Znamianka Знам'янка | |
|---|---|
 Skyline of Znamianka from the south | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Interactive map of Znamianka | |
  Znamianka  Znamianka | |
| Coordinates:48°42′49″N32°40′24″E / 48.71361°N 32.67333°E /48.71361; 32.67333 | |
| Country |  Ukraine |
| Oblast | Kirovohrad Oblast |
| Raion | Kropyvnytskyi Raion |
| Hromada | Znamianka urban hromada |
| Founded | 1869 |
| Area | |
• Total | 14.8 km2 (5.7 sq mi) |
| Population (2022) | |
• Total | 21,221 |
| • Density | 1,430/km2 (3,710/sq mi) |
| Postal code | 27400 |
| Area code | +380 5233 |
Znamianka (Ukrainian:Знам'янка,IPA:[ˈznɑmjɐnkɐ]ⓘ) is acity in centralUkraine,Kropyvnytskyi Raion,Kirovohrad Oblast. It hosts the administration ofZnamianka urban hromada, one of thehromadas of Ukraine.[1] Population:21,221 (2022 estimate).[2]
It is located about halfway between the regional centerKropyvnytskyi (west), and cities ofOleksandriia (east) andSvitlovodsk (north). A popular reservoir in the city is aBalka Orlova river and it's numerous ponds.
The lands of the modern Kirovohrad Oblast and the Znamianka territorialhromada were first inhabited byScythians, it was near the Znamianka that a bronze and golden image of the Scythian eagle was found, which is now a symbol of the region. In the course of excavations, many remains of theChernoles culture were found here. In the Middle Ages, during the time ofKyivan Rus', the East Slavic tribe of Ulichis lived here.
After the liberation of the former Kyivan Rus' from the Tatars in theBattle of Blue Waters and the unification of the principalities of Kyiv, Pereyaslav, and Chernihiv with theGrand Duchy of Lithuania, there was a need to protect the southeastern borders from attacks by theCrimean Khanate andMuscovy - states that were formed after the collapse of theGolden Horde at the end of the 15th century. For this,Dmytro Vyshnevetsky founded the firstZaporozhian Sich on the island ofKhortytsia, thus the Ukrainian Cossacs appeared.
On the territory of the modern Kirovohrad region the Zaporozhians founded many villages near the territory of modern Znamianka, likeMoshoryne andSubottsi. After thedestruction of the Zaporizhzhya Cossacks by the Russians in 1775, the lands of central Ukraine came under the direct authority of Russian Empire
Znamianka was established in 1869 when there started train movement between Kharkiv and Odesa in area that historically was known as Black Forest (or Nigra Sylva).[3] At the meadow of Black Forest, through which stretched a segment of Yelizavetgrad – Kriukov (west–east), there was built the train station main building and its offices.[3] The station was named after the original village Znamianka that was located 3 km (1.9 miles) away[3] and today is known asZnamianka Druha.
To the area were resettled peasants from theOryol Governorate area, possible the RussianOld Believers for whom theOur Lady of the Sign sacred. In Russian the Sign means Znamiennie, so in diminutive form the settlement's name became Znamianka.
Also there is another version of the origin of the name, according to which during theRusso-Turkish wars, theUkrainian Cossacks, who were then under the protectorate of Russian Empire, before entering another battle with the turks, hid their jewels, in particular the flag, on one of the clearings of the Black Forest, later they died. According to this version, the name of the settlement appeared in honor of a reliably preserved flag (Ukrainian. знамено, znameno).[4]
In 1873 there was opened movement of trains on the segment Znamianka – Mykolaiv, in 1876 towards Fastiv.[3] Out of a small train station Znamianka started to transform into a rail hub.[3] Znamianka became a train station at four-way crossroads northeast towardsKremenchuk, south towardsMykolaiv, west towardsBalta and northwest towardsFastiv. Simultaneously with building of the train station on a land lot that was rent out from landowners Osipovs by people from neighboring villages and other counties (uyezds), there appeared a small settlement of railway workers, Osipovoye.[3]
In 1886 there already were 24 private houses, anearth shelter, six trading places and population of 143.[3] Couple of dozens years later just south of the train station there appeared another settlement of Linitskoye.[3]
In 1913 in both Osipovoye and Linitskoye lived about 6,000 people.[3]In the beginning for sometime the train station was classified of the third category with its locomotive depot accounting for 4 locomotives.[3] In December 1883 when there ended construction of the new train station building, there were 29 locomotives and the depot employed some 92 workers.[3] In the 1890s the rail hub was shipping out some 580,000poods of bread annually.[3]
During the 1917 to 1921Ukrainian War of Independence andUkrainian-Soviet war Znamianka was part ofUkrainian People's Republic,Ukrainian state, and theKholodny Yar Republic.[5] In 1920 Znamianka was captured by the Soviet army for the third time.[6] Also, theRepublic of Black Forest (Ukrainian. Республіка Чорного лісу) existed here, subordinate to theKholodny Yar Republic — he last a hotbed of the struggle for the independence of the Ukrainian People's Republic and resistance to Soviet expansion.[7][8][9]
In 1923 Znamianka became the district center, which was subordinated to 9 village councils. In 1930, Znamianka received the status of an urban-type settlement. During theHolodomor (1932-1933) andSoviet repressions, at least 891 residents died. According to eyewitnesses, in 1933, in the area of the old railway station, exhausted peasants who escaped from the collective farms and tried to leave for the cities fell out of the freight cars. They were hidden by equally hungry local residents near the station itself or on its outskirts.[10] In 1938, Znamianka received the status of a city, with a population of 14,600 people.
DuringWorld War II Znamianka was under German occupation from August 5, 1941 to December 9, 1943. The Nazis shot 753 civilians, tortured 188 people, and forcibly transported 1,121 people toforced labor in Germany. In the spring of 1943, the Stalag 359prisoner-of-war camp was relocated fromSandomierz inGerman-occupied Poland to Znamianka, and then in July 1943, it was further moved to Borysivka.[11]
After the World War II, a new railway station was built in 1952, and five-story residential buildings in the 1960s. In 1968, the 14-meter Obelisk of Glory was installed in the city center, and in 1977, in front of it, the City Palace of Culture was opened. And in the 1980s, nine-story residential buildings were built. In January 1989 the population was 33 828 people.[12]
In 2012, based on thelaw "On the principles of the State language policy", City Council declared Znamianka's regional language to beRussian.[6] On 28 February 2018 the Constitutional Court of Ukraine ruled this law unconstitutional.[13]
In January 2013 the population was 23 983 people.[14]
During the period ofAnti-Terrorist Operation in the East of Ukraine (2014-2018) and the Operation of the United Forces (2018-2021), almost 1,000 citizens of Znamianka took part in combat operations. 12 died, a central street in the city was named after one of them (Viktor Holyi).[15][16]
Until 18 July 2020, Znamianka was designated as acity of oblast significance and belonged toZnamianka Municipality but not toZnamianka Raion even though it was the center of the raion. Znamianka Municipality combined the city of Znamianka, the urban-type settlement ofZnamianka Druha, and the four villages :Petrove,Vodiane,Sokilnyky andNovooleksandrivka. As part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Kirovohrad Oblast to four, Znamianka Municipality was merged into Kropyvnytskyi Raion.[17][18]
During theRussian invasion of Ukraine, Znamianka became a refuge for several thousand refugees from the southeast of the state.[19] According to the city council, from 2022 to 2025, 110 soldiers from Znamianka died defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.[20][21][22]
| Climate data for Znamianka (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −1.3 (29.7) | 0.2 (32.4) | 6.2 (43.2) | 15.5 (59.9) | 21.8 (71.2) | 25.4 (77.7) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.3 (81.1) | 21.2 (70.2) | 13.5 (56.3) | 5.4 (41.7) | 0.3 (32.5) | 13.6 (56.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −3.8 (25.2) | −2.9 (26.8) | 2.0 (35.6) | 9.7 (49.5) | 15.6 (60.1) | 19.5 (67.1) | 21.4 (70.5) | 20.7 (69.3) | 15.0 (59.0) | 8.5 (47.3) | 2.3 (36.1) | −2.0 (28.4) | 8.8 (47.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −6.4 (20.5) | −5.7 (21.7) | −1.4 (29.5) | 4.5 (40.1) | 9.8 (49.6) | 14.0 (57.2) | 15.7 (60.3) | 14.6 (58.3) | 9.8 (49.6) | 4.5 (40.1) | −0.3 (31.5) | −4.4 (24.1) | 4.6 (40.3) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 40 (1.6) | 32 (1.3) | 39 (1.5) | 33 (1.3) | 55 (2.2) | 79 (3.1) | 69 (2.7) | 48 (1.9) | 55 (2.2) | 43 (1.7) | 39 (1.5) | 37 (1.5) | 569 (22.4) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 8.0 | 6.6 | 7.9 | 6.3 | 7.7 | 8.0 | 6.5 | 5.2 | 6.1 | 5.7 | 6.2 | 7.1 | 81.3 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 87.6 | 84.5 | 77.4 | 65.3 | 64.7 | 67.7 | 67.7 | 64.6 | 71.2 | 80.1 | 87.9 | 89.2 | 75.7 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 51 | 75 | 137 | 201 | 280 | 302 | 324 | 304 | 216 | 141 | 53 | 39 | 2,123 |
| Source:NOAA[23] | |||||||||||||
