Rivne Oblast (Ukrainian:Рівненська область,romanized: Rívnensʹka óblastʹ), also referred to asRivnenshchyna (Ukrainian:Рівненщина,romanized: Rívnenščyna), is anoblast in northwesternUkraine. Itsadministrative center isRivne. The surface area of the region is 20,100 square kilometres (7,800 mi2). Its population is:1,141,784 (2022 estimate).[3]
The region is located almost in the middle of the historical region of Volhynia which is indicated on its coat of arms with a white cross on a red background. Volhynia was completely partitioned after the Soviet occupation of Poland in September 1939 and divided between three oblasts,Volyn, Rivne, andTernopil, with some additional eastern portions inZhytomyr Oblast.
The relief of the region varies, its northern portion lies in thePolesian Lowland, while its southern is located withinVolhynian Upland. The highest hills known as Povcha Upland reach over 350 meters. The main water artery of the region is riverHoryn, while northwestern area also reachesPrypiat. Big portions of the oblast covered in woodlands. It also has a great deal of such excavated minerals likeamber andbasalt. In recent years (2016–2017) there were reports of illegal extraction of so calledRovno amber in the area.[6][7]
Until 19 July 2020, Rivne Oblast was administratively subdivided into 16raions (districts) as well as 4 cities (municipalities) which are directly subordinate to the oblast government:Dubno,Varash,Ostroh, and the administrative center of the oblast,Rivne.[8]
Rivne is one of the regions with the highest birth rate in all of Ukraine. However the birth rate is not uniform across Rivne, withraions likeOstroh having extremely low birth rates (9.7 per 1000) and otherraions likeRokytne Raion having extremely high birth rates (24.0 per 1000).[13]
According tostatistics thepopulation of Rivne Oblast Central Office at 1 January 2013 is 1,156,900 people.
In 2012, it increased by 2612 people. This was due to natural increase 4014 people at the same time reduce the migration of the population -1,402 people.
Compared to 2011, the volume of natural growth increased by 485 people. Natural movement of the population in 2012 was characterized by an increase in fertility and mortality, compared to 2011. In 2012, the number ofbirths in the region was 619 more than in 2011.
Compared to 2011, the mortality rate in 2012 rose from 12.3 to 12.4 deaths per 1,000 inhabitants. The mortality rate in rural areas is 1.6 pa za higher than in urban areas.
According to the2001 Ukrainian census,Ukrainian was the native language for over 97% of Rivne Oblast's population: it was the dominant language in all of the city, town, and village councils of the oblast.
TheRussification of Ukraine carried out during the Soviet era had little to no effect on the Rivne Oblast: the share of Ukrainian-speakers in the region in 1959—1989 fluctuated around 92—95%.[14] Native language of the population of Rivne Oblast according to the results of population censuses:[15][16][17][18][19][20]
Ukrainian is the only official language on the whole territory of Rivne Oblast.[22]
According to a poll conducted byRating from 16 November to 10 December 2018 as part of the project «Portraits of Regions», 87% of the residents of Rivne Oblast believed that the Ukrainian language should be the only state language on the entire territory of Ukraine. 8% believed that Ukrainian should be the only state language, while Russian should be the second official language in some regions of the country. 3% believed that Russian should become the second state language of the country. 2% found it difficult to answer.[23]
On 2 May 2024,Rivne Oblast Council approved the «Oblast Targeted Programme to Ensure Comprehensive Development and Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language in All Spheres of Public Life in Rivne Oblast for 2024—2026», the main objectives of which are to strengthen the positions of the Ukrainian language in various spheres of public life in the oblast and toUkrainianize therefugees from other regions of Ukraine.[24]
According to the research of theContent Analysis Centre, conducted from 15 August to 15 September 2024, the topic of which was the ratio of Ukrainian and Russian languages in the Ukrainian segment ofsocial media, 93.0% of posts from Rivne Oblast were written in Ukrainian (86.3% in 2023, 85.2% in 2022, 53.6% in 2020), while 7.0% were written in Russian (13.7% in 2023, 14.8% in 2022, 46.4% in 2020).[25][26]
After Ukraine declared independence in 1991, Rivne Oblast, as well as Ukraine as a whole, experienced a gradualUkrainization of the education system, which had beenRussified[27] during the Soviet era. Dynamics of the ratio of thelanguages of instruction in general secondary education institutions in Rivne Oblast:[28][29][30][31][32][33][34]
According to theState Statistics Service of Ukraine, in the 2023—2024 school year, all 164,344 pupils in general secondary education institutions in Rivne Oblast were studying in classes whereUkrainian was the language of instruction.[35]
Most of Ukraine's oblasts are named after theircapital cities, officially referred to as "oblast centers" (Ukrainian:обласний центр,translit.oblasnyi tsentr). The name of each oblast is arelativeadjective, formed by adding a femininesuffix to the name of respective center city:Rivne is the center of theRivnens'ka oblast' (Rivne Oblast). Most oblasts are also sometimes referred to in a feminine noun form, following the convention of traditional regional place names, ending with the suffix "-shchyna", as is the case with the Rivne Oblast,Rivnenshchyna.
Before 1992, under the policy ofRussification, the region was officially known under its Russian name of Rovno Oblast.
^Barbara A. Anderson and Brian D. Silver, "Equality, Efficiency, and Politics in Soviet Bilingual Education Policy, 1934-1980," American Political Science Review 78 (December 1984): 1019-1039.
^«Статистичний щорічник України за 1998 рік» — К., 1999."Джерело".pics.livejournal.com. Retrieved2024-12-26.
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