Ukrainian culture — Cossack heroism, borscht, vyshyvanka, strong literary tradition. Now — culture of resistance.
Language
Ukrainian — Slavic language, Cyrillic alphabet. 7 cases. Russian widely spoken but Ukrainian is official. Polish (historically).
Cossacks
Zaporozhian Sich — Ukrainian republic 15-18th c. Heroic myth — Bohdan Khmelnytsky, Ivan Mazepa. Hopak — national dance, martial art.
Literature and Music
Taras Shevchenko (1814-1861) — national poet, Kobzar. Ivan Franko, Lesia Ukrainka. Mykola Lysenko — composer. Modern: DakhaBrakha, Okean Elzy.
Folk Art
Vyshyvanka — traditional embroidered shirt (UNESCO 2020). Pysanky — Easter eggs. Petrykivka painting UNESCO. Ukrainian iconography.
Cuisine
Borscht (UNESCO 2022) — national dish, symbol. Varenyky, holubtsi, salo, kutia. Pies. Uzvar, medovukha. Bread sacred — korovai for weddings.
Religion and Traditions
85% Orthodox (Ukrainian Orthodox Church + Kyiv Patriarchate). Greek Catholics in west (5 million). Ukrainian carols at Christmas. Easter.
Modern Culture
Eurovision 2004 (Ruslana), 2016 (Jamala), 2022 (Kalush Orchestra). Ukrainian cinema (Ivan Mykolaichuk, Sergei Parajanov). 2022 war catalyzes contemporary culture of resistance.