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Hrodna Voblast or Grodno Oblast ( Hrodzyenskaya Voblasts; Grodnenskaya Oblast) is a voblast (province
Province

A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state....
) in northwestern Belarus
Belarus

Belarus is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Russia to the north and east, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the north....
.

The capital - Hrodna
Hrodna

Hrodna or Grodno , is a city in Belarus. It is located on the Neman River , close to the borders of Poland and Lithuania . It has 325,164 inhabitants ....
 is the biggest city of the province. It lies on the Neman River
Neman River

Neman or Nemunas is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipeda....
. Hrodna's existence is attested to from 1127. Two castles dating from the 14th - 18th centuries are located here on the steep right bank of the Nemen. Many consider this city one of the most beautiful in Belarus: one of its masterpieces survived through the centuries, Orthodox
Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
 St Barys & St Hleb (Kalozhskaya) Church dating back to the 12th century, is the second oldest in Belarus.

region was the westernmost "border" of the Early East Slavs (tribal union Dregovichs
Dregovichs

The Dregovichs were one of the tribe unions of Early East Slavs, and inhabited the territories down the stream of the Pripyat River and northern parts of the right-bank Dnieper river ....
?) on the lands of the Balts
Balts

For the similarly named ethnic group inhabiting northern Pakistani Kashmir, see Balti peopleThe Balts or Baltic peoples , defined as speakers of one of the Baltic languages, a branch of the Indo-European languages family, are descended from a group of Indo-Europeans tribes who settled the area between lower Vistula and upper D...
 in the 6th-9th centuries.






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Hrodna Voblast or Grodno Oblast ( Hrodzyenskaya Voblasts; Grodnenskaya Oblast) is a voblast (province
Province

A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state....
) in northwestern Belarus
Belarus

Belarus is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Russia to the north and east, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the north....
.

The capital - Hrodna
Hrodna

Hrodna or Grodno , is a city in Belarus. It is located on the Neman River , close to the borders of Poland and Lithuania . It has 325,164 inhabitants ....
 is the biggest city of the province. It lies on the Neman River
Neman River

Neman or Nemunas is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipeda....
. Hrodna's existence is attested to from 1127. Two castles dating from the 14th - 18th centuries are located here on the steep right bank of the Nemen. Many consider this city one of the most beautiful in Belarus: one of its masterpieces survived through the centuries, Orthodox
Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
 St Barys & St Hleb (Kalozhskaya) Church dating back to the 12th century, is the second oldest in Belarus.

History

This region was the westernmost "border" of the Early East Slavs (tribal union Dregovichs
Dregovichs

The Dregovichs were one of the tribe unions of Early East Slavs, and inhabited the territories down the stream of the Pripyat River and northern parts of the right-bank Dnieper river ....
?) on the lands of the Balts
Balts

For the similarly named ethnic group inhabiting northern Pakistani Kashmir, see Balti peopleThe Balts or Baltic peoples , defined as speakers of one of the Baltic languages, a branch of the Indo-European languages family, are descended from a group of Indo-Europeans tribes who settled the area between lower Vistula and upper D...
 in the 6th-9th centuries. In the 13th-14th centuries it was a center of the area sometimes known as Black Ruthenia
Black Ruthenia

Black Ruthenia, Black Rus or Black Russia are variant conventional term used for a region around Navahrudak , in the western part of contemporary Belarus on the upper reaches of the Neman River....
, that with neighbor the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was an Eastern and Central European state from the 12th /13th century until the 18th century. It was founded by Lithuanians, at the time one of the Lithuanian mythology Baltic tribes, whose initial lands covered Auk?taitija, the eastern part of present day Lithuania....
 became a basis for Baltic-Slavic state - Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was an Eastern and Central European state from the 12th /13th century until the 18th century. It was founded by Lithuanians, at the time one of the Lithuanian mythology Baltic tribes, whose initial lands covered Auk?taitija, the eastern part of present day Lithuania....
 (GDL). Being a part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth was one of the largest and most populous countries in 16th and 17th-century Europe, formed by a Union of Lublin of Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1569....
, amounting to the GDL's Trakai Voivodship, it was annexed by Russian Empire
Russian Empire

File:Russian Emperor Flag.jpgFile:Romanov Flag.svgThe Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917....
 in 1795 during the partitions of Poland
Partitions of Poland

The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth....
. The city of Hrodna then became a seat for Grodno Governorate
Grodno Governorate

The Grodno Governorate, was a governorate of the Russian Empire....
. During the World War I
World War I

World War I, or the First World War , was a global military conflict which involved the Great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War I and the Central Powers....
 the area was occupied by Germany. During the German occupation the Belarusian National Republic
Belarusian National Republic

The Belarusian People's Republic was an independent Belarusian state, which declared independence in 1918. It is also called the Belarusian National Republic, in order to distinguish it from communist People's Republics, and the current BNR Rada refers to it as Belarusan Democratic Republic....
 declared its independence from the Soviet Russia in March 1918 in Minsk
Minsk

Minsk is the Capital and largest city in Belarus, situated on the Svislach River and Nemiga rivers. Minsk is also a headquarters of the Commonwealth of Independent States ....
, Hrodna was the site of the last stand of the BNR's Council (Rada). They were then forced to emigrate before Soviet troops captured the region in 1919. Since 1921 under the Peace Treaty of Riga the territory belonged to Second Polish Republic
Second Polish Republic

The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland is the Republic of Poland between World War I and World War II....
, but after the Soviets invaded Poland in autumn of 1939
Soviet invasion of Poland (1939)

The 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland was a military operation that started without a formal declaration of war on 17 September 1939, during the early stages of World War II, sixteen days after the beginning of the Nazi Germany invasion of Poland ....
, it became a part
Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union

After the invasion of Poland that marked the start of World War II in 1939, the Soviet invasion of Poland invaded eastern regions of the Second Polish Republic, and annexed territories totaling 201,015 km? with a population of 13.299 million....
 of the USSR and since its fall in 1991 - one of 6 provinces of independent Belarus
Belarus

Belarus is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Russia to the north and east, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the north....
.

The Mir Castle Complex
Mir Castle Complex

The Mirsky Castle Complex , is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Belarus located in the town of Mir, Belarus in the Karelichy District of the Hrodna voblast, at , 29 km to the north-west from another World Heritage site, Nesvizh Castle....
, a 16th century historical landmark as well as part of the Belovezhskaya Pushcha nature reserve, both UNESCO
UNESCO

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on 16 November 1945....
 World Heritage site
World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site that is on the list maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 Sovereign state which are elected by their General Assembly for a four-year term....
s are located in this region.

Demographics (2002)


The province covers an area of 25,000 km˛ and has a population of 1,146,100 (2004 estimate), giving a population density of 46/km˛. About 63.5% live in cities and towns, while 36.5% live in rural areas. Females account for 53% of the region's population and men 47%. There are about 310,000 children under 19, and about 240,000 people aged over 60.

Belarusians account for 62.3% of the population. The region is home to a significant minority population: Poles (24.8%), Russians (10%), Ukrainians (1.8%), Jews (0.4%), Tatars (0.2%), Lithuanians (0.2%), other nationalities (0.4%).

Whereas Belarus as a whole is primarily Russian Orthodox, Hrodna Voblast has two major religions, Roman Catholic and Russian Orthodox. There are 449 religious communities and 18 denominations, 2 Russian Orthodox eparchial
Eparchy

Eparchy is an anglicized Greek language word, authentically latinized as eparchia and loosely translating as 'rule over something', but has the following specific meanings, both in political history and in the hierarchy of the Eastern Churches....
 districts, 1 Orthodox nun
Nun

A Nun is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an monasticism who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent....
 sorority, 2 Catholic monk
Monk

A Monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, the unconditioning of mind and body in favor of the realization of one's true nature, and does so living either alone or with any number of like-minded people, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose....
 brotherhoods, 1 Catholic nun
Nun

A Nun is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an monasticism who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent....
 sorority, 2 Orthodox and 4 Catholic monasteries, 165 Orthodox and 169 Catholic churches. The Catholic minority is made up mostly of Poles, although the identifier "Pole" has also been historically applied to Catholic Belarusians.

There are a number on national minority associations: 6 Polish
Poles

The Polish people, or Poles , are a West Slavs ethnic group of Central Europe, living predominantly in Poland. Poles are sometimes defined as people who share a common Polish culture and are of Polish descent....
, 6 Lithuanian
Lithuanians

Lithuanians are the Balts ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number a little over 3 million people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland....
, 4 Jewish, 1 Ukrainian
Ukrainians

Ukrainians are an East Slavs ethnic group primarily living in Ukraine, or more broadly?citizens of Ukraine . Some 200 years ago and times prior to that, Ukrainians were usually referred to and known as Rusyny ....
, 1 Russian
Russians

The Russian people are an East Slavs ethnic group, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries.The English language term Russians is used to refer to the citizens of Russia, regardless of their ethnicity ; in Russian language, the demonym Russian is translated as Rossiyanin ....
, 1 Tatar, 1 Georgian, 1 Chuvash
Chuvash

Chuvash may refer to:*Chuvash people*Chuvash language*?uvas, AzerbaijanExcess long comment to prevent listing on...
.

Administrative subdivisions


The Hrodna Voblast is subdivided into 17 districts (raions), 194 selsovets, 12 cities, 6 city municipalities, and 21 urban-type settlement
Urban-type settlement

Urban-type settlement is an official designation for a certain type of urban localities used in some of the countries of the former Soviet Union....
s.

Cities and towns
List of cities in Belarus

This table lists the most notable cities and towns of Belarus. There are two main grades of subdivision in Belarus. The major division is called Subdivisions of Belarus , and the minor is called Subdivisions of Belarus ....
 


  • Hrodna
    Hrodna

    Hrodna or Grodno , is a city in Belarus. It is located on the Neman River , close to the borders of Poland and Lithuania . It has 325,164 inhabitants ....
     - 332,300
  • Lida
    Lida

    Lida is a city in western Belarus in Hrodna Voblast, situated 160 km west of Minsk. It is the fourteenth largest city in Belarus....
     - 98,200
  • Slonim
    Slonim

    Slonim is a city in Belarus in the Hrodna voblast and Slonim Rayon, located at the junction of the Shchara and Isa Rivers, 143 km southeast of Hrodna ....
     - 51,600
  • Vawkavysk
    Vaukavysk

    Vawkavysk or Volkovyvsk is a town in the Hrodna Voblast of Belarus. It is the center of Vaukavysk district and has a population of around 48,000....
     - 46,800
  • Smarhon
    Smarhon

    Smarhon is a city in Hrodna Voblast, Belarus. It is located at . It was the site of Smarhon , now mostly abandoned. Smarhon is located 107km of the Belarus' capital, Minsk....
     - 36,700
  • Navahrudak - 30,800
  • Karelichy - 30,000
  • Masty - 17,400
  • Shchuchyn - 16,000
  • Ashmyany - 14,900
  • Berastavitsa - 12,000
  • Skidziel
    Skidel

    Skidel is a Belarusian town that is located 31 kilometers from Grodno. The village is sometimes referred to as a shtetl due to the high volume of Jewish people living there before the Holocaust....
     - 10,900
  • Iwye - 8,900
  • Dzyatlava - 8,300
  • Astravets
    Astraviec

    Astravets is a city in the Hrodna Voblast of Belarus, an administrative center of the Astravets district.External links...
     - N/A
  • Svislach
    Svislach

    Svislac or Svislach is a town in the South-West of Hrodna voblast, Belarus, an administrative center of the Svislac district.It is connected with Vaukavysk by a railroad branch and with Hrodna by a highway....
     - N/A


See also


  • Subdivisions of Belarus
  • Poland
    Second Polish Republic

    The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland is the Republic of Poland between World War I and World War II....
    ’s Nowogródek Voivodeship
    Nowogródek Voivodeship (1919-1939)

    Nowogr?dek Voivodeship was a unit of administrative division of the Second Polish Republic between 1919 and 1939, with the capital in the town of Nowogrodek ....
     (1919-1939)
  • Hrodna is one of the most ancient towns in Belarus
    The most ancient towns in Belarus

    Grodno , Novogrudok , Slonim , Volkovysk , Lida , Nesvizh? , ......
    .


External links

  • , in Belarusian, Russian, English and Chinese