Astrakhan Oblast is a
federal subjectRussia is a federation that consists of 83 subjects. These subjects are of equal federal rights in the sense that they have equal representation—two delegates each—in the Federation Council . However, they do differ in the degree of autonomy they enjoy...
of
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(an
oblastOblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
). Its administrative center is the city of
AstrakhanAstrakhan is a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. The city lies on the Volga River, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea. Population: 502,800 ; 504,501 ; 509,210 .-Medieval history:Astrakhan' is situated in the Volga Delta, rich...
.
Astrakhan Oblast is located in the
Moscow Time ZoneMoscow Time is the time zone for the city of Moscow, Russia and most of western Russia, including Saint Petersburg. It is the second westernmost of the 11 time zones of Russia....
(MSK/MSD).
UTCCoordinated Universal Time , ) is a time standard based on International Atomic Time with leap seconds added at irregular intervals to compensate for the Earth's slowing rotation...
offset is +0300 (MSK)/+0400 (MSD).
Population:
1,005,276 (
2002 CensusRussian Census of 2002 was the first census of the Russian Federation carried out on October 9 through October 16, 2002. It was carried out by the Russian Federal Service of State Statistics .-Resident population:...
); 998,114 (
1989 CensusThe 1989 Soviet census, conducted between January 12-19 of that year, was the last and alledgedlly the most comprehensive one conducted in the former USSR. It resulted in a total population of 286,730,819 inhabitants...
)
Ethnic groups:
According to the
2002 CensusRussian Census of 2002 was the first census of the Russian Federation carried out on October 9 through October 16, 2002. It was carried out by the Russian Federal Service of State Statistics .-Resident population:...
the ethnic composition was •
RussianThe Russian people are an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
69.69% •
KazakhThe Kazakhs are a Turkic people of the northern parts of Central Asia ....
14.21% •
TatarTatars , sometimes spelled Tartars, are a Turkic ethnic group mainly inhabiting Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. They numbered 10 million in the late 20th Century, which includes all subgroups of Tatar people, such as...
7.02% •
UkrainianUkrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group primarily living in Ukraine, or more broadly—citizens of Ukraine...
1.25% • Chechen 1.00% •
AzeriAside from the large Azeri community native to Russia's Dagestan Republic, the majority of Azeris in Russia are fairly recent immigrants. Azeris started settling in Russia around the late 19th century, but their migration became intensive after World War II. It rapidly increased with the collapse...
0.82% •
KalmykKalmyk people or Kalmyks is the name given to western Mongolic people - Oirats who migrated from Central Asia in the seventeenth century. Today they form a majority in the autonomous Republic of Kalmykia on the western shore of the Caspian Sea...
0.71% •
ArmenianThe Armenians are a nation and ethnic group which originated in the Caucasus and the Armenian Highland. It is estimated that there are 8 million Armenians around the world. There is a large concentration of Armenians in the Caucasus, especially in Armenia, and there is a significant presence in...
0.63% • Nogay 0.45% • Roma 0.43% •
AvarAvars or Caucasian Avars are a modern people of Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan, in which they are the predominant group. The Caucasian Avar language belongs to the Northeast Caucasian language family ....
0.42% •
LezginThe Lezgins are an ethnic group, living predominantly in southern Dagestan and north-eastern Azerbaijan, who speak the Lezgian language.In the 19th century, the term was used more broadly for all ethnic groups speaking Northeast Caucasian languages,...
0.36% • Dargin 0.35% •
BelarusiansBelarusians are an East Slavic ethnic group who populate the majority of the Republic of Belarus. Introduced to the world as a new state in the early 1990s, the Republic of Belarus brought with it the notion of a re-emerging Belarusian ethnicity, drawn upon the lines of the Belarusian language...
0.26% •
TurkmenThe Turkmen are a Turkic people located primarily in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, northern Iraq and in northeastern Iran...
0.21% •
KoreanKoryo-saram is the name which ethnic Koreans in the post-Soviet states use to refer to themselves. Approximately 500,000 ethnic Koreans reside in the former Soviet Union, primarily in the now-independent states of Central Asia. There are also large Korean communities in southern Russia , the...
0.21% • Astrakhan Tatar 0.20% •
GermanEthnic Germans , also collectively referred to as the German diaspora, are those who are considered, by themselves or others, to be of German origin ethnically, not necessarily born or living within the present-day Federal Republic of Germany, holding its citizenship or speaking the German language...
0.14% • Kumyks 0.14% •
GeorgianThe Georgians are a South Caucasian people and nation mainly centered in Georgia. They also live in Turkey, Russia, the United States, Iran, and other countries....
0.12% •
ChuvashChuvash may refer to:*Chuvash people*Chuvash language*Chuvashia, a republic in Russia*Çuvaş, Azerbaijan...
0.12% •
TurkishThe Turkish people , also known as the "Turks" are defined mainly as citizens of the Republic of Turkey. An early historic text provided the definition of being a Turk as "any individual within the Republic of Turkey; whatever his/her faith or racial/ethnic background; who speaks Turkish, grows up...
0.11% •
UzbekThe Uzbeks are a Turkic-speaking people in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China...
0.10% • Jewish 0.10% • Mordvin 0.09% •
TabasaranThe Tabasarans are an ethnic group who live mostly in Dagestan, Russia. Their population in Russia is about 132,000. They speak the Tabasaran language. They are mainly Sunni Muslims. Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva is half Tabasaran....
0.08% • with many other groups of less than eight hundred persons each.
Astrakhan Oblast is a
federal subjectRussia is a federation that consists of 83 subjects. These subjects are of equal federal rights in the sense that they have equal representation—two delegates each—in the Federation Council . However, they do differ in the degree of autonomy they enjoy...
of
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(an
oblastOblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
). Its administrative center is the city of
AstrakhanAstrakhan is a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. The city lies on the Volga River, close to where it discharges into the Caspian Sea. Population: 502,800 ; 504,501 ; 509,210 .-Medieval history:Astrakhan' is situated in the Volga Delta, rich...
.
Time zone
Astrakhan Oblast is located in the
Moscow Time ZoneMoscow Time is the time zone for the city of Moscow, Russia and most of western Russia, including Saint Petersburg. It is the second westernmost of the 11 time zones of Russia....
(MSK/MSD).
UTCCoordinated Universal Time , ) is a time standard based on International Atomic Time with leap seconds added at irregular intervals to compensate for the Earth's slowing rotation...
offset is +0300 (MSK)/+0400 (MSD).
Demographics
Population:
1,005,276 (
2002 CensusRussian Census of 2002 was the first census of the Russian Federation carried out on October 9 through October 16, 2002. It was carried out by the Russian Federal Service of State Statistics .-Resident population:...
); 998,114 (
1989 CensusThe 1989 Soviet census, conducted between January 12-19 of that year, was the last and alledgedlly the most comprehensive one conducted in the former USSR. It resulted in a total population of 286,730,819 inhabitants...
)
Ethnic groups:
According to the
2002 CensusRussian Census of 2002 was the first census of the Russian Federation carried out on October 9 through October 16, 2002. It was carried out by the Russian Federal Service of State Statistics .-Resident population:...
the ethnic composition was •
RussianThe Russian people are an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
69.69% •
KazakhThe Kazakhs are a Turkic people of the northern parts of Central Asia ....
14.21% •
TatarTatars , sometimes spelled Tartars, are a Turkic ethnic group mainly inhabiting Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. They numbered 10 million in the late 20th Century, which includes all subgroups of Tatar people, such as...
7.02% •
UkrainianUkrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group primarily living in Ukraine, or more broadly—citizens of Ukraine...
1.25% • Chechen 1.00% •
AzeriAside from the large Azeri community native to Russia's Dagestan Republic, the majority of Azeris in Russia are fairly recent immigrants. Azeris started settling in Russia around the late 19th century, but their migration became intensive after World War II. It rapidly increased with the collapse...
0.82% •
KalmykKalmyk people or Kalmyks is the name given to western Mongolic people - Oirats who migrated from Central Asia in the seventeenth century. Today they form a majority in the autonomous Republic of Kalmykia on the western shore of the Caspian Sea...
0.71% •
ArmenianThe Armenians are a nation and ethnic group which originated in the Caucasus and the Armenian Highland. It is estimated that there are 8 million Armenians around the world. There is a large concentration of Armenians in the Caucasus, especially in Armenia, and there is a significant presence in...
0.63% • Nogay 0.45% • Roma 0.43% •
AvarAvars or Caucasian Avars are a modern people of Caucasus, mainly of Dagestan, in which they are the predominant group. The Caucasian Avar language belongs to the Northeast Caucasian language family ....
0.42% •
LezginThe Lezgins are an ethnic group, living predominantly in southern Dagestan and north-eastern Azerbaijan, who speak the Lezgian language.In the 19th century, the term was used more broadly for all ethnic groups speaking Northeast Caucasian languages,...
0.36% • Dargin 0.35% •
BelarusiansBelarusians are an East Slavic ethnic group who populate the majority of the Republic of Belarus. Introduced to the world as a new state in the early 1990s, the Republic of Belarus brought with it the notion of a re-emerging Belarusian ethnicity, drawn upon the lines of the Belarusian language...
0.26% •
TurkmenThe Turkmen are a Turkic people located primarily in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, northern Iraq and in northeastern Iran...
0.21% •
KoreanKoryo-saram is the name which ethnic Koreans in the post-Soviet states use to refer to themselves. Approximately 500,000 ethnic Koreans reside in the former Soviet Union, primarily in the now-independent states of Central Asia. There are also large Korean communities in southern Russia , the...
0.21% • Astrakhan Tatar 0.20% •
GermanEthnic Germans , also collectively referred to as the German diaspora, are those who are considered, by themselves or others, to be of German origin ethnically, not necessarily born or living within the present-day Federal Republic of Germany, holding its citizenship or speaking the German language...
0.14% • Kumyks 0.14% •
GeorgianThe Georgians are a South Caucasian people and nation mainly centered in Georgia. They also live in Turkey, Russia, the United States, Iran, and other countries....
0.12% •
ChuvashChuvash may refer to:*Chuvash people*Chuvash language*Chuvashia, a republic in Russia*Çuvaş, Azerbaijan...
0.12% •
TurkishThe Turkish people , also known as the "Turks" are defined mainly as citizens of the Republic of Turkey. An early historic text provided the definition of being a Turk as "any individual within the Republic of Turkey; whatever his/her faith or racial/ethnic background; who speaks Turkish, grows up...
0.11% •
UzbekThe Uzbeks are a Turkic-speaking people in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China...
0.10% • Jewish 0.10% • Mordvin 0.09% •
TabasaranThe Tabasarans are an ethnic group who live mostly in Dagestan, Russia. Their population in Russia is about 132,000. They speak the Tabasaran language. They are mainly Sunni Muslims. Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva is half Tabasaran....
0.08% • with many other groups of less than eight hundred persons each. • An additional 0.29% of residents declined to state their ethnicity on the census questionnaire.
Religion
A majority of the population (primarily ethnic
RussiansThe Russian people are an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
) adheres to Orthodox Christianity. There is also a significant
Muslim:A Muslim , , is an adherent of the religion of Islam. The feminine form is Muslimah . Literally, the word means "one who submits ". Muslim is the participle of the same verb of which Islam is the infinitive. Muslims believe that there is only one God, translated in Arabic as Allah...
minority, constituting around 20% of the population.
History
Astrakhan Governorate (
guberniyaA guberniya was a major administrative subdivision of Imperial Russia, usually translated as government, governorate, or province. A guberniya was ruled by a governor , a word borrowed from Latin , in turn from Greek...
) of the
Russian EmpireThe Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia, and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
was created in 1717. It was on the southwestern frontier of the empire and was known as Astrakhan
kraiKrai or kray is a term used to refer to nine of Russia's 83 federal subjects. The term is often translated as territory, province, country or region....
.
As of 1917, it bordered Saratov, Samara, and Stavropol Governorates, Don Cossack Voisko,
Ural Cossack HostThe Ural Cossack Host was a cossack host formed from the Ural Cossacks -- those cossacks settled by the Ural River. Their alternative name, Yaik Cossacks, comes from the old name of the river.- History :...
, Terek Oblast, and the
Caspian SeaThe Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. It has a surface area of 371,000 square kilometres and a volume of 78,200 cubic kilometres...
. It included the
Kalmyk steppeKalmuk Steppe, or Kalmyk Steppe is a steppe of approximately 100,000 km², bordering the northwest Caspian Sea, bounded by the Volga on the N.E., the Manych on the S.W. and the territory of the Don Cossacks on the N.W...
and
KyrgyzThe Kyrgyz are a Turkic ethnic group found primarily in Kyrgyzstan.-Etymology:There are several etymological theories on the ethnonym "Kyrgyz."...
steppe.
Since 1919 the geography of the guberniya/oblast has been changed many times. It assumed its present form in 1957.
Sources
- "Astrakhan Oblast. A Reference on Administrative-Territorial Subdivision, 1918-1983", Volgograd
Volgograd , formerly called Tsaritsyn and Stalingrad is an important industrial city and the administrative center of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. It is long, north to south, situated on the western bank of the Volga River and has a population of 1.011 millon people...
, 1984, in Russian. ("Астраханская область. Справочник по административно-территориальному делению, 1918-1983 гг." Волгоград: Ниж.-Волж. кн. изд-во, 1984. – 336 с.)
External links
Official website of Astrakhan Oblast The Book of Memory of Victims of Political Represions of Astrakhan Oblast, a list of 10,955 names repressed in Astrakhan Oblast in 1918-1986.