The city serves as a transportation hub for Ukraine, containing a seaport, commercial port, river port,highway,railway junction, andairport.
Much of Mykolaiv's land area consists of parks. Park Peremohy (Victory) is a large park on the peninsula just north of the city center, on the north side of theInhul river.
Until 2016, the main street of Mykolaiv was called Sovetskaya (“Soviet Street”). In 2016, it was renamed Soborna Street.[3]
The city is known under two names, which differ in Ukrainian and Russian; there are severaltransliterations of each name. The Ukrainian name of the city is Миколаїв, transliterated asMykolaiv. The Russian name, Никола́ев, transliterates asNikolaev or asNikolayev.The city's founding was made by the Russian conquests during theSecond Russo-Turkish War of 1787–1792. Founded by PrinceGrigory Potemkin as Nikolaev, it was the last of the many cities he established. On 27 August 1789,[5] Potemkin ordered its naming near the wharf at the mouth of theIngul river, on a high, cool and breezy spot where the Ingul river meets theSouthern Bug river. To build the city he brought in peasants, soldiers, and Turkish prisoners; 2,500 were working there during 1789. The shipyards were built first (1788).[6]
Statue in Mykolaiv ofSaint Nicholas after whom the city is named.
Potemkin named the city afterSaint Nicholas, the patron of seafarers, on whose day (6 December) he had obtained victory at thesiege of Ochakov[7] in 1788. The nameNikolaev is known from the legal order (writ) Number 1065 by Prince Potemkin toMikhail Faleev [ru] dated 27 August 1789.[8]
In 1920, after the establishment ofSoviet power, theOdesa provincial council (of laborers and peasants' deputies) petitioned the Soviet Ukrainian government—theAll-Ukrainian Central Executive Committee (VUTSIK)—to rename the city of Mykolaiv to Vernoleninsk ("Faithful to Lenin"). As the city of Mykolaiv was a district center of the Odesan province, presumably, the petition would have been initiated by theOdesa City Council, but documentary evidence of this so far has not been identified. On 15 April 1924 the Plenum of the Central Administrative-Territorial Commission of the VUTSIK considered and rejected the petition of the Odesan executive committee. Perhaps the members of the Soviet-Ukraine government thought that the name sounded too obsequious.[9]
Information regarding the alleged renaming of Mykolaiv was disseminated by German maps of the 1920s and 1930s, as well as in German encyclopedic publications in 1927 and 1932, which show Vernoleninsk on the USSR part of the European maps. The city was designated as Mykolaiv in publications of the same map in other languages.[9]
To distinguish Mykolaiv from the much smaller west Ukraine city ofMykolaiv inLviv Oblast, the latter is sometimes called "Mykolaiv on the Dniester" after themajor river that it is situated on, while the former is located on theSouthern Bug, another major river, and may also be called "Mykolaiv on the Bug".
View of the City of Mykolaiv, painting by Fedor Alexeev, 1799
Archaeologists have found proof of ancient settlements on the territory of Mykolaiv.[10] In 2018, archaeologists discovered a sunken Ancient Greek ship near the Mykolaiv region, dating from the fifth century BC, the period ofGreek colonization of the Northern Black Sea. Researchers stated: "This Ancient Greek ship is one of the oldest known in the Northern Black Sea."[11]
The area was populated throughout time byScythians,ancient Greeks,Slavic tribes, hordes of nomads and freeZaporozhian Cossacks. However, the intensive settlement of the Mykolaiv peninsula started in the last quarter of the 18th century already after the liberation of the northern Black Sea coast region from theOttoman Empire.
The Russian Empire'sBlack Sea Navy Headquarters was in Mykolaiv for more than 100 years until theImperial Russian Navy moved it toSevastopol, near the southern tip of theCrimean Peninsula. During theCrimean War (1853–1856), Mykolaiv became the main rear base to support Russia's efforts in the war. Mostbusinesses that were created in the city belonged to the military-industrial complex, and, consequently, Mykolaiv was closed to foreigners for many decades.[13]
Shipyard in Mykolaiv circa 1900
By the late 19th century, Mykolaiv's port ranked third in the Russian Empire (afterSaint Petersburg andOdesa) in trade with foreign countries. Grain-export suppliers of the steppe region (of Ukraine and Southern Russia) were the greatest in the Russian Empire. Mykolaiv had become a great industrial center in the Southern Ukraine.[13]
Jews started to settle in Mykolaiv in the late 18th century.[14] By being in the area west of the Dnieper which was where Jews were legally allowed to reside (thePale of Settlement), Mykolaiv became a major Jewish centre of the Russian Empire in the 19th century. During the course of the 19th century, the Czarist governments largely banned Jews from living east of theDnieper River. In 1866 restrictions were lifted and the Jewish community of Mykolaiv developed rapidly but years later Jews suffered in thepogroms of May 1881 and April 1899.
In the course ofOperation Barbarossa Mykolaiv was occupied on 16 August 1941 by German invaders. In September, German forcesmassacred over 35,000 non-combatants, most of them Jews, in the city and its region. In April 1942, the Stalag 364prisoner-of-war camp was relocated fromRzeszów inGerman-occupied Poland to Mykolaiv.[18] It was dissolved in December 1943.[18] During the occupation, an underground partisan sabotage group, the Mykolaiv Center, conductedguerilla activities. On 28 March 1944 the city was liberated, in part because of Soviet Senior LieutenantKonstantin F. Olshansky's marines and their daring raid during which the majority of his troops were killed.
In the post-war period Mykolaiv became one of the shipbuilding centers of the USSR, with three shipyards:Black Sea,61 Kommunara, andOkean.
In March 2012, Mykolaiv gained international notoriety for lawlessness andpolice corruption following the rape andmurder of Oksana Makar.[20] Her three attackers were apprehended, but two were released because of family connections to local government officials. After a media outcry and public protests, all three attackers were charged with her murder.
During theEuromaidan protests of 2013–2014, Mykolayiv was the scene of anti-Yanukovich protests. After the victory of Euromaidan, the situation calmed down somewhat until 7 April 2014, when somepro-Russians tried to take over the local administration building. Pro-Ukrainians stopped them from taking over the administration building and destroyed the pro-Russian camp not far from it, after which the situation in the city became calm.[21]
Until 18 July 2020, Mykolaiv was incorporated as acity of oblast significance. It also served as the administrative center of Mykolaiv andVitovka Raions even though it did not belong to any of these raions. In July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Mykolaiv Oblast to four, the city of Mykolaiv was merged into Mykolaiv Raion.[22][23]
Following a Russian strike against the main waterline connecting Mykolaiv withDnipro river on 12 April 2022, local inhabitants were left without access to centralized water supply for almost a month. Later, water for the needs of the city's population was being procured from local rivers. On 7 October 2025Oleksiy Kuleba,Minister of Communities and Territorial Development of Ukraine, officially reported, that centralized supply of freshwater to the city has been resumed after the completion of a new water pipeline.[29]
Mykolaiv is located in a primarily flat terrain area, the fertile, grain-producing steppe region ofsouthern Ukraine. The nearest mountains to Mykolaiv are 300 km (186 mi) south, at the southern end of theCrimean Peninsula. The lack of any mountain barriers north of Mykolaiv means that cold Arctic winds can blow south, unimpeded by any terrain elevation, to Mykolaiv in winter.
Mykolaiv is on a peninsula along theestuary of theSouthern Bug river where it meets theInhul River, 65 km (40 mi) from theBlack Sea.[31] Both the Inhul River and the Southern Bug River follow very winding courses just before they join at the northeast corner of Mykolaiv. This has created several long and narrow peninsulas just north of Mykolaiv, and the main part of Mykolaiv is itself on a peninsula at a 180-degree bend in the Southern Bug River.
View on the city and Ingulskiy bridge from the Camp field.
Mykolaiv hasenvironmental issues, which is common in many cities in Ukraine, such as pollution ofwater, theair, andgroundwater; drinking water quality,noise,waste management, and conservation of biological diversity in the city.[33] One of Mykolaiv's most urgent problems is the disposal of solid householdwaste.[34]
Mykolaiv Zoo
The city has 18 preserved sites, totaling about 12 km2 (5 sq mi):[35]
The Mykolaiv Zoo
The monuments of landscape art: Park Peremohy, Park People's Garden, 68 Paratroopers Park, Square, The Sivašskij, The Boulevard Bunker, Linea (Line) Park, Young Heroes Park; Youth Park in the Inhulskyi District[36]
The Botanical Natural Monument Memory Square
The Dubki Reserved Nature boundary
The Balabanovka Forest Reserve
The Reservoir Hydrological Reserve
The Turkish Fountain Hydrological Natural Monument
The city's climate is moderately continental-cold semi arid steppe climate with cold winters and warm to hot summers.[31][37] Mykolaiv's average temperature is 10 °C (50 °F). The lowest average temperature is in January −1.9 °C (29 °F), the highest in July 23.1 °C (74 °F).[37]
Mykolaiv has an average of 472 mm (19 in) of precipitation per year, with the lowest precipitation in October, and the most in July. Mykolaiv has mild snow cover every year.[37]
Average relative humidity is 73% for the year; the lowest humidity is in August (60%); the highest in December (86%).[37] The lowest cloud are seen in August; the highest are in December.[37]
The prevailing winds come from the North; the least frequent source of wind is the Southeast. The maximum wind speed is in February, the lowest is from July through September. In January, the average wind speed is 4.1 m/s (meters per second); in July, the average is 3.1 m/s.[37]
Climate data for Mykolaiv (1981–2010, extremes 1900–2015)
As of 2017, 63% of the population spoke Russian at home, 7% Ukrainian, and 28% spoke both Ukrainian and Russian equally.[52]
According to a survey conducted by theInternational Republican Institute in April-May 2023, 30% of the city's population spoke Ukrainian at home, and 61% spoke Russian.[54]
The Soviet Government awarded Mykolaiv theOrder of the Red Banner of Labour on 31 December 1970, for successfully fulfilling its assignments for the development of industrial production, in the USSR's five-year economic plan.
Tsentralnyi District is located in the northwest of the city. It includes the historic center of Mykolaiv, Raketne Urochyshche, Temvod, Soliani, Pivnichnyi, Ternivka (with a separate village council), Matviivka, Varvarivka.
Zavodskyi District is located in the west of the city. In this area, many industrial enterprises are concentrated. It also includes neighborhoods Lisky and Namyv, as well as towns of Velyka Korenykha and Mala Korenykha.
Inhulskyi District (former Leninskyi District) is located in the east of Mykolaiv. Among other neighborhoods, it includes the PTZ, Novyi Vodopii, Staryi Vodopii. The district has a zoo, bus and railway stations.
Korabelnyi District is located in the south of the city. It includes a broad beam, Bohoiavlenskyi, Balabanivka, Kulbakyne.
Mykolaiv adopted its current coat of arms on 26 September 1997. Its design came from the one adopted in 1883, by removing the symbol ofKherson province to which Mykolaiv didn't belong anymore.[56]Mykolaiv adopted its current flag on 2 July 1999 and its anthem on 11 September 2004.[56]
Mykolaiv wasclosed to foreign visitors until the late 1980s due to the large number of secret Soviet Navy projects that took place in the city (as well as due to its military air base, turbine factory and military port). The majority of the Soviet Navy's surface ships, including its only aircraft carrier,the aircraft carrier Kuznetsov, were built in Mykolaiv.
In May 2011, Ukrainian PresidentViktor Yanukovych visited Mykolaiv and said that Ukraine was serious about reviving and further developing its shipbuilding industry in the Mykolaiv region.[57]
One of the largest industrial businesses in the city is the Mykolaiv Aluminia Factory (formerly part ofRusal and currently owned byGlencore), which produces aluminium oxide (alumina), raw material for the production of aluminum.[58]
In addition to heavy industry, the city has a developed food processing industry, including a juice maker,Sandora (part ofPepsiCo), a dairy products maker, Laktalis-Mykolaiv, and a brewery, Yantar.Nibulon (Ukrainian: Нібулон), one of Ukraine's biggest agriculture companies specialized in the production and exportation of grain such as wheat, barley and corn is headquartered in Mykolaiv. The company has its own maritime fleet and shipyard, theNibulon Shipyard, and also developed its own river fleet to transport grain to export terminals.[59]
In January 2017, the Mykolaiv Development Agency released a promo video of the city's investment potential.[60]
The Mykolaiv Armored Factory (owned byUkroboronprom) has been a large repair facility for Ukraine's military since the beginning of theRusso-Ukrainian War. Engineers at the plant designed an armored ambulance based on theBTR-70 to be used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.[61]
Mykolaiv, being an important strategic city in southern Ukraine has a significant Ukrainian military presence, including the shipyards that build Ukraine's surface navy ships, the MykolaivUkrainian Navy base, the "MARP" aircraft repair factory (Mykolaiv), and the Kulbakino army base (in the Mykolaiv Oblast, outside of the city of Mykolaiv).[citation needed]
Mykolaiv is one of Ukraine's most important transportation junctions. It is a major commercial river and sea port, and a major highway and rail junction.[63] Mykolaiv also has a dual-function passenger and freight airport, but passenger service at the airport is not significant, compared to Ukraine's major airports. In addition to the airport and sea and river port, Mykolaiv has two train stations, and an intercity bus station.
Mykolaiv Airport (IATA code NLV) is one of the largest and most technically well equipped airports in the South of Ukraine[citation needed], which serves the city. The airport, located northwest of Mykolaiv, is mainly used for air freight and only has limited passenger service. Russian airlineUTAir Aviation offers flights from Mykolaiv toMoscow (Vnukovo – VKO airport). In addition, there are one-hour passenger flights fromOdesa (the nearest major airport) to Mykolaiv. Almost all airline passenger service in the South West of Ukraine (where Mykolaiv is located) is through Odesa International Airport: to reach Mykolaiv by airplane, tourists generally reach Odesa by plane, and then take a bus, taxi or train, for approximately 2 hours, to Mykolaiv. Odesa, the largest city in South West Ukraine, is 132 km (82 mi) from Mykolaiv.[64]
Mykolaiv is an 8.5-hour bus ride from Kyiv's main bus station.[66] Ukrainian private national bus companies Gyunsel and Avtoluks operate overnight buses from Kyiv to Mykolaiv seven nights per week. The bus station in Mykolaiv is located at Prospekt (Avenue) Bohoyavlenskyi 21.
The main north–south highway that passes through Mykolaiv is H (or M)-14.
The main East-West Highway that passes through Mykolaiv is E-58 M-14 (West and then South to Odesa), and South East to Kherson, a major port on the Dneper River, just before it flows into the Black Sea. The E-58 M-14 then continues East to the major industrial city and port in South Eastern Ukraine, Mariupol.
The main highways to and from Mykolaiv are fromKherson (65 km, 40 mi),Odesa (120 km, 75 mi),Uman (320 km, 199 mi),Chişinău (Kishniev), Moldova (325 km, 202 mi), the Crimean Peninsula (350 km, 217 mi),Kyiv (500 km, 311 mi),Kharkiv (520 km, 323 mi), andLviv (350 km, 217 mi) in Western Ukraine. Ukraine's roads, including those leading from Mykolaiv, tend to be poorly maintained and can be very dangerous.
Roads through Mykolaiv include:
the east–west Euro-Asian transport corridor: Odesa–Mykolaiv–Kherson–Dzhankoy–Kerch.
R-06 (Ulianovka–Mykolaiv) with thehighway M05 (Odesa–Kyiv), which, in turn, is linked with thehighway M12 in the city district of Uman, having an exit on the routeLublin–Warsaw–Gdańsk (Poland). The length of the route Gdańsk–Mykolaiv is 1,530 kilometers (950 miles).
Mykolaiv, being located at the confluence of two major rivers, has two main bridges.
Varvarivskyi BridgeInhul River bridge in MykolaivOld pedestrian bridge over Inhul River
The Varvarivskyi Bridge overSouthern Bug is aswing bridge with Europe's largest span (134 m, 440 ft).[67] It is also the southernmost bridge over the Southern Bug. The bridge connects the North coast of Mykolaiv to its Tsentralnyi District, located on the West Bank of the river. The Odeske Highway crosses the bridge and then continues south-west to Odesa.
Another major bridge is theInhul Bridge crossing theInhul River. The bridge leads from the north coast of Mykolaiv, and goes north-northeast to the peninsula on the north side of the Inhul, just north of Mykolaiv. On the north Side of the Inhul River, the Heroyiv Stalingrada Highway crosses the bridge, streaming into Pushkinska Street on the other side.
Overnight train travel in sleeper-berth passenger trains is a very common way to travel long distances in Ukraine, cheaper, more comfortable and faster than buses – and more environment-friendly, for that matter. There are nightly trains from Kyiv's main passenger train station to Mykolaiv.[68]
In addition to Kyiv, trains from Mykolaiv regularly run to the two closest major cities to Mykolaiv: Odesa (south west of Mykolaiv); and Kherson (south of Mykolaiv).[69] Direct trains to Moscow (26 hours), Kyiv (8-10), Lviv (18), Odesa (5), the Crimea (8 hours) depart every day. Train departures timetable. All trains have coach cars.
Mykolaiv's passenger train station is calledMykolaiv – Passenger. It at the intersection of Myru Avenue and Novozavodska Street 5 (in Ukraine street address numbers are placed after the street name).[69] From the city square outside the railway station, buses depart to all other parts of Mykolaiv.
Mykolaiv's freight train station is called Mykolaiv-Gruzovoi (Freight). It is located at Pryvokzalna ploshcha (Square).[69]
Though a major Ukrainian commercial sea port, Mykolaiv has no regular passenger water-borne service. Water transport is offered by three sea ports and one river port, and also by several terminals. The port is linked with the sea byDnieper-Bug Estuary canal. The canal begins at the islandBerezan and extends 44 kilometers (27 miles) until it reaches the port of Mykolaiv. The canal consistes of 13 tracks, six of which reachDnieper Estuary, and the rest along the riverSouthern Bug. The width of the canal is 100 meters (330 feet). Its depth is 10.5 meters (34 feet).
Large ocean-going ships can reach Mykolaiv year round, via the Southern Bug River. The Southern Bug River, which flows into the Black Sea 65 km (40 mi) south of Mykolaiv, is 1.5 km (0.9 mi) wide in Mykolaiv. Mykolaiv's passenger river port is at Varvarovskii Spusk (Descent) 5.[69]
The length of Mykolaiv's tram lines is 73 kilometers (45 miles). From 1897 until 1925 Mykolaiv's trams werepulled by horses. Trams began to be powered by electricity in 1915, and this has continued through the present. At their inception, the tracks were1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in)metre gauge, but during the period from 1952 to 1972 they were switched to standard gauge.
Sukhomlinsky National University of Mykolaiv is the oldest university in Mykolaiv. The idea of the university foundation arose in the 1860s, but it was realized only on July 18, 1913, when the Mykolaiv Teacher's Institute was founded. Nowadays there are 7,000 students studying at the university, 300 teachers working at 36 departments. Annually, the university graduates 1,000 specialists and 60-70 undergraduates.[citation needed]
There are 10 higher education institutions in Mykolaiv of level III or IV accreditation. 65 general education schools, lycees, gymnasium schools, 3 evening schools, and 12 private learning institutions are in the city.
In a survey in June–July 2017, adult respondents reported the following educational levels:[52]
5% primary or incomplete secondary education.
26% general secondary education.
31% vocational secondary education.
38% university education (including incomplete university education).
There are three performing arts theaters in Mykolaiv: the Academic Ukrainian Theater of Drama and Musical Comedy, the Mykolaiv State Puppet Theater, and the Mykolaiv Academic Art Russian Drama Theater. In addition, the Mykolaiv Oblast Philharmonic performs in the city.
Three movie theaters operate in Mykolaiv: Rodina (Motherland), Pioneer, Multiplex. Movies shown include the latest Hollywood films dubbed into Ukrainian and modern Russian films.
Publications includeVecherniy Nikolayev (Evening Mykolaiv),Nikolaevsckie Novosti (Mykolaiv News), andYuzhnaya Pravda (Southern Truth). Many publications have an Internet version, but exist in an independent Internet publication.
Television programs that are broadcast in Mykolaiv include movies, news, dramas (some of which originated in other countries, such as Mexico and the US, and are dubbed), cartoons, and professional sporting events such as Ukrainian football (soccer). Mykolaiv has the following TV channels: 1+1; 2+2; 5 Kanal; ICTV; Inter; Real Estate TV; Tonis: K1: Kanal Ukraina; Kultura (Ukraina); CTB; TV: TET; and TRK.[71]
Mykolaiv is represented within the UkrainianBandy and Rink-bandy Federation.[72]
Central City Stadium, Mykolaiv
MFC Mykolaiv (Municipal Football Club "Mykolaiv", Ukrainian: Муніципальний футбольний клуб "Миколаїв") is a Ukrainian football club. The club has been relegated three times from the Ukrainian Premier League. MFС Mykolaiv's best achievement in the Ukrainian Premier League was 13th place (in 1994–95). MFC Mykolaiv reached first place in Druha Liha group A in 2010–11 season and was promoted to Persha Liha. Mykolaiv's main football stadium isTsentralnyi Stadion. As professional football club in the city there was alsoFC Viktoriya Mykolaivka founded in 2015 and subsequently in 2022 relocated inSumy.
Mykolaiv's professional basketball team isMBC Mykolaiv. The team has won or finished second or third in several international tournaments since 1988, and won the Ukrainian Championship in 1992. MBC Mykolaiv is part of the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague, which is the top professional basketball league in Ukraine.[citation needed]
The Mykolaiv students won two gold and bronze medals of the Cup of Ukraine on academic rowing.[73]
Oleksiy Sereda (born 2005) – diver; at age 13, he was the 2019 European champion in the 10 metre platform event, the youngest ever to win this gold medal; lives in Mykolaiv[77]
^Kruchkov Yuriy Ivanovich "Старый Николаев и окрестности. Топонимический словарь-справочник." ["Old Nikolaev and neighborhoods. Toponymic dictionary-reference."] (in Russian). Page 37: " Еще ранее здесь находилась земляная крепость (редут) Новогригорьевская (см.).Судостроительная верфь называлась «Новая верфь», «Ингульская верфь», «Уст ьИнгульск», «Верфь на Ингуле»; занималась вначале только ремонтом судов. Ордером №1065 от 27 августа 1789 г. Потемкин повелел «нововозводимую верфь на Ингулеименовать городом Николаев»."
^Compare:Bagalei, Dmitrii Ivanovich (1889).Колонизация Новороссийского края и первые шаги его по пути культуры [The colonisation of the Novorossiya region and its first steps on the path of culture] (in Russian). Litres (published 2016).ISBN9785040006410. Retrieved21 November 2016.В 1788 году, по приказанию Потемкина, в небольшой деревне Витовке были построены казармы в госпиталь, а на реке Ингуле заведена верфь.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
^Struk, Danylo Husar (18 November 1993).Encyclopedia of Ukraine. University of Toronto Press.ISBN9780802033628.Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved18 November 2017 – via Google Books.
^Priest, Lyman William (1947).The French Intervention in South Russia 1918-1919. Stanford University. p. 36. Retrieved20 June 2024.The Germans, commanded by Field Marshal Herman[sic] von Eichhorn, occupied the cities of Kiev and Nikolaev and their environs, as well as Sevastopol.
^Athanassiou, Phoebus (24 June 2021).Armies in Southern Russia 1918–19. Men-at-Arms. Oxford: Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 5, 7.ISBN9781472844781. Retrieved20 June 2024.Chronology [...] End January-end February 1919 [...] Entente troops occupy Nikolaev (present-day Mykolaiv), Kherson and Tiraspol [...] Following the landings in Odessa by elements of the French 156th Div and the Greek 34th Inf Regt, three separate 'fronts' were established: one at Berezivka, [...] another at Nikolaev, [...] and a third at Kherson [...].
^abMegargee, Geoffrey P.; Overmans, Rüdiger; Vogt, Wolfgang (2022).The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos 1933–1945. Volume IV. Indiana University Press, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. p. 367.ISBN978-0-253-06089-1.
^"Нові райони: карти + склад" (in Ukrainian). Міністерство розвитку громад та територій України.Archived from the original on 2 March 2021. Retrieved7 October 2022.
Official portal of The Mykolaiv City Council(in Ukrainian, Russian, and English)—Note that the Ukrainian language version has more working features than the English and Russian language versions.
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