Why did Kiev change to Kyiv?

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Scholar of history, author 21h
Why did Kiev change to Kyiv?
The spelling changed in 1995, but for a while the Ukrainians didn’t request everyone to follow it.

In 2018, the Ukrainian government undertook a campaign to have international bodies change to the Ukrainian transliteration to English, as opposed to the Soviet (Russian) one.

“Kyiv not Kiev” became the central slogan of the campaign.

While some people still use the old Russian (Soviet) spelling—out of habit, not understanding the importance of it—the Ukrainians insist that the old spellings are actually supporting the current Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It is respectful (and also correct English) to use the current spellings used in official documentation and maps.

If unsure, just Google the name (that’s what I do)—it’s not hard, takes a few seconds, but you know that you are using the correct names.

I too used to write “Kiev” out of habit.
Not anymore.
Because the way you write the Ukrainian names shows which side you are supporting in that conflict.

To me, it’s the biggest giveaway—if now, 4.5 years into the largest European war of the 21st century, someone writes “Kiev,” I know this person is either ignorant of the issues of the war—or they are supporting the notions of the Russian propaganda.

There is only one right way to spell Ukrainian names. The Ukrainian way.

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