Information AboutDonetsk |
Donetsk (, ''Donets'k''; ) is a city in eastern Ukraine on the Kalmius river. Administratively, it is a center of Donetsk Oblast , while historically it is the unofficial capital and largest city of the Donets Basin region, or ''Donbass''. The city has 1,131,700 inhabitants ( 2005 ) and the metropolitan area has 1,566,000 inhabitants ( 2004 ). It is currently the fourth-largest city in Ukraine. HISTORY Donetsk was founded in 1869 when a Welsh businessman John Hughes built a metallurgical plant and several coal mines near a Cossack settlement Alexandrovka. The town initially was given the name Yuzovka ("Yuz" being a phonetic rendering of Hughes). By the beginning of the 20th Century Yuzovka had approximately 50,000 inhabitants, and attained the status of a City in 1917 . In 1924 the city's name was changed to '''Stalino''' after Joseph Stalin . The Nazi Invasion during World War II almost completely destroyed the city, which was mostly rebuilt on a large scale at the war's end. During Nikita Khrushchev 's second wave of Destalinization immediately after the 22nd Communist Party Congress in November 1961 , all Soviet cities named after Stalin were renamed. Stalino's name was changed to '''Donetsk''', after the Donets river, a Tributary of the Don . CONTEMPORARY DONETSK Donetsk and the surrounding territories are heavily urbanized and agglomerated into Conurbation . The workforce is heavily involved with Heavy Industry , especially Coal Mining , but the city is very green and lightly-polluted for being a major industrial city. Donetsk lies 95 km north of the Sea Of Azov , a popular vacation spot for the city's inhabitants. The city's professional Football teams are FC Shakhtar Donetsk and FC Metalurg Donetsk . In 1962 - 1996 Donetsk had economic partnerships with Magdeburg in Germany . Donetsk is currently Twinned with:
CITY SUBDIVISION The territory of Donetsk is divided into 9 administrative Raion s ( Districts ):
TRANSPORTATION Local transportation The main forms of transport within Donetsk are: Tram s, electric Trolley Bus es, Buses , and Marshrutka s (private Minibuses ). The city public transportation system is controlled by the united ''Dongorpastrans'' Municipal company. The city has 12 tram lines (about 130km), 17 trolley bus lines (about 188km), and about 115 bus lines. Both the tram and trolley bus systems in the city are served by 2 Depot s each. There are about 32 Taxi companies in Donetsk. There is currently a Metro system under construction in Donetsk, but no station is yet operational. Proposed map of the Donetsk Metro . Railroads Donetsk contains connections to various parts of Ukarine and Russia. Donetsk's main train station ''Donetsk'' is located in the northern part of the city. Near the main train station there is a museum dealing with the history of railroads in the region. Other railway stations in the city are: ''Putchenkovo'', located in the Kievskiy Raion; ''Mandrykino'' (Petrovskiy Raion), and ''Mushketovo'' (Bydjenovskiy Raion). The city also has a children' railway. Air Donetsk has an international airport. There is a city-based DonbassAero Airline , which operates the airport. ETHNOPOLITICS While the majority of people in central and western Ukraine speak language is dominant in Donbas . Residents of the city tend to be more pro-Russian in political leanings. This has been massively exploited during 2004 Presidential Election . VIEWS OF DONETSK |
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