Volhynia
Volhynia
Volynia | |
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Coat of arms | |
Location of Volhynia (yellow) in Ukraine | |
| Coordinates: 50°44′20″N 25°19′24″E / 50.73889°N 25.32333°E | |
| Country | Poland Belarus Ukraine |
| Region | Southeastern Poland, Southwestern Belarus, Western Ukraine |
| Parts | Volyn Oblast, Rivne Oblast, Zhytomyr Oblast, Ternopil Oblast, Khmelnytskyi Oblast, Lublin Voivodeship, Brest Region |
| Demonym | Volhynian |
Volhynia or Volynia (/voʊˈlɪniə/ voh-LIN-ee-ə; see #Names and etymology) is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between southeastern Poland, southwestern Belarus, and northwestern Ukraine. The borders of the region are not clearly defined, but in Ukraine it is roughly equivalent to Volyn Oblast, Rivne Oblast, and the northern part of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Ternopil Oblast. The territory that still carries the name is Volyn Oblast.
Volhynia has changed hands numerous times throughout history and been divided among competing powers. For centuries it was part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. After the Russian annexation during the Partitions of Poland, all of Volhynia was made part of the Pale of Settlement on the southwestern border of the Russian Empire. Important cities include Rivne, Lutsk, Zviahel, and Volodymyr.