Metro to Include Announcements in Ukrainian

For immediate release: April 1, 2009

Metro to Announce stations in Ukrainian for "Days of Ukrainian Culture"

As part of the celebration of "Days of Ukrainian Culture" in the US, Washington Metro is adding station announcements in Ukrainian on all Metro lines for one day, tomorrow.

The usual announcement of the current and next station will be given in English, and repeated in Ukrainian.

"This is a great way to promote cultural diversity," says General Manager John B. Catoe, Jr. "It inspires passengers to think outside the box and explore the world outside."

"We are extremely pleased and thrilled to hear the news," Chrystyna Melnyk, Vice President of the Ukrainian National Women's League of America, was quoted as saying. "After decades of virtual ignorance of the very existence of the Ukrainian nation, literally every person in the capital of the U.S. will finally be able to hear us."

This experiment will be viewed as a "pilot project"; if it is perceived as a success, Washington Metro may well try other languages, Mr. Catoe added. Hebrew, Swahili, Arabic and Belorussian were named as other possible candidates.

Reaction to the Event

Those Washington Metro commuters who might have been finding themselves bored by their daily routine, were in for some suprise entertainment as they boarded Metro trains this morning.

As they approached each station, they listened for the announcements with sudden interest and attention, despite having heard them thousands of times in the past. The reason? The announcements were coming in two languages — the second being one that a majority of the listeners were struggling to discern, leave alone comprehend.

That was, of all languages, Ukrainian.

The celebration of the Days of Ukrainian Culture in the US included many things one would expect to be part of such an event—a parade, concerts, an ethnic food fair, you name it—but this was certainly one that conveyed the message to an average citizen in a way rarely, if ever, experienced before.

As the trains approached each station, the usual announcement was made in English, followed up by the same information in Ukrainian. Some station names were actually translated: Arlington Cemetery became Arlingtonsky Tsvyntar, while Metro Center remained Metro Center.

The passengers' reactions were mixed—but there were few people who appeared disinterested.

"How funny. Which language is that?" "That was Spanish, right?" "What is it?! I cannot understand a word—why are they playing this?!" One rider was apparently less than thrilled.

But if there was one happy person in the car we rode, it was Petro Shmurdiuk.

"Opan'ky!"—he exclaimed upon hearing the first announcement. (Loosely translated as "Look at that!", he explained to us later.) "Station announcements in my native language? Unbelievable!"

And so he rode on and on, taking in the pleasure as the train rolled into each station and apparently forgetting what his original destination was.

"Shche ne vmerla Ukraina!"—he resumed upon forcing himself, finally, to get out of the car.—"Ukraine has not died yet!"

Which it has not indeed, as Washington Metro has now proved convincingly.

Audio Samples

Metro Center
Pentagon
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
U Street/African-Amer Civil War Memorial/Cardozo
Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan

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