Ukrainian Cossacks give PM another string to his lute
BORIS JOHNSON has been inducted into Ukraine’s Cossack community and given a new name that pays homage to his hairstyle in gratitude for his support during the war.
A Cossack community in Chernihiv, northern Ukraine, has named him Boris Chuprina, which means “a long lock of hair”, Ukraine’s public broadcaster said on Tuesday.
Two local artists have painted a picture of Mr Johnson dressed as the Cossack Mamay, a Ukrainian folkloric hero playing the kobza, a lute-like musical instrument, which is now on display at the local museum.
Cossacks came from the steppe of present-day Ukraine and Russia. A semi-nomadic, semi-militarised people, they fought for Ukraine’s independence when the country was stuck between Russia and what is now Poland.
Mr Johnson became popular in Ukraine at the start of the war after Britain’s substantial shipments of weapons and public statements of support. He was also one of the few foreign leaders who visited Ukraine fewer than two months into the invasion.
Andriy Lisovy, deputy director of the Chernihiv regional museum, told Ukrainian public TV that a Cossack title for Mr Johnson was a “sign of respect and gratitude to this outstanding person who has been supporting Ukraine”.
Mr Lisovy said of the Prime Minister’s new local name: “Why Chuprina? You can see that he has such a freedomloving haircut, which underlines his personality, his strong will.”
The museum said an official Cossack certificate and copy of the painting of Mr Johnson as a Cossack were on their way to London.
Bestowing Cossack titles on foreigners is rare. John Paul Jones, a US naval officer who served in modern-day Ukraine under the Russian empire, was inducted into the brotherhood in the 18th century.