Research Trends in the Field of Ukrainian History: A Scientometric Analysis on WoS Basis

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the current state and future research directions on Ukrainian history through the publication activity presented in the Web of Science Core Collection citation database. The multifaceted nature of the concept under study necessitates the use of scientometric analysis employing bibliometric methodologies based on the analytical tools of Web of Science, Google Trends, and VOSviewer. The aim of this work is a multi-level analysis of scientific research on Ukrainian history. The methodological basis of the study is a collection of scientific publications indexed in the Web of Science database for the period since 1971 to 2024.
As far as the author is aware, this scientometric analysis can be considered the first of its kind, as it covers a specific scope of research on Ukrainian history. The results of this study have shown that there is a yearly trend of a sharp increase in the number of studies on Ukrainian history. The article identifies problems and opportunities for research on the topic of «History of Ukraine». The conclusions are aimed at providing important information related to these studies, such as (1) the characteristics of publications on the abovementioned topic, (2) the most relevant references, (3) the main journals for publishing research results, and (4) the main countries and authors which are active in this research field, as well as potential opportunities for collaboration.
The obtained results indicate a certain growth trend in the distribution of scientific research on the topic of «History of Ukraine». However, the stage of active development of these studies falls within the period since 2015 to 2023. The geographical centres of research are Ukraine, the USA, Poland, Germany, and the United Kingdom. An analysis of the sectoral structure of research on Ukrainian history demonstrates a somewhat diversified nature of the topic under study. A cluster analysis of keywords allowed for the identification of six main clusters of scientific research.
Although this article aims to conduct a thorough review of research on the history of Ukraine, the conclusions should be interpreted with caution, considering specific limitations. Firstly, the prestigious WoS database was chosen, which is a significant informational resource due to its broad coverage and high-quality research. However, documents related to Ukrainian history may be available in other repositories or databases. Accordingly, using a different database might yield a similar or different set of conclusions. Additionally, the author excluded certain types of documents, such as books and book chapters, from the analysis process. Therefore, future researchers could expand the conclusions of this review by using different databases or including other document formats besides articles. Secondly, the selection of publications on the history of Ukraine in this review was limited to a precise keyword, which might have resulted in the exclusion of certain regional historical research materials whose authors did not associate their work with Ukrainian history.
The presented material can help practitioners and researchers gain a better understanding of the current state of the research field on the topic of «The History of Ukraine» and serve as a starting point for future studies. The article not only clarifies the current status of research on Ukrainian history but also suggests new directions for scholars and practitioners in the field. Gaps in the research can motivate further scientific work on the topic of «The History of Ukraine». Additionally, it is hoped that the presented material will encourage a broader representation of the vast scope of research on Ukrainian history in the global scientific community – from archaeology to the present day. This becomes particularly significant in the current era, where there are fakes and targeted propaganda from the aggressor country against Ukraine and its history.