Ukrainians in Portugal call on media to respect Ukrainian city names, reject Russian spellings

LISBON – The Ukrainian community in Portugal is appealing to local journalists to use the correct spelling of Ukrainian city names, asserting that employing Russian transliteration is part of Moscow’s propaganda.

Pavlo Sadokha, Vice President of the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) for Southern Europe and President of the Union of Ukrainians in Portugal (UUP), issued the statement on behalf of the community, calling accurate spelling a “vital gesture of solidarity.” 

He continued: “Language is not neutral,” Sadokha emphasized. “Spelling Ukrainian names correctly is a small but powerful way to stand with a nation under siege. It helps resist the falsification of history, culture, and identity.”

The community highlights a wider concern: despite mounting evidence of war crimes committed by Russian forces, Portugal has yet to officially recognize Russia as a terrorist state or publicly condemn acts of cultural erasure, including what many Ukrainian advocates describe as “linguicide.”

In closing, the Ukrainian community urged Portuguese media professionals to report with accuracy and goodwill: “every correct word is a step toward truth – and away from propaganda.”

The community specifically calls for the correct spelling of cities like Kyiv, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, Mykolaiv, and Kherson, among others.

“The protection and support of the Ukrainian language is a ‘weapon of defense,’ so that now and in the future, we can avoid the complete destruction of Ukrainians,” the appeal reads.

Find the full list of correct city name spellings and the community’s appeals at the following link.