Merefa

Etymologists have not reached a final conclusion, but it is believed that the name originated from the Old Slavic "mьrRs" (to fade), which is derived from the Ukrainian merekhtyty (to flicker; barely visible). Another version is a hydronymic from "merecha" (Ukrainian for forest thicket; dense shrubbery in a swampy lowland), which is based on the Proto-Slavic "merRja" (Ukrainian for swampy place). Among the analogies is also merechytysia (to be seen), which is related to the root mereka ("delusion, ghost") derived from the Proto-Slavic morkъ (). == History ==

It was a village in Kharkovsky Uyezd of Kharkov Governorate of the Russian Empire. City since 1938. In January 1989 the population was 28,952 people. On March 17, 2022, at about 3:30 am, Russian servicemen shelled the town of Merefa, Kharkiv district, destroying a secondary school and a house of culture. 15 people were killed. 25 people were injured, 10 of them in serious condition. == Demographics ==

Distribution of the population by ethnicity according to the 2001 census: == Transport ==

• a railway station ==Gallery==

File:Мерефа школа фасад.JPG|A school in Merefa File:Залізнична станція Мерефа 1580001.jpg|Railway station Мерефа храм закат.JPG|Church of the Nativity of the Theotokos File:Мерефа стадион Авангард.JPG|Entrance to Avanhard Stadium ==References==