Zmiiv
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Zmiiv or Zmiyiv () from 1976 to 1990, is a
city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
in
Chuhuiv Raion Chuhuiv Raion () is a raion (district) in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Chuhuiv. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions of Kharkiv Oblast was reduce ...
,
Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.
,
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 ...
. It hosts the administration of
Zmiiv urban hromada Zmiiv or Zmiyiv () from 1976 to 1990, is a List of cities in Ukraine, city in Chuhuiv Raion, Kharkiv Oblast, Kharkiv, Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Zmiiv urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The population in 2001 was 17,063, ...
, one of the
hromadas of Ukraine There are 1,469 hromadas (, ) in Ukraine. They were formed in 2020 (there are no hromadas in Kyiv, Sevastopol and in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea). A hromada is designated ''urban hromada'' if its administration is located in a city; ''sett ...
. The population in 2001 was 17,063, falling to The town is located from
Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.
. In 1976-1990, the city was called Gotwald () in honor of the Czechoslovak communist and politician
Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman f ...
. Until 2020, Zmiiv was the administrative centre of
Zmiiv Raion Zmiiv Raion () was a raion (district) in Kharkiv Oblast of Ukraine. Its administrative center was the town of Zmiiv. The raion was abolished on 18 July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of K ...
, before it was merged into
Chuhuiv Raion Chuhuiv Raion () is a raion (district) in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Chuhuiv. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions of Kharkiv Oblast was reduce ...
as part of that year's administrative reform.


Toponymy

The name ''Zmiiv'' or ''Zmiyiv'' is almost certainly derived from the Ukrainian word for snakes (). In addition, there are at least five potential origins for the source of the name Zmiiv or Zmiev: # There is an old legend that in the dense forests and impenetrable swamps surrounding the town, there lived a winged many-headed serpent, the Zmii Horynych, who was harnessed to a large plough by Nikita Kozhemyak, and the Zmiiv ramparts were formed from the dump of this plough; # The river flowing into the was winding and resembled a snake; # A large number of reptiles lived in the surrounding swamps and forests; # Not far from the current Zmiiv was the capital of the Polovtsy - Sharukan, which was called in Russian, which somewhat translates to "city of the serpent" in English. # The so-called
Serpent's Wall The Serpent's Wall () is an ancient system of earthworks ( valla) located in the middle Dnieper Ukraine (Naddniprianshchyna)Kuchera, M. Serpent Walls (ЗМІЄВІ ВАЛИ)'. Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine. that stretch across primarily K ...
, the remains of ancient defensive structures originating in the 10th century to protect middle
Dnieper Ukraine The term Dnieper Ukraine (), usually refers to territory on either side of the middle course of the Dnieper River. The Ukrainian name derives from ''nad‑'' (prefix: "above, over") + ''Dnipró'' ("Dnieper") + ''‑shchyna'' (suffix denoting a g ...
from
pecheneg The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks, , Middle Turkic: , , , , , , ka, პაჭანიკი, , , ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Pečenezi, separator=/, Печенези, also known as Pecheneg Turks were a semi-nomadic Turkic people from Central Asia who ...
and
cuman The Cumans or Kumans were a Turkic nomadic people from Central Asia comprising the western branch of the Cuman–Kipchak confederation who spoke the Cuman language. They are referred to as Polovtsians (''Polovtsy'') in Rus' chronicles, as " ...
raids. In the area of Zmiiv, transport highways are laid along some ramparts. The ''
Serpent's Wall The Serpent's Wall () is an ancient system of earthworks ( valla) located in the middle Dnieper Ukraine (Naddniprianshchyna)Kuchera, M. Serpent Walls (ЗМІЄВІ ВАЛИ)'. Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine. that stretch across primarily K ...
'' is recognized by most historians as the most likely source for the name of Zmiiv.


History

The oldest settlement at the location of modern-day Zmiiv dates back to the
1st millennium BC File:1st millennium BC.jpg, 400x400px, From top left clockwise: The Parthenon, a former temple in Athens, Greece; Aristotle, Greek philosopher; Gautama Buddha, a spiritual teacher and the founder of Buddhism; Wars of Alexander the Great last from ...
. The area around Zmiiv saw numerous different people groups during its history, such as the
Scythians The Scythians ( or ) or Scyths (, but note Scytho- () in composition) and sometimes also referred to as the Pontic Scythians, were an Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Eastern Iranian languages, Eastern Iranian peoples, Iranian Eurasian noma ...
,
Sarmatians The Sarmatians (; ; Latin: ) were a large confederation of Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Iranian Eurasian nomads, equestrian nomadic peoples who dominated the Pontic–Caspian steppe, Pontic steppe from about the 5th century BCE to the 4t ...
,
Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...
,
Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th centuries AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was par ...
,
Alans The Alans () were an ancient and medieval Iranian peoples, Iranic Eurasian nomads, nomadic pastoral people who migrated to what is today North Caucasus – while some continued on to Europe and later North Africa. They are generally regarded ...
, Avars,
Polovtsians The Cumans or Kumans were a Turkic nomadic people from Central Asia comprising the western branch of the Cuman–Kipchak confederation who spoke the Cuman language. They are referred to as Polovtsians (''Polovtsy'') in Rus' chronicles, as "Cum ...
,
Pechenegs The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks, , Middle Turkic languages, Middle Turkic: , , , , , , ka, პაჭანიკი, , , ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Pečenezi, separator=/, Печенези, also known as Pecheneg Turks were a semi-nomadic Turkic peopl ...
,
Tatars Tatars ( )Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary
are a group of Turkic peoples across Eas ...
, and
Slavs The Slavs or Slavic people are groups of people who speak Slavic languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout the northern parts of Eurasia; they predominantly inhabit Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, and ...
.
Igor Svyatoslavich Igor Svyatoslavich (3 April 1151 – ), nicknamed the Brave, was Prince of Novgorod-Seversk (1180–1198) and Prince of Chernigov (1198–1201/1202). Life The son of Sviatoslav Olgovich, prince of Chernigov, in 1169 Igor took part in the war agai ...
, prince of
Novgorod-Seversky Novhorod-Siverskyi (, , , ''Novgorod-Severskiy''), historically known as Novhorod-Siversk () or Novgorod-Seversk (), is a historic city in Chernihiv Oblast, northern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Novhorod-Siverskyi Raion, alth ...
, waged wars with the Polovtsy, the Zmiiv settlement founded in 1180-1185 on the
Donets The Seversky Donets () or Siverskyi Donets (), usually simply called the Donets (), is a river on the south of the East European Plain. It originates in the Central Russian Upland, north of Belgorod, flows south-east through Ukraine (Kharkiv ...
at the mouth of the river . In the mid-1500s an outpost was built there, and in the 1650s the Cossacks built a fort there to defend the vicinity against the Tatars. Zmiiv was a company town of the Kharkiv regiment from 1669 to 1765. It was ravaged by the Tatars in 1688, 1689, and 1692. Its Cossacks took part in the uprisings led by Ivan Dzykovksy (1670) and Kodratii Bulavin (1707–9). The new wave of settlement of the Wild Field lands, and in particular the lands of the Slobozhanshchina, dates back to the 1630-50s, when thousands of Ukrainians were forced to flee from massacre after unsuccessful revolts against the Polish authorities. 1640 is the official date of foundation of the city. But in the same year, the Tatars seized the city, which was captured by Cossacks Kondratii Sulima. In the 1650s, to the south of the Zmiiv appeared the Zmiiv Nikolaev Cossack Monastery, which was the castle of the old, wounded and other Cossacks. It is believed that the monastery was a treasure chest; it had 6,000 acres of land and numerous buildings. In 1656, was appointed as governor of Zmiiv by
Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...
Alexei Mikhailovich Alexei Mikhailovich (, ; – ), also known as Alexis, was Tsar of all Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. He was the second Russian tsar from the House of Romanov. He was the first tsar to sign laws on his own authority and his council ...
. At the end of 17th century, the Zmiiv was already a large enough settlement, surrounded by posts: Zamost, Zidki, and Sands. And if for some time he was a part of the Chuguev uyezd, then from 1657 he became the center of the newly created Zmiev uyezd. Sources also mention the weapons of the local fortress: in 1668 it had 7 large cast iron guns, 290 cores and a lot of gunpowder, with 2 shafts surrounding it and a system of underground passages. In 1688, 1692 and 1736, Tatar attacks were carried out on the city.Змиев // Географическо-статистический словарь: В 5 томах / Сост. П. П. Семёнов. — СПб., 1865. — Т. 2. — С. 281. The presence of settlements in Slobozhana under the rule of the Russian tsar and the strong oppression on the part of the church and the Cossack elders did not best reflect the mood of the freedom-loving settlers. Thus, in 1668, a rebellion broke out in a number of towns and cities in Slobozhanshchyna, which was headed by
Ivan Sirko Ivan Dmytrovych Sirko ( – August 11, 1680) was a Zaporozhian Cossack military leader, Koshovyi Otaman of the Zaporozhian Host and putative co-author of the famous semi-legendary Cossack letter to the Ottoman sultan that inspired the major p ...
. During the fighting against government forces, the insurgents burned down the Zmiiv. In several clashes the rebels were defeated, many fled to the Right-bank Ukraine. 2 years later, in 1670, some towns in the Slobozhanshchina supported the rebels under the leadership of Stepan Razin, in particular, there were detachments of Zaporizhzhya and Don Cossacks commanded by
Stenka Razin Stepan Timofeyevich Razin (, ; c. 1630 – ), known as Stenka Razin ( ), was a Don Cossack leader who led a major uprising against the nobility and tsarist bureaucracy in southern Russia in 1670–1671. Early life Razin's father, Timofey Ra ...
associate, Alexei Khromy. And the Zmiiv became the center of rebellion on the local lands. After the tsarist forces managed to suppress the rebellion, several dozen people were hanged on local roads. According to lord-colonel of Kharkiv cossacks regiment Kvitka, the Tatars' raids have stopped since 1736. In 1788, the Zmiiv Monastery was destroyed by order of
Tsarina Tsarina or tsaritsa (also spelled ''csarina'' or ''csaricsa'', ''tzarina'' or ''tzaritza'', or ''czarina'' or ''czaricza''; ; ; ) is the title of a female Autocracy, autocratic ruler (monarch) of Bulgaria, Serbia, and Russia, or the title of a t ...
Catherine II Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter III ...
. It was an administrative centre of Zmiev uyezd in
Kharkov Governorate Kharkov Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire founded in 1835. It embraced the historical region of Sloboda Ukraine. From 1765 to 1780 and from 1796 to 1835 the governorate was called Sloboda Uk ...
of
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
. From 1891 to 1893, was built here. A local newspaper is published in the city since November 1930. Across 1932 and 1933, 559 victims of the
Holodomor The Holodomor, also known as the Ukrainian Famine, was a mass famine in Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Ukraine from 1932 to 1933 that killed millions of Ukrainians. The Holodomor was part of the wider Soviet famine of 1930–193 ...
genocide in Ukraine were identified in Zmiiv and neighbouring , which has since been absorbed into the city. During
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 ...
, Zmiiv was occupied by the
German army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...
from 22 October 1941 to 17–18 August 1943. In 1956, a was established here. Between 1976 and 1990, the town was renamed to ''Gotwald'' () after
Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman f ...
, a
Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak Repu ...
politician.Готвальд // Большой энциклопедический словарь (в 2-х тт.). / редколл., гл. ред. А. М. Прохоров. том 1. М., "Советская энциклопедия", 1991. стр.329 Zmiiv was the administrative centre of
Zmiiv Raion Zmiiv Raion () was a raion (district) in Kharkiv Oblast of Ukraine. Its administrative center was the town of Zmiiv. The raion was abolished on 18 July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of K ...
, until 18 July 2020, when the
raion 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 c ...
was abolished as part of the as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of
Kharkiv Oblast Kharkiv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna (), is an oblast (province) in eastern Ukraine. Kharkiv borders Luhansk Oblast to the east, Donetsk Oblast to the southeast, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast to the southwest, Poltava Oblast to the w ...
to seven. The area of Zmiivk Raion was merged into
Chuhuiv Raion Chuhuiv Raion () is a raion (district) in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Chuhuiv. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions of Kharkiv Oblast was reduce ...
.


Demographics

The population as of 1971 was 16,600.Змиев // Большая Советская Энциклопедия. / под ред. А. М. Прохорова. 3-е изд. том 9. М., «Советская энциклопедия», 1972. By January 1989, it had grown to 20,031 people. In 2001, it was 17,063, and in January 2013, the population was 15,211. Most recently, it was estimated at in 2022.


Ethnic groups and spoken languages

Like the rest of the region, the city is ethnically overwhelmingly Ukrainian, but also hosts a sizeable minority of people, who claim to have Russian ancestry. In terms of spoken languages, most people are
Ukrainophone A Ukrainophone (, ''ukrainskomovnyi'') is a person who speaks the Ukrainian language either natively or by preference. At the same time the term is used in a more specialized meaning to describe the category of people whose cultural background is ...
, while 16% speak
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
as their first language. The exact ethnic and linguistic as of 2001 was as follows:


Symbols

The current coat of arms of the Zmiiv may have been around as long as 220 years, used since at least the second half of the eighteenth century, if not as far back as 1803. The coat of arms is an example of a
canting arms Canting arms are heraldry, heraldic bearings that represent the bearer's name (or, less often, some attribute or function) in a visual pun or rebus. The expression derives from the latin ''cantare'' (to sing). French heralds used the term (), ...
, as it depicts a serpent () with a golden crown on its head. On 21 September 1781, the coat of arms of the city was not officially approved by the Senate of the Russian Empire and
Catherine II Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter III ...
in one day with all the coat of arms of the county cities and the provincial centre of Kharkiv and Voronezh governorships, because the Zmiiv was not then a county town. The coat of arms is "old", that is, historical, and made long before its approval. A distinctive feature of the "old" coats of arms was the only field of the shield - with the coat of arms of the city itself (without the coat of arms of the governorate / provincial center at the top). It was officially approved on 21 September 1803 personally by Tsar
Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon from 495 to 454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Alexander I Theopator Euergetes, surnamed Balas, ruler of the Seleucid Empire 150-145 BC * Pope Alex ...
. The red box of the coat of arms depicts a "golden serpent twisting upwards and a crown worn on its head" showing the name of the city and the abundance of snakes in the vicinity. In 1863 K Kene drafted the emblem of the city: On a red shield a golden serpent twisting in a pillar; in the free part of the shield the coat of arms of Kharkiv province; the shield is topped with a silver tower crown and surrounded by gold spikes connected by an Alexander ribbon. On the coat of arms of the city of the 18th century, the artist depicted a creeping snake, unlike the coat of arms of the beginning of the 19th century, which depicts a standing snake. The modern coat of arms was approved by the City Council in the 1990s. It, like the coat of arms of the early 19th century, depicts a snake standing. File:Хар губ Змиев 1803 из Винклера.jpg, Coat of Arms with official description of 1803 File: Zmiev1.gif , 1863 Coat of Arms.
The B.Ken Project File: Герб_Змиева_(1803).png , Modern coat of arms


Geography

Zmiiv is situated on the right bank of the
Siverskyi Donets The Seversky Donets () or Siverskyi Donets (), usually simply called the Donets (), is a river on the south of the East European Plain. It originates in the Central Russian Upland, north of Belgorod, flows south-east through Ukraine (Kharkiv, D ...
River at the confluence of the right-hand tributary of the .


Economy

The is the largest company in town. Zmiiv also has a , packaging works, construction materials plant, publishing company, and some repair shops. It also has a large agricultural sector with a dairy plant, food-processing plant, as well as several dairy and pig farms. The "Mayak" enterprise, which produces heating boilers, was founded in 1991.


Transportation

Zmiiv is served by the , which opened in 1910 on Ukraine's Southern Railway. The station is served by a
commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...
known as
elektrichka An ''elektrichka'' ( ; , ) is a Soviet Union, Soviet and Eastern Bloc, Eastern bloc commuter (regional) mostly suburban electrical multiple unit passenger train. Elektrichkas are widespread in Russia, Ukraine and other countries of the former W ...
, connecting
Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.
,
Merefa Merefa () is a city in Kharkiv Raion, Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. Merefa hosts the administration of Merefa urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Population: History It was a village in Kharkovsky Uyezd of Kharkov Governorate of the Ru ...
, and
Izium Izium or Izyum (, ; ) is a city on the Donets River in Kharkiv Oblast, eastern Ukraine that serves as the administrative center of Izium Raion and Izium urban hromada. It is about southeast of the city of Kharkiv, the oblast's administrative cen ...
with intermediate stops. Zmiiv has a bus station, which serves as a terminus for local bus routes. Zmiiv also has a regular bus connection with Kharkiv.


Sports

Zmiiv has one
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
club playing in the Kharkiv Oblast Premier League, FC Mashynobudivnyk Zmiiv.


Points of interest

* Ionospheric Observatory of the Institute of ionosphere (


Monuments


Gallery

File:Zmiiv View.jpg, Zmijiv skyline File:Зміїв - стара будівля 2.JPG, Old building File:Зміївська центральна районна лікарня - Поліклінічне відділення 1.JPG, Zmiiv central hospital File:Ukr Zmiiv Museum of Local Lore 1 2020 SU-HS.jpg, Zmiiv Museum of Local Lore File:Ukr Zmiiv Church of the Holy Trinity 1 SU-HS 2020.jpg, Church of the Holy Trinity File:Zmiiv Railway Station. Station Building 3.jpg, Zmiiv railway station File:Ukr Zmiiv Instalation I love Zmiiv 2020 SU-HS.jpg, Installation "I love Zmiiv" File:Ukr Zmiivsky Kruchy 6 SU-HS.jpg, Zmiiv cliffs


Notable residents

* Zakhar Slyusarenko,
Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...
* Igor Volk, cosmonaut and test pilot * Ruslan Polovinko, helicopter pilot and lieutenant, awarded the title of National Hero of Azerbaijan * Ivan Deriuhin, Soviet modern pentathlete and Olympic Champion * Serhiy Pylypchuk, footballer *
Yevhen Murayev Yevheniy Volodymyrovych Murayev (; born 2 December 1976) is a Ukrainian politician and media owner. He was the leader of the now-banned political party Nashi. Murayev has been a deputy of the Kharkiv Oblast Council (two convocations) and a de ...
, is a pro-Russian Ukrainian politician and media owner. He is the current leader of the political party Nashi.


References


External links


Towns of Kharkiv Region

Zmiiv portal

History of Zmiiv
{{Authority control Cities in Kharkiv Oblast Kharkov Governorate Cities of district significance in Ukraine Cities and towns built in the Sloboda Ukraine