Little Russia

Little Russia, also called Lesser Russia, Malorussia, or Little Rus', is a name used for Ukraine.

In the 1300s, a leader in Constantinople separated the areas called Great Rus and Little Rus. The word "Little" may have meant a smaller size or population. Or it might have described a faraway place.

The name Little Russia stopped being used often in the 1400s. But leaders from Moscow brought it back later. Over time, “Little Russia” came to mean most of what is now Ukraine, especially the Cossack Hetmanate area. Many people there began calling themselves Little Russian, which was different from their Ukrainian identity.

After the Russian Empire ended in 1917 and Ukrainian lands became one country, the term Little Russia was used less. Today, the term is very old, and many Ukrainians do not like it used.

Etymology

The name "Little Russia" started a long time ago from an old Greek word. Leaders in Constantinople, a city from the 1300s, split the land into two parts: "Great Rus" in the north and "Little Rus" in the south. In 1448, the northern part became its own church, called the Russian Orthodox Church, based in Moscow. The southern part got its own leaders too.

At first, "Little" meant it was closer to the main area. Later, only a small part of the old church area stayed in the south. Over time, the name changed from talking about religion to just being a way to talk about the place. In Russian, the word "Rossiia" was used for the big country and for all the people living there, including Ukrainians who were called Little Russians.

Historical usage

The term "Little Russia" was used by church leaders in the 1300s to describe parts of Ukraine. It talked about areas around Halych and Kiev, while "Great Russia" talked about areas around Moscow and Vladimir.

Later, in the 1600s, church leaders in Ukraine started using the name "Little Russia" in their titles. By the 1700s, this name was used for parts of Ukraine under Russian control. Even as Ukraine began to call itself "Ukraine" in the 1800s, the old name "Little Russia" was still used by many people.

Modern usage

The name "Little Russia" is now considered old-fashioned and not used for Ukraine today. Many Ukrainians feel that this term shows a view that Ukraine and its people belong to a larger Russia. This idea has caused anger among Ukrainians.

Some people in Russia still use the term, saying that Ukrainians are part of one big Russian nation. In July 2021, Vladimir Putin wrote a long essay sharing these thoughts, which upset many Ukrainians.

"Little Russianness"

The idea of "Little Russianness" is a term some writers from Ukraine use. It talks about a feeling some people in Ukraine have. They say this feeling happens when people don’t value their own traditions and instead support Russia and its ways.

One writer, Mykhailo Drahomanov, used this term to talk about Ukrainians who changed too much because of pressure from other countries.

Another writer, Vyacheslav Lypynsky, called this feeling “the problem of not having a country.” Some said this feeling appeared in Galicia because of influence from Poland.

A writer named Yevhen Malaniuk described "Little Russianness" as a weak attitude for the Ukrainian people. Sometimes, the term “Little Russians” has been used to describe Ukrainians seen as not very proud. A famous Ukrainian singer, Andriy Mykhailovych Danylko, has a stage character called Verka Serduchka. Many believe his popularity comes from being true to himself.

In popular culture

The composer Tchaikovsky named his Symphony No 2 the "Little Russian" because it uses music from Ukraine. A friend of Tchaikovsky, Nikolay Kashkin, suggested the name in a book he wrote in 1896. The book was talked about by the historian Harlow Robinson.