2022: Because of the war in Ukraine, there will be a one-day commemoration on Aug. 20, 2022, from 5 to 10 p.m. at Navy Pier.
Check here for updates.
THE INFORMATION BELOW IS FROM PREVIOUS YEARS:
Ukrainian Days Festival. Celebrate Ukraine’s Independence after the break up of the Soviet Union at Ukrainian Days Festival.
When: August 21-22, 2021 Saturday and Sunday 10AM-10PM
Where: 2200 and 2300 block of Chicago Avenue FREE Admission; $5 Gate donation.
Join the annual celebration of Ukrainian Independence Day. Festival features dance performances, live music, ethnic food, kids activities and much more.
2019 Festival highlights
- Largest Ukrainian Street Festival in the USA on Chicago Avenue – in the Heart of Ukrainian Village
- Performances by Popular Music Acts from Ukraine
- Performances from Ukrainian Dance Groups from all over North America
- Performances by Local Artists
- Appearances from High Profile Politicians and Entertainers
- Partnered with Quality Boutique Vendors
- Partnered with Quality Local Food Vendors
- Fun Carnival Games and Rides
- Beer Garden stocked with Ukrainian and Domestic Favorites
- Festival After Parties at Local Neighborhood Establishments
- Contests, Giveaways, and Prizes
- Flag raising at Daley Plaza Celebrating 27 Years of Ukrainian Independence
- Live Streaming of All Activity on the Main Stage
Music and Entertainment Lineup
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Ukrainian’s in Chicago Encyclopedia of Chicago (redacted)
According to the 2000 census, there are 45,036 residents of the Chicago metropolitan area who consider themselves to be Ukrainian. Most trace their ancestry back to one of four waves of immigration from what is now western Ukraine and eastern Poland.
First wave of immigration
The first wave of Ukrainian immigration began in the 1880s and lasted until 1914. It originated among impoverished peasants from regions of the Austro-Hungarian Empire which came under Austrian rule by the late eighteenth century
Many immigrants found themselves excluded from the Roman Catholic Church in the US and joined the Russian Orthodox Church, which sought to reconvert Uniates. Their descendants gradually began to identify themselves as Russians.
Some joined either the Blessed Mother of God parish, Chicago’s first Greek Catholic parish, founded in 1902, or St. Nicholas Greek Catholic Church (later called St. Nicholas Greek Catholic Church), which was founded in 1905.
Soon St. Nicholas Greek Catholic Church became the center of a Ukrainian neighborhood surrounding the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Chicago Avenue, which has since become known as Ukrainian Village.
Second wave of immigration
A second wave of immigration began after the Austrian empire’s collapse in 1867. By 1930, there were approximately 25,000 to 30,000 Ukrainians in Chicago.
Third wave of immigration
A third wave of immigration began after World War II. This brought an estimated 7,000 to 8,000 wartime refugees from the former Galician-Subcarpathian region, most of which was annexed to Soviet Ukraine in 1939.
The civic organizations founded or managed by members of this third wave began to dominate community life in the Ukrainian Village neighborhood.
By the late seventies, Chicago was home to the US’s largest, most concentrated and best organized Ukrainian community.
Fourth wave of immigration
A fourth wave of immigration began in the late eighties and originated in the former Soviet republic of Ukraine. Some of these immigrants have integrated into the existing Ukrainian community and have joined churches and civic organizations.
Current status
With almost 14,000 Ukrainian’s located within city limits and more than 45,000 living within the greater Chicago metropolitan area in 2000, Ukrainian Americans have dispersed moving further from the West Town neighborhood.
By 1990 just under 2,500 Ukrainian were living in West Town as the area became predominantly Latin American since 1980.
