Kramatorsk

Kramatorsk (Ukrainian: Крамато́рськ, romanized: Kramatorśk [krɐmɐˈtɔrʲsʲk]) is a city and the administrative centre of Kramatorsk Raion in the northern portion of Donetsk Oblast, in eastern Ukraine. Prior to 2020, Kramatorsk was a city of oblast significance. Since October 11, 2014 Kramatorsk has been the provisional seat of Donetsk Oblast, following the events surrounding the war in Donbas.[1] Sievierodonetsk has a similar status for Luhansk Oblast. Their previous cities are still de jure administrative centres. Population: 150,084 (2021 est.)[2]

For other uses, see Kramatorsk (disambiguation).
Kramatorsk
Краматорськ
Kramatorśk
City
Flag
Coat of arms
Kramatorsk
Kramatorsk on the map of Donetsk Oblast
Kramatorsk
Kramatorsk (Ukraine)
Coordinates: 48°44′21″N 37°35′02″E
Country Ukraine
Oblast Donetsk
RaionKramatorsk Raion
Founded1868
City status since1932
Area
 • Total117.1 km2 (45.2 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)
 • Total150,084
 • Density583/km2 (1,510/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
84300-84390
Area code(s)+380 626(4)
Websitewww.krm.gov.ua

The city is located on the banks of the Kazennyi Torets River which is a right tributary of the Siversky Donets. It is an important industrial and mechanical engineering centre in Ukraine. At various periods, Kramatorsk was a place of residence for a number of notable people including Leonid Bykov, Joseph Kobzon, and Ruslan Ponomariov, the youngest person to ever become FIDE World Chess Champion.

Etymology

The origins of the name are not fully understood. The name of the city comes from the name of the station Kramatorska. V. A. Nikonov assumed that this toponym arose from the name Kramatorsk plant, which, in turn, was derived from the French word crématoire 'big oven'. According to E. S. Otin, this version is untenable because the settlement of Kramatorovka already existed before the appearance of the plant. According to his version, the name of the city comes from a toponymic phrase that has not been preserved: Krom Torov or Krom Torskaya 'border along the Tor River'. The word kroma means 'edge, frontier, border', and Tor is the old name for the Kazyonny Torets River.

Geography

Kramatorsk metro area is located between Sloviansk Raion and Kostiantynivka Raion making a central part of a major urban agglomeration with over 500.000 inhabitants.

Demographics

Kramatorsk has a population of over 164,700 inhabitants (2013) and has a metropolitan area of over 197,000 inhabitants (2013). As of the Ukrainian Census of 2001:[3]

Ethnicity
Language

According to the regional department of statistics, as of January 1, 2017, the population of Kramatorsk was 190,648 people.[4]

History
Locomotive at the Kramatorsk railway station of the Kursk-Kharkiv-Azov Railway

The city grew from a settlement by a small railway station in 1868 into a major urban settlement in the north of Donetsk Oblast with several heavy machine production facilities.

In April 1918 troops loyal to the Ukrainian People's Republic took control of Kramatorsk.[5]

It was occupied by Nazi Germany between 27 October 1941 and 5 February 1943 and again between 27 February 1943 and 6 September 1943.

Between 1980 and 1989, several people were exposed to a radiological source in one of the apartment buildings, resulting in 6 deaths and at least 17 cases of radiation sickness.

Russian–Ukrainian war
Main articles: Battle of Kramatorsk and Kramatorsk railway station attack

On April 12, 2014, the police station in Kramatorsk was seized by (armed military dressed) pro-Russian militants, and later the city council.[6] This resulted in a tense standoff between the Ukrainian Armed Forces and pro-Russian militants. After months of fighting, the rebels withdrew and the city came under Ukrainian control on 5 July 2014.[7] Kramatorsk became the provisional centre of Donetsk Oblast in 13 October 2014.

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, On 8 April 2022, Kramatorsk was subjected to missile strikes.[8] The Kramatorsk railway station was hit by a Russian Tochka-U missile, and killed at least 57 people and wounded at least 109 others.[9] Pavlo Kyrylenko, the governor of the Donetsk region, said thousands of people had been at the station at the time the 2 missiles struck.

On April 19, Russian troops launched rocket attacks on Kramatorsk, as a result of which one person was killed and three were injured.[10]

On April 21, British Defense Ministry intelligence reported that Russian troops in the Donetsk region were advancing towards Kramatorsk.[11]

Economy and industry

Industrial and mining equipment
Old Kramatorsk machine plant
  • New Kramatorsk Machinebuilding Plant (NKMZ) (founded 1934): design and production of machines and equipment for mining, steel rolling, metallurgy, production and handling of cast iron, artillery weapon systems.
  • Old Kramatorsk Machinebuilding Plant

In the 2000s, a wind turbine production facility was constructed in Kramatorsk. This is a joint venture between German Fuhrländer AG and its Ukrainian partners. According to their site, Fuhrländer became the first company in the renewable energy sector to obtain a building permit from the Ukrainian government.[12]

Transportation
Scheme of Kramatorsk trolleybus routes

Between 1937 and August 1, 2017, Kramatorsk had a tram network. However, it is now closed and public transportation is provided by buses and trolley-buses.[13]

  • Kramatorsk landscape park
  • Street junction in Kramatorsk
  • Apartment blocks in Kramatorsk
  • Monument to Oleksandr Serebryakov and Roman Mendel, who died during the Siege of Sloviansk and the Battle of Kramatorsk

Notable people

References
  1. "Kikhtenko to move Donetsk administration to Kramatorsk and to leave power structures in Mariupol". Zerkalo Nedeli (in Russian). Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2014.
  2. Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2021 / Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1, 2021 (PDF) (in Ukrainian and English). Kyiv: State Statistics Service of Ukraine.
  3. "Офіційна сторінка Всеукраїнського перепису населення" [Official page of the All-Ukrainian Population Census]. Ukrcensus.gov.ua. Archived from the original on 2017-07-10. Retrieved 2021-12-05.
  4. "Население Краматорска продолжает сокращаться" Archived 2018-04-12 at the Wayback Machine Donetskie Novosti, March 10, 2017
  5. (in Ukrainian) 100 years ago Bakhmut and the rest of Donbas liberated Archived 2019-05-01 at the Wayback Machine, Ukrayinska Pravda (18 April 2018)
  6. "Ukraine crisis: Kramatorsk police headquarters stormed". BBC. April 13, 2014. Archived from the original on July 29, 2014. Retrieved July 7, 2014.
  7. "Separatists cleared from Sloviansk and Kramatorsk". Kyiv Post. July 7, 2014. Archived from the original on July 8, 2014. Retrieved July 8, 2014.
  8. "Missile strike in Kramatorsk leaves two dead, six injured, says Ukrainian official". CNN. 18 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  9. Semenova, Thaisa (April 8, 2022). "At least 39 killed by Russian strike on train station with evacuating civilians". Kyiv Independent. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  10. Enemy fired missiles at Kramatorsk again, there is one dead
  11. Russian troops advance towards Kramatorsk - British intelligence
  12. "Fuhrländer opens joint venture park in Ukraine". Archived from the original on 2019-12-15. Retrieved 2012-09-28.
  13. "Kramatorsk tram network closes | News | Railway Gazette International". Archived from the original on 2017-08-03. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.