Shpola

Shpola Шпола
Taras Shevchenko monument in Shpola
Flag Coat of arms
Shpola Location of Kaniv
Coordinates: 48°59′59″N 31°23′32″E / 48.99972°N 31.39222°E / 48.99972; 31.39222Coordinates: 48°59′59″N 31°23′32″E / 48.99972°N 31.39222°E / 48.99972; 31.39222
Country Oblast Raion	Ukraine  Cherkasy Oblast Shpola Raion
First mentioned	1594
City rights	1938
Area
• Total	61.29 km2 (23.66 sq mi)
Population
• Total	18,156
Postal code	20600—20609
Area code(s)	+380 4741

Shpola (Ukrainian: Шпола, Ukrainian pronunciation: [ˈʃpɔɫɑ];Yiddish: שפּאָלע) is a city located in the Cherkasy Oblast (province) in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Shpola Raion (district), and is situated at 49°2′N 31°25′E / 49.033°N 31.417°E / 49.033; 31.417. As of 2004 the estimated population is 18,400.

In 1847, Shpola’s Jewish population numbered 1,156. By 1897, that number had grown to 5,388 of a total population of 11,933, or about 45%. This level held steady until the Second World War.

In the 1800s Shpola was part of the Zvenigorod district in the Kiev region. With the overthrow of the Czarist regime Shpola became first a part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and then of the USSR.

During World War II, Nazi Germany invaded Ukraine, and the Jewish population of Shpola was destroyed in 1942. Today Jews make up around 0.5% of Shpola’s population.

Shpola is a sister city with Oskaloosa, Iowa.