Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in eastern Europe, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east, and is bordered by the Black Sea. The estimated population in 2009 was 45,700,400. The position of the mother has historically been of central importance in Ukraine. Motherhood remains a fixture of Ukrainian culture, tracing its roots to the powerful influence of the Princess Olha on her grandson, Volodymyr the Great, at the founding of Kievan Rus' society. The persistence of a Ukrainian national consciousness in the face of Russification and Soviet rule has been attributed to the role and influence of the mother within the Ukrainian family.