Discover
The identity of the nation
Ukraine is the largest country located entirely within Europe, with vast plains and wheat fields that have sustained its title as the “breadbasket of Europe” for centuries. Its history begins with Kyivan Rus, an ancient Slavic kingdom that, in the year 988, adopted Christianity as its official religion and planted the roots of the Christian faith across Eastern Slavic lands. After centuries under the rule of other powers (Polish, Austro-Hungarian and Russian), the country only regained independence in 1991, with the fall of the Soviet Union. Today, the nation is living through one of the hardest moments in its history: since 2022, it has faced a full-scale war following Russia’s invasion, which has already displaced millions of people and profoundly changed daily life.
Most of the population identifies as Orthodox Christian, a direct legacy of that baptism in the year 988. But the Orthodox church is divided between the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (independent) and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (historically linked to the Moscow Patriarchate), a divide that grew even more tense after the war. Alongside the Orthodox stands a small but active evangelical minority: Ukraine has, proportionally, one of the largest evangelical communities in Eastern Europe, with Baptists, Pentecostals and other churches that grew significantly after the religious freedom won in 1991.
The war has brought deep suffering, but it has also opened space for spiritual searching that did not exist before. Local churches, even with few resources, have become centers of support, offering shelter, food and emotional care to those who lost their homes or families. Many people who had never thought about God began seeking answers amid fear and loss. At the same time, millions of Ukrainians now live as refugees in other countries, carrying with them their faith, their doubts and, often, forming new communities of faith in exile.
Within Ukraine also live peoples with little or no contact with the gospel. Crimean Tatars, of Muslim tradition, Romani peoples (known as Gypsies), who face prejudice and poverty, and small communities of Asian or Caucasian origin form pockets of unreached peoples within a nation that is Christian mostly in name. Reaching these groups requires cultural sensitivity and patience, since many live on the margins of Ukrainian society.
Despite the war, or perhaps because of it, Ukraine today carries a unique calling: to be a people who bear witness to faith in the midst of pain, who welcome foreigners with the same hospitality they sought when they had to flee, and who can become a bridge to bring the gospel to neighboring nations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia when peace returns.
- 9th century Kyivan Rus emerges as the first great Slavic kingdom, centered on the city of Kyiv.
- 988 Prince Vladimir the Great adopts Byzantine Christianity as the official religion of Kyivan Rus and baptizes the people in the Dnieper River.
- 1240 Kyiv is destroyed by the Mongol invasion, ending the power of the ancient Slavic kingdom.
- 14th-18th centuries The territory is divided among Lithuania, Poland and, later, the Russian Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
- 17th century The Cossacks, free warriors and farmers of the steppes, form an autonomous state that becomes a symbol of Ukrainian identity.
- 1917-1921 After the fall of the Russian empire, Ukraine attempts independence but is eventually absorbed into the Soviet Union.
- 1932-1933 The Holodomor, a famine caused by Soviet policies, kills millions of Ukrainians.
- 1941-1945 The country is occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II, with enormous human losses.
- 1986 The Chernobyl nuclear disaster, in the north of the country, contaminates a vast region and still affects local life.
- 1991 Ukraine becomes independent with the fall of the Soviet Union.
- 2004 The Orange Revolution leads to new elections after accusations of fraud.
- 2014 Protests in central Kyiv topple the government; Russia annexes the Crimean peninsula and war begins in the Donbas region, in the east of the country.
- 2022 Russia invades Ukraine on a full scale, starting the war that continues today.
- Today The country resists the war, rebuilding communities and sustaining faith amid the conflict.
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Ukrainianofficial language, spoken by the majority of the population across the country.
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Russianstill widely spoken, mainly in the east and south, though its use has been declining since the war began.
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Crimean Tatarspoken by a Muslim minority on the Crimean peninsula.
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Hungarianspoken by a minority in the Transcarpathia region, in the west of the country.
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Romanianspoken by a small community near the border with Romania.
Ukraine is the largest country located entirely within Europe. It has vast plains and farmland, known as the steppe, cut through by the Dnieper River, which divides the territory into the right bank and the left bank. In the west rise the Carpathian Mountains, with forests and traditional villages. In the south, the country has a long coastline on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It is fertile land, historically known as one of the world's largest wheat-producing regions.
Major cities
- Kyivcapital and largest city, historical, cultural and political center, marked by resistance since 2022.
- Lvivcity in the west, with European architecture, strong Ukrainian identity and little marked by the Soviet era.
- Odesaport on the Black Sea, known for its elegant architecture and the famous Odesa Opera House.
- Kharkivsecond-largest city, an industrial and university hub in the northeast, near the Russian border and heavily affected by the war.
- Dnipromajor industrial center on the banks of the Dnieper River.
Climate and temperature
Borscht
Red soup made with beet, the country's most famous dish, served with a spoonful of sour cream.
Varenyky
Small boiled dumplings filled with potato, cabbage, meat or even fruit.
Holubtsi
Cabbage leaves rolled with rice and meat, cooked in tomato sauce.
Deruny
Grated potato pancakes, fried and served with sour cream.
Salo
Cured pork fatback, seasoned with salt and garlic, eaten in thin slices with bread.
Pyrizhky
Baked or fried buns filled with meat, potato or mushrooms.
Understand
Culture and spirituality
2a · The culture
Vyshyvanka
Traditional embroidered shirt, with patterns that vary by region, celebrated every year on Vyshyvanka Day.
Pysanka
Hand-decorated egg made with traditional techniques, a symbol of life and prosperity, used mainly at Easter.
Kyiv Pechersk Lavra
Complex of monasteries and caves dating to the 11th century, one of the most sacred sites of Orthodox Christianity in the country.
Cossack culture
Heritage of the Cossacks, free warriors and farmers of the steppes, present in music, dance and national identity.
Odesa Opera House
Historic theater from 1887, one of the country's most beautiful buildings, a symbol of cultural life in the port city.
- Calling Ukrainian a dialect of Russian they are different languages; treating one as inferior to the other offends national identity.
- Speaking lightly about the war nearly every Ukrainian family has someone affected by the conflict; avoid careless comments or insensitive curiosity.
- Photographing military posts, government buildings or defense areas it can be mistaken for espionage in wartime and cause serious trouble.
- Ignoring air raid siren warnings even when they seem frequent, it is important to follow local safety instructions.
- Treating Ukraine and Russia as the same people many Ukrainians see this as an erasure of their own identity and history.
- Asking men of fighting age directly about military service it is a sensitive topic, tied to difficult personal decisions and the risk of mobilization; it is better to let the person bring it up if they wish.
2b · The field
Areas of spiritual battle and cultural captivity to cover in prayer. Tap each point to understand:
Many call themselves Orthodox out of family tradition, without a living personal faith in Christ.
Rivalry between Orthodox branches, tied or not to Moscow, breeds distrust and disputes over church buildings and members.
Genuine love for the homeland, wounded by the war, risks becoming a substitute for faith in God.
Years of bombardment and losses leave deep marks of fear, grief and hopelessness across the population.
The suffering caused by the invasion feeds a desire for revenge and makes forgiveness harder.
Decades of Soviet propaganda against faith still shape the thinking of many families.
Excessive alcohol consumption is a longstanding social problem, worsened by the stress of war.
Decades of corrupt practices in government and public life undermine trust in institutions.
Belief in psychics, horoscopes and amulets is still common, even among those who call themselves Christian.
Men at the front, women and children abroad: the war fragments families and weakens the social fabric.
The daily risk of attacks generates chronic anxiety, hard to treat without a hope greater than one's own strength.
Uncertainty about the end of the war fuels hopelessness, especially among young people.
The war started by the Russian invasion in 2022 transformed religious freedom in Ukraine. In areas occupied by Russia, churches that do not belong to the Russian Orthodox Church, such as Baptists, Pentecostals and Charismatics, are treated with strong suspicion: soldiers and local authorities often label their members as “spies” or “sectarians,” and there are reports of interrogations, arrests and the closing of places of worship.
Within the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government, the tension is of a different kind: in 2024, parliament banned the activities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church linked to the Moscow Patriarchate, accused of maintaining ties with the invading country. This has led to disputes over church buildings, rhetoric of mutual distrust between denominations and, in some cases, social pressure on members of that church, even those with no connection to the political conflict.
For the country’s few evangelicals, the greatest challenge is not systematic persecution by the state, but the very climate of war: destroyed communities, pastors and members who die in combat or flee as refugees, and the difficulty of sustaining church life in cities under constant attack.
The persecution score runs from 0 to 100: the higher it is, the greater the pressure on Christians.
Ukraine has 56 different ethnic groups, according to Joshua Project. Most of the population belongs to the Ukrainian people itself, historically linked to the Orthodox Christian tradition, but the country is also home to minorities such as Russians, Crimean Tatars (of Muslim tradition), Romani (Gypsy people), Hungarians and other smaller groups. Sixteen of these peoples are considered unreached, most of them small Muslim communities or other non-Christian traditions, living on the margins of the country's majority Christian identity.
- 450K Unreached 1,2%
- 18K Minimally reached 0%
- 1M Superficially reached 2,7%
- 37M Partially reached 96,1%
- 10K Significantly reached 0%
- 16 Unreached 28,6%
- 7 Minimally reached 12,5%
- 17 Superficially reached 30,4%
- 15 Partially reached 26,8%
- 1 Significantly reached 1,8%
Source of people group data: Joshua Project (joshuaproject.net). Estimates, may vary.
Ossetians Frontier
Judeu Caraita Frontier
Azeri do norte
Chuvan
Orochi Frontier
Orok
Tabasaran Frontier
Source: Joshua Project. Estimates, may vary.
Pray
Intercede for this nation
Every nation carries a redemptive purpose. Marks that seem woven into the identity God desires to restore:
Go
Practical details for those who want to go
Local time
Cost of living
average price in Kyiv, according to Numbeo.
Cost by city
Reference values (source: Numbeo). Confirm before traveling.
Practical points for those who go
- The local currency is the hryvnia (UAH); cards are accepted in major cities, but bring cash for smaller areas.
- Air raid sirens sound frequently in several cities; always follow local instructions and seek shelter when advised.
- Power outages (scheduled blackouts) are common due to attacks on the electrical grid; keep flashlights and spare batteries on hand.
- The time zone is UTC+2 (UTC+3 during daylight saving time).
- Trains are the most reliable way to travel between cities, often preferable to car travel in wartime.
- Tipping is not required, but 10% is welcome at restaurants in larger cities.
Send and sustain
Not everyone goes, everyone takes part
Not everyone goes. Everyone takes part.
Behind every worker among these peoples stands a network of people who pray without ceasing, care for the family left behind, and faithfully sustain the work. Sending is mission too.
Start with your church: introduce this nation, adopt it in ongoing prayer, and walk alongside those God is raising up to go.