POLYETHNIC CHERNIVTSI: A MULTICULTURAL CITY AS A BASIS OF DEVELOPMENT OF ETHNIC TOURISM

Goals: disclosure of the effect of population's ethnic structure upon formation of poly-cultural space of the city that represents the basis for the development of ethnic tourism; analysis of potentialities for development of ethnic tourism in poly-ethnic City of Chernivtsi. Methods: processing of statistical and analytical materials using such methods of geographical research as systems-structural and diachronic, descriptive, comparative-geographical and statistical analyses. Study results. Chernivtsi is a vivid example of poly-ethnic urban space, the fact which is confirmed by the diachronic analysis of the index of ethnic variety (1880 – 0,941, 1930 – 0,964, 1970 – 0,705). Ukrainians, Jews, Germans, Poles, Rumanians, Moldavians, Armenians, Czechs, Hungarians, Russians, etc were among the largest ethnic groups of the city; the citizens were an ethnically mixed and foreign ethnicity population. Ethnic communities of Chernivtsi have created their own material, cultural and spiritual heritage that formed the basis for ethnic-cultural potential and development of ethnographic excursion routes. Ethnic tourism as one of the most popular and perspective types of cultural-cognitive tourism and an important direction for strengthening tourism image involves foreign tourists and allows for integration and representation of Chernivtsi in the European and world tourism markets. Scientific novelty of this research is that tourism objects of Chernivtsi were grouped and systemized according to their ethnic belonging and the point-based scale of said objects' attractiveness was introduced. To improve the ethnic tourism activity in Chernivtsi, we have considered not only its strengths (10 positions) and capacities (11 positions) but also the weak sides (10 positions) and threats (8 positions), all these being presented in the SWOT-analysis of the development of ethnic tourism in Chernivtsi. Practical significance: the study results will be sent to Coordination Council for Tourism Development at the Chernivtsi Region State Administration to help develop plans of tourism activity and introduce new ethnographic excursion routes; national-cultural associations (Chernivtsi Regional Adam Mickiewicz Association of Polish Culture, "Arevik", Chernivtsi Region Armenian National-Cultural Association) for their educational activity and organization of ethnographic excursions in poly-cultural Chernivtsi.