1/ There's something unsettling about certain russian "liberal" historians. They mourn the lost era of a globalized world where history mattered less and less, though and a brighter future seemed within reach. 2/ These historians maintain their positions in russian universities and even attend conferences in Berlin discussing the changing nature of history. Yet, they conveniently overlook the inherent imperialism in their musings on the "return of history."

The Holodomor is more than just the genocide and approximately 4 million deaths that affected nearly every Ukrainian family. It is a tragedy of untold stories that were frequently kept secret out of fear. Since the late 19th century, the majority of my family has lived in Luhansk and other industrial cities of Donbas. In 1932-1933, the famine was not as widespread in the cities as it was in the countryside, so my grandparents only spoke about the "hunger years" of their childhood.

Today Ukraine celebrates Independence Day.

However, in the thirty-one years after the Act of Independence of Ukraine was announced, there is a critical component that has been overlooked. In particular, the fact that on August 24 Ukraine's independence was Restored.

1/8 To begin, "the continuance of the millennium history of sovereignty of Ukraine" is specifically mentioned in the Act of Independence itself. This is not sufficient to declare the Restoration, though. Moreover, during the most of the 20th century, Ukraine had two governments.

2/8

Promised 🧵 on the colonization of Donbas.
"Donbas" comes from the mid-19th century industrial revolution. It is a type of "rust belt" economic region with a local identity tied to heavy industry.
However, this does not imply that the region was lifeless in pre-modern times.
1/ The territory of modern Donbas was part of a vast ethno-contact zone known as part of the medieval Wild Steppe (or Wild Fields – Dyke Pole). That is, it was territory over which none of the macroregion's state formations had effective control.
2/

Luhansk and its various names. My hometown's name has changed at least 5 times in its 227-year history. The city began as a foundry on the banks of the Luhan' River. But the plant was not built on an empty lot; it was built near the Cossack settlement of Kamianyi Brid.

https://twitter.com/YMonastyrskyi/status/1522914068331388929

Until 1882, the name "Luhansk" did not exist. Previously, the settlement was known as Luhansk Plant, and it was located near Kmianyi Brid and other old settlements, the majority of which were founded as early as the 17th century.