Religion in Ukraine

Religion In Ukraine

Religion in Ukraine (2006)

Non religious (62.5%) Eastern Orthodoxy (26.8%) Catholicism (5.9%) Protestantism (0.9%) Other religions (3.9%)

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Historically, the territories of the present-day Ukraine were inhabited by pagan tribes, but Byzantine rite Christianity was introduced by the turn of the first millennium. It was imagined by later writers who sought to put Kievan Christianity on the same level of primacy as Byzantine Christianity that Apostle Andrew himself had visited the site where the city of Kiev would be later built.

However it was only by the 10th century that the emerging state, the Kievan Rus' became influenced by the Byzantine Empire, the first known conversion was by the Princess Saint Olga who came to Constantinople in 945 or 957. Several years later, her grandson, Knyaz Vladimir baptised his people in the Dnieper River. This began a long history of the dominance of the Eastern Orthodoxy in Ruthenia that later was to influence Russia and Ukraine.

Judaism was present on Ukrainian lands for approximately 2000 years when Jewish traders appeared in Greek colonies. At the same time the neighbouring Khazar Kaganate was influenced by Judaism. Since the 13th century the Jewish presence in Ukraine increased significantly. Later on in Ukraine was established new teaching of Judaism - Hasidism.

Islam was brought to Ukraine with the Golden Horde and the Ottoman Empire. Crimean Tatars accepted Islam by being a part of the Golden Horde and later the vassals of Ottoman Empire.

Religion in Ukraine went through a series of phases, but one notably in the times of the Soviet Union. Such was the rule of the official oppressive communist regime, when Christians were persecuted and only a small fraction of people officially were church goers.