Romanians of Chernivtsi Oblast
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Chernivtsi Oblast (Romanian: Regiunea Cernăuţi) of Ukraine comprises a significant Romanian community.
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[edit] History
Today's Chernivtsi Oblast of Ukraine was part of Romania until June 1940, when it was occupied by the Soviet Union, and on 2 August 1940 it was transferred to the Ukrainian SSR. Prior to that, the territory had never been part of any Ukrainian entity, although ethnic Ukrainians have lived in parts of the area in increasing numbers since the 19th century. Rather, the region constituted the northern part of the historical region of Bukovina, the northern part of Hotin County of the region of Bessarabia, and the north-western corner of Dorohoi County of the region of Moldavia proper.
The Romanian population of Chernivtsi Oblast was persecuted by Soviet authorities on ethnic grounds, especially in the years following the annexation until 1956. In neighboring Bessarabia the same persecution did not have a predominantly ethnic orientation, being based mostly on social, educational, and political grounds.
[edit] Current situation
Since the Romanian Revolution of 1989, the official statements referring to this issue from the representatives of the Romanian community in Chernivtsi Oblast and from the Romanian government, have stated that there is no intent to revise the present internationally recognized border. However, the Romanian community has constantly addressed the following seven demands to the Ukrainian government[1]:
- to be officially recognized with the status of "native population" (as in Article 11 of the Constitution of Ukraine).
- to be officially recognized as a "population that was subject to deportations on ethnic grounds", as the Crimean Tatars, Germans, Armenians, Poles, and Jews are recognized, and to have official condemnation of the consequences of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, such as the massive deportations of civilian populations, the massacres at Lunca and Fântâna-Albă, the anihalation of entire villages, such as Frunza, Albovăţ, etc. that occurred during the Stalin's regime
- to return to Romanian the historic toponyms and geographic names; cf. the decision of the Congress of Deputies (Parliament) of the USSR on the 24 December 1989, believe to be still legally binding.[citation needed]
- to have ensured representation in the Ukrainian Parliament.
- to re-open the Romanian University in Chernivtsi.
- to re-open the Metropolitanate of Bukovina.
- to return the confiscated during the Soviet occupation property and real estate of the Romanian cultural organizations.
[edit] Geographic distribution
The bulk or 88% of ethnic Romanian population is concentrated in four of the eleven districts (raions) of the Chernivtsi Oblast situated closer to the border with Romania and Moldova. In the Hertsaivskyi Raion (Romanian: Herţa), Romanians comprise about 95% of population. In Novoselytskyi Raion (Romanian: Nouǎ Suliţi), Moldovans represent about 60% of the population. In Hlybotskyi Raion (Romanian: Adâncata), Romanians and Moldovans sum up to 50%. Storozhynetskyi Raion (Romanian: Storjineţ) has a compact Romanian community in the south, especially around the village of Crasna. Romanians comprise 37% of that district's total population.
There are also other villages with a Romanian majority and important historical heritage, such as for example Boian (home of Ion Neculce) and Cernăuca (home of the Hurmuzachi brothers). Other than the 4 raions have smaller Romanian populations, usually never exceeding several hundred people. Exceptions are the Khotynskyi Raion (Romanian: Hotin) with 5,000 Romanians and Moldovans (7% of the raion's population) and Sokyrianskyi Raion (Romanian: Secureni) with 1,500 Romanians and Moldovans (3% of the total raion population).[2][3]
[edit] Demographic evolution
| census | Ukrainians | Romanians | Moldovans | Russians | Jews | Germans, Poles, etc | total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 (last Romanian census) | 383,028 | 227,187 | - | 46,946 | 88,772 | 59,709 | 805,642 |
| 47.6% | 28.2% | - | 5.8% | 11.0% | 7.4% | ||
| 1959 (first Soviet census) | 518,189 | 79,790 | 71,645 | 51,268 | 42,140 | 11,089 | 774,121 |
| 66.94% | 10.31% | 9.26% | 6.62% | 5.44% | 1.43% | ||
| 1989 (last Soviet census) | 666,095 | 100,317 | 84,519 | 63,066 | 16,469 | 10,334 | 940,801 |
| 70.8% | 10.66% | 8.98% | 6.7% | 1.8% | 1.1% | ||
| 2001 (first Ukrainian census) | 689,056 | 114,555 | 67,225 | 37,881 | 1,443 | 8,868 | 919,028 |
| 75.0% | 12.4% | 7.3% | 4.1% | 0.2% | 0.965% | ||
| 1959 - 1989 difference | +147,906 | +20,527 | +12,874 | +11,798 | -25.671 | -755 | +166,680 |
| +28.54% | +25.72% | +17.96% | +23.01% | -60.92% | -6.8% | +21.53% | |
| 1989 - 2001 difference | +22,961 | +14,238 | -17,294 | -25,185 | -15,026 | -1,466 | -21,773 |
| +3.45% | +14.19% | -20.46% | -39.9% | -91.24% | -14.2% | -2.3% |
- Note: The data in this table is based on the official census data in Romania (1930), the Soviet Union (1959-1989), and Ukraine (2002), and reflect the composition of the population according to the present boundaries, including were administrative divisions before 1940 were different. In such cases, the figures in the table were obtained by adding them settlement by settlement according to today's configuration of the region.[4] In the 1930 census no one was reported as Moldovan. In the 1959, 1989 and 2001 censuses, there were two "ethnicities"—Romanian and Moldovan to choose.
[edit] See also
- History of the Romanians in Ukraine
- Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina
- Fântâna Albă massacre
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ (Romanian) Gabriel Gherasim, Românii din Ucraina (2) ("Romanians in Ukraine (2)"), Noi, NU!, August 7, 2005. Accessed online October 31, 2006.
- ^ (Romanian) Gabriel Gherasim, Românii din Ucraina (1) ("Romanians in Ukraine (1)") Noi, NU!, August 2005. (Page 4.) Accessed online October 31, 2006.
- ^ 2001 Ukrainian Census | English version | Results | General results of the census | National composition of population | Chernivtsi region
- ^ a b (Romanian) Gabriel Gherasim, Românii din Ucraina (2) ("Romanians in Ukraine (2)"), Noi, NU!, August 7, 2005. (Page 2.) Accessed online October 31, 2006.
[edit] External links
- (Romanian) Gabriel Gherasim, "Românii bucovineni sub cizma străină", Ziua, August 16, 2005
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