Druzhkivka

Druzhkivka Дружківка
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Druzhkivka
Coordinates: 48°37′N 37°32′E / 48.617°N 37.533°E / 48.617; 37.533Coordinates: 48°37′N 37°32′E / 48.617°N 37.533°E / 48.617; 37.533
Country	Ukraine
Oblast	Donetsk
Founded	1781s
Area
- Total	34 km2 (13.1 sq mi)
Population (2001)
- Total	64,557
Website	http://druzhkovka.com/

Druzhkivka (Ukrainian: Дружківка, Russian: Дружковка, Druzhkovka) is a city in Donetsk Oblast (province) of Ukraine. Population is 64,557 (2001), and its area is 46 km².

Druzhkivka is a city located near the merging of the Kryvoi Torets and Kazennyi Torets rivers, about 80 km to the North-East from the regional center - Donetsk. Historical records indicate that a settlement named Druzhkivka was established in this area no later than 1781 A.D. Beginning from the late 19th and during the 20th century Druzhkovka grew into a mid-size industrial city with several large factories producing mining equipment and machinery, hardware, kitchen stoves, china tableware and bricks, as well as several clay-extracting quarries in the city's vicinity. Unfortunately, economic collapse that resulted from the breakup of the Soviet Union resulted in the rapid decline of the local industries, with the factories closing or barely functioning - the condition that led to a high unemployment rate and population exodus. This was exacerbated by the reality that many former residents came to the city from all across the Soviet Union solely to get employment in the once booming industries. When the jobs disappeared lots of them moved away. Current population of less than 65,000 is well below the historical high of at least 80,000 during the mid-1980s. At this time, a large number of residents are guest workers in various foreign countries. However, since guest workers bring their incomes back home to spend, this lead to the rapid growth in the local services and retail industries.

Settlements subordinate to Druzhivka city include:

• Druzhkivka (Дружківка)
• Mykolaipillia (Миколайпілля)
• Novohryhorivka (Новогригорівка)
• Novomykolaiivka (Новомиколаївка)
• Oleksiivo-Druzhkivka (Олексіїво-Дружківка)
• Rais'ke (Райське)

External links

• (Russian) druzhkovka.com - Druzhkovka city portal
• (Russian) druzhkovka.info - Wiki-based website about Druzhkivka