Lviv Oblast


Lviv Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Lviv. Population:.

History

The oblast was created as part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on December 4, 1939 following the Soviet invasion of Poland. The territory of the former Drohobych Oblast was incorporated into the Lviv Oblast in 1959.
The oblast's strategic position at the heart of central Europe and as the gateway to the Carpathians has caused it to change hands many times over the centuries. It was ruled variously by Great Moravia, Kievan Rus', Poland, was independent as the state of Galicia-Volhynia, and then ruled by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, West Ukrainian People's Republic and Poland, when it was part of the Lwów Voivodeship of the Second Republic of Poland. The region's historically dominant Ukrainian population declared the area to be a part of an independent West Ukrainian National Republic in November 1918 — June 1919, but this endured only briefly. Local autonomy was provided in international treaties but later on those were not honoured by the Polish government and the area experienced much ethnic tension between the Polish and Ukrainian population.
The region and its capital city take their name from the time of Galicia-Volhynia, when Daniel of Galicia, the King of Rus', founded Lviv; naming the city after his son, Leo. During this time, the general region around Lviv was known as Red Ruthenia.
The region only became part of the Soviet Union under the terms of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact in 1939, when it was annexed to the Ukrainian SSR. It was occupied by Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1944, when almost all local Jews were killed, and remained in Soviet hands after World War II as was arranged during the Teheran and Yalta conferences. Local Poles were expelled and Ukrainians expelled from Poland arrived. Given its historical development, Lviv Oblast is one of the least Russified and Sovietized parts of Ukraine, with much of its Polish and Habsburg heritage still visible today.
In Ukraine today, there are three provinces that formed the eastern part of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria. Two of these, Lviv Oblast and Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast were entirely contained in the kingdom; the third oblast of Ternopil was mainly in the kingdom apart from four of its most northerly counties. The counties of the Kingdom of Galicia remained largely unchanged when they were incorporated into successor states; with minor changes as detailed below, the current counties are almost co-extensive with those of the Kingdom.
Modern Counties of
Lviv Oblast		Equivalent Counties
of Galicia
Brody RaionSouthern part of
Brody county.
Brody city-countyBrody
Busk RaionZłoczów
Busk city-countyZłoczów
Drohobych RaionDrohobycz
Drohobych city-countyDrohobycz
Horodok RaionGrodek and
Rudky
Kamianka-Buzka RaionKamionka
Mostyska RaionMosciska
Mykolaiv RaionŻydaczów
Peremyshliany RaionPrzemyślany and the northern
part of Bóbrka
Pustomyty RaionLviv county
Radekhiv RaionNorthern part of Brody county and
northern part of Kamionka.
Sambir RaionSambor and Rudky
Skole RaionAll of the old county of Stryj
south of modern Stryi Raion.
Sokal RaionTo the north Sokal and
To the south Rawa-Ruska.
Staryi Sambir RaionStari Sambor
Stryi RaionStryj
Turka RaionTurka
Yavoriv RaionJaworów and
Grodek
Zhovkva RaionTo the north Rawa-Ruska and
To the south Żółkiew
Zhydachiv RaionŻydaczów
Zolochiv RaionEastern part of Żółkiew county and
western part of Peremyshliany.

The region is also notable for having declared independence from the central government during the 2014 Euromaidan protests.

Geography

The terrain of Lviv Oblast is highly varied. The southern part is occupied by the low Beskyd mountain chains running parallel to each other from northwest to southeast and covered with secondary coniferous forests as part of the Eastern Carpathians; the highest point is Pikuy. North from there are the wide upper Dniester river valley and much smaller upper San River valley. These rivers have flat bottoms covered with alluvial deposits, and are susceptible to floods. Between these valleys and Beskyd lies the Precarpathian upland covered with deciduous forests, with well-known mineral spa resorts. It's also the area of one of the earliest industrial petroleum and gas extraction. These deposits are all but depleted by now.
In the central part of the region lie Roztocze, Opillia, and part of the Podolia uplands. Rich sulphur deposits were mined here during the Soviet era. Roztocze is densely forested, while Opillia and Podolia are densely populated and mostly covered by arable land. In the central-north part of the region lies the Small Polesia lowland, geographically isolated from the rest of Polesia but with similar terrain and landscapes. The far North of the region lies on the Volhynia upland, which is also covered with loess; coal is mined in this area.

Climate

The climate of Lviv Oblast is moderately cool and humid. The average January temperatures range from in the Carpathians to in the Dniester and San River valleys while in July the average temperatures are from in the Carpathians to in Roztocze and in the lower part of the Dniester valley. The average annual precipitation is in the lowlands, in the highlands and up to in the Carpathians, with the majority of precipitation occurring in summer. Prolonged droughts are uncommon, while strong rainfalls can cause floods in river valleys. Severe winds during storms can also cause damage, especially in the highlands. The climate is favourable for the cultivation of sugar beets, winter wheat, flax, rye, cabbage, apples, and for dairy farming. It is still too cold to successfully cultivate maize, sunflower, grapes, melon, watermelon or peaches in Lviv Oblast. In the Carpathians conditions are favourable for Alpine skiing 3–4 months a year.

Politics

Governors

Term startTerm endNameYear of birthYear of death
March 19916 April 1992Vyacheslav Chornovilb. 1937d. 1999
June 1994July 1995Mykola Horynb. 1945

Term startTerm endNameYear of birth
20 March 1992June 1994Stepan Davymukab. 1947

Term startTerm endNameYear of birthYear of death
7 July 19956 Feb. 1997Mykola Horynb. 1945
6 Feb. 199714 Jan. 1999Mykhailo Hladiyb. 1952
15 Jan. 199919 March 2001Stepan Senchukb. 1955d. 2005
26 March 200126 April 2002Mykhailo Hladiyb. 1952
26 April 20024 June 2003Myron Yankivb. 1951
9 June 200320 Dec. 2004Oleksandr Sendehab. 1953
20 Dec. 20044 Feb. 2005Bohdan Matolych b. 1955
4 Feb. 200520 Feb. 2008Petro Oliynykb. 1957d. 2011
20 Feb. 200827 Feb. 2008Valery Pyatak b. 1959
27 Feb. 200820 April 2010?Kmit Mykola
b. 1966
20 April 201021 December 2010Vasyl Horbalb. 1971
21 December 20102 November 2011Mykhailo Tsymbaliukb. 1964
2 November 20114 March 2013Mykhailo Kostiukb. 1961
4 March 201331 October 2013Viktor Shemchukb. 1970
31 October 201323 January 2014Oleh Salob. 1968
2 March 201414 August 2014Iryna Sekhb. 1970
14 August 201426 December 2014Yuriy Turyanskyi b. 1975
26 December 201411 June 2019Oleh Synyutkab. 1970
11 June 20195 July 2019Rostyslav Zamlynsky b. 1976
5 July 2019Markiyan Malskyb. 1984

Subdivisions

Lviv Oblast is administratively subdivided into 20 raions, as well as 9 city which are directly subordinate to the oblast government: Boryslav, Chervonohrad, Drohobych, Morshyn, Novyi Rozdil, Sambir, Stryi, Truskavets, and the administrative center of the oblast, Lviv.

Demographics

Median age

Religion

Fifty-nine percent of the religious organisations active in the Lviv Oblast adhere to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church is the second largest religious body. The followers of the Roman Catholic Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church are mostly from the Polish, and Russian or non-Galician Ukrainian minorities respectively.

Historical and cultural sites

The city of Lviv contains a well-preserved main square and numerous historical and beautiful churches. Other sites of interest are the historic Lychakivskiy Cemetery, the local museum of folklore, and the ruins of the famous Vysokyi Zamok. The name of the castle is closely tied to the name of the city. There is also a museum of military artifacts, the "Arsenal".
Well-preserved local wooden churches, castles, and monasteries can be found throughout the Oblast. One of them is the Olesko Castle which is first recorded in 1327. Another castle that was built at the end of the 15th century is Svirzh Castle in the village of Svirzh, Peremeshliany Raion. One more and no less famous castle is the Pidhirtsi Castle. Its architectural complex consists of the three-story palace, Kostel, and small park. In Roztochia is also located the Krekhivsky monastery in the buch-pine grove at the foot of the Pobiyna mount. The whole complex consists of the Saint Nikola Church, the bell tower, numerous service structures, and defensive walls with towers. Another site worth of mentioning is the Tustan city-fortress which is built in the rock. The site was nominated as the historical and as the natural wonder of Ukraine. There also a nature complex in the valley of the Kamianka river in Skoliv Raion. Another natural wonder of the region is the Kamin-Veleten which is located near city of Pidkamin in Brodivskyi Raion. The name of the local city means Under the Rock. A local museum of Ukrainian art and an institution of higher learning are also present.

Gallery

Nomenclature

Most of Ukraine's oblasts are named after their capital cities, officially referred to as "oblast centers". The name of each oblast is a relative adjective, formed by adding a feminine suffix to the name of respective center city: L'viv is the center of the L'vivs'ka 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 Lviv Oblast, Lvivshchyna.