Every Ukrainian knows that the center of Europe is in Ukraine, and you will often be told that. You may also hear that the central market square in Kharkiv is the biggest in Europe and that the musical fountain in Dnipropetrovsk ranks at number two. Rankings in Europe are given frequently and in all kinds of categories and for all kinds of achievements. People in Europe’s biggest country seem to have an almost constant need to reassert themselves that they really are in Europe, and seize any opportunity to establish a rank in that geographical and cultural sphere.
When asking for further information however, e.g. for the biggest musical fountain and the second biggest market square, a shrug of the shoulders is the usual answer. The only important part of the statistic, or the only one that was communicated to them, seems to be the one relating to Ukraine. There seems to be a tendency to take the mere assertion of the rank as enough, and not to bother with the details. Ukrainians certainly know that they have a place in Europe. They just do not seem to know where exactly it is.
Text by Alex Godde, Germany
Photo by Roman Radchenko, Ukraine
