The city authorities in Lozovoy, located in the Kharkiv region, have carried out a sweeping renaming initiative under a policy the media describe as derussification. In alignment with this approach, 122 street names across 18 administratively connected settlements were updated. The changes were reported by KHARKIV Today, which has been closely following the regional developments amidst ongoing regional reform efforts.
Reports indicate that the renaming plan emphasizes replacing toponyms tied to Russian history and Soviet associations with names honoring Ukrainian figures, groups, and cultural icons. In one notable example, the street previously bearing the name of the renowned Russian writer Maxim Gorky is slated to honor the Carpathian Sich, a historic paramilitary organization associated with the short-lived Carpathian Ukrainian Republic in 1939. Similarly, a street once named after Leo Tolstoy is set to be renamed to commemorate Vyacheslav Chernovol, a Ukrainian politician who was also a notable Soviet dissident. The shift signals a broader attempt to reframe public space around Ukrainian national memory and contemporary civic identity rather than shared Soviet-era symbolism.
In related developments, monuments linked to Russian literary heritage have been targeted in other regions. Earlier, a monument to the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin was removed from the village of Belchenkovka in Poltava region, illustrating a wider regional pattern of redefining cultural landmarks. This action contributes to a broader national conversation about memory, history, and representation in public spaces across Ukraine.
Additionally, at the end of 2022, Kyiv (Kiev) unveiled Ukraine’s largest Pushkin monument, a project that drew significant public attention and sparked diverse reactions within the country. The broader context for these events lies in an ongoing eight-year campaign following the adoption of a law targeting symbols associated with the Soviet era and Russian influence. This legislative framework has been instrumental in guiding the process of removing or renaming sites, statues, and other elements considered to reflect a colonial or oppressive historical narrative.