# Oi u luzi chervona kalyna

"Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow" (Ukrainian: Ой у лузі червона калина) is a Ukrainian patriotic march first published in 1875 by Volodymyr Antonovych and Mykhailo Drahomanov. It was written in a modern treatment by the composer Stepan Charnetsky in 1914, in honor and memory of the Sich Riflemen of the First World War. The song has many variations.
The song "Oi u luzi" was in the repertoire of Feodor Chaliapin.
The red viburnum (kalyna in Ukrainian)—a deciduous shrub that grows four to five metres tall—is a national symbol of Ukraine. A silhouette of it is depicted along the edges of the flag of the president of Ukraine.
Following the 2014 annexation by Russia of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula, and then the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, singing "nationalist anthems" such as Chervona Kalyna in Crimea became punishable by fines and imprisonment.

## History

Due to the song's association with the Ukrainian people's aspiration for independence, singing the song was banned during the period in which Ukraine was a Soviet Republic (1919-1991). The song was also used by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.
Red Viburnum berries (kalyna) is a symbol that has been a part of the Ukrainian culture since ancient times.

### Russian invasion of Ukraine

In March 2022, the song gained international attention when an Instagram video of an a cappella rendition by Andriy Khlyvnyuk of the Ukrainian band BoomBox singing the first verse of the song was remixed by different artists around the world. The melody was somewhat changed, literally in the first line of the chorus the last syllable is sung in ascending sixth. According to Valentyna Kuzyk, in this variant, the energy of the primordial breath breaks out of stable forms and enters a new life space.
BoomBox was touring in the United States when the Russian invasion of Ukraine started on 24 February. In response to the invasion, Khlyvnyuk cut the tour short to return to Ukraine in order to join the armed forces. He recorded the video while wearing army fatigues, standing near Sophia Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, and uploaded it to his Instagram account on 27 February, where it became viral.
The first artist to remix Khlyvnyuk's rendition was South African musician The Kiffness in early March. At the end of the same month, Ukrainian ice dancers Oleksandra Nazarova and Maksym Nikitin performed to the song at the 2022 World Figure Skating Championships in protest of the invasion.
In April 2022, Pink Floyd made use of Khlyvnyuk's recording for the vocal track of "Hey, Hey, Rise Up!", a single and a video which the band released in aid of Ukrainian humanitarian relief. In the video, Khlyvnyuk's performance is projected behind the band while they are performing and is partly shown full screen. The song opens with a sample from another recording of Oi u luzi chervona kalyna, by the Veryovka Ukrainian Folk Choir.
Since then, new versions have appeared on YouTube, even remixes of the original remix.

### Banned in Crimea

Following the 2014 annexation by Russia of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula, and then the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, singing "nationalist anthems" such as Chervona Kalyna in Crimea was deemed to discredit the Russian army, and was punished by fines and imprisonment. In September 2022, The Russian occupation authorities in Crimea jailed and fined members of a wedding party for "discrediting" the Russian Armed Forces by playing the song. The singers of the song in an online video were imprisoned and fined.
Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian head of the Crimean peninsula, warned that authorities would punish people harshly for singing such songs. He said that "People who do this are acting like traitors", and that there was a special FSB security service group working on the matter.

## Lyrics

| Ukrainian original | Ukrainian Latin alphabet | English translation |
| Ой у лузі червона калина похилилася, Чогось наша славна Україна зажурилася. А ми тую червону калину підіймемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! А ми тую червону калину підіймемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! | Oj u luzi červona kalyna pochylylasia, Čohoš naša slavna Ukraina zažurylasia. A my tuju červonu kalynu pidijmemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! A my tuju červonu kalynu pidijmemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! | Oh, in the meadow a red kalyna has bent down low, For some reason, our glorious Ukraine is in sorrow. And we'll take that red kalyna and we will raise it up, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! And we'll take that red kalyna and we will raise it up, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! |
| Не хилися, червона калино, маєш білий цвіт, Не журися, славна Україно, маєш вільний рід. А ми тую червону калину підіймемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! А ми тую червону калину підіймемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! | Ne chylysia, červona kalyno, maješ bilyj cvit, Ne žurysia, slavna Ukraino, maješ viľnyj rid. A my tuju červonu kalynu pidijmemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! A my tuju červonu kalynu pidijmemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! | Do not bend low, oh red kalyna, you have a white flower, Do not worry, glorious Ukraine, you have a free people. And we'll take that red kalyna and will raise it up, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! And we'll take that red kalyna and will raise it up, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! |
| Марширують наші добровольці у кривавий тан, Визволяти братів-українців з московських кайдан. А ми наших братів-українців визволимо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! А ми наших братів-українців визволимо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! | Maršyrujuť naši dobrovoľci u kryvavyj tan, Vyzvoliaty brativ-ukrainciv z Moskovśkych kajdan. A my našych brativ-ukrainciv vyzvolymo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! A my našych brativ-ukrainciv vyzvolymo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! | Marching forward, our fellow volunteers, into a bloody fray, For to free our brother Ukrainians from the Moscovite shackles. And we, our brother Ukrainians, we will then liberate, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! And we, our brothers Ukrainians, will then liberate, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! |
| Ой у полі ярої пшенички золотистий лан, Розпочали стрільці українські з ворогами тан. А ми тую ярую пшеничку ізберемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! А ми тую ярую пшеничку ізберемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! | Oj u poli jaroi pšenyčky zolotystyj lan, Rozpočaly striľci ukrainśki z vorohamy tan. A my tuju jaruju pšenyčku izberemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! A my tuju jaruju pšenyčku izberemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! | Oh in the field of early spring wheat, there's a golden furrow, Then began the Ukrainian riflemen to engage the enemy. And we'll take that precious, early wheat and will gather it, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! And we'll take that precious, early wheat and will gather it, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! |
| Як повіє буйнесенький вітер з широких степів, То прославить по всій Україні січових стрільців. А ми тую стрілецькую славу збережемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! А ми тую стрілецькую славу збережемо, А ми нашу славну Україну, гей-гей, розвеселимо! | Jak povije bujneseńkyj viter z šyrokych stepiv, To proslavyť po vsij Ukraini sičovych striľciv. A my tuju strilećkuju slavu zberežemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! A my tuju strilećkuju slavu zberežemo, A my našu slavnu Ukrainu, hej-hej, rozveselymo! | When the stormy winds blow forth from the wide steppes, They will glorify, throughout Ukraine, the Sich Riflemen. And so we will preserve the glories of these riflemen, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! And so we will preserve the glories of these riflemen, And, hey-hey, we shall cheer up our glorious Ukraine! |

## Gallery

* Red Viburnum berries (kalyna), the subject of the song
* A commemorative coin released by the Government of Ukraine in 2022 with the inscription taken from the third line of the song
* A graveyard of Sich Riflemen soldiers near Ternopil. The song was written in their honor.