Ukrainian Orthodox Christians have made a historic change by adopting December 25 as their Christmas celebration date, a departure from the traditional January 7 date based on the Julian calendar, as per BBC reports.
For years, Ukraine aligned its Christmas with Russia’s practice on January 7 using the Julian calendar. However, the country has now shifted to celebrating Christmas on December 25 in line with the Western, or Gregorian, calendar, marking another divergence from Russia.
President Volodymyr Zelensky passed legislation in July allowing Ukrainians to depart from the Russian heritage of celebrating Christmas in January.
In a Christmas tweet, Zelensky emphasized unity, stating, “Darkness will eventually lose. Evil will be defeated. Today, this is our common goal, our common wish, and what we pray for. For our freedom. For our victory. For our Ukraine. Christ is Born! Glorify Him!”
Amid ongoing conflict with Russian forces, Ukraine actively seeks to distance itself from its neighbor.
Historical ties to the Soviet Union have led to numerous streets and monuments in Ukraine bearing connections to Russia.
Recently, Ukraine initiated efforts to rename streets and remove specific monuments as part of this separation process.
