Kuty

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Kuty is a rural settlement in western Ukraine, on the Cheremosh River. It is in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, Kosiv Raion, and is the center of Kuty settlement hromada, which includes six nearby villages. The population is about 4,000 people (2022).

The name Kuty comes from Ukrainian meaning “corners.” It was first mentioned in 1469 as a village in the estate of Jan Odrowąż, a Polish archbishop. In 1715 it was granted town rights by King Augustus II the Strong. It grew within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and later served as a local administrative center in the Ruthenian Voivodship. The Potocki family held the town until Poland’s partitions.

In 1772 Kuty came under Austrian rule and, in 1782, it lost its town privileges. It stayed a small market town with many Jewish and Armenian merchants. By 1850, a railway connected Kuty with Kolomyia and Czernowitz, helping its people travel and trade.

In the 20th century, Kuty changed hands several times. It was part of Poland, then the USSR, with Germany occupying it during World War II. The Jewish population was killed in 1942, and in 1944 about 200 Poles and Armenians were also killed. After the war, many survivors moved to Poland. The Armenian tradition of making kołacz lives on in Poland today.

Since 1991, Kuty has been part of independent Ukraine. It was an urban-type settlement until January 26, 2024, when a new law changed its status to a rural settlement.