Berkut riot police throw stones at anti-government protesters, who are throwing rocks in return, on Independence Square, Feb. 19, 2014 in Kiev. (Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images)

Much of the world has focused its attention on Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, and the center of a a series of deadly clashes between police and protesters.

For most Americans, Kiev is a name more associated with a chicken dish than with one of the largest cities in Europe.

• Kiev has a population of 2.7 million, slightly greater than that of Chicago.
• The city has an area of 324 square miles, about the size of San Diego.
• In Ukrainian it's spelled Kyiv.

Anti-government protesters dig up cobblestones to use them as rocks against riot police on Kiev's Independence square, Feb. 19, 2014. (AFP/Getty Images)

Much of the fighting has taken place in Kiev's central Independence Square, also known as Maidan.

• The square, where protesters made camp in December, was first built in the 19th century.
• There are approximately 20,000 protesters in the square.
• At least 59 people have died and hundreds have been injured in the square this week.
• The square is approximately 390,000 square feet, or about the size of seven football fields.
• Much of the square was destroyed during World War II, rebuilt under the Communists and rechristened Independence Square in 1991.
• Protesters are prying up bricks from the historic square to use as missiles in clashes with police.

Kiev is the capital of Ukraine.

• Ukraine has a population of 45.5 million, about size of California and Massachusetts combined.
• The country is 233,000 sq. miles, making it roughly the size of Texas.