Lokhvytsia

Lokhvytsia Лохвиця
City
Flag Seal
Lokhvytsia
Coordinates: 50°21.58524′N 33°16.33596′E
Country	Ukraine
Oblast	Poltava
First mentioned	1320
Area
• Total	14.92 km2 (5.76 sq mi)
Elevation	105 m (344 ft)
Population  (2017)
• Total	11,608

Lokhvytsia (Ukrainian: Ло́хвиця, Lokhvytsya; Russian: Ло́хвица, Lokhvitsa) is a city in Poltava Oblast (province) of central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Lokhvytsia Raion (district), and is located on the banks of the Lokhvytsia River.

Church of the Annunciation

History

The name of the river Lokhvytsia, as well as the town, comes from the Old Slavonic word lokhve which means "salmon".

At the time of Kievan Rus the territory where the town is located was part of Pereyaslav Principality. The precise date of the foundation is unknown. From written records, it can be determined that Lokhvytsia existed prior to 1320.

In 1644, Magdeburg rights were granted to the town so that all town issues were to be resolved by a city council, elected by the wealthy citizens. In 1648–1658, Lokhvytsia was a Sotnia town of the Myrhorod Cossack Regiment, later (1658-І781 р.р.) of the Lubny Cossack Regiment.

During World War II, Lokhvytsia was occupied by the German Army from September 12, 1941 to September 12, 1943. This was the town where the pincers of 1st Panzer Army (Kleist) and 2nd Panzer Army (Guderian) linked up, encircling more than 600,000 Soviet troops east of Kiev.

The Hlynsko-Rozbyshiv (Lokhvytsia and Hadyach districts) oil and gas deposits provide large volumes of oil and gas sufficient for the entire Poltava Oblast and beyond. Poltava oil is of high-quality: it contains up to 55 per cent of light oil and is quite low in sulphur. The natural gas consists of almost 70% of propane-butane fractions, which make it a valuable raw material for the chemical industry, such as the production of synthetic fibres and plastics.

Gallery

• 
  Main street of Lokhvytsia
• 
  Lokhvytsia Medical School
• 
  Old house
• 
  Lokhvytsia River

External links

• The murder of the Jews of Lokhvytsia during World War II, at Yad Vashem website.