Sharkawshchyna or Sharkovshchina (Belarusian: Шаркаўшчына, romanized: Šarkaŭščyna;[a] Russian: Шарковщина; Polish: Szarkowszczyzna; Yiddish: שאַרקוישטשינע, romanized: Sharkoyshtchine) is an urban-type settlement in Vitebsk Region, Belarus.

[1] It is located 160 kilometres (99 mi) north of the capital Minsk,[2] and serves as the administrative center of Sharkawshchyna District.

In September 1939, Sharkawshchyna was occupied by the Red Army and, on 14 November 1939, incorporated into the Byelorussian SSR.

[2] Sharkawshchyna was occupied by Nazi Germany on 6–9 July 1941 and administered as a part of the Generalbezirk Weißruthenien of Reichskommissariat Ostland.

[2] Between September and November, about 1,700 Jews were rounded up and confined to the local ghetto with severe overcrowding problems.