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Countries and territories where Russian is an official language

  • BashkortostanThe southern Ural Mountains rise sharply from the plains, creating a rugged spine that defines the landscape of Bashkortostan.
  • ChechnyaTraces of human settlement dating back to 40,000 BC were found near Lake Kezenoyam. Cave paintings and artifacts indicate continuous habitation for some…
  • DagestanThe Sulak Canyon cuts deep into the earth, one of the world's deepest canyons. It lies within a republic that covers an area of 50,304 square kilometers.
  • Zabaykalsky KraiZabaykalsky Krai stretches across the Russian Far East, touching China and Mongolia with its vast international boundaries.
  • IngushetiaThe republic of Ingushetia covers just 3,600 square kilometers. It stands as the smallest federal subject in Russia without city status.
  • BuryatiaThe eastern shore of Lake Baikal curves through the south-central region of Siberia. This body of water holds 60% of its shoreline within Buryatia.
  • TuvaThe map marker for the geographic center of Asia sits in a mountain basin near Kyzyl, the capital city. This spot lies at 49 degrees north latitude and 92…
  • TajikistanThe territory now known as Tajikistan has been home to cultures dating back to the fourth millennium BC. Archaeologists have identified the Bronze Age…
  • SevastopolRear Admiral Thomas MacKenzie arrived at the Crimean coast in June 1783 to establish a naval squadron base. He named this new settlement Akhtiar, which…
  • KazakhstanThe Botai culture thrived between 3700 and 3100 BC in the region now known as Kazakhstan. Archaeologists credit this group with the first domestication of…
  • AbkhaziaBetween the 9th and 6th centuries BC, the territory of modern Abkhazia formed part of the ancient Kingdom of Colchis. Around the 6th century BC, Greek…
  • South OssetiaIn the 13th century, a nomadic Iranian tribe known as the Alans faced destruction from Mongol armies. Survivors fled south across the Caucasus Mountains into…
  • Krasnodar KraiThe Black Sea coast stretches from the Kerch Strait to Adler, shielded by the Caucasus Mountains from cold northern winds.
  • Ukrainian Soviet Socialist RepublicThe Bolsheviks convened a separate congress and declared the first Soviet Republic of Ukraine on the 24th of December 1917.
  • KalmykiaKalmykia lies in the Caspian Depression, a low-lying region that extends down to 28 meters below sea level. The republic covers an area of approximately…
  • Sakha RepublicThe Sakha Republic stretches across 3,083,523 square kilometers of the Russian Far East. It is the largest federal subject in Russia and covers half the area…
  • Jewish Autonomous OblastOn the 28th of March 1928, the Presidium of the General Executive Committee of the USSR passed a decree attaching free territory near the Amur River to…
  • Komi RepublicIn the 11th century, merchants from Novgorod ventured into lands they called Zavolochye. This name meant beyond the portage, a reference to the difficult…
  • Republic of Crimea (Russia)In February 2014, Russian leadership decided to start working on returning Crimea to Russia following the Ukrainian revolution that ousted President Viktor…
  • Republics of the Soviet UnionArticle 76 of the 1977 Soviet Constitution defined a Union Republic as "a sovereign Soviet socialist state which has united with the other Soviet republics…
  • Russian-occupied territoriesThe 1992 battle of Bender turned the Dniester river into a blood-soaked boundary. Russian military intervention in June 1992 secured victory for separatists…
  • Russian Soviet Federative Socialist RepublicOn the 7th of November 1917, the Russian Soviet Republic emerged as a sovereign state following the October Revolution. This event marked the creation of the…
  • Byelorussian Soviet Socialist RepublicMinsk fell to Bolshevik forces on the 10th of December 1918. This event marked a turning point after years of shifting control during World War I and the…
  • Kaliningrad OblastIn 1255, the Teutonic Order established a fortress on the ruins of a destroyed Sambian settlement. They named this new stronghold Königsberg to honor Ottokar…
  • Soviet UnionIn November 1917, Vladimir Lenin led the Bolsheviks to seize power from the Provisional Government in Petrograd. Workers and soldiers had formed councils…
  • RussiaAbout 2 million years ago, representatives of Homo erectus migrated to the Taman Peninsula in southern Russia. Flint tools discovered in the North Caucasus…
  • Russian EmpireIn November 1721, the Governing Senate and Synod invested Tsar Peter I with the titles of Peter the Great, Pater Patriae, and Imperator of all Russia.
  • BelarusThe name Belarus appears in German and Latin medieval literature, with the chronicles of Jan of Czarnków mentioning the imprisonment of Lithuanian grand duke…
  • Federal subjects of RussiaThe Constitution of Russia, adopted by federal referendum on the 12th of December 1993 and coming into force on the 25th of December 1993, defines the…