'''Ruthenia''' is a former [[Czechoslovakia]] province that was located on the eastern end of present-day [[Slovakia]].
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'''Ruthenia''' is a former Russian speaking province of [[Czechoslovakia]] that was located on the eastern end of present-day [[Slovakia]].
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The term Ruthenian had a broader meaning, signifying the Russian inhabitants of Austria, Austria-Hungary and Poland. As the national boundaries shifted over the years, so did Ruthenia. After World War II, [[Stalin]] split Ruthenia off from Czechoslovakia permanently and incorporated it into the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.
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The term Ruthenian had a broader meaning, signifying the Ukrainian inhabitants of Austria, Austria-Hungary and Poland. As the national boundaries shifted over the years, so did Ruthenia, but after World War II it was part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, which was a founding member of the [[Soviet Union]] until both broke up in 1991.