Donetsk has been home to many people, including sportsmen, musicians, writers, businessmen, dissidents, and many others. The citizens of Donetsk are commonly called Donechyani (Ukrainian: Донеччяни). The following is a list of famous people that were born or raised in the city:
Rinat Akhmetov — Ukrainian business oligarch
Zalman Aran (Aharonovich) - Israeli social-democratic politician, minister of education (1955–1960) and (1963–1969)
Assol — a child singer
Polina Astakhova — Ukrainian gymnast

Donetsk was founded in 1869 when the Welsh businessman John Hughes built a steel plant and several coal mines in the southern part of Russian Empire at Aleksandrovka (Ukrainian: Олександрівка). The town initially was given the name Hughesovka (Yuzovka; Russian: Юзовка; Ukrainian: Юзівка). By the beginning of the 20th century, Yuzovka had approximately 50,000 inhabitants, and had attained the status of a city in 1917.

The spoil tips near the Kalmius. On a foreground - Chervonogvardejskij raion of Makiivka
Donetsk lies in the steppe landscape of Ukraine, surrounded by scattered woodland, hills (spoil tips), rivers, and lakes. The northern outskirts of the city are mainly used for agriculture. The Azov Sea, 95 km south of Donetsk, is a popular recreational area for those living in Donetsk. A wide belt of farmlands surrounds the city.

Donetsk (former names: Yuzovka, Staline, Stalino, see also: Cities' alternative names), is a large city in eastern Ukraine on the Kalmius river. Administratively, it is a center of Donetsk Oblast, while historically, it is the unofficial capital and largest city of the economic and cultural Donets Basin (Donbass) region.