Columnist: Ukrainian identity has always been a choice, not a birthplace bonus

Ukrainska Pravda has published a column by Daryna Rohachuk challenging common stereotypes about what makes someone a 'real' Ukrainian. She notes that even in the fifth year of the full-scale war, many still believe that speaking Ukrainian comes easily only to those with relatives who served in the UPA or who come from the Lviv region.

Rohachuk writes that she herself, born and raised in Kyiv, was almost entirely Russian-speaking as a child and teenager, listening to Russian rap and mocking the Ukrainian language at school. She made a conscious decision to switch to Ukrainian during the Revolution of Dignity in 2014, reaching about 90% usage, and became fully Ukrainian-speaking after the full-scale invasion began in 2022.

Identity as a choice, not origin

The author stresses that her decision was not shaped by her origins or her parents' background — she has relatives in both Belarus and the Donetsk region. She describes the switch to Ukrainian as a deeply personal and deliberate step that required changing her circle of friends and values, since some around her mocked the decision.

Rohachuk calls for not dividing Ukrainians into those who find it 'easier' to maintain their identity because of their birthplace and those who find it harder, and for abandoning the stereotype that speaking Ukrainian requires flawless grammar or encyclopedic historical knowledge. She cites poet Taras Shevchenko, who was not from western Ukraine yet became a national icon, despite it being far from easy for him to uphold that identity throughout his life.

She concludes by urging support for those still developing their Ukrainian identity, and criticizing public shaming of people who have maintained their stance, while those unwilling to make the effort themselves should instead keep searching for their own way forward.