Donbas

The Donbas (UK: , US: ; Ukrainian: Донбас [donˈbɑs]) or Donbass (Russian: Донбасс [dɐnˈbas]) is a historical, cultural, and economic region on the Russia–Ukraine border, lying predominantly in Ukraine. The vast majority of the Donbas is occupied by Russia as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian war, as the Russian Armed Forces controlled about 90% of the region as of October 2025. At the last census in 2001, the population of the Donbas region of Ukraine was about 58% ethnic Ukrainian and 38% ethnic Russian. There are several definitions of the region's extent. In modern geopolitics, the Donbas usually refers to Donetsk Oblast and Luhansk Oblast in Ukraine. The Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine defines the "small Donbas" as the northern part of Donetsk and the southern part of Luhansk oblasts in Ukraine, and the attached part of Rostov Oblast in Russia. The historical coal mining region excluded parts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, but included areas in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and Southern Russia. The Euroregion of Donbas is composed of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in Ukraine and Rostov Oblast in Russia. The Donbas formed the historical border between the Zaporozhian Sich and the Don Cossack Host. It has been an important coal mining area since the late 19th century, when it became a heavily industrialised territory. The word Donbas is a portmanteau formed from "Donets Basin", an abbreviation of "Donets Coal Basin" (Ukrainian: Донецький вугільний басейн, romanized: Donetskyi vuhilnyi basein; Russian: Донецкий угольный бассейн, romanized: Donetskiy ugolnyy basseyn). The name of the coal basin is a reference to the Donets river and the Donets Ridge. The city of Donetsk (the fifth largest city in Ukraine) is considered the unofficial capital of the Donbas. Other large cities (over 100,000 inhabitants) include Mariupol, Luhansk, Makiivka, Horlivka, Kramatorsk, Sloviansk, Alchevsk, Sievierodonetsk, and Lysychansk. In...