From Babyn Yar to the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ Counteroffensive: September in 100 Years of Ukrainian History

Over the years, events have taken place in September that have shaped Ukrainian security, culture, science, the economy, sports, and public life. From the adoption of the Ukrainian orthography in 1928 and the start of World War II to the premiere of *Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors*, the introduction of the hryvnia, and the sporting triumphs and military victories of 2022. The events of a single month offer a fresh perspective on the country’s history. Intent has compiled the most important and interesting events that took place in Ukraine in September over the past century.

September 1926 – Odesa became the all-Union center of bacteriological science 

The city hosted the All-Union Congress of Bacteriologists, Epidemiologists, and Public Health Physicians. Holding such a large-scale scientific forum in Odesa was only natural; the city had a long tradition of fighting epidemics and was home to one of the most renowned bacteriological stations of the time.

September 4, 1928 – Approval of the Ukrainian Spelling System

The Ukrainian orthographic standard was approved, which later became known as the Skrypnyk or Kharkiv standard. It became one of the most notable manifestations of the language policy of Ukrainization in the 1920s. In 1933, this orthographic standard was revised and significantly altered. Modern Ukrainian spelling was approved on March 1, 2026, and to a large extent, its purpose is precisely to return to the 1928 standards. To be precise, the spelling rules became mandatory by a resolution of the Council of People’s Commissars of the Ukrainian SSR dated September 4, 1928. The text was finally approved by Mykola Skrypnyk on September 6.

September 1930—Sigismund Levanevsky Heads the Aviation School in Mykolaiv

In 1930, polar aviator Sigismund Levanevsky became head of the Mykolaiv School of OSOAVIAKhIM. At that time, Mykolaiv was an important center for training naval aviators; the city of shipbuilders was also becoming a city of aviators. Levanevsky was one of the pioneers of Arctic aviation, a participant in long-distance flights and Arctic expeditions, who was later awarded the first Order of Lenin in 1937 specifically for rescuing pilots from icy waters. September 1937 marked the date of his mysterious disappearance over the Arctic; the mystery remains unsolved to this day.

September 1939—the start of World War II

On September 1, Hitler’s troops invaded Poland, marking the start of World War II. On September 17, the USSR attacked Poland from the east, and Western Ukraine was incorporated into the Ukrainian SSR. On September 18, a German-Soviet communiqué was published—a joint official statement by the governments of the USSR and the Third Reich. The statement noted that the actions of Soviet and German troops in Poland were intended to “restore order and peace, which had been disrupted by the collapse of the Polish state.”

September 1941—The Tragedy of Kyiv 

On September 19, the German occupation of the Ukrainian capital began. More than 665,000 Soviet soldiers found themselves surrounded in the “Kyiv Cauldron.” This was one of the greatest catastrophes in the history of military strategy.

On September 29, Jews from Kyiv began to be marched to Babi Yar. On September 29–30, the Nazis shot nearly 34,000 people there. Later, members of other nationalities and social groups were also killed at Babi Yar. In total, there were over 100,000 victims. 

September 1955—The Institute of Radiophysics and Electronics was established in Kharkiv 

This new academic institution became one of the centers for the development of radiophysics and electronics in Ukraine. Its scientific work focused, in particular, on research into electromagnetic waves, radiophysics, and the further development of technical sciences. This was a significant milestone for the advancement of Ukrainian science and technical research.

September 1955 – The film “Spring on Zarechnaya Street” was shot at the Odessa Film Studio

The sensational debut of young actors Marlen Khutsiev, Felix Mironer, Peter Todorovsky, and Radomir Vasilevsky—unanimously acclaimed by critics and audiences alike—heralded a new era not only in cinema but also in the country’s social life as a whole. The film drew 33 million viewers in its first year of release—a record for the Odessa Film Studio.

May 26, 1964—Opening of Kyiv’s First Widescreen Movie Theater

On May 26, 1964, the “Ukraine” movie theater—Kyiv’s first widescreen theater—opened. The building was erected on the site of the “Krutikov Circus,” which had been built in 1903 in the Art Nouveau style, blown up in 1941, and demolished down to its foundations in 1945.

September 4, 1965—Premiere of Sergei Parajanov’s film *Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors* in Kyiv

During the premiere at the “Ukraine” movie theater in Kyiv, Ivan Dziuba, Vasyl Stus, and Vyacheslav Chornovil staged a public protest against the mass arrests of Ukrainian intellectuals. Before the screening began, literary critic Ivan Dziuba took the stage and began reading the names of Ukrainian artists and public figures who had been arrested the day before. Vyacheslav Chornovil and Vasyl Stus rose from their seats and called on the audience to stand in defense of the arrested intellectuals. Only a portion of the audience (about 50–60 people out of 800) stood up in a show of solidarity. This protest became one of the first open acts of civil resistance against the totalitarian Soviet system in postwar Kyiv, and its participants faced further persecution.

September 4, 1985—The Death of Vasyl Stus

Exactly 20 years after the public protest in Kyiv, Ukrainian poet, dissident, and political prisoner Vasyl Stus died in Camp VS-389/36 near the village of Kuchino in the Perm Region. His death became a symbol of the Soviet system’s destruction of the generation of Ukrainian “Sixties” activists.

September 1991 – The First Steps Toward Independence

Following the declaration of independence on August 24, Ukraine received rapid diplomatic recognition in September 1991. Canada became the first Western country to recognize Ukraine’s independence on September 2, 1991. Within a month, dozens of countries established diplomatic relations with our country.

September 4, 1991—The Yellow-and-Blue Flag Over the Verkhovna Rada

After the declaration of independence, state symbols began to gradually reappear in public spaces. The raising of the blue-and-yellow flag over the parliament became one of the visual symbols of the transition from the Ukrainian SSR to an independent Ukraine. 

September 1992 — Ukraine joins the IMF and the World Bank

On September 3, 1992, Ukraine officially became a member of the IMF and the World Bank —a key step toward integration into the global economy and securing international financial support.

September 25, 1992 – Amendments to the Constitution of Crimea

On September 25, 1992, the Verkhovna Rada of Crimea adopted amendments and additions to the Constitution of Crimea, which had been adopted several months earlier. This was one of the episodes in the acute political and legal conflict over the peninsula’s status during the early years of Ukraine’s independence. The Ukrainian parliament later explicitly stated that the version of the Crimean Constitution dated September 25, 1992, continued to contradict the Constitution and laws of Ukraine.

September 1, 1994 — Opening of the Hetmanate Museum in Kyiv

On Knowledge Day, the Hetmanate Museum opened—the first institution in independent Ukraine dedicated to the era of the Hetmanate and Cossack statehood. 

September 1995 – Inesa Kravets Sets a World Record

At the World Championships in Gothenburg, Ukrainian track and field athlete Inesa Kravets set a world record in the triple jump—15.50 meters. This record stood for over 25 years and is one of the longest-standing in track and field.

September 2, 1996 – Introduction of the Hryvnia

The national currency, the hryvnia, was introduced into circulation. The exchange rate was set at 100,000 karbovanets to 1 hryvnia, and both currencies remained in parallel circulation until September 16. After that, the hryvnia became the sole legal tender.

September 16, 2000 – The Disappearance of Gongadze

Journalist Georgiy Gongadze disappeared on September 16, 2000; his decapitated body was found in November. The case shook Ukraine. In November, Oleksandr Moroz released the “Melnichenko tapes,” in which Leonid Kuchma allegedly discussed the journalist’s elimination. This sparked the “Ukraine Without Kuchma” protest movement.

September 2003—Escalation of the conflict over Tuzla Island

Construction began on a causeway extending from the coast of the Krasnodar Krai toward the Ukrainian island of Tuzla in the Kerch Strait. This marked the first open territorial conflict between Ukraine and Russia following the collapse of the Soviet Union. 

September 2006 – Ukraine’s National Soccer Team Makes Its World Cup Debut

The Ukrainian national team reached the quarterfinals at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, where it lost to the eventual champion, Italy. This remains the Ukrainian national team’s best-ever result in soccer.

September 2008 – The onset of the financial crisis in Ukraine

The global financial crisis hit Ukraine particularly hard in the fall of 2008. The hryvnia fell from 4.8 to nearly 8 per dollar over the course of a few months. The IMF provided Ukraine with a $16.4 billion loan—at the time, one of the largest in the fund’s history.

September 2014 – Minsk-1

On September 5, 2014, the first Minsk Protocol was signed following Russia’s offensive in Donbas and the encirclement of Ukrainian troops near Ilovaisk. The agreement was intended to halt hostilities, but it was not implemented, making Minsk-2 in February 2015 inevitable.

September 7, 2022 – Start of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ counteroffensive in the Kharkiv sector

Ukraine launches an operation that, within a matter of days, leads to the liberation of a significant portion of the Kharkiv region. Izium, Kupiansk, and Balakliya become symbols of Ukraine’s greatest military success of 2022.

September 30, 2022 – Putin announces the annexation of four Ukrainian regions

Russia announces the annexation of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions. Ukraine and the overwhelming majority of countries around the world do not recognize this.

Over the past hundred years, September in Ukraine has been marked by wars and tragedies, the struggle for independence and the restoration of statehood, cultural breakthroughs, scientific achievements, economic changes, and athletic victories. Some of these events are recorded in history textbooks; others live on in street names, museum exhibits, archives, films, and family memories. But together, they show that Ukraine’s history consists of more than just political decisions and military victories. It was shaped to a large extent by writers and filmmakers, scientists and engineers, athletes, journalists, entrepreneurs, and millions of people whose everyday lives became part of the changes.

Ігор Льов