Ukraine is the largest country in Europe. A country that occupies 0.41% of the world's land area and is home to 0.85% of the world's population. A quarter of all reserves of black soil on the planet are concentrated in Ukraine. During World War II, the retreating German soldiers even took black soil away on trains.
The first in the world
Ukrainians, namely the Antonov design bureau, have developed the aircraft with the world's largest carrying capacity - the An-225 Dream. The six-engine aircraft, built to transport the Soviet space shuttle the Buran, is now used for cargo no other plane can handle and on this flight to Perth it has carried a large generator purchased by a Western Australian resources company, AFP.
First Constitution
The author of one of the first Constitutions in the world is an Ukrainian political and public figure, Pylyp Orlyk. On April 5, 1710 he was elected hetman of the Zaporozhye army. The same day, Pylyp Orlik announced the "Constitution of the rights and freedoms of the Zaporozhian army." In the USA, the Constitution was adopted in 1787, in France and in the Commonwealth only in 1791. An interesting fact is that Pylyp Orlik was born on the territory of Belarus, in the village of Kosuta (Oshmyany district).
The first frame hive was invented in Ukraine in 1814 by Petr Prokopovich
In recent years, Ukraine has confidently retained its place in the top three world leaders in honey production. Leading Europe in production in several times. Ukraine is at the same time the first country in the world to produce honey per capita (1.5 kg).
Huge reserves of manganese ore
Ukraine has the world's largest reserves of manganese ore: 2.3 billion tons, or about 11% of the total world reserve.
The largest monasteries for men are called Lavras
Only six monasteries in the world have Lavra status. Three of them are located in Ukraine. These are the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in Kyiv, which received this status back in 1598, the Holy Dormition Lavra in Pochaev and the Svyatogorsk Holy Dormition Lavra in Donetsk region.
The first university
Ostroh Academy is the first higher educational institution in Eastern Europe, the oldest Ukrainian scientific and educational institution. In 1576, Prince Constantine-Vasily of Ostrog founded the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy in Ostrog.
The first kerosene lamp
Kerosene lamp was invented in L'viv by the workers of the pharmacy "Under the Golden Star" Ignatiy Lukasiewicz and Jan Zech in 1853. In the same year, the first surgical operation was performed at the L'viv hospital under the illumination of a kerosene lamp. Subsequently, the kerosene lamp was presented at an international exhibition in Munich, the invention was marked there with a special certificate.
The deepest metro station
Arsenalnaya metro station in Kyiv is the deepest in the world. It runs underground at a depth of 105 m. The station near the parliament building was one of the first to be built in 1960. According to some reports, in the tunnels near "Arsenalnaya" there are secret shelters for the political elite.
Trembita
The trembita or trombita is an alpine horn made of wood. The tube is made from a long straight piece of pine or spruce. Trembita is the longest musical instrument in the world.
Khreshchatyk
The shortest main street of all the capitals of the world, but at the same time one of the widest and most beautiful is Khreshchatyk in Kyiv. Its length is only 1225 m.
The oldest map known to scientists, as well as the oldest settlement of Homo Sapiens, were found in Ukraine
It was found in the village Mezhdurechie of the Rivne region. They are about 14.5-15 thousand years old. The map is embossed on the bones of a mammoth.
The geographical center of Europe
Ten kilometers South from Rakhiv on the right bank of the Tisza there is a the center of Europe. It is the result of important measurements by the Imperial and Royal Military Geographic Institute (Austria-Hungary was engaged in surveying). Silver-shiny modern monument of local artist Stephen Kozurak is decorated by “center of Europe“, which may be in elsewhere – depending on how you define the European boundaries.
The longest cave in Ukraine is called "Optimistic" and is located in Podillia
It is a gypsum cave at a depth of 20 m and a length of 216 km. The longest gypsum cave in the world and the second longest in general, it is second only to the Mammoth Cave in the USA. The cave complex was discovered by the speleologists of the L'viv speleological club "Cyclope" in 1966. It was entirely unknown before then. In 2008, the cave was recognized as a Natural Wonder of Ukraine. Also known as Peschtschera Optimistitscheskaya.
The oldest tree in Ukraine
It is a 1300-year-old oak in the Yusefin tract of the Rivne region.
The third most visited McDonald's in the world
The third most visited McDonald's in the world is located in Kyiv near the railway station. This establishment consistently ranks among the five busiest McDonald's in the world.
Bridge between West and East
One of the largest historical transport routes ran through the territory of Ukraine (as well as through the territory of Belarus): the “route from the Varangians to the Greeksâ€. A system of river routes and portages between them 3 thousand km long, connecting the northern lands of Ancient Rus with the southern Russian lands and the Baltic sea ​​with Black. Throughout its ancient history, Ukraine acted as a bridge between the worlds of Eastern Europe and the Ancient East, Antique, Byzantine and Latin Europe.
Kyiv is “the mother of Russian citiesâ€
Until almost complete destruction in 1240 by the Mongol-Tatars, Kyiv was one of the largest cities in Europe, fifty times larger than London, ten times larger than Paris. It reached its prime under Yaroslav the Wise (1010 - 1054), who became related to the royal families of France, Norway, Romania and Poland. The population of today's capital of Ukraine was about 50,000 inhabitants. It took about 600 years to reach that demographic again. It is quite possible, if not for the destruction of the time, Kyiv could have been the most developed largest city in Europe for many years.
Nuclear weapon arsenal
Ukraine on its own initiative renounced the world's third-largest arsenal of nuclear weapons. At the time of the declaration of independence, more than a thousand nuclear warheads and missiles were located on the territory of Ukraine, the third largest nuclear potential after Russia and America. The warheads and missiles were handed over to Russia, the bunkers were destroyed. In response, Ukraine received money for disarmament, as well as security guarantees from nuclear powers.
Shchedryk
One of the most famous Christmas songs in the world is Shchedryk, a folk song recorded by Ukrainian composer Nikolai Leontovich. The world knows her as Carol of the Bells or Ring Christmas Bells. On Youtube, various performances of "Shchedryk" are gaining millions of views.
"Singing" sands
In Ukraine at Nikopol, on the spit near the river Lapinki, you can see, or rather hear a phenomenon rarely found in the world: "singing"sands. The "singing" of these, perhaps, the strangest sands appears after rain, when the top layer sticks together and forms a brittle crust. Walking along it, you can hear sounds similar to the whistle of air released from a car camera.
Oleshkovskaya desert
One of the largest deserts in Europe is located in Ukraine. Oleshkovsky desert consist of endless dunes (locals call them "kuchugurs") about 5 m high with sparse vegetation. These desert is located in the Tsyurupinsky region (the old name of Tsyurupinsk - Oleshki), 30 km east of the city of Kherson. The desert have existed for a long time, but the Oleshkovskaya desert in its current form appeared relatively recently: from grazing in the 19th century huge flocks of sheep that destroyed the grass, the sands were freed, and wind erosion gave them the opportunity to expand. Oleshkovsky desert in terms of temperature and rainfall can be attributed to a semi-desert. In summer, the sand heats up to 70 degrees. Sandstorms also occur here.
The longest embankment in Europe
The longest embankment in Europe is located in Dnepropetrovsk. Its length is 30 km.
