MOSCOW, 8 May 2024. Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) presents the findings of a survey devoted to the anniversary of the Great Patriotic War.
Main holiday
Today an overwhelming majority of Russians (61%) consider Victory Day as the main holiday. Starting from 2018, Victory Day has been at the top of the list of holidays outstripping New Year’s Eve and Easter. However, in recent years this holiday has been in decline (2018, 2020 — 71% (each), 2021 — 69%, 2022 — 67%, 2023 — 65%).
Voices of history, voices of Victory
Nine out of ten respondents discuss the Great Patriotic War in their families; this share has increased in recent years (2018 — 81%, 2024 — 89%). Every tenth respondent does not have similar conversations (2018 — 19%). Every second (45%, +6 p.p. compared to 2023) also knows a lot about relatives who participated in the GPW from the family stories, family archives, letters, photos. Over the entire period of measurement, the recent twenty years, this answer has been dominant, meaning that oral storytelling as a family tradition is still alive. There is a gap in transmitting memory between generations. The older Russians are, the better they know or remember the relatives who used to fight at the battlefield. As to the Thaw generation, who were closest to those events, half of them know a lot about the relatives who participated in the Great Patriotic War (56%); this share is twice as small as Zoomers (27%).
A third of Russians (33%) knows only the fact that their relatives participated in the 1941-1945 war, but they do not know any details; the share of this group has been changing insignificantly since 2004 (31-38%). Today they are primarily young generations – Zoomers (41%) and Younger Millennials (45%).
Another 12% of respondents said their relatives who participated in the war went missing or died, and they know nothing about them. Nineteen percent of Zoomers report so. Only 5% of Russians do not know whether their relatives participated in the war against Nazi Germany or not.
To be remembered…
Next year Russia is marking the 80th anniversary since the end of the Great Patriotic War. As the witnesses of this war pass away, views about this event go through changes too. Over the two decades Victory Day has been more perceived as a memory and grief day, according to 25% of Russians (+7 p.p. compared to 2005). This stance is often shared by those who were born after 1992 (Younger Millennials and Zomers) — 41-42%.
Most of Russians (67%, −9 p.p. compared to 2005) still perceive May 8 as a holiday, as the biggest victory in the history of Russia. This is often reported by those who were born before 1981 (74-78%), those who remember the battle-front veterans quite well and have communicated with them personally.
Despite change of generations, the Great Patriotic War is fundamentally important for Russians. Even young persons do not call into question the importance of this holiday. Just 4% of Russians say that the Great Patriotic War is part of the far past which does not bother much the modern generation; since 2005 this opinion has not become more popular (5%). A focus on grief and memory in the perceptions of Victory Day by young generations might be related to the forms of transmission of historical memory: live communication with battle-field veterans typical of older generations, and books, movies, museums and memorial sites popular among young respondents.
The following data also prove this idea: if Russians wanted to tell their children about the victory of the Soviet Union over Nazi Germany, they would talk about their relatives who fought in the war (15%); over five years this answer has become less frequent (2019 — 24%). At the same time, more respondents say they would tell about the war and victory (10%; in 2019 this answer were not given). Along with key dates of this war such as Siege of Leningrad (13%), battle of Stalingrad (12%), battle of Kursk (7%), capture of Berlin, battle of Moscow (5% each), Russians also mentioned heroic exploits (13%), the role of patriotism (6%), hard times (5%), war victims (4%), fascism (3%) and other atrocities (2%).
VCIOM-Sputnik Russian nationwide telephone survey was conducted 27 April, 2024. A total of 1,600 Russians aged 18+ were surveyed. Survey method: telephone interviews, stratified random sample based on a complete list of mobile phone numbers in use in Russia. The data were weighted for socio-demographic characteristics. The margin of error at a 95% confidence level does not exceed 2.5%. In addition to sampling error, minor changes to the wording of questions and different circumstances arising during the fieldwork can introduce bias into the survey.
Key effectiveness indicators, survey of 27 April, 2024: cooperation rate (CR)* = 0.7727; minimum response rate (MRR)** = 0.0113; response rate (RR)*** = 0.0697. calculations are based on corporate standards: https://profi.wciom.ru/principy_standarty/korporativnyj-standart-po-izmereniyu-rezultativnosti-oprosov-sputnik-vciom/
* CR: the number of complete interviews divided by the sum of: а) complete interviews and b) non-interviews with eligible respondents.
** MRR: the number of complete interviews divided by the sum of: а) complete interviews, b) interrupted interviews after successful screening and c) all the respondents where it is unknown whether they meet the selected criteria or not.
** RR is calculated in the same way as MRR, with the only difference that the number of respondents with unknown eligibility decreases proportional to the percentage of eligible cases in the total number of respondents with identified eligibility or non-eligibility.
What holidays are the most important for you?* (close-ended question, no more than 3 answers, % of total respondents, “Other” answer options are not shown) | |||||||||
| 2006* | 2010* | 2014* | 2018 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
Victory Day – May 9 | 41 | 38 | 53 | 71 | 71 | 69 | 67 | 65 | 61 |
New Year’ s Eve – January 1 | 82 | 77 | 69 | 60 | 66 | 63 | 63 | 58 | 58 |
Easter | 35 | 34 | 31 | 31 | 34 | 25 | 31 | 29 | 29 |
International Women’s Day — March 8 | 31 | 31 | 30 | 29 | 27 | 29 | 25 | 22 | 24 |
Christmas – January 7 | 26 | 31 | 29 | 25 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 20 | 18 |
Defender of the Fatherland Day - February 23 | 18 | 17 | 20 | 16 | 14 | 18 | 15 | 17 | 13 |
Spring and Labor Day — 1 May | 9 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 7 | - | - | 9 | 10 |
Professional holidays | 5 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 |
Russia’s Day — 12 June | 2 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 7 |
Unity Day — 4 November | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 5 |
Day of October Revolution / Day of Accord and Reconciliation — 7 November / 4 November | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
Kurban-Bayram | 4 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
Cosmonautics Day — 12 April | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
St Valentine’s Day — 14 February | - | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Don’t know | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
*The study was conducted April 21, 2024
May 9, or Victory Day, is approaching. Do you happen to talk about the Great patriotic War, or do you not touch on this topic? (close-ended question, one answer, % of total respondents) | ||
| 2018 | 2024 |
Yes, it happens | 81 | 89 |
No, it almost never happens | 19 | 10 |
Don’t know | 0 | 1 |
May 9, or Victory Day, is approaching. Do you happen to talk about the Great patriotic War, or do you not touch on this topic? (close-ended question, one answer, % of total respondents) | |||||||||
| Total | Men | Women | Digital generation (2001 and later) | Younger Millennials (1992—2000) | Older Millennials (1982—1991) | Reform generation (1968—1981) | Stagnation generation (1948—1967) | Thaw generation (before 1947) |
Yes, it happens | 89 | 86 | 92 | 79 | 84 | 90 | 96 | 92 | 84 |
No, it almost never happens | 10 | 12 | 8 | 19 | 16 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 15 |
Don’t know | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Was there anyone in your family who participated in the Great Patriotic War? If yes, do you know any details about their life during the wartime? (close-ended question, one answer, % of total respondents) | ||||||||||
| *2004 | *2005 | *2007 | *2010 | *2014 | 2018 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
Yes, I know a lot about them from the stories of my relatives, family archives, letters, photos | 50 | 46 | 45 | 34 | 42 | 35 | 43 | 40 | 39 | 45 |
I know that my relatives fought in the war, but I do not know any details | 31 | 31 | 32 | 32 | 31 | 37 | 38 | 37 | 36 | 33 |
Some of my relatives fought in the war but they died or went missing, and we know nothing about them | 10 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 15 | 18 | 7 | 12 | 14 | 12 |
No one in my family fought in the war | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
I do not know whether anyone in my family fought in the war or not | 3 | 4 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 |
Don’t know | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Was there anyone among your family members who participated in the Great Patriotic War? If yes, do you know any details about their life during the wartime? (close-ended question, one answer, % of total respondents) | |||||||||
| Total | Men | Women | Digital generation (2001 and later) | Younger Millennials (1992—2000) | Older Millennials (1982—1991) | Reform generation (1968—1981) | Stagnation generation (1948—1967) | Thaw generation (before 1947) |
Yes, I know a lot about them from the stories of my relatives, family archives, letters, photos | 45 | 45 | 45 | 27 | 34 | 41 | 49 | 51 | 56 |
I know that my relatives fought in the war, but I do not know any details | 33 | 35 | 32 | 41 | 45 | 39 | 30 | 28 | 23 |
Some of my relatives fought in the war but they died or went missing, and we know nothing about them | 12 | 11 | 13 | 19 | 12 | 8 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
No one in my family fought in the war | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 |
I do not know whether anyone in my family fought in the war or not | 5 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 6 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
Don’t know | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
It has been more than seventy years since the end of the Great Patriotic War. But even today there are different opinions on this war. Which opinion is closer to yours? You can choose only one viewpoint (close-ended question, one answer, % of total respondents) | ||
| 2005* | 2024 |
That was the biggest victory in the Russian history; so Victory Day is the most important holiday for us | 76 | 67 |
Dozens of millions of our citizens were killed in the Great Patriotic War; Victory Day should be regarded as a memory and grief day | 18 | 25 |
Today the Great Patriotic War is in the far past which does not bother the modern generation | 5 | 4 |
Don’t know | 1 | 4 |
It has been more than seventy years since the end of the Great Patriotic War. But even today there are different opinions on this war. Which opinion is closer to yours? You can choose only one viewpoint (close-ended question, one answer, % of total respondents) | |||||||||
| Total | Men | Women | Digital generation (2001 and later) | Younger Millennials (1992—2000) | Older Millennials (1982—1991) | Reform generation (1968—1981) | Stagnation generation (1948—1967) | Thaw generation (before 1947) |
That was the biggest victory in the Russian history; so Victory Day is the most important holiday for us | 67 | 66 | 68 | 49 | 47 | 62 | 78 | 75 | 74 |
Dozens of millions of our citizens were killed in the Great Patriotic War; Victory Day should be regarded as a memory and grief day | 25 | 23 | 26 | 42 | 41 | 30 | 16 | 18 | 18 |
Today the Great Patriotic War is in the far past which does not bother the modern generation | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 |
Don’t know | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
If you wanted to tell our children/grandchildren about the victory of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War, what would you tell about first? About what facts, stories, events? Several answers are possible (open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents, answers that gained > 2%) | ||
| 2019 | 2024 |
How relatives fought / parents / grandparents / thanking | 24 | 15 |
Siege of Leningrad | 13 | 13 |
Heroism / bravery / exploits / defending motherland | 11 | 13 |
Battle of Stalingrad | 15 | 12 |
History of the war / course of the war / work of the rear area / history of the victory | - | 10 |
Kursk battle / battle of Kursk bulge | 8 | 7 |
Important battels / key events | 4 | 6 |
Patriotism / pride for the country and people / people’s cohesion | 3 | 6 |
How it all began / 22 June 1941 / German invasion | 6 | 6 |
Victory Day / 9 May / about victory | 6 | 5 |
Capture of Berlin /flag over the Reichstag | 3 | 5 |
Battle of Moscow / defending Moscow | 6 | 5 |
Tough times / people’s life / how people were surviving | 5 | 5 |
A huge number of soldiers killed / Holocaust / genocide | 5 | 4 |
Fascism / tortures | 1 | 3 |
Causes of the War / prerequisites | 2 | 3 |
Brest fortress | 3 | 2 |
Books / movies about war / visiting memorial sites | — | 2 |
War is awful / terrible | 2 | 2 |
About commander-in-chief and commanders / Stalin / Zhukov | 1 | 2 |
About the outcome of the war / life after the war / consequences | 1 | 2 |
Other | 6 | 4 |
Don’t know | 23 | 25 |
*Before 2017, surveys were conducted through household face-to-face interviews (“Express” project); stratified multi-stage quota-based sample; quotas based on socio-demographic parameters, representative of the Russian population aged 18+ by settlement type, sex, gender, education. Sample size, unless otherwise stated, is 1,600 respondents.