Taurida Guberniya (Ukraine)
The Taurida Governorate (Russian, Таврическая губернiя, Ukrainian, Таврiйська губернiя) a Russian province or governorate (guberniya) now in Ukraine bordering to the south on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, in the west on the province of Kherson, and in the northeast on Ekaterinoslav. Originally the Crimea was a part of the province. In 1897 the province had a population of 1,447,790, and an area ca. 22,000 square miles. The land consists primarily of rolling steppes. The capital was Simferopol.
Taurida became the second province chosen by the Mennonites for settlement. In 1804 and following the Molotschna Settlement was established in the eastern part of the province, which ultimately became the largest Mennonite settlement in Russia, consisting of 56 villages. In 1862 Mennonite settlements in Crimea were started (more than 25 villages). Fürstenland, a daughter colony of the Chortitza settlement, consisting of 6 villages, originated in 1864. Before World War I the total Mennonite population numbered 36,000, distributed over some 90 villages in these settlements and many estates and consisted of 9,234,000 acres. The province of Taurida had a larger Mennonite population than any other province. According to the 1897 census, there were 25,508 Mennonites comprising 1.76% of the population.
During World War II when the German army approached, the Soviet government succeeded in removing most of the population eastward. For this reason fewer Mennonites have come to America from this province since World War II than from Ekaterinoslav, where the Soviets were unable to evacuate the Mennonites west of the Dnepr River when the German army approached. (See also Molotschna Settlement, Ukraine, Russia.)
Bibliography
Hylkema, Tjeerd Oedes. Die Mennoniten-Gemeinden in Russland: waehrend der Kriegs- und Revolutionsjahre 1914 bis 1920. Heilbronn a. Neckar: Kommissions-Verlag der Merin. Fluechtlingsfuersorge E. V. 1921.
Friesen, Peter M. Die Alt-Evangelische Mennonitische Brüderschaft in Russland (1789-1910) im Rahmen der mennonitischen Gesamtgeschichte. Halbstadt: Verlagsgesellschaft "Raduga", 1911.
Quiring, Jakob. Die Mundart von Chortitza in Süd-Russland. Munich, 1928.
Wikipedia. "Taurida Governorate." Web. 21 August 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taurida_Governorate.
| Author(s) | Cornelius Krahn |
|---|---|
| Date Published | August 2011 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Krahn, Cornelius. "Taurida Guberniya (Ukraine)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. August 2011. Web. 25 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Taurida_Guberniya_(Ukraine)&oldid=78036.
APA style
Krahn, Cornelius. (August 2011). Taurida Guberniya (Ukraine). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 25 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Taurida_Guberniya_(Ukraine)&oldid=78036.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 687. All rights reserved.
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