"Glory to Ukraine!" (Ukrainian:Слава Україні!,romanized: Slava Ukraini![ˈslɑwɐʊkrɐˈjin⁽ʲ⁾i]ⓘ) is aUkrainian national salute, known as a symbol of Ukrainian sovereignty and resistance to foreign aggression. It is thebattle cry of theArmed Forces of Ukraine. It is often accompanied by the response "To the heroes – glory!" (Ukrainian:Героям слава!,romanized: Heroiam slava![ɦeˈrɔjɐmˈslɑwɐ]).
The phrase first appeared at the beginning of the 20th century in different variations, when it became popular amongUkrainians during theUkrainian War of Independence from 1917 to 1921.[1] The response "Glory to the heroes!" first appeared during the Ukrainian War of Independence or later in the 1920s among members of theLeague of Ukrainian Nationalists.[2] In the 1930s, it became widespread as a slogan of theOrganization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN),[3] as well asUkrainian diaspora groups and refugee communities inthe West during theCold War. In theSoviet Union, the phrase was forbidden. The phrase eventually resurfaced in Ukraine during the country's struggle for independence in connection with thefall of the Soviet Union. Its use was revived again during the2014 Ukrainian revolution and theRusso-Ukrainian War, during which it became a widely popular symbol in Ukraine.
The phrase has gained worldwide attention during the ongoingRussian invasion of Ukraine and has subsequently been used in protests in support of Ukraine around the world.[4] It has been used in speeches by Ukrainian politicians like PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy, as well as numerous foreign leaders.
Ukrainian historians argue that the greeting has its roots in Taras Shevchenko’s works.[5][6] In his 1840 poemTo Osnovianenko Shevchenko used the phrase "Glory of Ukraine":[7][8]
English translation:
Our thought, our song
Will not die, will not perish…
Oh there, people, is our glory,
Glory of Ukraine!
Original Ukrainian text:[9]
Наша дума, наша пісня
Не вмре, не загине...
От де, люде, наша слава,
Слава України!
However the first known use of the phrase "Glory to Ukraine!" as a greeting with the response "Glory all around the world!" (Ukrainian:По всій землі слава,Po vsiy zemli slava) occurred within the Ukrainian student community of the late 19th to early 20th centuries inKharkiv.[1][8]
The phrase was popularised during theUkrainian War of Independence (from 1917 to 1921).[2][3][6] During this period, the slogan "Glory to Ukraine!", as well as the similar ones like "Long live Ukraine!" could be heard often at patriotic gatherings and demonstrations within Ukraine, as well as among the diaspora.[1] According to historian Yana Prymachenko it was used in the army of theUkrainian People's Republic by the regiment of theBlack Zaporozhians [uk], commanded byPetro Dyachenko, in the form: "Glory to Ukraine!" – "Glory to the Cossacks!", as well as by other military formations with a variety of different responses.[8] After the coup d'état and the assumption of power by HetmanPavlo Skoropadskyi, the response in the Ukrainian army loyal to Hetmanate was "Glory to Hetman!".[8][1] The status of the slogan in the army of the UPR was formalised on 19 April 1920, when, under an order of Commander-in-ChiefMykhailo Omelianovych-Pavlenko regulating drill rules in the army, soldiers were obliged to respond "Glory to Ukraine!" when receiving praise or thanks for their service to the homeland.[1]
Insurgents fighting inKholodny Yar, the last bastion of Ukrainian anti-Soviet resistance in 1919–22, also used a similar salute. According to Yakiv Vodianyi's memoirs published in 1928, it was: "Glory to Ukraine!" and the reply "Eternal glory!". And according toYuriy Horlis-Horskyi's memoirs published in 1933, the insurgents greeted each other by saying "Glory to Ukraine!" and responding with the same.[1]
The tradition of greeting each other using "Glory to Ukraine!" was continued by veterans of the Ukrainian army in exile.[1] The Ukrainian National Cossack Association (UNAKOTO), operating in Germany, under the leadership of a former associate of Hetman Skoropadsky,Ivan Poltavets-Ostryanitsa [uk], established on 10 July 1925 a new salute obligatory for members of the organization: "Glory to Ukraine!" – "Glory to Cossacks!".[1]
"Glory to Ukraine!" was also commonly used byUkrainian nationalists in the 1920s and 1930s.[10][11] In 1930s it became widespread as a slogan of theUkrainian Military Organisation (UVO), and laterOrganization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN).[12][1] According to press reports, during the trials of OUN members after the assassination ofBronisław Pieracki, the accused performedfascist-style salutes to the words "Glory to Ukraine!".[13][1][14] At the Second Grand Congress of the OUN on 27 August 1939 inRome, the response "Glory to the leader!", who was thenAndriy Melnyk, was officially adopted, but it was in use since at least 1929 by the members of UVO.[15][1]
"Glory to Ukraine!" also emerged as a greeting among members of the Ukrainian scout organizationPlast, where it gradually supplanted the original greeting "SKOB!", in the form: "Glory to Ukraine!" – "Glory, Glory, Glory!" This greeting is still used by members of Plast today.[1] Many members of Plast belonged as well to the OUN, which contributed to the popularity of the greeting.[1]
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According to Yana Prymachenko the response "Glory to the heroes!" (Heroiam slava!) was in use already in years 1917–1921, during the Ukrainian war of independence.[8] InPetro Dyachenko's memoirs, it is reported that at a meeting of theLegion of Ukrainian Nationalists (LUN), which was active in 1925–29,Yuriy Artyushenko [uk] proposed to adopt theBlack Zaporozhians [uk] salute "Glory to Ukraine!" – "Glory to the Cossacks!". This proposal was accepted with a change of response to the more universal "Glory to the heroes!".[16] However, in the memoirs of Artyushenko himself, there is no such information, but there is a mention of the acceptance of the greeting "Glory to Ukraine!" and the response "Glory to Ukraine, Glory!".[1][17]
During theGerman occupation of Poland after September 1939, Ukrainian organisations were able to develop extensive activities. OUN activists were involved in the work of the Ukrainian Central Committee and its local branches. After a time, this contributed to the development ofnational consciousness among many Ukrainians in the General Government and the spread of the OUN greeting.[18] In July 1940, a Ukrainian observer from theWłodawa area noted:We have not yet seen in our lives such an educated, so organised rural youth. Every child who passed by us raised his hand and greeted: "Glory to Ukraine".[19]
In April 1941 inGerman-occupiedKraków, the younger part of the OUN seceded and formed its own organisation, called the OUN-B after its leaderStepan Bandera. The group adopted a fascist-style salute along with calling "Glory to Ukraine!" and responding with "Glory to the Heroes!".[20][21][22][12] During the failed attempt to build a Ukrainian state on lands occupied by Germany after its invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, triumphal arches with "Glory to Ukraine!", along with other slogans, were erected in numerous Ukrainian cities.[23] According to historianGrzegorz Rossoliński-Liebe, an observer recalled many ordinary Ukrainians abandoning the customary Christian greeting "Glory to Jesus Christ" (Slava Isusu Khrystu) in favour of the new OUN greeting.[24] For this reason, Greek-Catholic Metropolitan ArchbishopAndriy Sheptytskyi, criticised the OUN for the greeting.[25] Created in the second half of 1942 by the OUN theUkrainian Insurgent Army dropped the raising of the right arm above the head.[26]
In theSoviet Union, the slogan "Slava Ukraini!" was forbidden and discredited via a decades-long propaganda campaign alongside the diaspora Ukrainian nationalists who used it.[14][2] They were dubbed "Ukrainianbourgeois nationalists", "Banderites", and "Nazi henchmen" by Soviet authorities.[14]
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the slogan began to be heard at rallies and demonstrations.[2] After Ukrainedeclared independence in 1991, the phrase "Glory to Ukraine!" became a common patriotic slogan.[27][28] In 1995, President of the United StatesBill Clinton used the phrase in a speech inKyiv[29] (together with "God bless America").[30]
The phrase has undergone a resurgence in recent times, becoming a popular and prominent refrain during the2014 Ukrainian revolution,[6] and a symbol of democracy and of resistance againstPutin's Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[14]Andreas Umland in 2013 attributes the slogan's popularity to actorYevhen Nyshchuk, who was a presenter at the Euromaidan podium and chanted the slogan.[31] In his opinion, the presence of over-represented ethno-nationalist groups such as theSvoboda party,Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists,Ukrainian Platform Sobor andRight Sector also contributed to its spread among Euromaidan participants.[31] Dr.Serhiy Kvit, former Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, appeals to Umland that the slogan became popular not because "it was repeated countless times from the Maidan stage and not because of some campaign of ethnic superiority", but because of "its association with the defiant spirit of a struggle against all odds".[32] Later, in 2017, Umland together with Yuliya Yurchuk writes that nationalist symbols during Euromaidan acquired new meaning – a reaction to Soviet and post-Soviet repression of Ukrainian culture and history. The greeting became the mourning for the Euromaidan victims. Afterwar in Donbas started, Ukrainians greeted fighting and fallen Ukrainian soldiers with "Glory to Ukraine".[33][34] Ukrainian-Canadian historianSerhy Yekelchyk writes that "the nationalist greeting from the 1940s [...] acquired new meaning onthe Maidan", and that "when used by protestors, [the slogan] referred to a hoped-for democratic and pro-Western Ukraine and regarded as heroes those who had fallen in service to their cause."[35]
According to political scientist Vyacheslav Likhachev, even variations that had far-right connotations lost that meaning during Euromaidan, for example, nearly every public speech, as well as public greetings began/ended with "Glory to Ukraine – glory to the heroes!" He noted that by the Equality March in 2021, the annualLGBTQ+ event in Kyiv, other variations like "Glory to the nation – death to the enemies!" were chanted by participants spontaneously. They had long become ubiquitous enough to lose any aggressive meaning.[36]
On 9 August 2018, Ukrainian PresidentPetro Poroshenko announced that "Glory to Ukraine!" would be the official greeting of theArmed Forces of Ukraine, replacing "Hello comrades" (Ukrainian:Вітаю товариші,romanized: Vitayu tovaryshi).[37] The greeting was used during theKyiv Independence Day Parade on 24 August 2018.[38] TheUkrainian parliament approved the President's bill on this (in its first reading) on 6 September and on 4 October 2018.[39] Parliament also made Glory to Ukraine the official greeting of theNational Police of Ukraine.[40]
The popularization of the phrase was sometimes controversial abroad. After Croatia's2018 FIFA World Cup victory, Croatia's assistant coach was fined by the football governing bodyFIFA after posting a video in which he used the slogan. In response, on 10 July 2018, Ukrainian supporters flooded FIFA'sFacebook page with over 158,000 comments, most saying "Glory to Ukraine!". Russia alleged that the chant has ultra-nationalist connotations.[41] TheFootball Federation of Ukraine said in a statement that "'Glory to Ukraine' is a commonly used greeting in Ukraine," and that it "should not be interpreted as an act of aggression or provocation".[42]
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This phrase became very popular among Ukrainian soldiers and their supporters to boost morale following theRussian invasion of Ukraine.[43][44] The slogan has seen worldwide useby protesters in solidarity with Ukraine all over the world, accompanying various demands towards the Russian embassies and the relevant national governments such as excluding Russia fromSWIFT and closingairspace over Ukraine.[45]
It has been used in speeches by numerous Ukrainian politicians including PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy.[46] It has also been used by foreign leaders including European Commission PresidentUrsula von der Leyen,[47] former British Prime MinisterBoris Johnson,[48] former New Zealand Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern,[49] Dutch Prime MinisterMark Rutte,[50] Croatian Prime MinisterAndrej Plenković,[51] former U.S. SpeakerNancy Pelosi[52] and the UK's Permanent RepresentativeBarbara Woodward in a speech to the UN.[53] It has been used by commentators and media such asThe Times.[54]
TheNorwegian Armed Forces' official composerMarcus Paus composed the song "Slava Ukraini!," loosely inspired byUkraine's national anthem. Paus released the work on Facebook[55] on 27 February 2022 and described it as a song of resistance; it was recorded two days later by Lithuanian-Norwegian viola player Povilas Syrrist-Gelgota of theOslo Philharmonic, and was broadcast shortly afterwards by the Norwegian government broadcaster,NRK.[56][57][58][59][60] Paus said that "the work seems to strike a chord with many people, including those who are in the middle of the battle zone. There is no nobler task for music than to unite and comfort people."[56]
Beyond Europe, the song "Glory to Hong Kong" drew inspiration from the slogan for use in the2019–20 Hong Kong protests.[61] The Chinese edition ofDeutsche Welle named "Glory to Hong Kong" the "anthem" of the Hong Kong protests.[62] Describing the song,Chinese Television System News in Taiwan noted that the song had "peaceful vocals coupled with scenes of bloody conflicts between Hong Kong Police and the people" and that by creating "Glory to Hong Kong", Hongkongers recorded their "history of struggling for democracy and freedom".[63]
The2 euro commemorative coin issued by theBank of Estonia in 2022 features the words "Slava Ukraini" (Glory to Ukraine), which was designed by Daria Titova, a Ukrainian refugee studying at theEstonian Academy of Arts.[64][65]
For instance, the chant, "Glory to Ukraine!" (Slava Ukraini!), followed by "Glory to the Heroes!" (Heroiam slava!), had its origins in Ukraine's national revolution of 1917-1920, but it became widespread as a slogan under the wing of theOrganization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) under the leadership ofStepan Bandera.
The trial also marked the first time ON members performed a fascist salute in public: Vira Svientsitska, as she was taking the stand, turned toward her fellow defendants, raised her right arm, and declared "Slava Ukraini!" (Glory to Ukraine). All the defendants were found guilty and received life imprisonment; at the end of the verdict, Bandera shouted "Iron and blood will decide between us." His fellow OUN members responded with a shout of "Slava Ukraini!".
For instance, the chant, "Glory to Ukraine!" (Slava Ukraini!), followed by "Glory to the Heroes!" (Heroiam slava!), had its origins in Ukraine's national revolution of 1917-1920, but it became widespread as a slogan under the wing of theOrganization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) under the leadership ofStepan Bandera.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)'Slava Ukraini,' he whispered, repeating the rallying cry 'Glory to Ukraine' that's galvanized the country.
And in that spirit I join you in saying slava Ukraini.
So our message today is simple: We offer our unequivocal support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. We call on President Putin to stop this senseless war. And we urge all fellow Members of the United Nations to speak up for Ukraine and to defend the Charter. Slava Ukraini!
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)| Official |  | |
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