---
title: "Why the Term \"Decolonization\" is Incorrect for Ukraine: UINP Head Alferov Explains"
description: "UINP Head Oleksandr Alferov stated that the term \"decolonization\" is scientifically incorrect for Ukraine, proposing to replace it with \"de-imperialization\" due to the nation's historical agency."
date: 2026-10-10T07:16:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/why-term-decolonization-is-incorrect-for-ukraine-alferov
tags: [decolonization, deimperialization, uinp, history, ukraine]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Why the Term "Decolonization" is Incorrect for Ukraine: UINP Head Alferov Explains

![Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory Oleksandr Alferov](https://xab.info/media/2026/10/10/pochemu-termin-dekolonizatsiya-oshibochen-dlya-ukrainyi/pochemu-termin-dekolonizatsiya-oshibochen-dlya-ukrainyi-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- The term "decolonization" is borrowed from the collapse of Western empires and does not suit Ukraine.
- Ukraine was historically a cultural donor, not a disenfranchised colony.
- The head of the UINP proposes using the concept of "de-imperialization" instead of "decolonization".

The popular concept of "decolonization," which has actively entered Ukraine's socio-political lexicon in recent years, is scientifically incorrect for describing Ukrainian history. This conclusion is reached by the Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory (UINP), historian, and Armed Forces reserve major Oleksandr Alferov. According to him, borrowing this term from the experiences of the collapse of Western colonial empires in Africa and Asia in the mid-20th century distorts the real historical status of Ukrainian lands and their role in the Eastern European space.

### Ukraine's Agency and Historical Context

As the historian notes, Ukraine has never fit the classical definition of a colony similar to the overseas territories of European powers. Instead, Ukrainian lands served for centuries as a cultural donor and co-creator of both European and Eastern European spaces. The head of the UINP emphasizes that Ukrainians made a fundamental contribution to the formation of the institutions of the Russian Empire, transferring the education system, religious structures, and foundations of urban architecture to it, acting as a full-fledged historical subject rather than a passive object of foreign expansion.

### Elites and the Futility of the Colonial Narrative

Additional proof against Ukraine's colonial status is the governance structure in past epochs. Even while under the rule of the Russian Empire, Ukrainian lands had separate class representation—the Little Russian nobility, similar to the elites of the Kingdom of Poland, Finland, or Georgia. Furthermore, modern Russian statehood largely relies on the heritage of Kievan Rus as a medieval Ukrainian state, making the imposition of a purely colonial narrative scientifically untenable and diminishing the nation's own agency.

### Contradictory Data

Despite the argued position of historians regarding the scientific inaccuracy of the term, the official legal framework of Ukraine, adopted on July 27, 2023, continues to operate. At that time, the law "On the Condemnation and Prohibition of Propaganda of Russian Imperial Policy in Ukraine and the Decolonization of Toponymy" came into force, fixing the concept of "decolonization" at the state and regulatory levels, which creates a certain dissonance between academic discussions and legal practice.

### The Need to Transition to the Term "De-imperialization"

Instead of the established but controversial term, the head of the UINP insists on introducing the concept of "de-imperialization." According to the expert, it is this definition that can accurately reflect the processes of cleansing public space from imperial influence without diminishing the historical significance and independence of the Ukrainian people. This approach allows for the competent construction of state memory policy based on real historical facts and avoiding methodic clichés imposed from the outside.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Почему термин "деколонизация" ошибочен для Украины: объяснение главы УИНП Алферова](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/chomu-termin-dekolonizatsiya-pomilkoviy-ukrayini-1791564315.html) - Основной источник интервью с главой УИНП об исторической субъектности Украины и деимпериализации.
- [Историк Алферов о построении взрослых отношений с Польшей и войне исторических мифов](https://novosti.ua/politics/alferov-o-voyne-istoricheskih-mifov-i-otnosheniyah-s-polshey) - Контекстный материал об исторических мифах и позициях историка Алферова.
- [Вместо ссор - общие победы: Алферов - о том, что мешает Украине договориться с Польшей, Венгрией и ...](https://glavred.info/interview/vmesto-ssor-obshchie-pobedy-alferov-o-tom-chto-meshaet-ukraine-dogovoritsya-s-polshey-vengriey-i-slovakiey-10687760.html) - Дополнительный контекст интервью с Александром Алферовым.
- [Не Днепропетровская, и Сичаславская: когда деколонизируют названия двух областей Украины ...](https://focus.ua/ukraine/716131-ne-dnepropetrovskaya-i-sichaslavskaya-kogda-dekoloniziruyut-nazvaniya-dvuh-oblastey-ukrainy-alferov) - Упоминание законодательной рамки деколонизации и процессов переименования топонимов.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Why does Oleksandr Alferov consider the term "decolonization" incorrect?
**A:** Because Ukraine was historically not a colony in the classical sense, but acted as a co-creator and cultural donor, transferring education and religious institutions to the empire.

### Q: What term does the head of the UINP propose to use?
**A:** Oleksandr Alferov insists on using the term "de-imperialization" to cleanse the space of imperial influence.

### Q: How is this issue regulated at the legislative level?
**A:** Ukrainian legislation uses the term "decolonization," specifically in the law of July 27, 2023, condemning Russian imperial policy.