Pidhirne brings together the history of its former name, Kulm, a cultural center housed in a former German church building, and several sites of remembrance. A memorial plaque commemorates the village’s founders; the Alley of Glory is dedicated to fallen defenders. For planning your trip, these themes offer a starting point: you can consider the place name, the building’s history, and remembrance as distinct perspectives on Pidhirne.

From Kulm to Pidhirne

In 1815, 80 German families settled in Bessarabia on a site with three shepherds’ earthen huts and began building the village of Kulm. They chose the name after Austrian, Russian, and Prussian troops defeated Napoleon’s forces near Kulm in Bohemia. “Kulm” is translated as “city on a hill.” The story behind the name thus connects the settlement with an event in Bohemia, while the families founded the village in Bessarabia. The two place references can be distinguished: Kulm as the village’s name, and Kulm in Bohemia as the site of the victory. After the Second World War, Kulm was renamed Pidhirne. The two names therefore mark different periods in the village’s history: Kulm belongs to the founding story, while Pidhirne is the later name.

Church Building and Cultural Center

The cultural center is housed in a former German church building. Old columns have been preserved in the auditorium; the stage stands where an altar and an organ once stood. These details make the building’s history tangible: the columns recall the former church interior, while the stage’s position evokes the location of the altar and organ. This makes it possible to consider the building’s former religious use alongside its cultural role without equating the two.

A report from 2025 names three groups associated with the cultural center: the children’s dance group Happy Kids, the folk dance group «Mriia», and the vocal group «Veselka». These groups span children’s dance, folk dance, and singing, adding cultural connections beyond the building’s architecture. During the war, the cultural center also held the folk festivals Babinden and Kolieda. The timeframe distinguishes the groups named in a 2025 report from the festivals held during the war.

Remembering the Village’s Founders and Defenders

On September 5, 2004, a memorial plaque to the village’s founders was installed next to the cultural center. Its inscription reads, “To the founders of the village, who lived here for 125 years”; it also includes the Bible quotation, “In this place I will give peace.” The plaque focuses on the village’s founders and pairs this dedication with a quotation about peace. The Alley of Glory was also opened in Pidhirne as a memorial honoring fallen defenders. The two memorial sites have different points of reference: the founding of the village and the commemoration of fallen defenders.

For a themed itinerary, you can consider these aspects separately or together: Kulm and the renaming tell the story of the place, the auditorium and the stage’s position offer concrete clues to the building’s history, and the plaque and the alley provide different points of focus for remembrance. This offers a way to understand Pidhirne through its historical and cultural connections without conflating different periods and themes.

Discover more destinations: Novopetrivka, Kiliya, Mizikevycha, Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Svitlohirs'ke, Berezivka, Kryzhanivka, Mayaky.

For the regional travel overview: Odesa Oblast.