Denying Rusyn Identity: The "Ruthenian" Word 

Ukraine! recognize Rusyn people and their language as a indigenous people to Rusyn Lands. What a double standard while recognizing Crimean Tatars but not Rusyns. Their self-governing right has to be recognized and protected as well.

My family came from Austrian Galicia and they were called Ruthenians, but over time this term died, nowadays most of the descendants that came from the region are called only Ukrainians.

The argument is senseless and boils down to a fact that "Rusyn/Ruthenian" is a parent superset from which Ukrainians, Belarusians and modern day Rusyns descended. I never saw a Ukrainian who's claiming the exclusive right to own the "rusyn/ruthenian" identity. Nobody ever denied that Belarusians descended from same Ruthenian origins as modern day Ukrainians. Still Belarusians themselves used "Litvin" identity, as they shared noble class from Grand Duchy of Lithuania, while Ukrainians kept rusyn identity and struggled for unification of rusyn people in their own state, which eventually got a name Ukraine. A lot of Ukrainian writers/thinkers/historians/statesmen used the word interchangeably. Ruthenian identity is bigger than present day nations. It's not exclusive for any present day nations, it's our shared ancestry.

This is interesting as always!! Can’t wait for the next video

From what I know all East Slavs where called called Rus (Slavic endonym) and Ruthenian (Latin exonym) at various points in history. Belarus literally means White Rus. Russia literally means Land of the Rus. Rusyn has the Rus in it. Ukrainians aren't the only Ruthenians and that term is very out of date anyways.

We are with you Rusyn brothers!

Spot on! From where I am from Slovakia has accepted us, rusyns, and for that reason we call ourselves slovaks unless we’re talking about the details. Ukrainians always felt the need to call us ukranian. They even came to our parts of our land (slovakia) and forced our schools to teach ukrainian as main language. My parents walked extra kilometers to different schools cos of that. My dad also burnt his ukrainian passport that was forced onto him despite living in slovakia. He went to the police station after and told them he lost it and that he had a slovak one. Cheers!

Those, who had done the ethnic map of the Austro-Hungarian empire was politically incorrect. While calling Ukrainians "the Ruthenians", these maps show that Ukrainians=Ruthenians lived (and live to this day) in the Trascarpathian region of Ukraine and in other parts of different countries, which is now called "Carpato-Ruthenians". But there is another way : we can assume that all Galicia and Bukovina regions are HOLLY-CARPATHORUTHENIAN LANDS! P. S. The term "Kievan Rus" was invented by Russian historians in XIX century, which wanted to show, that there was other periods in the history of Rus'

I think Galeotto wrote about hungarian king Matthias Corvinus (2. half of the XV. century), that "he knew many slavic languages, learned czech to talk without interpreter with the Czechs, polish to talk with the Poles, the tot language to talk with the Slavonians* and RUSYNIAN to talk with the RUSYNS". It means, that then (XV cent.) Rusyinians were a rather important ethnic group in the Hungarian kingdom. (*in Hungarian "tót" as an ethnic/language group means Slovakian and also Slavonian...)

I like that you included the Ukrainian and Rusyn word for "Rusyn". Branching off of that though, it is evident that the term "Rusyn" is more similar to the Ukrainian term "Rusini" than the Rusyn term "Rusnak". Therefore, shouldn't we as a people call ourselves "Rusnak" instead? After all, it is the correct word in the Rusyn language.

Really appreciated this video

@LWH / ЛЗI please be aware that there are also people of Rusyn origins that identify themselves as Ukrainians or at leat have as their mother or secondary language the standard Ukrainian and still accept and even support the Rusyn national movement. Like me, for example

I saw Old Ruthenians nearly lifelike in a museum in Belarus near the Polish border where there is a zoo with lynx and bison. They were hunting with crossbows and had lavish costumes probably nobility. They wore mustaches and no beards and wore feathers in their hats.

My grandfather immigrated to Canada in 1927 and my grandmother followed in 1928. On the immigration records he claimed he was Ruthenian and she said Ukrainian but of course the Country was then called Poland. That is the first time I even heard of someone being Ruthenian I thought they were both Ukrainian. I also thought it must of been political in his mind and he was making a point not to say Ukrainian. His family were Cossacks. So I am learning lots in the last year.

Carpathian Ruthenians and Ukrainians from Galicia come from the White Croat tribe. In the article about Transcarpathia in the Polish Wikipedia it is written that in the 9th century the White Croats had a principality in Transcarpathia with its capital in Uzhhorod, which was under the influence of Kievan Rus. It is also written there that Hungarian rule was consolidated there only at the beginning of the 13th century, that attempts were made to settle this then wild and uninhabited province with settlers from Germany, but regardless of this, the colonization of Transcarpathia by settlers from Galicia continued. The Vlachs migration was of a mixed ethnic nature and since the Vlachs in Moravia retained their Vlach identity, and no one in the Prešov region and Lemko region considers themselves a Vlach, it means that the Vlachs did not stay there, but went further and reached Moravia, or possibly there stay a small admixture of them, which assimilated. In the times of Austria-Hungary, on Austrian ethnic maps, both Carpathian Ruthenians and Ukrainians from Galicia were marked as one nation the Ruthenen.

Another great video. Self-naming is an important element of national identity. To deny this is one of the means of assimilation. Every nation should have the right to decide its own name.

A great video and an interesting topic. What I so far knew that in Austria-Hungary they were called Ruthenians (Ruthenisch, rutén) officially, even in Bukovina and Galicia based on the 1910 census. Maybe because the Ukrainian nation was formed at the end of WW1, and the Rusyns much much earlier. Just a little additives, I didnt find Rusyn nationality or mother language even in the 2011 Romanian census, they just mark them as Ukrainians, but most of them live in the historical Máramaros annexed by Romania, which is a Rusyn land.

I never heard the term Ruthenian from my Ukrainian grandmother who immigrated from Galicia in 1910.

my great grandpa was living in poland in 1924 and was called Ruthenian or beliruski in a area thats called now a days Brest Voblasts

Have you thought about creating a discord server ?

It's good that this vid was 2nd in the list on YT when searching for "Ruthenian history". Really a good touchstone for people who don't understand how modern an idea "nationhood" really is when compared to that of ethnic groups closer to what us Brits would think of as independent counties et cetera. When people ask me my ethnicity and I reply I'm a Kentish raised Cockney w/ a Bodminian surname, the amount of people who don't realise this doesn't mean "English" is rather annoying. I don't bother talking abou my mother's side 'cause that's even more confusing for the poor brainlets.

Very interesting video. Keep up with it. In Serbia we have ethnic minority ,,Rusini", not Ukrainians or Russians.

The first thing you need to know about is that no matter what everyone has got a friend in me

Russians use the word "Русь" as an old Russian state. By this logic, the habitants of ruthenia are Russians. But honestly even tho I'm also an East Slav (Belarusian) I don't know that much about East Slavic history, especially because of the conflicting revisionism and historiography from Ukrainians and Russians, so I'm very confused...

Something special with this video. Rusyn-chad af my brother

Superb! It is a very good video on the term as it's quite vague and in the past, it had taken me some time on this matter. Further Conclusions made by myself: (You got no problems on your video don't worry😁) 1. Muscovy was never part of Kyivan Rus as it was established during the Golden Horde Era. However, rulers of the Russian Empire usually used the title "Emperor of All Russia" (which may have included the PLC Ruthenian territories they hadn't annexed until 1772 to 1795). That is an act of imperialism as Russia didn't originate from Kievan Rus' and they just conquered it. Hence, it was clear that Russia couldn't inherit the Ruthenian term. 2. During foreign subjugation, modern-day Ukraine was generally divided in the past as New Russia (coastal and eastern), Little Russia (central), and Red Ruthenia (including Volhynia, Galicia, Podolia). Note that Red Ruthenia is used to refer to Ukraine. 3. For Belarus, it's a complicated one. Recently the government of Belarus claimed that the country in fact shared the same history with the Lithuanians, as they were both parts of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. However, this was disputed as the duchy was more of a union between Balts and Slavs, with the Slavs having an advantage in modern-day Belarus. Funny enough, Belarus the name actually derived from the term "White Ruthenia", and it only refers to the Eastern Part of the country, including cities like Mogilev, Polotsk, and Vitebsk (you can think it like interbellum BSSR without Kresy). The Western part of the country was named Black Ruthenia instead. 4. The Rusyn homeland of Transcarpathia was only briefly part of the Kyivan Rus, and it was under Hungarian rule instead. That is why Carpathian Ruthenia shouldn't be Ukrainian.

Ivan Franko as all of the Gallician Ukrainians once considered themselves as Rusyns, back in the late XIX century, the only reason why people started to call themselves Ukrainians was to unify with another part of the nation under Russian Empire occupation, to built a new state under the common name as this people have always been separated under different regimes and empires. Mono-national countries, especially in eastern Europe have established just about a hundred years ago, which is a pretty small amount of time in terms of history. Zakarpattia has been not attached historically and geographically to other parts of modern Ukraine, that ideas about the nation that they have developed were slightly different than in others parts of the future state. And then instead of uniting again through the dialog and by the decision of the people, the soviet aggression took place, and all parts of Ukraine were united, which is good, but in a way of totalitarianism with no place for talk or agreement. I believe a lot of Rusyns gave their lives to become free from Austro-Wengerian occupation and wishes to be occupied by other countries, to unify with other parts of Ukraine, as a country of the closest families of ex Slavic tribes, but because of years of the even darker era their grandsons have forgotten their roots and now want to be separated, because of the feeling that it's not them making the decision. In a time when countries have established, what do u want now? To take some Ukrainian, Polish, Hungarian and Slovak lands and make a little country of 500k inhabitants? That is logically and economically impossible. Why does it hurt to Ukrainians? Because every Ukrainian region consists of different groups with a little different language, and if now Boykos, Wolynians, Bukowynians and so on will decide to call themselves that way denying of being Ukrainians, there would not be a such a country, that millions of people have died in a dream to once have. Because Rusyns have been forbidden to be as one with other Ukraine, only because of plans for their lands of other stronger kingdoms, countries, and empires, and now u only show that silly propaganda and years of de-Ukrainization works. Because your ancestors were killed by governments and u now believe to their killers. Because no wonder u feel different from all other nations, as u lived on lands of actual Ukraine, where the majority of inhabitants were Ukrainians, but these lands have never belonged to Ukrainian Republics or soviet Ukraine and forever taken by other nations. Because you have been lied to for too many years and just history has turned that way. Lemkos have been kicked from Poland or actually ethnical Ukrainian lands that belonged to them because they were Ukrainians, Ukraine really value them and their culture, and culture of Rusyns. Everything u have heard bad from Ukrainians was based on that you don't try to talk, to let them understand and to understand yourself but you through the easiest way of total denial and separatism and because we now have the war, and everyday men are killed cause of being Ukrainians, and u giving it up without a gun. If u haven't been born to Ukraine it's even harder for you to understand. If you want to find proof that Rusyns are not part of Ukrainian people, go ahead you can easily find it, as well as proof that Ukrainians are actually Russian or just their smaller brothers, that Ukraine has never existed and there no such people. History is written by the propaganda of winners. The only thing that history learns here, that we have to be together, we have always lost when we were not together, especially on the different sides of the conflict. Ukraine has suffered enough, Ukrainian Imperialism? You must be kidding me, instead of spreading Rusyn culture or language, u only spread hatred. If Ukrainians and some parts of Belarus were considered also as Rusyns, who are u if not Ukrainians, Belorussians? If some of the Rusyns are Belorussians, and Galician Rusyns are Ukrainians, then why are u considered as a whole different nation? Why u talk about Lemkos, if they have always considered themselves Ukrainians, I mean they always have been a part of Galician Rusyns, and a hundred years ago our language was quite a similar. Than maybe Ukrainian imperialists made Galicians also consider themselves as Ukrainians by force and propaganda? It's not, everything Ukrainian was forbidden, which have not changed how people thought of themselves. Have you read Rusalka Dnistrova? You say a lot of countries consist of a couple of nations, BUT as u say, Carpato-Rusyn lands weren't attached to rest of the country before the fall of the Daniel Rus State, one Viking cries somewhere because Imperialist Britain doesn't consider Brits that lived in his kingdom as a different nation. Occupation by different kingdom you use as an argument, though all of thee Ukraine was separated into 10 parts in late middle-age, and every and each ethnic group of Ukrainians can say that too.

Old Ruthenian derives from Old East Slav of which Lithuanian is a dialect.

I'm Ukrainian, and agree with you. Seeing the aggressive screenshots in the beginning of the video was quite bloodboiling, putting a shame on Ukraine. Just know that a lot of us aren't like this. Still, the word Rusyn is historically an integral part of Ukrainian identity. There are a lot of history related reasons for that, including documents, and statements by other governments. For example, Poland called Ukrainians Rusyns for a while

Another good and informative video! Thumbs up : )

I am reading these comments and remember the stories ( clearly urban legends) about this big large Land of our Brothers on the North. For us Serbs you were all Russians and we believed in those stories that were told to us by our grandparents, you can’t imagine how great you all were in those stories and we had this big love for you till this day . I am disappointed that you are just like us in the South, you can’t stand each other. Does anyone love Russia up there ?

Rusyn is not Ukrainian

I see there is place "Erdohorvati" in Hungaria... Interesting is that word for "fire" "vatra" is used only by Croats (Hrvati) and Srbs and by Lemko people in Carpathian mountains. What is relation between Lemko and Boiki people and between Polish Lendziani ... ? Are Boiki also using word "vatra" ?... my conclusion was that this word "vatra" has cognates only in ancient Avestan word "atar"... and "vatra" is probably derivation from: Slavic prothesis "v"+ at(a)r +a ... All other Slavic people are using ogień, ogon, ogenj, oganj... in Latin: ignis, Vedic: Agni, neoindoaryan: aag, aga ... German: Feuer, Engl: fire, other north- Germanic: brand ... Romance languages: foc (Romanian, Catalan), fuego (espanol), etc.

Could you explain to me what the hell is a Ruthenian? I've never heard that name in my life except on the Mendeleev's table of elements and Paradox© games. I don't mean to be disrespectful.

"Ruthenian" was the Latin name for Slavic people, which lived in the Ruthenia area.And this area was named after celtic tribes lived there before Slavonians.One of celtic tribe had name Ruteni

Згідно з Толочко, Рибаковим та низкою інших істориків, Русь у вузьеому сенсі була на теритррії сучасного Київа, Чернігова та Переяслава, а отже на території сучасної України, літописці з інших земель(принаймні до монгольського нашестя) себе Руссю не називали, аргумент з Білоруссю не канає

Konoshevka?

What about us Macedonians ?

A work of art surely!! This video will be used for years to come when Ukrainians try to use this strategy!

I am a Romanian, and I actually am the one who makes the demographic maps of Romania for Wikipedia. Obviously i made the ones for the Ukrainians, our third biggest minority, as well. Although I am not all that experienced into Ukrainian history, I observed that there is no recognised "Ruthenian/Rusyn" identity in Romania (like there is in Hungary, for example, which is ironic, seeing that the Rusyn population in theory should be bigger inside modern day Romania). As a result, the 2 or 3 communes (which is a Romanian division unit that is made out of multiple small villages) from Southern Maramures which do have high concentrations of Rusyns (or of what i presume are Rusyns) are considered to be Ukrainian. I just thought that it's interesting, seeing that Romania has historical and ethni-linguistic claims on all of Maramuresh, maybe even all of Transcarpathia.

I'm a Rusyn from Hungary, and I can't even speak my ethnical language. Can anyone recommend me ways to learn Rusyn?

First! The picture you used for Russians made me roll 😂

Ruthenian is Latin and English name for Rusyn. So no Ruthenian is in fact from Rus' = Eastern Slavic. And in English for saying "from Rus'" is OLD Ruthenian. Modern Ruthenian is Rusyn. There are synonyms.

seeing one ruthenians hating others is sad

Ukrainian imperialism???

I am rusnak (rusin) from Croatia 😊

funny and sad that ukrainian is probably historically the youngest slavic identity rusyns are much older yet they are supressed now by this artificially created identity....

Isn’t ruthenia just belorus?

Hello from the Kyiv. Mother of all Rus' city. By the way, my nickname is translated as ancient Ruthenian. Ruthenians are the ancestors of Ukrainians Belarusians (but not Western, Western Belarusians are Lithuanians) and Carpatorusins. all these three peoples were called Ruthenians before the 13-17th century. that is, in fact, residents of northern and western Ukraine, as well as southern and eastern Belarus, as well as Smolensk, Bryansk and Kursk and the surrounding territory. in short, the Ruthenians were people who lived on the territory of Rus', which was captured by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Who were the ancestors of modern Ukrainians, Belarusians and Carpatorusins, Ruthenians spoke Russian (not to be confused with Russian) from which the Ukrainian, Belarusian and Carpathian languages ​​came from, because of this, these languages ​​are very similar

On the 1926 Canadian Census sheets for my Ruthenian family members it shows them as having Austrian citizenship, born in Ukraine but they specifically specify Ruthenian as the race or tribal origin. The mother tongue was listed as Ruthenian as well. They're from Eastern Galicia, right on the border of Podalia. If he was Ukrainian surely he would have just listed Ukrainian ethnicity and mother tongue after claiming it's his country of birth. This relative would have come over in 1911 after the first attacks of the ultra nationalist racists against Poles and other non ethnic Ukrainians. My great uncle helped to hide one of the Polish priests of Tarnopol. I'm proud to consider myself as having a strong possibility of true Kievan Rus blood. Thank you for this video.

You are right. The only people who can decide who Rusyns are are the Rusyns themselves. Many Rusyns identify as Ukrainian. I am a Rusyns who identifies as Ukrainian. Some Rusyns do not. I am happy to identify with my Rysyn - Ukrainian brothers and sisters. Those of you who do not should just go away to Hungary or Poland or Slovakia or wherever you think you will be treated better (good luck!) and become a headache for someone else.

The Treaty of Hadiach of 1658 can be said to mark the traditional eastern border of "genuine" (historical) Ukraine. The Crimean Peninsula is not included, because it belonged to the Crimean Khanate at the time. In the diagram on this video, Ukraine is referred to by its older name, Ruthenia. Thus, if "worse comes to worse," Russia might demand return of the southernmost and easternmost portions of modern Ukraine. On the other hand, any Russian demand for traditional Ukrainian land (included in the Treaty of Hadiach) could bring war.

The Fact is. They're a younger Identity group, in comparison to the Rus'. (Regardless of other factors.) Heck, they're: "Borderians"

Ruthenia is Latin for Russia.

Support to Rusyns from Serbia

Glory to Kievan Rus’

Don’t call Russyns Rhutenians because that’s a foreign name never used or accepted but do refer to Romanian as Vlahs. Bias bonk exposed.

Belarus and Ukraine should merge together as a common entity called Ruthenian, claiming both languages to be Ruthenian and dialects of it seperate from Rusyn and Russian

Calling Rucynacs Ukrainian is like calling Assyrians or Kurds Arabs. You wouldn't call a Kurd an Arab so why call a Rucynac Ukrainian

Ukrainiams does to Rusyn people the same thing that the Russians do to Ukrainians lol

Iam rusyn😊

HORVATIAN is their original identity from pre-rus times. The craddle of the slavic languages is western ukraine, southeastern poland and eastern slovakia aka the old homeland Horvatiya. Read "Velikaya Horvatiya" from Mayorov.

rusyn was also a therm for people from moscow

I am Rusyn. My blood is from Brody. A true child of Rurik. MY BLOOD IS PURE!

Rusyn its old name of ukrainians

If you see it, just know we see Subcarpathian rusyns as our brothers aganist the ukrainen oppression❤🇭🇺

Roxoalani > Ruslini > Rusini Roxo = White. White Alans Alans, Alania = ancient greek name Sarmati > Charvati (Xarvati) White Croats Sarmatia = ancient rome name 😉

ukrainians are just russians though just like belorussians, the cantonese ppl are just as Han chinese as mandarin the language difference doesnt matter