Ukraine: flag, capital, currency and history

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe, Europe. Its capital is Kyiv. The currency is the Ukrainian hryvnia. Languages spoken include Ukrainian.

Quick facts about Ukraine

Official name: Ukraine
Capital: Kyiv
Region: Europe, Eastern Europe
Currency: Ukrainian hryvnia (UAH, ₴)
Languages: Ukrainian
Calling code: +380
Internet domain: .ua
Area: 603,500 km² (233,013 sq mi)
Land borders: Belarus, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia
Demonym: Ukrainian
National day: Independence Day, August 24

Flag of Ukraine

Download the flag of Ukraine as a scalable SVG or as a PNG in three sizes. The flag emoji is 🇺🇦.

SVG (vector)

History of Ukraine

The lands of Ukraine were home to ancient steppe peoples before the Slavic state of Kyivan Rus' rose in the ninth century. After the Mongol invasion of 1240, the territory was divided among neighbouring powers, mainly Lithuania, Poland, and later Russia and Austria. A Cossack state emerged in the seventeenth century. Following the First World War a Ukrainian republic was declared in 1917, but the country was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1922. Ukraine declared independence on 24 August 1991, confirmed by referendum that December. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, which most countries do not recognise, and launched a full-scale invasion in 2022.

Key dates

c. 882Kyiv becomes the centre of the early state of Kyivan Rus'.
1240Mongol forces capture and sack Kyiv.
1648The Khmelnytsky Uprising begins, leading to a Cossack state.
1917The Ukrainian People's Republic is proclaimed.
1922Soviet Ukraine becomes a founding republic of the Soviet Union.
1991Ukraine declares independence on 24 August, confirmed by referendum in December.
2022Russia launches a full-scale invasion on 24 February.