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Украинцы о Новогодних праздниках

Ukrainians speak about New Year's holidays

Date posted: 26.12.2011 Print Full version

According to the research conducted by the Sociological group "Rating" in December 2011, for 48% of respondents the most favorite holiday is the New Year’s holiday, for 41% - Christmas. Another 5% like St. Nicholas’ Day most of all and 2% like the Old New Year.

Only 1% of respondents do not like any of the Christmas holidays, and 2% could not decide which holiday they like the most.

If in the West people like Christmas most of all (66%), in the Centre people like both the New Year’s holiday and Christmas, and in the North, in the South, in the East and in Donbas New Year’s the most favorite holiday, up to 60% of respondents think so.

The older are the respondents, the more they appreciate Christmas, the younger are the respondents the more they enjoy the New Year’s holiday. Men like the New Year’s more, women prefer Christmas.

Believers expect a lot more from Christmas than from the New Year’s holiday, especially the Greek Catholics (73%), less so – members of the Orthodox church of Moscow (49%) and Kiev (42%) patriarchates. Believers who do not affiliate themselves with any denomination (58%) and non-believers (73%) like the New Year’s holiday a lot more.

44% of respondents are going to have a natural Christmas tree for the New Year's holiday, a quarter of respondents – an artificial Christmas tree. 15% will only have a Christmas song, and 18% will likely have neither a Christmas tree, nor a Christmas song.

The latter category is mainly formed by the elderly people: almost 40% of respondents aged over 60 do not plan to decorate their house for Christmas holidays. However, almost 60% of respondents aged 18-39 years old are planning to have a natural Christmas tree, nearly 40% - an artificial Christmas tree, or will only have a Christmas song.

The tradition of having a natural Christmas tree is the most common in the West, in the South and in Donbas, artificial - in the North (in Kyiv in the first place) and in the Center; Christmas songs are the most popular in the East, where there is a considerable part of urban population.

Taking into account the fact that traditionally people wish each other different things on the New Year's holiday, we asked our respondents to wish the country something for the year 2012.

Thus, Ukrainians’ wishes to the country for the new 2012 are: welfare of citizens (68%), economic growth (62%) and stability (53%). Also, reducing corruption (46%), peace (45%), improving health of the nation (44%) and responsible authorities (43%).

29% of respondents wished the state to have fair elections, almost the same number wished for a qualitatively new government (29%) and the unity of people (28%). 24% of respondents wished the state to improve the level of culture and education of the nation, 21% - the successful conduct of EURO 2012. Effective socio-economic reforms and new policies were equally significant wishes; these wishes received 20% each.

 Somewhat fewer respondents wished their country to pay the external debt (17%), democratic development (16%), to have authority on the international stage (14%), consolidation of Independence (14%) increase in birth rate (14%), responsible citizens (13%), sports achievements (12%), a qualitatively new opposition (11%) and reliably secure borders (9%).

Interestingly, there are no age-specific differences in the responses of respondents. But there are certain peculiarities depending on the region.

Thus, residents of the East and Donbas often wished for the welfare of the country, economic growth, stability, reducing corruption and improving health of the nation. Residents of the Center wished for peace.

Residents of the North often wished the country to pay the external debt, to increase the birth rate, sports achievements, new politicians and qualitatively new opposition. Residents of Donbas wished for a qualitatively new and responsible government.

In the West, people wished for the country’s unity, spiritual growth of the nation, democratic development, consolidation of Independence and to have authority on the international stage. In the East people wished for effective socio-economic reforms.

At the same time, residents of the West, of the North and of the East were united by the wish to improve the level of culture and education of the nation. Residents of the East and of the West wished for the successful conduct of EURO 2012. And the wish for fair elections in the New Year united respondents in all regions of the country.

That is why we want to wish Ukraine and Ukrainians not to search for topics, which separate us, but to unite around values, which bring good spirits equally into every Ukrainian family in Donbas, in the Centre, in the East, in the West, in the South and in the North.

So Happy New Year, Ukraine!

  The target audience of the research: the population of Ukraine aged from 18 and older. Optional quantity: 2000 respondents. The methods of investigation: personal formalized interview according to the questionnaire (face to face). Measure of inaccuracy for the values close to 50% is less than 2,2%, for the values close to 30% – less than 2%, for the values close to 10% – less than 1,3. The period of completion: 25 of November - 5 of December 2011

The oblast’ distribution:

West: Volyns’ka, Transcarpathia, Ivano–Frankivs’ka, L’vivs’ka, Rivnens’ka, Ternopil’s’ka, Chernivets’ka.
Centre: Vinnyts’ka, Kirovograds’ka, Poltavs’ka, Khmel’nyts’ka, Cherkas’ka.
North: Kyiv, Kyivs’ka, Zhytomyrs’ka, Sums’ka, Chernihivs’ka.
South: AR Crimea, Odes’ka, Khersons’ka, Mykolaivs’ka, Sevastopol
East: Dnipropetrovs’ka, Zaporiz’ka, Kharkivs’ka.
Donbass: Donets’ka, Luhans’ka.

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