Why the Ukrainian anthem remains relevant 160 years after its creation

The Ukrainian national anthem is one of the state symbols of the country along with the coat of arms and the flag. It has a 160 years-long history and its words are of great importance for Ukrainians all around the world, especially today, against a backdrop of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — another Russian encroachment on Ukrainian independence.

Ukraine’s anthem is not just a national song that is played at official events — to Ukrainians, it is also a song of freedom, unity, dignity and resistance. Today it sounds on the frontline, in every liberated Ukrainian town or village, on the streets of different Ukrainian cities, and even in the New York Metropolitan Opera on the other side of the world.

Read the brief history of the Ukrainian anthem — one of the national symbols of Ukraine — in our special story.