Glory to Ukraine

World War II-era monument in memory of UPA freedom fighters with inscription "Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes!", in place of the Janowa Dolina massacre, Bazaltove, Ukraine

The phrase “Slava Ukrayini!” (Glory to Ukraine!) first appeared in different military formations during the Ukrainian War of Independence (from 1917 to 1921).[2] It became part of the lexicon of Ukrainian nationalists in the 1920s.[2][nb 1]

The modern response "Heroyam slava!" (Glory to the heroes!) appeared in the 1930s among members of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) who started using this slogan,[2] replacing all former responses with it as a mark of deep respect for all the men and women who had laid down their lives for their country. The partisans thus honoured the memory of all the brave soldiers and passed it on to future generations. The greeting Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the heroes! became an official slogan of Stepan Bandera's OUN-B in April 1941.[3][2]

“Slava Ukrayini! Heroyam slava!" became very popular in the 1940s and 1950s when the OUN/UPA partisan movement fighting against the Polish and Soviet occupiers swept across most of western Ukraine. "Glory to the heroes!" was also used by the Kuban Cossacks dating back to at least 1944 with the return of the Cossack Rebel Army who fought with the UPA.[4]

In the late 1980s and early 1990s the slogan began to be heard at rallies and demonstrations.[2] After Ukraine declared independence in 1991, the phrase "Glory to Ukraine" became a common patriotic slogan. In 1995, President of the United States Bill Clinton used the phrase in his speech in Kiev (together with "God bless America").[5]

The phrase has undergone a resurgence in recent times, becoming a popular and prominent refrain during the 2014 Ukrainian revolution.[6] In September 2014, after addressing a gathering of the United States Congress in Washington, D.C., Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko concluded his speech by uttering the phrase.[7]

It is also commonly used in greeting to Ukraine from the world leaders.[8]

On July 10, 2018, Ukrainian supporters flooded the Facebook page of football governing body FIFA with over 158,000 comments, most saying "Glory to Ukraine", after FIFA fined Croatia's assistant coach for a video in which he used the same slogan after Croatia's World Cup victory. Russia alleged that the chant has ultra-nationalist connotations, as it was popularised by World War II era groups, such as the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), who collaborated with the Nazis.[9] The Football Federation of Ukraine said in a statement that "Glory to Ukraine is a commonly used greeting in Ukraine ... (and) should not be interpreted as an act of aggression or provocation".[10]

On 9 August 2018 Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced that Glory to Ukraine will be the official greeting of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, replacing Hello Comrades (Вітаю товариші, Vitayu tovaryshi).[11] The greeting was used during the Kiev Independence Day Parade on 24 August 2018.[12] The Ukrainian parliament approved the President's bill on this (in its first reading) on 6 September and on 4 October 2018.[13] Parliament also made Glory to Ukraine the official greeting of the National Police of Ukraine.[14]

On 7 September 2018, the Ukrainian national football team wore the phrase on their kits, during a UEFA Nations League match with the Czech Republic.[15]