Sarny

The city is named after the roe deer and can be literally translated as "deer" (plural); the name was adopted due to the abundance of them in the forests in the area.{{cite book |last1=Katz |first1=Steven T. |title=The Shtetl: new evaluations |date=2007 |publisher=New York University Press |location=New York London |isbn=9780814748015 |pages=279}}

Sarny at its outset was a small village on the Polissia-Volyn border, located between forests and swamps. Its name is derived from the word "serna", referring to the wild goats that roamed freely in the area at the time.Uncredited, [http://www.ukraine.com/rivne-oblast/sarny/ Wildlife, Legends and History make Sarny a Memorable Destination]; Ukraine Channel. Retrieved 2016-08-09.

Sarny was a part of the Kingdom of Halych-Volhynia. It was later annexed by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, followed by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. From 1795 it was considered a part of the Russian Empire, as part of the Volhynian Governorate. It later became part of the estate of General Felix Dzerzhinsky.

The railway reached Sarny in 1885, which was the same year that Sarny was formally constituted as a city. It became an important junction between railways of Rivne-Luninets and Kovel-Korosten, particularly after the construction of a railroad station in 1901, tied to the rail line linking Kyiv to Kovel,Ben-Zion Dinor, [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sar005.html#Page13 The Origins and Configuration of Sarny]. Contained in Y. Kariv, (ed.), Jacob Solomon Berger (trans.), [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sarny.htmlSefer yizkor le-kehiat Sarny (Memorial book of the Community of Sarny)], Tel Aviv, 1961. Retrieved 2016-07-23. which was known as "the southwest line" and which now joined "the Polesia line". Concurrently, a large locomotive depot was constructed and Sarny became a centre of railroad activity, resulting in a need for construction of new housing for railway employees.Shlomo Zandweiss, [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sar027.html Sarny – Its Creation, Existence and Destruction]. Contained in Y. Kariv, (ed.), Jacob Solomon Berger (trans.), [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sarny.htmlSefer yizkor le-kehiat Sarny (Memorial book of the Community of Sarny)], Tel Aviv, 1961. Retrieved 2016-08-14.

Sarny was one of a series of towns and cities designated as railway station locations at key area boundaries. These municipalities were distinguished by the extent to which they were associated with manufacturing and markets, including being points for the concentration of agricultural produce for export. Lumber manufacturing also became an important and growing industry in Sarny, given that it was surrounded by forests.

Sarny became a focal point of the settlement of Russian Jews, commencing as of 1903, following the pogroms at Kishinev, when Sarny was under Russian rule. Russian Interior Minister Vyacheslav von Plehve published a list of villages in which Jews were given "permission" to live, one of which was Sarny. General Dzerzhinsky travelled to St. Petersburg and obtained a permit to constitute Sarny as a "permitted town" for Jewish residents. By royal decree, every 100 villages were entitled to build a town in which Jews were permitted to live. Once he had obtained the permit, General Dzerzhinsky commenced to lease his land to Jewish residents, who were only permitted to lease, rather than to buy his land.

In 1912, the first bank was established in Sarny — the Sarny Mutual Credit & Loan — in response to the financing requirements of forest products and textile merchants.

Prior to 1914, there was one private school and no public schools in Sarny. The private school was a Russian school with four grades, owned by management of the railroad and primarily for the benefit of the children of railroad employees. During this same period, there were no medical facilities in Sarny, and only one physician in the city.

Sarny became a focal point for a large number of orphans fleeing the Petlura pogroms in Ukraine between 1918 and 1920. The city was annexed to Poland, following the Polish-Soviet War of 1919–1921. Due to the city's proximity to the Russian border, it became a Polish military centre following the Polish-Soviet War. In addition, prior to the outbreak of World War II, an airfield was constructed beside Sarny.Baruch Raks, [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sar155.html From the Beginning to the End]. Contained in Y. Kariv, (ed.), Jacob Solomon Berger (trans.), [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sarny.htmlSefer yizkor le-kehiat Sarny (Memorial book of the Community of Sarny)], Tel Aviv, 1961. Retrieved 2016-09-02.

The city's economic zenith occurred after World War I, particularly during the period of Polish rule between 1921 and 1939, involving close economic and social relationships with the neighbouring city of Rivne,Aryeh Avtikhi, [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sar019.html#Page22 That Was The Sarny of The Past]. Contained in Y. Kariv, (ed.), Jacob Solomon Berger (trans.), [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sarny.htmlSefer yizkor le-kehiat Sarny (Memorial book of the Community of Sarny)], Tel Aviv, 1961. Retrieved 2016-07-22. which had been the previous provincial seat, prior to Polish rule.

In 1921, the city became part of the Second Polish Republic. Sarny also developed close economic ties with the metropolitan centres of Poland, such as Warsaw and Łódź. In Poland, it was the seat of a Sarny county (powiat), firstly in Polesie Voivodeship, then, since 1930 – in Wołyń Voivodeship. During this period, four hotels were constructed around the railway station, serving the needs of lumber merchants, in particular. In addition, Sarny had a ten-person police force, a functioning courthouse with permanent judge and secretary, a post office and, what was particularly important for the time, a government store selling hard liquor.

As of 1921, approximately 50% of the town was composed of persons primarily of Polish, Ukrainian and Russian backgrounds, who were also Jewish, amounting to approximately 2,800 individuals.Uncredited, [http://beforeamerica.com/Before_America/About_Sarny.html About Sarny]; Before America. Retrieved 2016-08-12. The city was divided by the rail line, with Jewish residents predominantly on one side, and predominantly non-Jewish residents on the other: the "Polesia side". Parallel education systems developed for Jewish and non-Jewish residents, since there was a 10% quota limiting Jewish students from attending public secondary schools.Bronia Cimmerman Bronkesh, [http://beforeamerica.com/Before_America/My_Life_before_America.html Sarny, Poland 1921-1941], contained in "My Life Before America 1921-1947"; Before America. Retrieved 2016-08-13.

Despite Sarny being a county seat in Poland and under Polish legislative rule, the dominant social influence at the time was Ukrainian, including Ukrainian nationalist sentiments.

In the 1930s, Polish military authorities constructed a number of fortifications in the area of Sarny, known as the Sarny Fortified Area (Sarnenski Rejon Umocniony), along the Sluch river.

In 1939, Sarny was occupied by Russian forces following the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact and the Soviet invasion of Poland. The Russian advance met with Polish resistance. Sarny became a concentration point for units under the command of Brigadier General Wilhelm Orlik-Rückemann. The "Sarny" regiment, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Nikodem Sulik, provided cover. The regiment stemmed the attack of the Soviet 60th Rifle Division, based on the strong fortifications of the Sarny Fortified Area. A crew of a single bunker, under the command of Second Lieutenant Jan Bołbot, lasted out in its position until September 19, delaying the advance of Soviet units.{{cite book |title= Kampania 1939 roku |last= Wieczorkiewicz |first= Paweł Piotr |year= 2001 |publisher= Krajowa Agencja Wydawnicza |location= Warsaw |isbn= 83-88072-53-6 |page= 98}}. Some of the bunkers making up this line still exist.

300 Polish policemen were killed by Soviet soldiers in 1939, just after Soviets attacked PolandProf. Ryszard Szawłowski: Wojna polsko-sowiecka 1939 (http://lubimyczytac.pl/ksiazka/183887/wojna-polsko-sowiecka-1939){{Better source needed|date=May 2020}}.

The city was captured by Nazi Germany on July 8, 1941, following the repudiation by Germany of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact and the German attack on Russia on June 22, 1941.

At the time, Sarny had a Jewish population of approximately 5,000 persons. While Russian troops retreated, Ukrainian nationalists did not retreat with the Russian forces, but instead saw an opportunity to support the independence of Ukraine through alliances with the Nazis.

Subsequent to the German occupation, the Nazis commandeered Jews of Sarny as forced labour. In addition, the Jewish population was forced to turn over most of its assets to the Nazis, with orders largely enforced by Ukrainian police.Zvi Pearlstein, [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sar305.html The Ghetto- The Beginning of The End]. Contained in Y. Kariv, (ed.), Jacob Solomon Berger (trans.), [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sarny.htmlSefer yizkor le-kehiat Sarny (Memorial book of the Community of Sarny)], Tel Aviv, 1961. Retrieved 2016-08-03.

In April 1942, a ghetto was established in Sarny, into which were forced the Jews from Sarny and the surrounding towns.Peter Longerich, Holocaust: The Nazi Persecution and Murder of the Jews. Oxford University Press 2010, p. 351.

In August 1942, Sarny was the scene of what came to be known as the Sarny Massacre. Over two days, on August 27–28, 1942, between 14,000 and 18,000 people, mostly Jews from Sarny and surrounding towns, including an estimated 100 Roma, were systematically executed in the ravines on the outskirts of the town, where pits had been prepared. The executions were carried out by German troops and Ukrainian Auxiliary Police, assisted by some 200 members of Organization Todt.Alex Levin, [http://www.azrielifoundation.org/memoirs/books/under-the-yellow-and-red-stars/ Under the Yellow & Red Stars]. Azrieli Foundation, 2009, p. 20, fn. 10.United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, [http://digitalassets.ushmm.org/photoarchives/detail.aspx?id=1143178 Profile of Itzhak Gendelman]. Retrieved 2016-07-21. A memorial book of the history of the Jewish community in Sarny was published in 1961, containing first person accounts by community survivors.Y. Kariv, (ed.), Jacob Solomon Berger (trans.), [http://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/sarny/sarny.htmlSefer yizkor le-kehiat Sarny (Memorial book of the Community of Sarny)], Tel Aviv, 1961. Retrieved 2016-07-21.

During the Volhynian Genocide, commencing in 1943, Sarny was a shelter for ethnic Polish population of Volhynian countryside, massacred by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. In May 1943, German authorities created a Polish police unit, which defended the town from the Ukrainians. In 1944, most Poles were transported either to the General Government, or to the Third Reich as OST-Arbeiters.

Sarny was reclaimed by Soviet forces on January 11, 1944. Since 1944, it has been a part of Ukrainian SSR and later independent Ukraine, as of 1991.

In 1972, a Russian tank, the SU-76i, adapted from the Panzer, was discovered in the river around Sarny. It was determined that it was a tank that had attempted to cross the river on January 11, 1944, in support of the advance of the Russian 143rd Rifle Division on Sarny. The tank broke through the ice and sank with its crew. Upon its discovery in 1972, the tank was recovered, renovated and put on display at the then Lenin Prospekt Memorial in Sarny.Achtung Panzer, [http://www.achtungpanzer.com/german-panzers-su-76i-gallery.htm German Panzers SU-76i]. Retrieved 2016-08-16.

Contemporary Sarny has predominantly an agriculture-based economy. Through to the 1990s, it was considered to be an industrial and transportation centre, with its principal industries being machine building and metalworking, building materials, woodworking and flax processing.Uncredited, [http://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?linkpath=pages%5CS%5CA%5CSarny.htm Sarny]. Encyclopedia of Ukraine, 1993. Retrieved 2016-08-11. The city and its economy were affected by the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, despite its distance from it.Uncredited, [http://www.mwbuk.org/news/press-releases/2011/feb/chernobyl/ Hundreds growing up under radiation cloud helped by charity Mission Without Borders]. Mission Without Borders, February 1, 2011. Retrieved 2016-08-11. There is interest in renewed investment in the sawmill industry in Sarny.European Business Association, [http://www.eba.com.ua/en/information-support/news-from-members/item/34566-2016-7-19-1651 Investments into the Ukrainian wood-processing industry are increasing]. "News from Members", July 19, 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-16.

{{main|Rivne strikes (2022–present)}}

In the evening of March 16, 2022, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the city was hit for the first time by a missile strike by the Russian Armed Forces. According to the head of the Rivne Regional State Administration Vitaliy Koval, the blow was inflicted on one of the military infrastructure facilities in Sarny. He also said that there were no victims.{{Cite news|title=Російські військові обстріляли Сарни на Рівненщині – місцева влада|url=https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-rosia-obstril-sarny/31756689.html|website=Радіо Свобода|date=16 March 2022 |accessdate=2022-03-17|language=uk|last1=Свобода |first1=Радіо }}

File:Destructions in Sarny after Russian attack, 2022-06-25.jpg hit by a missile attack on June 25, 2022]]

In the evening of June 25, 2022, the city was hit for the second time by a missile strike by the Russian Armed Forces. According to the head of the Rivne Regional State Administration Vitaliy Koval, the attack was carried out on civilian infrastructure, at least 4 people were killed and seven others were injured.{{Cite news|title=Через ракетний удар по Сарнах на Рівненщині загинули чотири людини – голова ОВА|url=https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-sarny-raketnyi-udar-zhertvy/31915522.html|website=Радіо Свобода|date=26 June 2022 |accessdate=2022-06-26|language=uk|last1=Свобода |first1=Радіо }}

On the evening of August 28, 2022, powerful explosions rang out in Sarny during an air raid alert, the city was hit by a rocket from the Russian Armed Forces for the third time. According to the head of the Rivne Regional State Administration, V. Koval, a total of four missile strikes on the military infrastructure facility were recorded. There were no casualties. About 30 residential buildings and the premises of the central district hospital were damaged by the shock wave.{{Cite news|title=Російські війська обстріляли Рівненщину, попередньо без жертв – голова ОВА|url=https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-rosiiski-viiska-rivnenska-oblast/32008041.html|website=Радіо Свобода|date=28 August 2022 |accessdate=2022-08-28|language=uk|last1=Свобода |first1=Радіо }}

{{Weather box

| width = auto

| metric first = yes

| single line = yes

| location = Sarny (1991–2020)

| Jan high C = -0.4

| Feb high C = 1.3

| Mar high C = 6.8

| Apr high C = 15.0

| May high C = 20.8

| Jun high C = 24.1

| Jul high C = 26.0

| Aug high C = 25.5

| Sep high C = 19.6

| Oct high C = 12.9

| Nov high C = 5.8

| Dec high C = 0.9

| year high C = 13.2

| Jan mean C = -3.4

| Feb mean C = -2.4

| Mar mean C = 1.9

| Apr mean C = 9.0

| May mean C = 14.4

| Jun mean C = 17.8

| Jul mean C = 19.5

| Aug mean C = 18.8

| Sep mean C = 13.7

| Oct mean C = 8.1

| Nov mean C = 2.7

| Dec mean C = -1.8

| year mean C = 8.2

| Jan low C = -5.8

| Feb low C = -5.2

| Mar low C = -1.8

| Apr low C = 3.5

| May low C = 8.5

| Jun low C = 12.1

| Jul low C = 14.0

| Aug low C = 12.9

| Sep low C = 8.6

| Oct low C = 3.9

| Nov low C = 0.1

| Dec low C = -4.1

| year low C = 3.9

| precipitation colour = green

| Jan precipitation mm = 33

| Feb precipitation mm = 32

| Mar precipitation mm = 34

| Apr precipitation mm = 36

| May precipitation mm = 61

| Jun precipitation mm = 72

| Jul precipitation mm = 107

| Aug precipitation mm = 64

| Sep precipitation mm = 52

| Oct precipitation mm = 40

| Nov precipitation mm = 42

| Dec precipitation mm = 40

| year precipitation mm = 613

| unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm

| Jan precipitation days = 8.5

| Feb precipitation days = 9.2

| Mar precipitation days = 8.7

| Apr precipitation days = 7.5

| May precipitation days = 9.3

| Jun precipitation days = 9.3

| Jul precipitation days = 9.8

| Aug precipitation days = 6.6

| Sep precipitation days = 7.5

| Oct precipitation days = 7.6

| Nov precipitation days = 8.4

| Dec precipitation days = 9.2

| year precipitation days = 101.6

| Jan humidity = 85.4

| Feb humidity = 82.5

| Mar humidity = 76.5

| Apr humidity = 69.2

| May humidity = 67.8

| Jun humidity = 69.8

| Jul humidity = 71.6

| Aug humidity = 71.0

| Sep humidity = 77.0

| Oct humidity = 81.5

| Nov humidity = 87.0

| Dec humidity = 87.8

| year humidity = 77.3

| source 1 = NOAA{{cite web

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20250422021239/https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/data/oceans/archive/arc0216/0253808/6.6/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Ukraine/CSV/Sarny_33088.csv

|archive-date = 22 April 2025

|url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/data/oceans/archive/arc0216/0253808/4.4/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Ukraine/CSV/Sarny_33088.csv

|title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991-2020 — Sarny

|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

|access-date = June 16, 2024}}

}}

• Czeslaw Bobrowski (1904–1996), Polish economist
• Vitaliy Bunechko (born 1973), Ukrainian civil servant and politician
• Oleksandr Chernov (born 2002), Ukrainian footballer
• Avery A. Sandberg (1921--2016), cancer researcher, born in Sarny

{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Ukraine}}

Sarny is twinned with:{{cite web |title=Сарненська стежина до Європи|url=http://www.visti.rovno.ua/news/sarnenska-stezhina-do-evropi|website=visti.rovno.ua|publisher=Gazeta Visti Rivnenshchyny|language=uk|date=2019-06-20|access-date=2020-04-03}}

• {{flagicon|POL}} Długołęka, Poland
• {{flagicon|POL}} Nowy Dwór Gdański, Poland

File:Sarny (Сарни).JPG|Road near Sarny

File:Католический костел Ровенская обл. г Сарны.JPG|Sarny catholic church

{{reflist}}

{{commons category|Sarny}}

• [http://sarny-rada.org/ Official website of Rivne City Council] {{in lang|uk}}
• [http://diaspora-scrapbook.org/ShtetlPages/Sarny_1.aspx The Diaspora Scrapbook — Sarny]

{{Rivne Oblast}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Cities in Rivne Oblast

Category:Cities of district significance in Ukraine

Category:Holocaust locations in Ukraine

Category:Sites of World War II massacres of Poles

Category:Sarny Raion