Gender Features of Toponymy in Ukrainian Cities

Abstract

Toponymic changes are part of the state’s memorial policy, reflecting the processes of decommunization and decolonization. The gender distribution of toponymic names indicates that women’s contributions to the history, culture, and civilization progress of the country are taken into account and is a kind of indicator of readiness for gender parity at the present stage. The issue of a gender approach to urban names is analyzed in the works of geographers and philologists, and to a much lesser extent by historians. Scientific works by Polish researchers Justyna Walkowiak, and Krzysztof Górny, and Ukrainian — Olga Hnatiuk and Volodymyr Hlibovets, not only confirms the relevance of the issue, but also allows for a comparison of toponymic change processes, taking into account the gender component in Ukraine and other countries. The aim of the study is to analyse feminitives in the urban names of large Ukrainian cities in the process of toponymic changes during 1991–2025. To achieve this goal, feminitives in urban names of nine Ukrainian cities were calculated, stages of renaming were identified, persons whose names are used for streets in most cities were determined, as well as regional features of toponymic changes and factors influencing them. It has been established that the waves of renaming, as a result of which feminine forms took their place among urban names, are associated with the restoration of Ukrainian statehood in 1991, the adoption of decommunisation laws in 2014, and decolonization in 2023. However, the proportion of feminine forms in urban names remains insignificant in all cities (1–4 %). This is due both to the peculiarities of women’s history, which for a long time did not have access to the public sphere, and to the underdevelopment of this area in contemporary scientific studies. Domestic historians are trying to overcome this gap in the historical narrative by attempting to include women in it and highlight their contribution to the development of modern society. They are assisted by feminist organizations and digital media, which popularize women’s history and revive the names and biographies of women whose names need to be inscribed in the urban landscape. The national canon of individuals whose names are honored in the toponymy of all regions mainly includes figures from literature, culture, and art (Lesya Ukrainka, Olha Kobylianska, etc.). Some urban names honor public figures and representatives of the regional elite. The lowest indicators relate to women scientists and military personnel. The insignificant percentage of feminine forms in the urban names of large Ukrainian cities indicates that the processes of decommunization and decolonization have had little impact on patriarchal traditions in toponymy. This is also a sign of Ukrainian society’s unwillingness to involve women in symbolic urban spaces and to accept the ideas of gender equality in general. The further development of gender studies and cooperation between feminist organizations, academics, and regional authorities could be the key to progress in establishing feminine forms in urban names, although in the current context of war, these issues are not a priority.