Am I Ukrainian or Russian?
“Am I Ukrainian or Russian? 🇺🇦🇷🇺
This is the question I ask myself often now. I was born in Eastern Ukraine in 1998 and then was adopted from there at 4 yrs. Old. Eastern Ukrainians often speak Russian but can understand Ukrainian as well. I spoke Russian at the time of my adoption. In that time, my birth country had earned it’s independence as its own nation, Ukraine. My adoptive family honored my heritage, but I still lost my birth culture and birth language. Growing up knowing I was from Ukraine, I cherished the Ukrainian culture and language. People would always assumed I was Russian though because they weren’t as familiar with “The Ukraine”.
In 2014, when political conflict broke out between Russia and Ukraine, my birth city became a war zone. After reuniting with my birth family two years ago, I came to realize that I had a misunderstanding of my heritage all these years. My biological grandmother was from Volgograd, Russia and my birth family proudly embraces Russian history, language, and culture. They consider themselves enemies of Ukraine and the city I was born in that was once Ukrainian has now become a separatist group of Ukraine known as the Donetsk People’s Republic.
Though many people still confuse Ukrainians and Russians as if they are the same, they are not the same. Their language and culture are different. Historically and currently, Ukraine and Russia are political enemies. As an American citizen, I’m not allowed into my birthplace.
I’m an English-speaking American citizen born from Ukraine who has lost her Russian heritage. As an international adoptee, losing one’s birth heritage is already a grievance. A big part of me grieves the Ukrainian heritage I thought I had in me all these years and resentment keeps me from feeling accepted as Russian since the conflict has torn my birthplace apart. I support my birth family and embrace their passion for Russia, as I deeply connect with them. It seems politically incorrect for me to identify as Ukrainian and Russian, embracing both cultures and heritages.
Up to this point, I’ve felt really disconnected from my own heritage and birth language, even since connecting with my birth family.”
