State Archival Service of Ukraine

History and Founding

The State Archival Service of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Державна архівна служба України), commonly abbreviated as Ukrderzharkhiv, traces its institutional origins to 1917-1920, when the first archival bodies were established within the Ukrainian People's Republic. Its direct predecessor, the Main Archival Administration, was established under the People's Commissariat of Education of the Ukrainian SSR in 1919. In 1923, this was reorganized into the Central Archival Administration of the All-Ukrainian Central Executive Committee. Following a series of further reorganizations throughout the Soviet period, the agency came under the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine in 1992, and the State Committee on Archives was established in 1999. In 2010, the committee was reorganized into the current State Archival Service of Ukraine, which operates under the authority of the Ministry of Justice.

Collections and Holdings

Ukrderzharkhiv oversees a nationwide network of archives including seven central-level archives: the Central State Archive of Higher Organs of Government and Administration, the Central State Archive of Civic Alliances and Ukrainica, the Central State Historical Archive in Kyiv, the Central State Historical Archive in Lviv, the Central State Audiovisual and Electronic Archive, the Central State Scientific-Technical Archive, and the Central State Archive-Museum of Literature and Art. Additionally, the network includes 25 oblast archives and archives serving the cities of Kyiv and Crimea.

The agency publishes the scientific and practical journal Archives of Ukraine (since 1947) and maintains the Inter-Archival Search Portal (searcharchives.net.ua) providing unified digital access to Ukrainian archival holdings.

International Cooperation and Digitization

Ukrderzharkhiv has been a member of the International Council on Archives since 1956 and maintains bilateral agreements with archival institutions in over 30 countries. Since 2021, a large-scale digitization collaboration with FamilySearch International has resumed, making genealogical and historical records accessible online. In 2017, a collection of Ukrainian archival documents on Chernobyl was inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.

Access and Usage

The central office coordinates policy and access for the entire archival network. Researchers may submit requests through the official portal at archives.gov.ua. Online exhibitions and selected digitized documents are accessible without charge through the portal.