Mykolaiv , also widely known as
Nikolayev (from
RussianRussian is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages, and the largest native language in Europe...
), is a major
cityA city is a relatively large and permanent settlement, particularly a large urban settlement. Although there is no agreement on technical definitions distinguishing a city from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status...
in southern
UkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east; Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the southwest; and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south. The city of Kiev is both the capital and the largest city of...
.
Name of city
There are several variations of the city's name. In
UkrainianUkrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses the Cyrillic alphabet....
, the city is named Микола́їв, for which the
transliterationTransliteration is the practice of converting a text from one writing system into another in a systematic way.-Definitions:From an information-theoretical point of view, transliteration is a mapping from one system of writing into another, word by word, or ideally letter by letter...
is
Mykolaiv, or, more rarely,
Mykolayiv. The
RussianRussian is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages, and the largest native language in Europe...
name is Никола́ев, which transliterates as
Nikolaev or
Nikolayev.
Geographical position
The city is located from the
Black Seaur a loser!The Black Sea is an inland sea bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas and various straits. The Bosporus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects it to...
along the
estuaryAn estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries are thus subject to both marine influences, such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline water; and riverine influences, such as flows of...
of the Southern Buh river (where it meets the
InhulInhul is a tributary of the Southern Bug river of Ukraine. It rises North of Kirovohrad, flowing South into the Southern Bug at Mykolayiv. The Southern Bug empties into the Black Sea, not far from Mykolayiv. It is about 300 km long....
River)..
Administrative status
Mykolaiv is the
administrative centerCapital City was a television show produced by Euston Films which focused on the lives of investment bankers in London living and working on the corporate trading floor for the fictional international bank Shane-Longman....
of the
Mykolaiv OblastMykolaiv Oblast is an oblast of Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Mykolayiv.-Geography:...
(
provinceOblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
), as well as that of both the Mykolaivsky and Zhovtnevy
raionA raion is a type of administrative unit of some post-Soviet states. The term, which is from French rayon 'honeycomb, department,' describes both a type of a subnational entity and a division of a city, and is almost always translated as "district"...
s (districts) within the oblast. However, Mykolaiv is also a
city of oblast subordinanceUkraine is subdivided into 24 oblasts , one autonomous republic, and two "cities with special status".- Overview :...
, and is thus subject directly to the oblast authorities rather to the raion administration housed in the city itself.
Economy
Today Mykolaiv is a major shipbuilding center of Ukraine (as, earlier, of the whole
Soviet UnionThe Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The name is a translation of the , tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated СССР, SSSR. The common short name is Soviet Union, from , Sovetskiy Soyuz...
) and an important
riverportRiverport can refer to:*a port on/near a river*Riverport, Nova Scotia...
. The city has
three major shipyardsMykolaiv Shipyard may refer to three shipyards in the Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv or Nikolayev. The North and South yards were also known as the Andre Marti yards in early Soviet times :...
one of which is capable of building large
navyA navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
ships. Other important industries are
mechanical engineeringMechanical Engineering is an engineering discipline that was developed from the application of principles from physics and materials science. Mechanical engineering involves the analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of various systems...
,
power engineeringPower engineering, also called power systems engineering, is a subfield of engineering that deals with the generation, transmission and distribution of electric power as well as the electrical devices connected to such systems including generators, motors and transformers...
,
metallurgyMetallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
and
cosmeticsCosmetics are substances used to enhance the appearance or odor of the human body. Cosmetics include skin-care creams, lotions, powders, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail and toe nail polish, eye and facial makeup, permanent waves, colored contact lenses, hair colors, [hair sprays] and gels,...
.
History
The town was founded in 1789 by the Russian
Governor GeneralA guberniya was a major administrative subdivision of Imperial Russia, usually translated as government, governorate, or province. A guberniya was ruled by a governor , a word borrowed from Latin , in turn from Greek...
of
NovorossiyaNovorossiya is a historic area of lands also known in Polish as Dzikie Pola and now mostly located in southern Ukraine, in southern Russia, in Bessarabia and in Transnistria....
, Prince Grigori Potemkin, initially as a shipyard called simply a
New Shipyard on the Ingul river. Kniaz Potemkin signed an order to construct a shipyard on August 27, 1789, which is considered to be the city's birth date. The shipyard was to undertake the repair of
navalThe Russian Navy or VMF is the naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. The international designation of Russian naval vessels is RFS—"Russian Federation Ship"....
ships in the Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792). Later Potemkin ordered the shipyard to be named
Nikolaev to commemorate the date when Ochakov fell to the Russian troops under his command on December 6, 1788, close to the day of
Saint NicholasSaint Nicholas is the common name for Nicholas of Myra, a saint and Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nicholas the Wonderworker...
(Nikolay) December 19, in the
Russian Orthodox ChurchThe Russian Orthodox Church ; or The Moscow Patriarchate , also known...
calendar.
The history of the city has always been closely connected to ship building. Captain
Georgy BrusilovGeorgy Lvovich Brusilov or Hryhoriy Brusylov was a Russian naval officer of the Imperial Russian Navy and an Arctic explorer...
of the ill-fated Arctic ship
St AnnaThe Svyataya Anna or St. Anna, named after Saint Anne, was a Russian ship built in England. It was the ship commanded by Georgy Brusilov during his ill-fated 1912 Arctic expedition to explore the Northern Sea Route.-1912 Arctic expedition :...
was born in Mykolaiv in 1884.
Education
There are several universities in Mykolaiv. These include the Mykolaiv Pedagogical Institute,
Admiral Makarov National University of ShipbuildingAdmiral Makarov National University of Shipbuilding is a university located in the Mykolaiv. The University is named after the Russian admiral Stepan Makarov, who was born in the city.- External links :*...
and Petro Mohyla Mykolaiv State University.
Transportation
Mykolaiv AirportInternational Airport "Mykolaiv" is an airport in Mykolaiv, Ukraine.It is one of the largest and technically equipped airport at the of South of Ukraine. Class B airport has contemporary runway ready to receive aircraft with landing weight up to 220 tons and to hold eight "IL-76" aircraft...
, one of the largest and technically well-equipped airports in the South of Ukraine, serves the city.
See also
- Black Sea Shipyard
The Black Sea Shipyard is located in Mykolaiv, Ukraine and is the largest shipyard on the Black Sea. It is most often referred to as the Nikolayev South Shipyard and was known as Soviet Shipyard No. 444....
- 61 Kommunara Shipbuilding Plant
- Okean Shipyard
The Okean Shipyard is part of the South Korean STX Shipbuilding Group, located in Mykolaiv, Ukraine and is the third major ship construction yard in the area. It operates modern production facilities supplied by world known companies and it has a medium and heavy tonnage production line...
(Oktyabrskoye)
External links