Zalishchyky (Ukrainian: Залiщики, IPA: [zɑˈliʃtʃɪkɪ] ⓘ; Polish: Zaleszczyki[1]), also spelled Zalischyky, is a small city located on the Dniester River in Chortkiv Raion, Ternopil Oblast, western Ukraine.

[3] Zalishchyky's name, as well as its precursors Zalissia and Zalishche, probably derives from "zalis", a compound of the Ukrainian words "за" (za) and "ліс" (lis), together meaning "behind (the) forest".

[4] Hinterwalden, the name for a Saxon settlement in Zalishchyky, also shares this etymological root, originating from the German "hinterwald" (itself meaning, literally, "behind forest").

[6] In 1669, the village was completely destroyed by Turk invaders, and the survivors were almost wiped out under the rule of the sultan Mehmed IV during the better part of the Second Polish–Ottoman War.

[5] In 1750, at the invitation of Prince Stanisław Poniatowski, Saxon weavers of Silesian cloth settled on part of an historically older portion of Zalishchyky, and named it Hinterwälden.

On 18 June 1809, during the War of the Fifth Coalition, the town was the site of a fierce battle (Polish: Bitwa pod Zaleszczykami) that ended with an Austrian victory.

In 1838, the commander of Zalishchyky's infantry battalion reported the beginnings of a peasant revolt against the didych (Ukrainian: дідичів), the land owners.

[7] No battles or skirmishes actually occurred during this "revolt", instead peasants went on strike and lodged complaints to the district council from the government.

The Austrian government took many measures to suppress the peasant discontent, and finally in July 1838 evacuated the district administration and started a riot in Zalishchyky, all the while torturing innocent civilians.

After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in 1918, Zalishchyky was annexed along with the majority of East Galicia by the short-lived West Ukrainian People's Republic, following which Yevhen Petrushevych was appointed as the town dictator.

Zalishchyky had a direct rail connection with Warsaw and Gdynia (the distance of 1,314 kilometres (816 miles), the longest route in the Second Polish Republic).

After Soviet capture and occupation of Zalishchyky, the beaches and orchards were destroyed, the Baroque town hall was demolished, and a monument of Lenin was erected in its spot.

Following the onset of the war, many officials from the Polish government and military travelled through Zalishchyky en route to Romania, whose borders still remain within a considerably short distance from the modern town.

In early July 1941, on a date not certainly known, the Soviets drowned close to a thousand civilians in the Dniester in what became the Zalishchyky tragedy.

Much of the town died of hunger and typhoid in the winter of 1941, and Jews were moved to neighboring ghettos, mainly to Tłuste, beginning on 20 September 1942.

In March 1944, the region was liberated by the Russians, before briefly returning to German control, during which many Jews were murdered by the panicking Nazis.

In October, more than 800 citizens from Zalishchyky were forcibly drafted by the Soviets to so called penal military units (Russian: штрафной батальон, Shtrafbaty) to fight in the Baltic Offensive, less than 20 survived.

Concurrently, Zalishchyky's government has begun work on repairing infrastructure, such as asphalt repair, paved lighting, new lights, benches, litter bins, and a number of improvements to either of the city's local parks; one of which, the Zalishchyky Central Park, houses a number of historic monuments and rare species of flora.