The Historical Origins of Ukrainian Identity, Language and Culture

The modern Ukrainian nation is the product of a long and often troubled history marked by conquest, fragmentation, cultural resilience and gradual consolidation. Ukrainian identity, language and culture have evolved over a millennium, shaped by geography at the crossroads of empires, resistance to foreign domination, and an enduring connection to the land and its traditions. Unlike some modern European nations that formed through clearly delineated statehood or dynastic centralisation, Ukrainian identity emerged in a more organic, decentralised manner, deeply intertwined with the rural peasantry, the Orthodox faith, and a literary tradition rooted in folklore and oral memory.

Here we explore the historical formation of Ukrainian national identity, tracing the development of the Ukrainian language and cultural consciousness from the early mediaeval period to the modern era.

The Kyivan Rus’ Legacy

The foundations of Ukrainian identity can be traced to the Kyivan Rus’, a mediaeval polity that emerged in the 9th century and whose centre was Kyiv, the cradle of Slavic Orthodoxy and literacy. Under the rule of the Rurikid dynasty, the Rus’ principalities became the dominant force in Eastern Europe, particularly following the Christianisation of 988 under Prince Volodymyr the Great. This moment was of immense cultural significance: it introduced Eastern Orthodox Christianity, the Church Slavonic language, and the Cyrillic script, all of which became central pillars of Ukrainian cultural life.

The Kyivan Rus’ was a shared heritage among modern-day Ukrainians, Russians, and Belarusians, but with the Mongol invasion of the 13th century the political unity of the Rus’ as an institution began to fracture. While northeastern principalities fell under the control of the Golden Horde (a political entity established by a grandson of Genghis Khan) and later gave rise to Muscovy, the southwestern lands centred around Galicia-Volhynia and Kyiv took a different trajectory, eventually integrating with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland.

Polish-Lithuanian Rule and the Cossack Awakening

From the 14th to the 17th centuries, the territories of present-day Ukraine found themselves under the dominion of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This was a formative period in the evolution of Ukrainian identity. The Ruthenian nobility left from the Kyivan Rus' and Galicia-Volhynia, who spoke a form of proto-Ukrainian and practised Orthodox Christianity, were gradually polonised or converted to Catholicism, leading to the marginalisation of the Orthodox Church and the rural population that remained loyal to it.

It was in this context of social and religious alienation that the Cossack phenomenon emerged. The Zaporozhian Cossacks, frontier warriors based around the Dnipro River, established a semi-autonomous and militarised society. They became the custodians of Ukrainian cultural identity, defending Orthodoxy and the local peasantry while resisting Polish, Ottoman and later Russian incursions.

The Cossack Hetmanate, born out of Bohdan Khmelnytsky’s rebellion against Polish rule in 1648, represented a brief flowering of proto-statehood and national consciousness. Though the Treaty of Pereyaslav in 1654 led to an alliance with Muscovy, this alliance gradually morphed into subjugation. Nonetheless the mythos of Cossack liberty and Orthodoxy became deeply embedded in Ukrainian identity, symbolising the desire for self-rule and cultural distinctiveness.

Russian Imperial Incorporation and Cultural Repression

By the end of the 18th century, most Ukrainian territories had been absorbed into the expanding Russian Empire, while western regions such as Galicia fell under Austrian control. The 19th century marked a pivotal era in national development across Europe, as Romantic nationalism spurred a renewed interest in vernacular languages, folk traditions, and historical roots. In Ukraine, this movement manifested in the Ukrainian national revival.

Figures such as Taras Shevchenko, often regarded as the father of modern Ukrainian literature, used poetry and prose to elevate the Ukrainian vernacular as a language of emotional depth and historical dignity. The rise of Ukrainian-language publications, folklore collections and historical works helped solidify a cultural identity distinct from Russian or Polish narratives.

Yet the imperial authorities viewed these developments with suspicion. The Russian Empire instituted a series of bans on Ukrainian-language publications, education, and theatre, most notably the Valuev Circular (1863) and the Ems Ukaz (1876), both decrees of the Tsar, which sought to suppress what was pejoratively called the “Little Russian” language. Ukrainian identity thus became a form of cultural resistance, preserved in rural traditions, songs, embroidery, and oral memory, even as elites were pressured to adopt Russian language and norms.

Western Ukraine and the Galician Exception

By contrast Ukrainian culture flourished more openly in the Habsburg lands, particularly in Galicia, where Austrian policy allowed for a greater degree of cultural autonomy. Ukrainian-language newspapers, schools, and civic institutions developed in Lviv and surrounding areas. The Greek Catholic Church, a uniate church that maintained Eastern rites while accepting the authority of Rome, played a central role in preserving Ukrainian spiritual and cultural traditions distinct from both Orthodoxy and Latin Catholicism.

The late 19th century saw the emergence of Ukrainian political movements in Galicia, laying the groundwork for future statehood projects. While often divided along ideological lines—Russophile, populist, or national-democratic—these groups shared a common understanding of a Ukrainian ethnonational space, based on language, historical experience, and culture.

Short-Lived Independence and Soviet Transformation

The early 20th century brought momentous upheaval. In the wake of the Russian Revolution and the collapse of empires after World War I, a number of Ukrainian state-building efforts briefly flourished, including the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic (the former Austro-Hungarian lands whose capital was Lviv). These efforts were ultimately crushed by Bolshevik and Polish forces, leading to the incorporation of most of Ukraine into the Soviet Union and western regions into interwar Poland, Romania and Czechoslovakia.

Under Soviet rule, Ukrainian identity underwent a complex and often contradictory process. The 1920s saw a policy of Ukrainisation, whereby the Soviet government promoted Ukrainian language and culture to secure local support. However this was abruptly reversed in the 1930s during Stalin’s purges and the man-made Holodomor famine, which disproportionately devastated the Ukrainian peasantry—the cultural bedrock of the nation. Language policies reverted to Russification, and expressions of national identity were closely monitored or repressed.

Despite this, Ukrainian culture adapted. Officially sanctioned writers and composers often embedded national motifs in their work. Underground networks preserved folk traditions, while memory of repression became a quiet but powerful component of identity. After the death of Stalin the strictest levels of censorship of Ukrainian identity were partially relaxed.

Post-Soviet Independence and Cultural Reassertion

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine at last achieved formal independence. Yet decades of Russification and institutional centralisation left the country linguistically and culturally divided. Eastern and southern regions often spoke Russian as a first language, while western regions maintained a more visibly Ukrainian character. The challenge of building a cohesive national identity was immense.

Over time, however, Ukrainian identity has coalesced, especially in response to external aggression. The 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2013–14 Euromaidan protests were pivotal moments in affirming Ukraine’s democratic aspirations and its distinct identity from Russia. The annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014 and the war in the Donbas, accelerated the rise of civic nationalism. The full-scale invasion of 2022 transformed Ukrainian identity into a unifying force of resistance, with the Ukrainian language, flag, and cultural heritage embraced with renewed vigour across all regions.

A Unique History

The historical origins of Ukrainian identity are complex and deeply rooted in resilience. Shaped by Kyivan Rus’, refined through Cossack defiance, tested under empires, and revived in defiance of Soviet and Russian hegemony, Ukrainian language and culture have endured through adversity. Today they serve not only as markers of ethnic or regional affiliation but as the foundation of a modern civic nation determined to assert its sovereignty, plurality, and democratic values. The Ukrainian experience is a testament to the enduring power of culture in the face of history’s most severe trials.