Lugansk region (Ukrainian Lugansk region), or Luganshchyna (Ukrainian
Luhansk region), is an administrative-territorial unit of Ukraine,
located in the extreme east of the country, mainly in the basin of the
middle reaches of the Seversky Donets.
In the west it borders on
the Donetsk and Kharkov regions of Ukraine, in the north, east and south
- on the Belgorod, Voronezh and Rostov regions of Russia. The north of
the region belongs to the ethnographic region Slobozhanshchina, the
south - to the Donbass.
The area of the
region is 26.7 thousand km² (10th place in Ukraine), the population for
2021 was estimated at 2.1 million people (7th place). The administrative
center and largest city is Lugansk, other large cities are Alchevsk,
Severodonetsk, Lysichansk.
The region was formed in 1938 by
separation from the Stalin region of the Ukrainian SSR. Until 1958 and
from 1970 to 1990 it was called the Voroshilovgrad region (Ukr.
Voroshilovgrad region).
In April 2014, during the pro-Russian
protests, the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR) was proclaimed in the
region, which did not receive international recognition. As a result of
the war in the Donbass, the LPR gained de facto control over about a
third of the territory of the region, including Lugansk. Severodonetsk
became the seat of the regional military-civilian administration formed
by the Ukrainian authorities.
In 2022, after the start of a
full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Armed Forces and the
People's Militia of the LPR captured Severodonetsk and almost the entire
Lugansk region. On September 30, Russia announced the annexation of the
region.
Cities
Aleksandrovsk
Diamond
Alchevsk
Anthracite
Artyomovsk
(Kipuchee)
Vakhrushevo (Side-Crystal)
Bryanka
Gorskoe
Zymogorie
Golden
Zorinsk
Irmino
Kirovsk (Golubovka)
Krasnodon (Sorokino)
Red Beam (Crystal)
Kremennaya
Lisichansk
Lutugino
Miusinsk
Molodogvardeysk
Novodruzhesk
Pervomaisk
Perevalsk
Petrovskoye (Petrovo-Krasnoselye)
Popasnaya
Privolye
Rovenky
Rubezhnoye
Svatovo
Sverdlovsk (Dolzhansk)
Severodonetsk
Starobelsk
Stakhanov (Kadievka)
Sukhodolsk
Chervonopartizansk (Voznesenovka)
The territory of the region extends from 47°49' to 50°05' north
latitude and from 37°52' to 40°13' east longitude. The length from north
to south is more than 270 km, and from west to east - 170 km. Its
territory is 26,683 km² (4.42% of the territory of the state). There is
no access to the sea. In terms of territory, the region is only 166 km2
larger than the neighboring Donetsk region.
Outlying settlements:
In the north - Sirotino, Svatovsky district;
In the south - with.
Astakhovo, Dolzhansky district;
In the west - Stelmahovka, Svatovsky
district;
In the east - with. Early dawn of the Starobelsky district.
It is also the most extreme eastern settlement of Ukraine.
The
surface of the region is an undulating plain, which rises from the
valley of the Seversky Donets to the north and south, where the Donetsk
Ridge is located. The region is rich in high-quality coals. Coal
reserves amount to tens of billions of tons. Two-thirds are anthracites
and other steam coals, and a third are coking coals. In many areas,
building materials are common: limestone, sandstone, chalk, marl,
various clays, which are well used in construction. There is a large
amount of industrial waste accumulated in mine heaps and dumps that can
be used in construction. There are deposits of natural gas. There are
significant resources of underground fresh and mineral waters in the
region. Mineral waters are very diverse: bromine, sodium chloride,
hydrogen sulfide, radon and other waters, which have healing properties.
In particular, there is a Darya deposit of unique mineral waters, which
are close in composition to the waters of Essentuki 20 and
Kishinevskaya.
The soils are fertile, mostly black earth. The
region is located in the steppe zone. Forests make up about 7% of the
region's territory, located mainly near river valleys.
The climate is temperate continental. The average temperature of the warmest month (July) is +21 °C, and the coldest month (January) is -7 °C. Winter is relatively cold, with sharp east and southeast winds, frosts. Summer is sultry, its second half is noticeably dry. Autumn is sunny, warm and dry. Precipitation per year is 400-500 mm.
On the territory of the Luhansk region, 374 species of vertebrates are registered, which are combined into 88 families and 6 classes. The distribution of animals is determined by natural conditions and factors that determine their habitat. Of the predators of the Lugansk region, there are: a wolf, a fox, a raccoon dog, a weasel, etc. Among the rodents, the most common are: a hare, a marmot, a hamster, a jerboa, a mole. Feathered predators are found: red-footed falcons, imperial eagles. The forest is abundantly inhabited by useful and songbirds: larks, quails, nightingales, woodpeckers, swifts, swallows, etc. There are many different fish in rivers, lakes and ponds.
The flora of the region includes some endangered species - such plants need strict protection. Therefore, in the Luhansk region, the collection of the following wild plants by the population is prohibited: Aronnik elongated, woolly-flowered astragalus, multicolored brandushka, wild anemone, water walnut, gladiolus, spring adonis, Volga calofaka, yellow capsule, white water lily, long-leaved trion, fern (all types).
The Lower Paleolithic includes a series of sites in the Middle
Podontsovye, located within the Stanichno-Lugansky and Krasnodonsky
districts of the Lugansk region near the villages of Vishnevy Dol,
Makarovo, Pionerskoye, Krasny Derkul.
The region was formed by
the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of June 3,
1938 by dividing the Donetsk region into the Stalin region and
Voroshilovgrad (it had this name until 1958 and from 1970 to 1990). On
August 21, 1938, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR approved the division of
the region. The Voroshilovgrad region included four cities of regional
subordination and 28 districts with a population of 1,837,000 people.
On May 4, 1990, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme
Council of the Ukrainian SSR, the Voroshilovgrad region was renamed
Luhansk. On June 19, 1991, the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR
approved this decision, making a corresponding change to the republican
constitution.
In April 2014, as a result of the aggravation of
the political crisis in Ukraine and the armed conflict in the east of
the country, the Luhansk People's Republic was proclaimed in part of the
region. Since part of the territory of the region, together with the
city of Luhansk, is controlled by the LPR, the regional administration
was temporarily located in Severodonetsk.
As a result of the
Russian invasion of Ukraine, most of the region is controlled by the NM
LNR. On June 25, 2022, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and
the People's Militia of the LPR occupied Severodonetsk. On July 3,
Ukrainian troops lost control of the last city in the Lugansk region.
The authorities of the LPR announced the establishment of full control
over the territory of the region (in mid-September, the Armed Forces of
Ukraine returned control over 6-7% of the territory of the region near
Belogorovka, etc.). On September 30, Russia proclaimed the annexation of
the territory of the region as the LNR.
In terms of population, the Luhansk region ranks sixth among the
regions of Ukraine. It also belongs to the most densely populated
regions of the country - the average population density of the region is
about 80 people per 1 km²
The actual population of the region as
of January 1, 2020, according to Ukrstat, is 2,135,913 people, including
the urban population of 1,859,590 people, or 87.1%, the rural population
of 276,323 people, or 12.9%.
According to the 1989 census, more
than 2,860,000 people lived in the Luhansk region. As of January 1, 2006
- 2.409 million people (5.13% of the inhabitants of Ukraine).
As
of January 1, 2015, the current population of the region is 2,220,151
people (which is 0.86% less than January 1, 2014), including urban
population - 1,928,270 people (86.85%), rural population - 291,881
people (13.15%)[19]. The permanent population is 2,215,600 people. As of
February 1, 2018, the actual population of the region was 2,166,710
people (which is 1.26% less than February 1, 2017), the permanent
population is 2,162,113 people.
Settlements of the region in
terms of population more than 10 thousand people (without territories
subordinate to the City Council, as of January 1, 2015):
Highlighted in color are settlements that, as of February 23, 2022,
before the start of active hostilities, were actually not under the
control of Ukraine. Since July 3, 2022, the entire territory of the
Lugansk region has been under the control of the Russian Armed Forces
and the LPR formations.
Since the formation of the region, the population has been constantly growing (except for 1941-1945) until 1993. The maximum population of the region reached in 1993 - 2886.0 thousand people. Since 1993, it has been declining by an average of 28.7 thousand people a year. From 1993 to 2018 it decreased by 719.3 thousand people. In January 2018, 493 people were born, 1313 died. In January 2018, 383 people arrived for permanent residence, 655 people left. For the period from January 1, 2018 to February 1, 2018, the population decreased by 1,092 people (by 0.05%), including due to negative natural growth - by 820 people (75.09%), negative migration growth - by 272 people (24.91%). In 2013: birth rate - 9.1 per 1000 people, death rate - 15.9 per 1000 people, natural decline - -6.8 per 1000 people. The overall arrival rate is 136.1 per 10,000 people, and the departure rate is 144.0 per 10,000 people. The balance of migration is negative - -7.9 per 10,000 people.
Population according to the 2001 census (peoples over 1 thousand
people are indicated):
Ukrainians - 1 472 376
Russians — 991 825
Belarusians - 20 327
Did not indicate nationality - 10 516
Tatars
- 8 543
Armenians - 6 587
Moldovans - 3 252
Azerbaijanis - 3
123
Jews - 2,651
Gypsies - 2,284
Poles - 2,107
Georgians - 2
090
Bulgarians - 1,625
Germans - 1,555
Mordva - 1 070
Chuvash - 1,060
Greeks - 1,049
According to the 2001 census, 68.8% of the region's population named Russian as their native language. Compared with the previous population census in 1989, this figure increased by 4.9%, despite the reduction in the proportion of people who consider themselves ethnic Russians. In turn, the Ukrainian language was considered native by 30% of the inhabitants of the region, which was 4.9% less than according to the previous population census. The share of other languages indicated as mother tongue did not change during the period between censuses and amounted to 0.03%. Persons who consider one or another language as their mother tongue are unevenly distributed throughout the region. Thus, after the adoption of the law on languages in 2012, the Russian language received the status of a regional language in most, but not all, of the territory of the region. The exceptions were Belokurakinskiy, Markovskiy, Novopskovskiy and Svatovskiy districts, where less than 10% of the inhabitants consider Russian as their native language. On February 28, 2018, the law was declared unconstitutional and became invalid.
Khananov, Eduard Akhatovich (March 23, 1992 - June 18, 1994)
Kupin, Pyotr Alexandrovich (July 19, 1995 - October 19, 1995)
Fomenko, Gennady Petrovich I. O. (since November 3, 1995, governor from
August 8, 1996 to mid-April 1998)
Efremov, Alexander Sergeevich
(April 1998 - January 25, 2005)
Danilov, Alexey Myacheslavovich
(February 4, 2005 - November 8, 2005)
Moskal, Gennady Gennadievich
(November 18, 2005 - April 27, 2006)
Kobitev, Alexander Evgenievich
O. (April 26, 2006 - September 14, 2006)
Antipov, Alexander
Nikolaevich (September 14, 2006 - 03/18/2010)
Golenko, Valery
Nikolaevich (March 2010 - November 2010)
Pristyuk, Vladimir
Nikolaevich (November 10, 2010 - March 2, 2014)
Bolotskikh, Mikhail
Vasilyevich (March 2, 2014 - May 10, 2014)
Verigina, Irina
Konstantinovna (May 10, 2014 - September 18, 2014)
Moskal, Gennady
Gennadievich (September 18, 2014 - July 15, 2015)
Klimenko, Yuri
Yurievich, and. O. (July 15 - July 22, 2015)
Tuka, Georgy Borisovich
(July 22, 2015 - April 29, 2016)
Garbuz, Yuri Grigorievich (April 29,
2016 - November 22, 2018)
Fil, Sergei Alexandrovich, and. O.
(November 22, 2018 - July 5, 2019)
Komarnitsky, Vitaly Maryanovich
(July 5, 2019 - October 25, 2019)
Gaidai, Sergey Vladimirovich (since
October 25, 2019)