Which is Simferopol (this is a large regional center of Ukraine in the past). In May, a referendum was held in two regions - Luhansk and Donetsk. The population voted for secession from Ukraine and the formation of independent republics by a majority vote. Not everyone recognizes the independence of these regions. At the moment, there is a struggle for autonomy in the region.
Volyn, Dnepropetrovsk, Transcarpathian, Zaporozhye, Zhytomyr, Ivano-Frankovsk, Kiev, Lvov, Kirovograd, Nikolaev, Odessa, Rivne, Sumy, Poltava and other regions remained under the leadership of Kiev. Brief information on each of them (including about the population of the regional centers of Ukraine) is given below.
Western Ukraine
This term is used today in several meanings. As a rule, only the Galician regions are meant. There are three of them: Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, Lviv. Sometimes eight regions are mentioned - the Volyn, Khmelnytsky, Rivne, Chernivtsi and Transcarpathian regions are added to those listed. Interestingly, the majority of residents of Transcarpathia do not consider themselves residents of Western Ukraine.
Ivano-Frankivsk
Until 1962 - Stanislav. Administrative regional center. Population - 243,000 people. Subordinate to 14 districts (789 villages, 15 cities). The occupied area is 13.9 thousand km².
Ternopil
Until 1944 - Tarnopol. Regional center. Until recent events, it occupied 2.28% of the total territory of the country (13 800 km²). Built on the Podolsk Upland. The population of the region is about 1 080 000 people. Subordinate - 18 cities, 17 districts. Ternopil region is considered the most Ukrainian-speaking in the country.
Lviv
Regional center, extreme west of the country. It is considered a historical cultural region. The region was formed in December 1939. It borders on Poland. Subordinate to 20 districts.
Central Ukraine
Includes Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Kiev, Chernigov, Sumy, Poltava, Cherkassk, Kirovograd regions. This is about one third of the country.
Zhytomyr
Belongs to the northwestern territory of Ukraine. Regional center. Ancient city (founded - 884). Initially, it was a settlement of inhabitants (hence the name: "world of life"), who were part of the Drevlyans' union and, accordingly, the tribal union.
Now in the subordination of the regional center 23 districts, 1593 settlements. The population is about 1,267,000 people.
Vinnytsia
Another regional center. Translated from the Old Church Slavonic "vѣno" means "gift". The lands around it have been inhabited for a long time. Thanks to archaeological excavations, ancient Russian and Scythian settlements have been discovered. Now 27 districts are subordinate to them. The population of the region is about 1,623,000 people.
Kiev
Regional center, capital of Ukraine. Located on the banks of the Dnieper. Center of the Kiev agglomeration. One of the most Seventh in terms of population. Initially it was the center of Kievan Rus. The population is 1.7 million people, and the area of the region is 28,131 km 2.
Chernihiv
North of the central part of Ukraine. testify to the appearance of the first settlers in about the 4th millennium BC. NS. In the annals it is mentioned in 907. The area of the region is 31 865 sq. km, the population is about 1,075,000 people. Subordinate - 22 districts, 312 cities.
Sumy
Regional city in the north-eastern part of the center of Ukraine. The population is about 270 thousand people. Subordinate - 18 districts, 15 cities. The area of the region is 23.8 thousand square meters. km. The population is about 1165 thousand people. The city was founded in 1652. The first settlements appeared on this territory in the 6th century BC. NS. Slavic tribes lived there (the remains were found in the southwestern region of the city).
Poltava
Center of the region. Located on the banks First mentioned in the seventh century. However, as archaeological excavations show, settlements existed there much earlier. The city occupies 112.5 square meters. km. Inhabitants - about 300 thousand people. The area of the region is 228,750 sq. km. Inhabitants - 1 467 000 people. Subordinate - 25 districts, 510 cities.
Cherkasy
Regional, administrative, educational, industrial, cultural center. The city played a significant role in the formation of the Cossacks. Located at the Kremenchug reservoir, built on the Dnieper. The city is home to about 290,000 inhabitants. Subordinate - 20 districts, 610 cities. The area of the region is 20,900 km2. sq. The population is about 1,265,000 people.
Kirovograd
Cultural, industrial, regional center. Built on the Dnieper Upland, near the banks of the Ingul River. The area of the city is 10.3 thousand hectares. There are about 270 thousand inhabitants. Founded in 1775. Subordinate - 21 districts, 48 cities. The population of the region is about 992,000 people.
Southeast
It was a powerful region uniting several regions. Until 2014, it included the following regional centers of Ukraine: Lugansk, Donetsk, Zaporozhye, Odessa, Nikolaev, Kherson, Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk regions, Sevastopol and Crimea. Today Crimea is the territory of Russia. Some regional centers of Ukraine have declared their autonomy. After the unification of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions into Novorossiya, 6 regions began to be listed in the southeastern part of the country.
Zaporizhzhia
Regional, administrative, industrial, cultural center. Population - about 765,000 people. Developed mechanical engineering, metallurgy (non-ferrous, ferrous), construction, chemical industries. Due to the large number of industrial plants, the air is polluted. Subordinate to 20 districts, 59 cities. Area - 2718 sq. km. The population of the region is about 1 782 000 people.
Odessa
South of Ukraine, administrative and regional center. Here is the base of the Naval Forces of Ukraine. It is the third largest city in the country. Population - more than 1.5 million people. Built on the Black Sea coast (Odessa Bay). Largest port. Developed infrastructure. Oil refining, mechanical engineering, metallurgy, production of various food products, medicines. Large educational center. Tourism, sanatorium treatment is developed. It is the historical center. Subordinate to 26 districts, 712 cities. The area of the region is 33 310 sq. km, population - about 2 304 000 people.
Nikolaev
Regional center (south of Ukraine). In terms of population, it is in ninth place. Founded by Grigory Potemkin (1789). In the XIX century. became the control center of the fleet. The area of the city is 260 sq. km. The population is about 500 thousand people. Subordinate - 19 districts, 54 cities. The area of the region is 24 598 sq. km, population - about 1,171,000 people.
Kherson
Regional, cultural, industrial center. Built on the Dnieper (right bank). Large sea and river port. Population - 350 thousand people. The area of the city is 69 sq. km. Subordinate - 18 districts, 45 cities. The area of the region is 28 460 sq. km. The population is about 1,076,000 people. Part of the territory is adjacent to Russia. The length of the border is 108 km along the Azov Sea and 350 km along the Black Sea.
Kharkov
The largest regional city in Eastern Ukraine. In terms of population, the second city in the country (1.5 million people). In the past it was the center of tractor, tank and turbine building. Transport hub Yu.-V. Europe. There are 142 research institutes on the territory of Kharkov. Subordinate - 27 districts, 710 cities. The area of the region is 31 415 sq. km. Population - 2,741,000 people.
Dnipropetrovsk
The former name is Yekaterinoslav. Built on the banks of the Dnieper. In terms of population, it is the fourth city in the country. Large industrial, economic, transport center. It is especially developed (metallurgy, mechanical engineering, etc.). The population of Dnepropetrovsk is about 996,000 people. Subordinate - 22 districts, 137 cities. The area of the Dnipropetrovsk region is 31,914 sq. km. Population - about 3.3 million people.
In 2009-16, I traveled around all the centers of the regions of Ukraine within its "pre-Crimean" borders. Now - a little about each from west to east (in brackets - years of visit and size).
Uzhgorod Transcarpathian region (2012, 115 thousand inhabitants.)
The westernmost, smallest, most European in appearance and spirit, the regional center of Ukraine with views of Slovakia and the Hungarian past. It is very rich in sights from a castle with a skansen to examples of Czechoslovak functionalism, and simple streets amaze with their warm, almost Mediterranean look. There are also eateries with spicy Hungarian cuisine at every turn, new churches in a consistently "Moscow" style, and in the hotel room where I spent the night there was a Bible at the client's service.
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Lviv(2010-12, 730 thousand inhabitants)
The capital of Western Ukraine, in a difficult struggle, knocked out the role of the "cultural capital" of the country. In terms of population, Lviv (within the boundaries of 2013) is only the 7th city of Ukraine, in terms of importance and fame it is certainly in the top three. And in terms of its sights, Lviv in Ukraine is the second or third after Kiev and maybe Odessa, and it is interesting regardless of where and with what convictions you came here.
It is no secret that Lviv is also the ideological center of Ukraine, a city that is a symbol of its western choice. And not the last advantage of Lviv over the same Kharkov is that it is sincerely loved by its own residents. The cultural and ideological background here is so powerful that, as a Russian, I each time felt a kind of struggle with this city, and invariably with relief left it for the emerald Galician fields. My local acquaintances, themselves from afar, even before all these events, laughed at their compatriots, after moving to Lviv, they abruptly translated into contact into MOV. In general, Lviv is a city with not only a strong, but also an aggressive messianic cultural code, which differs across Ukraine not only in ideology, but also in fashion, such as a real cult of coffee that has developed in recent years.
Huge, twisted in knots in three planes, noisy and dilapidated, smelling of Viennese coffee and dilapidated housing, with swollen paving stones, with trams scurrying one after another, with very colorful inhabitants from the old Galician intellectual to the last ragul (local analogue of the gopnik), the former Lemberg is not leaves indifferent. I have 19 posts about him - more only about St. Petersburg, Moscow and Kiev.
(2012) || || || and . || || summer). || 2011).
Old city... (Latin Cathedral, Jesuit and Dominican monasteries) || (Armenian quarter) || (Assumption Church, Bernardine Monastery).
Austrian city... || | temples, palaces, universities, tram, Citadel). || Interiors. 2011).
Other areas... || and his graveyard. || ... (2012) || (skansen), 2012.
Ivano-Frankivsk(2010, 230 thousand inhabitants)
Former Stanislav or Stanislavov, and in everyday life just Franyk, he is also reputed to be Little Lvov. Small means, and more concentrated, and not having that glory and influence on the minds, Ivano-Frankivsk in the sense of Galician ideas has always been one step ahead of its "older brother". At the same time, paradoxically, it is also connected with Russia more densely than any Western city - although the old Galician oil fields lie mainly in the Lviv region, the corresponding university is located here, therefore Ivano-Frankovsk is one of the forges of domestic oil and gas personnel, and on a train from Moscow to Western Ukraine there will certainly be at least a few passengers traveling here from Surgut or Urengoy. As for the architecture, it is just a very solid, mostly Austrian city with separate buildings from both Commonwealths.
Ivano-Frankivsk and .
Lutsk Volyn region (2011, 217 thousand)
Quiet, dilapidated, poor and unkempt Lutsk - in my opinion, is also one of the most interesting cities in Ukraine, the center of ancient Volyn. Volyn cities are similar to Belarusian ones, only without agro-renaissance, and the influence here is not so much of Poland as of old Lithuania. But in terms of attractions, I would put Lutsk higher than both Uzhgorod and Chernivtsi: there is the best-preserved castle of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the 14th century with the ruins of a pre-Mongol temple inside, there are cathedrals and churches of different faiths up to the converted Armenian one (but the wooden kenassa of the 18th century burned down ), there are cellars under the cathedral, going into the ground for five floors, there is an impressive "reserve" of the Polish interwar ... in general, Lutsk is the most underestimated by tourists Zapadensky city.
. || . || .
Ternopil(2010, 218 thousand inhabitants)
With Ternopil, frankly, it didn't work out for me - on my only visit I walked in it under the typical Western rain - strong, cold and long. And frankly speaking, Ternopil in terms of attractions is not even a strong middle peasant, pretty much inferior to all of the above. In Galicia, although he is reputed as "faino misto" ("glorious city"), but at the same time is responsible for its provincial part, and Ternopil region, covering both Galicia, and pieces of Volyn (with the Pochaev Lavra) and Podolia (with giant caves ) has long been called "the soul of Ukraine".
.
Chernivtsi(2010, 240 thousand inhabitants)
Another "Little Vienna", which is extremely popular in domestic tourism, that is, a secession reserve, and perhaps the most integral large city in the post-Soviet space at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. In addition, it is the center of its small historical region - through and through Orthodox Bukovina, where the main source of influence is no longer Poland, but Romania. Churches of extremely distinctive architecture, impressive Romanian functionalism, and just some other flavor of even the "Austrian" part ... In some streets Chernivtsi is slightly inferior to Lvov, but at the same time it is much more proportionate to the person, and therefore even more impressive.
Khmelnitsky(2010, 260 thousand inhabitants)
Former Proskurov, like Rovno, will be drawn to the role of the most uninteresting regional center in Ukraine. Nevertheless, it is not devoid of flavor as one of the three "bazaar capitals" (after Kharkov and Odessa) or as the center of Mazurs - the descendants of Polish colonists who moved to the lands of Podolia liberated from the Ottoman yoke at the end of the 17th century. It looks like not outwardly the neighboring cities of Western Ukraine (including Vinnitsa and Zhitomir), but rather the center of some kind of national autonomy in Russia such as Mari El. But all the poverty of the sights of Khmelnytsky can be forgiven for this monument alone:
Vinnytsia(2010 and 2016, 370 thousand inhabitants)
The current capital of Podolia and the economic center of Western Ukraine, in general, a modest city in 2011 and the patrimony of the ruling clan in 2016. Vinnitsa left a similar feeling both times: a seemingly beautiful and interesting city, with an abundance of non-trivial attractions (such as the estate of the surgeon Pirogov with his mausoleum, or the ruins of Hitler's headquarters "Werewolf"), with a certain flavor and certainly its own face - but for some reason does not catch and is not remembered.
Vinnytsia. || || || || .
Zhytomyr(2011, 260 thousand inhabitants)
Well, Zhitomir, the capital of Ukrainian Polesye, is the exact opposite case: unkempt, gloomy (especially in such weather!) the spirit of Polesie. And in addition, a rocky canyon not far from the center.
. || .
Odessa(2011, 990 thousand inhabitants)
I didn’t work out with the "pearl by the sea" - perhaps, as Dostoevsky, in principle, I should not have been there, but at the same time, as a traveler, I had to put this point on the map. Odessa on that visit remained "not mine", although it made a huge impression - right on the spot it seemed to me that it was the most interesting city in Ukraine, it would certainly compete for second place after Kiev with Lvov. And all this Odessa flavor even then, five years ago, seemed not an empty sound.
And it seems to me that the essence of Odessa is that its history was not at all funny. Raiders and hicks, sailors and port girls - Odessa could well have a dark halo, like Chicago or New Orleans, Shanghai or Casablanca. But here there were people of a different breed - who were knee-deep in the sea, who knew how to appreciate what they had and not regret anything, who could laugh in the face not even of death - but poverty and injustice, and not at all through tears. It was they who made Odessa - Odessa, and this spirit in the Pearl-by-the-Sea has not dried up yet. And it is unlikely to dry up while this city itself is standing... - so I wrote then in a review of the Odessa flavor, thinking that I will come back here sometime that way for a week.
But in the last phrase he was probably mistaken. After all, Odessa really became "not the same" a little earlier, and in 2011 I found a convincing, but empty shell of the "same" city, and this shell deflated from the very first blow, hissing like a snake. I will not return to "that" Odessa, even if I return to geographical Odessa with its Bandera and Dontsov avenues, with the accursed Kulikovo field, perhaps already without a monument to Catherine, with dilapidated or rebuilt streets, with a quiet emptying port. Most likely, Odessa will face the fate of the once flourishing colonial cities of Asia and Africa, which have fallen into disrepair with the end of empires. And this is also a flavor, this is also interesting ... if we abstract from those images familiar from childhood to every Russian person, the abundance of which Odessa was inferior only to Moscow and St. Petersburg.
... Images and people. || (station, Privoz, temples of different faiths).
Centre... (Primorsky Boulevard and not only). || ... || ...
Suburbs (north and west). .
Suburb (south)... ... || and Memorial 411 Batteries.
And this is also Odessa ...
Kiev(2004, 2012-13, 2016; 2.9 million inhabitants)
Kiev is not only a regional center, but a whole capital, so I really don't know if it's worth it to grovel about it. Like Moscow and St. Petersburg, this city is inexhaustible and unique, by a wide margin the most interesting in Ukraine. Petersburg, Moscow, Kiev, Odessa - that was the great East Slavic axis.
Nikolaev(2011, 490 thousand inhabitants)
The darkest city in Ukraine, although certainly one of the brightest in terms of the overall strength of the impression. If in Vinnitsa or Poltava I myself am filled with a feeling of love for Ukraine (even now), then how you can love Ukraine in Nikolaev (Odessa, Kherson, etc.) - I will never be able to understand. It is not deprived of sights, but all of them are overshadowed by two dead shipyards, once the best in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, and a rotten unfinished cruiser visible from the embankment near the center. The same story, of course, went through Gdansk or Kiel - but what did Ukraine give Nikolaev in return?
Nikolaev... (square, embankment, shipyard named after 61 Kommunar) || and the Black Sea Shipyard.
Cherkasy(2013, 280 thousand inhabitants)
The city on one of the really wide places of the Dnieper, the birthplace of the Cossacks, in terms of historical sights this is almost the most boring city in Ukraine, but everything is redeemed by unhistorical sights, be it the "village on the dam" Panskoe, the country's largest Orthodox cathedral or the whole Buddhist monastery White Lotus in the thickets of the Dnieper bank.
Cherkasy || .
24.
Kirovograd(2016, 230 thousand inhabitants)
The most remote and inaccessible regional center of Ukraine, away from the largest cities and the most important highways, it really brings a surprise - you expect to see something gray and killed, and you find a city that is quite worthy of Ivano-Frankivsk with its architecture, and that very well-groomed Vinnitsa.
... there will be posts.
Kherson(2011, 290 thousand)
The poorest and most neglected regional city in Ukraine, but really - among the most interesting: the former center of the richest province of the Russian Empire, under which even the golden-boiling Odessa went. Moreover, there are sights here for every taste: a dilapidated old city with a considerable number of outstanding buildings, and colorful courtyards no worse than those of Odessa and Nikolayev, and non-trivial Soviet architecture, and the remains of a huge fortress with the grave of Potemkin-Tavrichesky, and the mouth of the Dnieper with an abundance of ships and Shukhov's Ajigolsky lighthouses (although they are quite far from the city).
Kherson. . || . || . || .
Poltava(2016, 290 thousand inhabitants)
One of the few big cities to the east of Kiev, at the sight of which Ukrainians are not surprised, "but what is there to watch?" - it is really rich in sights. Moreover, I would say that it is Poltava, and not Ternopil or Ivano-Frankivsk, that is the very "soul of Ukraine", the most Ukrainian of the large old cities, both in spirit and in architecture ... but only here is another Ukraine, not Galicia , not Chervonnaya Rus, but the good old Gogol Little Russia. The history of Poltava is generally paradoxical: it was founded by the Tatars, glorified by the Russians, and the essence is Ukrainian.
... there will be posts.
Sumy(2016, 267 thousand inhabitants)
Quite a strange city. Frankly speaking, it is not rich in sights, another "strong middle peasant", but - unusually charming. In Sumy, one can feel a special life drive, and Sumy region is also the birthplace of Yushchenko and the Maidan movement. In general, this is a city where modernity is more interesting than history, such a metaphysical guide in the fate of Ukraine.
Sumy. || ||
Dnipropetrovsk, or simply Dnieper(2009, 2016; 980 thousand inhabitants)
Ukrainian, and formerly Soviet (!) "Center of power". The Ekaterinoslav province included 3/4 of the Donetsk-Pridneprovsky industrial region, after the war, Yuzhmash appeared - plant number 1 of the Soviet Union, and in general, in the 20th century, the city gained a huge social "weight", and paradoxically the politicians who came out of here played a fatal role in life of both the USSR and independent Ukraine. In 2009, my relationship with Dnepropetrovsk did not work out, in 2016 I liked it very much - it's just a city with a strong temper, and we need to find a common language with it. Another "feature" of post-Soviet Dnepropetrovsk is that it is not for nothing that the people tease it "Dneprozhidovsk": not in terms of numbers, but in terms of influence on life, it is certainly the most Jewish of the large cities of the former USSR. Shiny skyscrapers, smoking factories, luxurious (although not integral) Yekaterinoslav architecture, the vastness of the Dnieper with huge bridges, and AMBITIONS sparkling in every brick - this is the portrait of the former Yekatrinoslav.
Dnepropetrovsk (2009). . | . || .
... there will be new posts.
Krivoy Rog
Dnipropetrovsk region (2011, 640 thousand inhabitants)
It is worth mentioning by no means the regional center of Krivoy Rog: if Kamenets-Podolsky is the most interesting among those in Ukraine, then Krivoy is the largest, and it was the same throughout the USSR. Although, in fact, this is not a city, but a whole narrow discontinuous agglomeration stretched for tens of kilometers, which has grown on one of the world's largest iron ore deposits. But all this is related by some special evil atmosphere, and the metro tram pierces a considerable part of the villages.
Krivoy Rog. . || . || .
Zaporizhzhia(2009, 2016; 750 thousand inhabitants)
The 6th largest (within the current borders, even the 5th) city of the country (larger than Lvov), Zaporozhye is perhaps the most complex and multifaceted city in Ukraine with several historical centers and the housing estates of the late USSR connecting all this. There is the island of Khortitsa - the stronghold of the Zaporizhzhya Sich:
There is the district of Aleksandrovsk with two "satellites" of the old Mennonite colonies:
There is the most powerful Sotsgorod with luxurious Stalinist architecture and classics of constructivism at the Dnieper Hydroelectric Power Station and the grandiose industrial zone, and much more. Zaporozhye is itself a historical region ...
Kharkov(2011, 1.4 million)
The second largest city in today's Ukraine and the 5-6th in the USSR, in the post-Soviet region, however, has already slipped from the top ten. And, I would say - the most underestimated post-Soviet city by travelers, since in terms of sights and general color Kharkiv can easily be put on a par with the same Odessa and Lviv.
Perhaps the best reserve of early Soviet architecture (including its masterpiece - Gosprom), a unique cultural code with a kind of humor, the metro as a single underground ensemble and branded GIANTISM ... Kharkiv citizens would appreciate their city, and Kyivans would ride here to drink beer just like they go to Lviv to drink coffee - maybe the story would have turned out differently.
Luhansk(2011, 2016; 430 thousand inhabitants)
I will not go around and Luhansk, for the same reasons. The antipode of Uzhgorod: the most eastern, the poorest, the most (along with Donetsk) similar to Russia. Also, perhaps, even before all these events, it was the most non-touristy, and therefore was reputed to be "the most uninteresting", which is fundamentally wrong - everything is in order with the sights here, and they are quite nontrivial, such as a pair of British tanks of the First World War or the largest collection of "stone women".
Luhansk (2011). . || .
There is also Simferopol and Sevastopol - I visited them in 1995, 2004, 2014 and 2015, that is, both Ukrainian and Russian. Here are photos of 2014, when they were already listed as Russia, but the flavor and way of Ukrainian times have not changed much.
Simferopol- for tourists, the purgatory of the resort region, for the Crimeans, a place where officials of the entire peninsula sit. It does not resemble either Russia or Ukraine - rather, such a center of a separate, but clearly post-Soviet country. But life is in full swing, and there is a lot of color in Simferopol, like the wooden sculptures of the mad carver Dzheknavarov or the dusty makhallas of the Tatar Old City.
Sevastopol- the most Russian city in the world, which has become such in just two decades near Ukraine.
In total, I visited all the listed cities when they were part of Ukraine; all those who separated from Ukraine - also visited in a new capacity. And then it is still unknown where the curve of history will lead. Everything is correct here only "for the moment" ...
Since I had a fix idea to find "the most uninteresting regional center of Ukraine", trying to put all the listed cities (except the Crimean ones) into a rating:
1. Kiev
2. Lviv
3. Odessa
4. Kharkiv
- Kamyanets-Podilsky
5. Chernihiv
6. Lutsk
7. Chernivtsi
8. Zaporizhzhia
9. Poltava
10. Dnipro (opetrovsk)
11. Uzhgorod
12. Kherson
13. Nikolaev.
14. Vinnytsia
15. Luhansk
16. Sumy
17. Ivano-Frankivsk
18. Donetsk
19. Kirovograd
20. Ternopil
21. Zhytomyr
22. Cherkasy
23. Exactly
24. Khmelnitsky
Well, a couple of more pressing comparisons.
The most well-groomed, cute and pleasant cities, regardless of attractions:
1. Uzhgorod
2. Kiev
3. Ivano-Frankivsk
4. Chernivtsi
5. Vinnytsia
6. Donetsk
7. Exactly
8. Dnepropetrovsk (but not in 2009!)
9. Sumy
10. Lviv
11. Ternopil
12. Kirovograd
13. Kharkov
14. Odessa
15. Poltava
16. Zaporozhye
17. Khmelnitsky
18. Luhansk
19. Chernihiv
20. Lutsk
21. Nikolaev
22. Zhytomyr
23. Cherkasy
24. Kherson
Compared with the cities of Russia, Belgorod would be in the forefront in this list, and Arkhangelsk or Astrakhan would be lower than Kherson.
Ukrainian-speaking in ascending order(No. 1 - almost none, No. 24 - almost exclusively):
1-6. Donetsk, Lugansk, Odessa, Nikolaev, Kherson, Dnepropetrovsk - I have never heard.
7-8. Kharkov, Zaporozhye - I heard from visitors (students, grandmothers in the markets).
9-11. Kirovograd, Sumy, Kiev (earlier) - I heard Russian much more often than Ukrainian.
11-15. Kiev (2016), Chernigov, Zhitomir, Cherkassy, Uzhgorod - I cannot say which language I heard more often.
16-19. Poltava, Vinnitsa, Khmelnytsky, Lvov - I heard the Ukrainian language much more often than Russian.
20-24. Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Rivne, Lutsk - Russian is almost inaudible and often incomprehensible to people.
Ditto for areas:
1-6. Donetsk, Lugansk, Kharkov, Odessa. Nikolaev, Kherson regions - I heard the Ukrainian language a few times from rural grandmothers.
7-8. Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporozhye regions - I often heard the Ukrainian language in the outback.
9-10. Chernihiv, Sumy, Kiev regions - I can't say which language I've heard more often.
11-12. Transcarpathian and Chernivtsi regions - in addition to the predominant Ukrainian and common Russian, other languages are also noticeable (Hungarian, Romanian).
13-23. The rest of the regions - the Ukrainian language clearly predominates.
Taking into account the dialect and gradations of surzhik, this means rather simply "the comprehensibility of the linguistic environment for the Russian ear."
And finally, other cities with more than 200 thousand inhabitants - as already mentioned, I visited all of them as well, and without setting such a goal.
Mariupol
Donetsk region (2011, 455 thousand inhabitants)
The 10th largest city in Ukraine, the largest in the controlled part of Donbass. Well, before those events - perhaps the most famous metallurgical giant of the USSR with gradient industrial panoramas, and the only one with "industry and sea" plots.
Mariupol. . || .
Makeevka
Donetsk region / DPR (2016, 340 thousand inhabitants)
Merged with Donetsk and very similar to it, but completely self-sufficient city, Makeyevka may be superfluous on this list - for the first time I visited it exactly when it is not under the control of Ukraine.
Gorlovka
Donetsk region / DPR (2011, 2016, 250 thousand inhabitants)
But I still visited Gorlovka in 2011. Smoky, long and gloomy Gorlovka is such a quintessence of Donbass.
(ruin). || ... One of hundreds. || ... || ... A city covered in soot.
Dniprodzerzhinsk
, and now Kamenskoe
Dnipropetrovsk region (2009, 240 thousand inhabitants)
The old industrial city, which was once the largest metallurgical plant in the Russian Empire, is still distinguished by the most spectacular industrial landscapes in Ukraine (from what I have seen, only Nizhny Tagil could argue with it), for which it was nicknamed DneproDym.
Such is the farewell to Ukraine, where, after the Donbas posts, I’m unlikely to return in the foreseeable future ...
