However, Russian is also widely spoken, particularly in the eastern and southern regions of the country. This is due to historical factors, including the dominance of Russian language and culture during Soviet rule.
According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, Ukrainian was spoken by 67.5% of the population, while 29.6% spoke Russian as their native language.
It's important to note that the situation regarding language use in Ukraine is complex and nuanced. While Ukrainian is the official language, there are regions where Russian is more prevalent, and many Ukrainians are bilingual.