Ukrainian migration to the United Kingdom

Infobox Ethnic group
group = Ukrainians in the United Kingdom


caption = Notable Ukrainian Britons: Elena Baltacha Sergei Baltacha Jr.
poptime = Est. over 100,000 0.16% of the UK population
popplace = London, South East, Manchester, Nottingham, West Midlands, Bradford and rest of West Yorkshire
langs = English, Ukrainian, Russian
rels = Christianity, Ukrainian Orthodox, Judaism.

Ukrainian migration to United Kingdom has been occurring since the eighteenth century. Today, there are many Ukrainians living in the UK and many citizens of the UK have Ukrainian ancestry.

History

Although Ukrainians have been present in the United Kingdom since the late 18th century, the first documented evidence of Ukrainians in the UK was confirmed by an entry in the Aliens Register in Salford of J. Koyetsky from Brody, Ukraine in 1897. Some 100 families settled in Manchester prior to WWI and in the post war years a community centre was established. An Information Centre was founded in London and religious and cultural links established with Manchester. In 1931, Bishop Andrey Sheptytsky and Fr Josyf Slipyj, both of whom in turn in later years became head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, made a notable pastoral visit to Manchester. Elsewhere, the first generation of Ukrainian immigrants started arriving in the South-East, in particular, Hertfordshire in 1947 as displaced persons.

After World War II, work-permit schemes issued under the Attlee government recruited Ukrainians to work in the mills of Lancashire and the greenhouses of the Lea Valley. After a short stay in a transit camp in East Anglia, many were brought to a displaced persons camp in Newgate Street Village in Hertfordshire. At the camp, many young people became affiliated to The Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, which had its headquarters in London, the association acted as an important support network for those separated from their family and friends.

After the end of WWII, more large numbers of Ukrainians (mainly displaced persons from camps in Germany) arrived in the UK . Ukrainians were integrated into the UK as European Voluntary Workers, while Ukrainian POWs from the Polish and German armies were also demobilised and settled in the major cities of the UK.

Population and distriubtion

Although official figures are not available, estimates put the number of Ukrainians working in London as high as 40,000, with possibly up to 100,000 Ukrainians in the UK as a whole. Many have been compelled by force of utter need to leave their family and friends. This is due to the collapse of the former Soviet Union and privatisation in 1991 which has left the Ukrainian economy floundering and about 70% of the population living in poverty.While London naturally has the majority of Ukraininians, other cities with sizeable populations include, Bradford, Nottingham, Manchester and other areas around Yorkshire and the West Midlands.

Religion

A large number of Ukrainians living in Britain are Ukrainian Catholics, under the jurisdiction of the Apostolic Exarchate for Ukrainians in Great Britain.

Notable Britons with Ukrainian ancestry

ee also

*Russian migration to the United Kingdom

External links

* [http://www.augb.co.uk/index.php The Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain (AUGB)]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/uk/05/born_abroad/countries/html/other_european_ex_ussr.stm BBC Born Abroad - Ex-USSR]
* [http://www.ucrainica.info Ukrainian Cultural Calendar in the UK]
* [http://www.cym.org/uk/Bradford/about/index.asp Ukrainian Youth Association, Bradford]
* [http://www.augb-manchester.org.uk/Docs/Commitee.htm History of the Ukrainian Community in Manchester]