Ukrainians in the United Kingdom
Total population
Ukrainian nationals
17,000 (2020 ONS estimate)
Ukrainian-born residents
32,000 (2020 ONS estimate)
Languages
English, Ukrainian, Russian
Religion
Christianity, Ukrainian Orthodox, Judaism.
Related ethnic groups
Ukrainian Americans

Ukrainians in the United Kingdom consist mainly of British citizens of Ukrainian descent.

History

In Manchester, the first documented evidence of Ukrainians was an entry in the Aliens Register in Salford of J. Koyetsky from Brody (then in the Austrian Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria) in 1897.[1] Some 100 families settled in Manchester prior to World War I, and in the post-war years a community centre was established.[1] An Information Centre was founded in London and religious and cultural links established with Manchester.[1] In 1931, Bishop Andrey Sheptytsky and Fr Josyf Slipyj, each of whom in turn in later years became head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, made a notable pastoral visit to Manchester. Elsewhere, the first generation of Ukrainian immigrants started arriving in the South-East, in particular, Hertfordshire in 1947 as displaced persons.

After World War II, work-permit schemes issued under the Attlee government (1945-1951) recruited Ukrainians to work in the mills of Lancashire and in the greenhouses of the Lea Valley (Middlesex/Essex). After a short stay in a transit camp in East Anglia, many individuals entered a displaced-persons camp in Newgate Street Village in Hertfordshire. At the camp, many young people became affiliated to the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, which had its headquarters in London; the Association acted as an important support-network for those separated from their family and friends.

After the end of World War II, more large numbers of Ukrainians (mainly displaced persons from camps in Germany) arrived in the UK. Ukrainians were integrated into the UK as European Voluntary Workers, while Ukrainian POWs from the Polish and German armies were also demobilised and settled in the major cities of the UK.

Geographers Graham Smith and Peter Jackson suggest that 35,000 Ukrainians arrived after World War II, and that by the late 1950s there were 70 established Ukrainian communities in Britain, "the largest in Bradford, Nottingham, Manchester and Coventry".[2]

Russian invasion of Ukraine

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainians living in the UK have organised demonstrations to demand the British government introduce sanctions against Russia and take action against Russian oligarchs with financial and political links to the UK.[3][4] Some of the protest organisers have criticised the government's Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which proposes to place new restrictions on protests and public assembly, accusing it of "hypocrisy for pushing through new anti-protest measures while criticising Russia for silencing anti-war demonstrations".[5] As of May 2023, the United Kingdom has issued 230,300 visas to Ukrainians as a result of Russia's invasion from a total of 292,900 applications received.[6]

Population

The 2001 Census recorded 11,913 people born in Ukraine resident in the UK.[7] The 2011 UK Census recorded 20,320 Ukrainian-born residents in England, 380 in Wales,[8] 838 in Scotland,[9] and 245 in Northern Ireland.[10] The Office for National Statistics estimates that in 2020, 32,000 people born in Ukraine were resident in the UK.[11] The number of Ukrainian nationals was estimated at 17,000.[12]

Religion

Most of the present Ukrainian diaspora in the UK are of the Ukrainian Orthodox religion. A large number of Ukrainians living in Britain are Ukrainian Catholics, under the jurisdiction of the Apostolic Exarchate for Ukrainians in Great Britain,[13]whilst smaller numbers are Jews and Muslims.[14]

Notable Britons with Ukrainian ancestry

Name Occupation
Elena Baltacha tennis player
Sergei Baltacha Jr. footballer
Lew Grade showbusiness impresario and television company executive
Michael Grade chief-executive of ITV, former chairman of the BBC
Alexander Temerko businessman
Marina Lewycka novelist
Volodymyr Luciv Musician, Bandurist and famous Tenor in the 1950s through to the 1990s
Gerry Luczka Football coach and manager.
Sergei Pavlenko portrait painter
Mark Pougatch broadcast sports journalist, BBC
Peter Solowka musician, guitarist with The Ukrainians and formerly The Wedding Present
Stepan Pasicznyk musician, and accordionist formerly with The Ukrainians original line up.
Zoë Wanamaker US born actress, raised in Britain of Ukrainian and Russian descent

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Manchester Ukrainian Community". The University of Manchester. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  2. ↑ Smith, Graham; Jackson, Peter (1999). "Narrating the nation: the 'imagined community' of Ukrainians in Bradford". Journal of Historical Geography. 25 (3): 367–387. doi:10.1006/jhge.1999.0120.
  3. ↑ Bychawski, Adam (24 February 2022). "Ukrainians in London tell of anguish at Downing Street protest". openDemocracy. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  4. ↑ "Ukraine conflict: Protests against invasion by Russia held in Scotland". BBC News. 25 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  5. ↑ Bychawski, Adam (3 March 2022). "UK's Policing Bill would silence us, says Ukrainian protester". openDemocracy. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  6. ↑ "Ukraine Family Scheme, Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (Homes for Ukraine) and Ukraine Extension Scheme visa data". gov.uk. Home Office. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  7. ↑ "Country-of-birth database". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 3 December 2008.
  8. ↑ "2011 Census: Country of birth (expanded), regions in England and Wales". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  9. ↑ "Country of birth (detailed)" (PDF). National Records of Scotland. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  10. ↑ "Country of Birth – Full Detail: QS206NI". Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  11. ↑ "Table 1.3: Overseas-born population in the United Kingdom by country of birth and sex, January 2020 to December 2020". Office for National Statistics. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2022. Figure given is the central estimate. See the source for 95% confidence intervals.
  12. ↑ "Table 2.3: Non-British population in the United Kingdom by nationality and sex, January 2020 to December 2020". Office for National Statistics. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2022. Figure given is the central estimate. See the source for 95% confidence intervals.
  13. ↑ "Ukrainian Catholic Church in Great Britain". www.ukrainiansintheuk.info.
  14. ↑ "CT0265 – Country of birth by year of arrival by religion". Office for National Statistics. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 26 February 2022.

Further reading

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