barbary).jpg, Church of St. Anna in

File:Church of the Blessed Eucharist, Klymets (a wooden 1825).jpg, Church of the Blessed Eucharist, Klymets, Stryi Raion File:ZolochivChurch2018.jpg, Church of Assumption of the Holy Virgin (1731-1763) in Zolochiv

Historical and cultural sites

The city of Lviv contains a well-preserved main square (Rynok) and numerous historical churches. Other sites of interest are the historic Lychakiv Cemetery, the local museum of folklore, and the ruins of the famous Lviv High Castle, Vysokyi Zamok. The name of the castle is closely tied to the name of the city. There is also a museum of military artifacts, the "Lviv Arsenal, Arsenal". Well-preserved local wooden churches, castles, and monasteries can be found throughout the Oblast. One of them is the Olesko Castle which is first recorded in 1327. Another castle that was built at the end of the 15th century is Svirzh Castle in the village of Svirzh. One more and no less famous castle is the Pidhirtsi Castle. Its architectural complex consists of the three-story palace, Kostel, and small park. In Roztochia is also located the Krekhivsky monastery in the beech-pine grove at the foot of the Pobiina mount. The whole complex consists of the Saint Nicholas Church, the bell tower, numerous service structures, and defensive walls with towers. Another site worth of mentioning is the Tustan city-fortress which is built in the rock. The site was nominated as the historical and as the natural wonder of Ukraine. There also a nature complex in the valley of the Kamianka river in Stryi Raion. Another natural wonder of the region is the Kamin-Veleten (''Rock-Giant'' in English) which is located near city of Pidkamin in Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, Zolochiv Raion. The name of the local city means ''Under the Rock''. A local museum of Ukrainian art and an institution of higher learning (Ivan Franko State University) are also present.

Gallery

File:Жолква. Троицкая церковь..jpg, Holy Trinity Church, Zhovkva, Trinity Church in Zhovkva File:Жолква. Замок..jpg, Zhovkva Castle File:Дрогобыч. Вилла..jpg, Villa in

File:Svirzh.jpg, Svirzh Castle File:Самбор. Бывшее казначейство..jpg, Former Treasury building in

File:Tustan1.jpg, Morning in Fortress of Tustan, Tustan File:Government House in Lviv-2013.JPG, Building of the Lviv Oblast Council, Lviv Regional Council File:Pidhirtsi Castle.jpg, Pidhirtsi Castle, Pidhirtsi Casle File:2023-12-30 Lviv old town - Lviv City Council - 1.jpg, Lviv Town Hall File:Золочівський замок збоку.jpg, Zolochiv Castle File:Львів Вірменський собор.jpg, Armenian Cathedral of Lviv File:7. Судова Вишня Будинок, в якому виступав Франко І.Я.jpg, Narodnyi dim in Sudova Vyshnia File:Олеський замок на світанку.jpg, Olesko Castle File:Церква святого Юра (Дрогобич) 2.jpg, St. George's Church, Drohobych, Church of St. George in Drohobych File:Кропивницького пл., 1, церква св. Ольги і Єлизавети, 9109-HDR-Edit.jpg, Church of Sts. Olha and Elizabeth, Lviv, Church of Sts. Olha and Elizabeth in Lviv

Economy

The most important research into cereal epidemics in the country is undertaken here. The National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine's Institute of Agriculture in Obroshino, Lviv Oblast, Obroshino is the center of study for cereal pathogens including powdery mildew of barley. In the early 2000s the most active researchers here were Olga Vronska and G. Kosilovich at the IoA. ''Puccinia recondita'', ''Erysiphe graminis'', (syn. ''Blumeria graminis'') and various ''Pseudocercosporella'' spp. are present and are significant in

in this oblast. Two introduced species, introduced banded land snails, the Grove Snail (''Cepaea nemoralis'') and White-Lipped Snail (''Cepaea hortensis, C. hortensis'') are found here. ''C. n.'' was intentionally brought here in the late 1800s, but the genetic analysis of Gural-Sverlova ''et al.'', 2021 shows continued introductions have also occurred ever since. (The geographic distribution of both suggests they arrive through the gardening trade, as is known from other countries.) This analysis shows several distinct arrivals of ''C. n.'' yielding several present-day populations in and around Lviv.

References

* Source for statistics used:
Lviv Regional State Administration Website
' – accessed February 29, 2004.

External links

Lviv Regional State Administration Website

{{coord, 49, 43, 03, N, 23, 57, 01, E, display=title, source:nlwiki Lviv Oblast, Oblasts of Ukraine States and territories established in 1939 1939 establishments in Ukraine