Stakhanov, city, eastern Ukraine. It is situated in the northern part of the Donets Basin. The city developed in the 19th century as a coal-mining settlement. From 1935 to 1943, it was known as Sergo. Stakhanov was one of the major coal-mining towns of the Donets Basin, though it declined in importance as pits became worked out and as other fuels increased in importance. The city was renamed in 1978 for Aleksey Stakhanov, the legendary Soviet model coal miner whose use of innovative working methods to greatly increase his personal productivity became the basis for the Stakhanovite movement in the Soviet Union. Pop. (2001) 90,152; (2005 est.) 84,427.