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Edinburgh's Connections with Ukraine


The world currently mourns at the site of war in many places like Yemen, Myanmar, Africa and, Ukraine. It's a tragedy that history seems doomed to forever repeat.

But before conflict, many of these beautiful places had connections throughout the world that went unnoticed. For instance, did you know the City of Edinburgh, Scotland, has been twinned with the City of Kyiv (Kiev), Ukraine, for 33 years?


WHAT ARE TWINNED CITIES?

Twinned Cities (also known as 'Sister Cities') are cities of different countries that politically or socially agree to promote each other's commercial and economic culture. While the tradition is thought to stem from medieval times, World War II sparked the modern tradition as a way of creating and promoting peace throughout the World.


WHEN AND WHY DID EDINBURGH AND UKRAINE LINK CITIES?

Edinburgh and Kyiv were twinned in 1989, the agreement was actually signed in Kyiv itself making it Edinburgh's 10th sister city. The reason for this was that Edinburgh and Kyiv had quite the similar history and there were not many linked cities in that part of the world at the time.


WHAT DO EDINBURGH AND KYIV HAVE IN COMMON?

Kyiv is thought to be one of the oldest cities in Europe and according to Britannica both Edinburgh and Kyiv were founded around the 7th Century. Both cities are built in and around the surrounding hills with tall buildings and spires and are part of the UNESCO World Heritage sites. They have similar weather during the Winter and Summer months, with Kyiv and Edinburgh reaching just above freezing most Winters (although both can get colder) and around 70-80 degree's fahrenheit (20-26 celsius) in the Summer.


Edinburgh and Kyiv focus on their historic towns, Edinburgh's being 'Old Town' and Kyiv's being the ancient 'Upper Town'. They honour their many beautiful cathedrals, and their religious, political, and cultural monuments that proudly display their history.

Manufacturing has been, and still remains, high in both cities, along with research into the medical fields. Kyiv and Edinburgh hold the national museum for their country and have a fond love for the theatrical and creative arts through the many galleries, theatres, and festivals in operation each year.


Because of these similarities, the people of these cities are also quite similar; many locals being artistically proud of their cities and welcoming to a broad spectrum of people who flock their for Education. These cities hold unique and talented individuals who have helped make each city the beautiful landmark it is today, or in this case WAS and will be again for Kyiv.



To find out how you and the rest of Scotland can help Ukraine and other's affected by War by heading to our 'Ways you can help Ukraine' blog post here.


 

SOURCES:

Edinburgh Image by Nara Figueiredo from Pixabay.

Kyiv Image by Zephyrka from Pixabay.




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