Stalino

Stalino is the historical name of the city now known as Donetsk, located in eastern Ukraine. It sits on the Kalmius River in the Donbas region and is one of the largest industrial urban centers in the country, especially known for coal mining and steel production. The name Stalino was used from 1924 to 1961, after which the city adopted its current name, Donetsk.

The settlement that would become Stalino originated in 1869 as Yuzovka, founded by the Welsh entrepreneur John Hughes to house workers for iron and steel works. The settlement grew rapidly as industry expanded in the region, becoming a major hub in the Donets Basin (Donbas). In 1924, Yuzovka was renamed Stalino in honor of Joseph Stalin. The city developed further through the early to mid-20th century, becoming an important center of heavy industry in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

In 1961, as part of a broader de-Stalinization effort across the Soviet Union, the city was renamed Donetsk. The Donetsk name refers to the Donets coal basin that underpinned the region’s economy. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Donetsk remained a major city within independent Ukraine and the administrative center of Donetsk Oblast.

Since 2014, the Donbas region has experienced armed conflict, and Donetsk has been affected by the War in Donbass. The city has been under de facto control of separatist authorities, with the Ukrainian government and most of the international community considering it part of Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast. In common usage, historical references to Stalino primarily appear in archival sources and older maps.