January 22 Unity Day of Ukraine

On January 22, 1919, a solemn ceremony took place on St. Sophia Square in Kyiv, marking the unification of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the West Ukrainian People’s Republic. This act symbolized the coming together of Ukrainian lands into a single, indivisible state. Yet January 22 commemorates more than the Act of Union alone. Exactly one year earlier, in 1918, the Fourth Universal of the Central Rada proclaimed Ukraine, for the first time in the twentieth century, a “self-standing, independent, free, and sovereign state.” The Union of 1919 thus became a natural continuation of the affirmation of Ukrainian statehood.

The concept of “sobornist” (unity) has two fundamental dimensions.
The first is territorial integrity—the unification of all historic Ukrainian lands within a single state.
The second is spiritual unity—the cohesion of all citizens, regardless of their region of birth or residence. Sobornist represents the indivisibility of the country and the inner solidarity of its society.

In modern history, the most powerful expression of this idea was the “Ukrainian Wave” of 1990. This human chain demonstrated to the world the Ukrainian people’s will for freedom and became a decisive step toward the restoration of sovereignty.

Ukrainian activists were inspired by the Baltic Way, organized by the people of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia in August 1989. The Baltic nations were the first to show the effectiveness of peaceful resistance in this form, linking their capitals—Vilnius, Riga, and Tallinn—into a human chain stretching more than 600 kilometers.

Ukraine’s action on January 21, 1990, became a powerful response to calls for freedom. Millions of people stood hand in hand along the roads from Kyiv to Lviv, passing through Zhytomyr, Rivne, Ternopil, and Stryi. Holding blue-and-yellow flags, they formed an unbroken line of human solidarity. This movement affirmed a shared identity across regions and permanently inscribed the aspiration for independence into national memory.

In 2026, amid an ongoing struggle for the country’s very existence, Unity Day carries critical significance. Today, unity is a daily act. It is the solidarity of soldiers on the front lines, the dedication of volunteers in the rear, and the resilience of civilians in every city and town. It is the collective effort to restore all temporarily occupied territories to the shared family of the Ukrainian state. Contemporary unity is rooted in democratic values, respect for shared history, and unwavering faith in a common future.

The traditions of this day continue through local human chains on bridges across the Dnipro River and solidarity actions held around the world. The 107th anniversary of the Act of Union reminds us of a fundamental lesson of history: the integrity of the state is the condition of its survival.

Unity remains the primary source of national strength, symbolizing the unbreakable bond between generations who have fought for freedom. Each link in this symbolic chain carries the responsibility for the safety and future of all Ukraine.