Taymyr Autonomous Okrug

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Taymyr Autonomous Okrug (Russian: Таймы́рский автоно́мный о́круг, Taymyrsky avtonomny okrug), or Taymyria, was a federal subject of Russia (an autonomous okrug of Krasnoyarsk Krai), the northernmost in mainland Russia (and thus Asia). It is named after the Taymyr Peninsula. It is also called Dolgan-Nenets Autonomous District (Долгано-Ненецкий автономный округ), by the name of the indigenous people, Dolgans and Nenetses.

With an area of 862,100 km² (ranked 4th) and a population of 39,786 (2002 Census), Taymyria was one of the least densely populated areas of Russia as of 2006. Dudinka, with more than half of Taymyria's inhabitants, is the administrative centre.

Following a referendum on the issue held on April 17, 2005, Taymyr and Evenk Autonomous Okrugs were merged into Krasnoyarsk Krai effective January 1, 2007.

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[edit] Time zone

Taymyria is located in the Krasnoyarsk Time Zone (KRAT/KRAST). UTC offset is +0700 (KRAT)/+0800 (KRAST).

[edit] Administrative divisions

The city of Norilsk, even though it is geographically located within Taymyr Autonomous Okrug, was administratively subordinated directly to Krasnoyarsk Krai prior to the merger. This also applied to the urban-type settlement of Snezhnogorsk, which was administratively subrodinated to Norilsk. Therefore, the okrug's population reported by the Census authorities does not include the populations of Norilsk and Snezhnogorsk.

See also: Administrative divisions of Krasnoyarsk Krai

[edit] Taymyr In Popular Culture

Although not actually having been filmed in Taymyr, it is depicted in the 1985 film White Nights, starring Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines. During the opening moments of the film, Baryshnikov's character Nikolai Rodchenko-a Soviet defector-is on a passenger plane that crash lands at "Norilsk Air Base." He inevitably is taken into the home of Hines' character-a US defector-and his wife (played by Isabella Rossellini), where they advise him that he is in Taymyr upon regaining consciousness.

[edit] Demographics

Population (2002): 39,786.

Ethnic groups: Of the 39,786 residents (as of the 2002 census) 1,018 (2.6%) chose not to specify their ethnic background. A quarter of the population identified themselves as indigenous Siberians (Dolgans, Nenets, Nganasans, Evenks, Enets). 58.6% of the population were ethnic Russians. Other nationalities included 2,423 Ukrainians (6.1%), 587 Volga Germans (1.5%), 425 Tatars (1.1%), 294 Belarusians (0.7%) and 239 Azeris (0.6%)

census 1939 census 1959 census 1970 census 1979 census 1989 census 2002
Dolgans1 3,971 (13.8%) 3,934 (11.8%) 4,344 (11.4%) 4,338 (9.7%) 4,939 (8.9%) 5,517 (13.9%)
Nenets 2,523 (8.8%) 1,878 (5.6%) 2,247 (5.9%) 2,345 (5.2%) 2,446 (4.4%) 3,054 (7.7%)
Enets2 103 (0.2%) 197 (0.5%)
Nganasans3 682 (2.0%) 765 (2.0%) 746 (1.7%) 849 (1.5%) 766 (1.9%)
Evenks 563 (2.0%) 412 (1.2%) 413 (1.1%) 338 (0.8%) 311 (0.6%) 305 (0.8%)
Russians 16,931 (59.0%) 21,799 (65.3%) 25,465 (66.9%) 30,640 (68.2%) 37,438 (67.1%) 23,348 (58.6%)
Others 4,723 (16.5%) 4,677 (14.0%) 4,826 (12.7%) 6,546 (14.6%) 9,717 (17.4%) 6,629 (16.7%)
Notes:
  1. In the 1939 and 1959 census Dolgans were counted as Yakuts.
  2. In the 1939, 1959, 1970 and 1979 census Enets were counted as Nenets.
  3. In the 1939 census Nganasans were counted as Nenets.

Vital statistics (2005)

  • Births: 548 (birth rate 14.0)
  • Deaths: 369 (death rate 9.4)