Kyiv

Kiev Київ(Kyiv) Киев (Kiev)
City with special status
Counterclockwise (from upper right): Verkhovna Rada, Kiev Pechersk Lavra, Red University Building, House with Chimaeras, Independence Square, statue of Bohdan Khmelnytsky
Flag Coat of arms
Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted
Coordinates: 50°27′00″N 30°31′24″E / 50.45000°N 30.52333°E / 50.45000; 30.52333Coordinates: 50°27′00″N 30°31′24″E / 50.45000°N 30.52333°E / 50.45000; 30.52333
Country	Ukraine
Municipality	Kiev City Municipality
Founded	482 A.D. (officially)
City council	Kiev City Council
Raions	List of 10 Darnytsia Raion Desna Raion Dnipro Raion Holosiiv Raion Obolon Raion Pechersk Raion Podil Raion Shevchenko Raion Solomianka Raion Sviatoshyn Raion
Government
• Mayor and Head of City State Administration	Vitali Klitschko
• MPs:	Boryslav Bereza Viktor Chumak (BPP) Andrei Illyenko (SV) Alexander Suprunenko Andriy Biletsky Volodymyr Ariev (BPP) Oleksandr Tretiakov (BPP) Vyacheslav Konstantinovskiy (PF) Leonid Yemets (PF) Dmytro Andrievsky (BPP) Yuri Levchenko (SV)
Area
• City with special status	839 km2 (324 sq mi)
Elevation	179 m (587 ft)
Population (1 November 2015)
• City with special status	2,900,920
• Density	3,299/km2 (8,540/sq mi)
• Metro	3,375,000of the Kiev metropolitan area
Demonym(s)	Kievan
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code	01xxx-04xxx
Area code(s)	+380 44
License plate	AA (before 2004: КА, КВ, КЕ, КН, КІ, KT)
Website	Official Kyiv tourism portal Kyiv City State Administration Kyiv City Council

The ten raions (districts) of Kiev

Right-bank districts Г — Holosiiv Raion О — Obolon Raion Печ — Pechersk Raion Под — Podil Raion Ш — Shevchenko Raion Св — Sviatoshyn Raion Сол — Solomianka Raion Left-bank districts Дар — Darnytsia Raion Дес — Desna Raion Дн — Dnipro Raion

Kiev (/ˈkiːɛf, -ɛv/) or Kyiv (Ukrainian: Київ, Kyjiv [ˈkɪjiu̯]; Old East Slavic: Кыѥвъ, Kyjev; Russian: Киев, Kijev [ˈkʲiɪf]) is the capital and largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population in July 2015 was 2,887,974 (though higher estimated numbers have been cited in the press), making Kiev the 7th most populous city in Europe.

Kiev is an important industrial, scientific, educational, and cultural centre of Eastern Europe. It is home to many high-tech industries, higher education institutions and world-famous historical landmarks. The city has an extensive infrastructure and highly developed system of public transport, including the Kiev Metro.

The city's name is said to derive from the name of Kyi, one of its four legendary founders (see Name, below). During its history, Kiev, one of the oldest cities in Eastern Europe, passed through several stages of great prominence and relative obscurity. The city probably existed as a commercial centre as early as the 5th century. A Slavic settlement on the great trade route between Scandinavia and Constantinople, Kiev was a tributary of the Khazars, until seized by the Varangians (Vikings) in the mid-9th century. Under Varangian rule, the city became a capital of the Kievan Rus', the first East Slavic state. Completely destroyed during the Mongol invasion in 1240, the city lost most of its influence for the centuries to come. It was a provincial capital of marginal importance in the outskirts of the territories controlled by its powerful neighbours; first the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, followed by Poland and Russia.