For centuries, Ukraine’s history was treated as a fragment of larger imperial narratives. Now, as Timothy Snyder, the Yale historian leading the Ukrainian History Global Initiative, argues, the world has a chance to see history differently. In an interview published in December 2024, Dzerkalo Tyzhnia, Snyder challenges us to rethink not only Ukraine’s place in history but also the methodologies we use to write it.
“History is not just about nations doing the right thing or global events occurring uniformly across space and time,” historian says. Instead, he advocates for what he calls a “well-constructed national history” — one that acknowledges complexity, avoids romanticized myths, and remains open to the unexpected.
Ukrainian history reshapes our understanding of topics like colonization, migration, and even modern identity. At its core, the initiative seeks to resist oversimplification, fostering a pluralistic and evidence-based approach to history that encourages curiosity over certainty.
Snyder’s approach also tackles a pressing question: how to write history in a time of war without succumbing to propaganda. “War pushes people to reflect on the past,” he observes. In Ukraine’s case, this reflection offers a chance to reject the Soviet model of glorified suffering and embrace a more human-centered narrative.
Learn more about the Ukrainian History Global Initiative in the interview here.
