Kherson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
For the Greek colony, see Chersonesus (Crimea).
Kherson
Херсон
Херсон-коллаж1.jpg
Flag of Kherson
Flag
Coat of arms of Kherson
Coat of arms
Kherson is located in Ukraine
Kherson
Kherson
Location of Kherson
Coordinates: 46°38′0″N 32°35′0″E / 46.63333°N 32.58333°E / 46.63333; 32.58333Coordinates: 46°38′0″N 32°35′0″E / 46.63333°N 32.58333°E / 46.63333; 32.58333
Country
Oblast
Municipality
City Rayons
 Ukraine
 Kherson Oblast
Kherson City
Dneprovski rayon
Suvorovski rayon
Komsomolski rayon
Founded 18 June 1778
Government
 • Mayor Volodymyr Mykolayenko (Independent)[2]
Area
 • Total 135.7 km2 (52.4 sq mi)
Elevation 46.6 m (152.9 ft)
Population (2015)
 • Total 333,737[1]
Postal code 73000
Area code(s) +380 552
Website www.city.kherson.ua
Kherson Town hall, now city art museum
Kherson Musical school

Kherson (Ukrainian: Херсо́н, Ukrainian pronunciation: [xɛrˈsɔn]) is a city in southern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Kherson Oblast (province), and is designated as its own separate raion (district) within the oblast. Kherson is an important port on the Black Sea and Dnieper River, and the home of a major ship-building industry. Estimated population as of 2007 was 329,000.

Since the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in 2014, Kherson also houses the office of the Presidential representative of Ukraine in Crimea, which is headed by Nataliya Popovych.[3]

History[edit]

Until 1774, the region belonged to the Crimean Khanate.

Kherson was founded in 1778 by Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin, on the orders of Catherine the Great. The city was built under the supervision of General Ivan Gannibal on the site of a small fortress called Aleksanderschanz. The name Kherson is a contraction of Chersonesos, an ancient Greek colony founded approximately 2500 years ago in the southwestern part of Crimea. One of the first buildings in the Kherson Fort was the Church of St. Catherine where Potemkin was eventually buried. The last tarpan was caught near Kherson in 1866.[citation needed] During World War II, Kherson was occupied by the German Army from 21 August 1941 to 13 March 1944. During the Ukainian revolution of 2014 the city was the scene of riots against president Yanukovich during which the main Lenin statue of the city was toppled by protesters. After the revolution the city became relatively calm.

Demographics[edit]

Ethnicity[edit]

As of Ukrainian National Census (2001), the ethnic groups living within Kherson are:

The ethnic groups living within Kherson as of the 1926 Census:

Languages[edit]

Languages 1897[4] 2001[5]
Ukrainian 19.6% 53.4%
Russian 47.2% 45.3%
Jewish 29.1%
Polish 1.7%
German 0.7%

Population[edit]

Year Population
1790 24,000
1926 58,000
1939 97,000
1959 158,000
1981 361,000
2004 354,000
2007 329,000

Administrative divisions[edit]

There are three city raions.

  • Suvorov Raion, central and oldest raion of the city, named after the Russian General Suvorov. Includes microraions: Tavrіjs'kij, Pіvnіchnij and Mlini.
  • Dnipro Raion, named after the Dnieper river. Includes microraions: Shumens'kij, Korabel, Zabalka, Suharne, Zhitloselishhe, Selishhe — 4, Selishhe — 5.
  • Korabelnyi Raion. Includes microraions: HBK, Tekstil'nij, Sklotara, Slobіdka, Vojenka, Shіdnij.

Climate[edit]

Under the Köppen climate classification, Kherson has a borderline humid subtropical climate and humid continental climate (Cfa/Dfa).[6]

Climate data for Kherson
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 15.2
(59.4)
18.6
(65.5)
22.7
(72.9)
32.0
(89.6)
37.7
(99.9)
39.5
(103.1)
40.5
(104.9)
40.7
(105.3)
33.3
(91.9)
32.0
(89.6)
21.8
(71.2)
16.5
(61.7)
40.7
(105.3)
Average high °C (°F) 1.4
(34.5)
2.3
(36.1)
7.7
(45.9)
15.7
(60.3)
22.3
(72.1)
26.4
(79.5)
29.2
(84.6)
28.9
(84)
22.8
(73)
15.6
(60.1)
7.7
(45.9)
2.8
(37)
15.2
(59.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) −1.7
(28.9)
−1.3
(29.7)
3.2
(37.8)
10.1
(50.2)
16.1
(61)
20.4
(68.7)
22.9
(73.2)
22.3
(72.1)
16.7
(62.1)
10.4
(50.7)
4.1
(39.4)
−0.2
(31.6)
10.3
(50.5)
Average low °C (°F) −4.5
(23.9)
−4.5
(23.9)
−0.5
(31.1)
4.9
(40.8)
10.1
(50.2)
14.6
(58.3)
16.8
(62.2)
16.0
(60.8)
11.3
(52.3)
5.9
(42.6)
1.0
(33.8)
−2.8
(27)
5.7
(42.3)
Record low °C (°F) −26.3
(−15.3)
−24.4
(−11.9)
−20.2
(−4.4)
−7.9
(17.8)
−1.5
(29.3)
5.8
(42.4)
9.2
(48.6)
6.6
(43.9)
−5.0
(23)
−7.6
(18.3)
−16.2
(2.8)
−22.2
(−8)
−26.3
(−15.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 29
(1.14)
30
(1.18)
29
(1.14)
32
(1.26)
40
(1.57)
52
(2.05)
44
(1.73)
35
(1.38)
42
(1.65)
32
(1.26)
38
(1.5)
33
(1.3)
436
(17.17)
Average rainy days 9 7 9 12 11 11 9 6 9 9 12 10 114
Average snowy days 11 10 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.3 4 8 39
Average relative humidity (%) 86 83 78 69 66 66 63 62 69 77 85 87 74
Mean monthly sunshine hours 62.0 84.8 148.8 213.0 269.7 309.0 325.5 319.3 231.0 136.4 84.0 34.1 2,217.6
Mean daily sunshine hours 2.0 3.0 4.8 7.1 8.7 10.3 10.5 10.3 7.7 4.4 2.8 1.1 6.1
Source #1: Pogoda.ru.net[7]
Source #2: Deutscher Wetterdienst (sun, 2004–2012)[8]

Transport[edit]

Kherson Railway Station

Air[edit]

Kherson is served by Kherson International Airport providing both passport and customs control. It operates a 2,500 x 42-meter concrete runway, accommodating Boeing 737, Airbus 319/320 aircraft, and helicopters of all series.

The official airport website is http://www.airport.kherson.ua and additional info can be found at http://www.aisukraine.net. The tel no is +380 552 33-71-87.

Rail[edit]

Kherson is connected to the national railroad network of Ukraine. There are daily long-distance services to Kyiv, Lviv and other cities.

Education[edit]

There are 77 high schools as well as 5 colleges. There are 15 institutions of higher education.

Kherson Marine school

Main sights[edit]

  • The Church of St. Catherine was built in the 1780s, supposedly to Ivan Starov's designs, and contains the tomb of Prince Potemkin.
  • Jewish cemetery – Kershon has a large Jewish community which was established in the mid-nineteenth century.[9] From 1959 until 1990 there was no synagogue in Kherson. Since then, both Jewish life and Kherson have really grown and developed in an atmosphere of peace.[10] Nevertheless, the Jewish cemetery has regularly suffered from acts of vandalism. The graves have been repeatedly covered with trash and the tombstones destroyed and desecrated. On 6 April 2012, an act of vandalism, at the Jewish cemetery, occurred on the most important festival in the Jewish calendar, the festival of Passover. The fire, which was set, immediately spread over an area of about 700 square meters and caused severe damage to the graves and tombstones.[11]
  • Kherson TV Tower – is a famous construction located in the city.
  • Adziogol Lighthouse, a hyperboloid structure designed by V.G.Shukhov, 1911

Notable people[edit]

Twin cities[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Population Quantity". UkrStat (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 7 January 2016. 
  2. ^ http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/304223.html
  3. ^ Official website. Presidential representative of Ukraine in Crimea.
  4. ^ Национальный состав населения городов (по языку) Всероссийская перепись населения 1897
  5. ^ Ukrainian census in Kherson Oblast. State Statistics Service.
  6. ^ Peel, M. C. and Finlayson, B. L. and McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen–Geiger climate classification" (PDF). Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11: 1633–1644. doi:10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007. ISSN 1027-5606. 
  7. ^ "Pogoda.ru.net" (in Russian). May 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2015. 
  8. ^ "Klimatafel von Chersson (Kherson) / Ukraine" (PDF). Baseline climate means (1961-1990) from stations all over the world (in German). Deutscher Wetterdienst. Retrieved 1 April 2016. 
  9. ^ "KHERSON". JewishEncyclopedia.com. Retrieved 19 August 2012. 
  10. ^ Zalman, Nelson. "Anti-Semitic Incitement, Poor Economy Have Kherson's Jews Worried". Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch. Retrieved 19 August 2012. 
  11. ^ "Вандалы подпортили светлый еврейский праздник Песах". Bagnet.org. Retrieved 19 August 2012. 
  12. ^ Levy, Clifford J. "Georgi A. Arbatov, a Bridge Between Cold War Superpowers, Is Dead at 87", The New York Times, 2 October 2010. Accessed 4 October 2010.

External links[edit]