Komi Republic
| Komi Republic (English) Республика Коми (Russian) Коми Республика (Komi) |
|
|---|---|
| - Republic - | |
.svg.png) |
|
 Coat of arms of the Komi Republic |
 Flag of the Komi Republic |
| Anthem | National Anthem of the Komi Republic |
| Political status | |
| Country | Russia |
| Political status | Republic |
| Federal district | Northwestern[1] |
| Economic region | Northern[2] |
| Capital | Syktyvkar |
| Official languages | Russian[3]; Russian, Komi[4] |
| Statistics | |
| Population (2002 Census)[5] | 1,018,674 inhabitants |
| - Rank within Russia | 54th |
| - Urban[5] | 75.3% |
| - Rural[5] | 24.7% |
| - Density | 2.45 /km2 (6.3 /sq mi)[6] |
| Area (as of the 2002 Census)[7] | 415,900 km2 (160,579.9 sq mi) |
| - Rank within Russia | 13th |
| Established | August 22, 1921 |
| License plates | 11 |
| ISO 3166-2:RU | RU-KO |
| Time zone | MSK/MSD (UTC+3/+4) |
| Government (as of November 2008) | |
| Head[8] | Vyacheslav Gayzer[9] |
| Legislature | State Council[8] |
| Constitution | Constitution of the Komi Republic |
| Official website | |
| http://www.rkomi.ru/ | |
The Komi Republic (Russian: Респу́блика Ко́ми, Respublika Komi; Komi: Коми Республика, Komi Respublika) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic).
Contents |
Geography
The republic is situated to the west of the Ural mountains, in the north-east of the East European Plain. Forests cover over 70% of the territory and swamps cover approximately 15%.
- Area: 415,900 km2 (160,600 sq mi)
- Borders (all internal): Nenets (NW/N), Yamalo-Nenets (NE/E), Khanty-Mansi (E), Sverdlovsk (SE), Perm Krai (S), Kirov (S/SW), and Arkhangelsk (W).
- Highest point: Mount Narodnaya (1,894 m)
- Maximum N→S distance: 785 kilometers (488 mi)
- Maximum E→W distance: 695 kilometers (432 mi)
Rivers
Major rivers include:
- Izhma River
- Mezen River
- Pechora River
- Sysola River
- Usa River
- Vashka River
- Vychegda River
- Vym River
Lakes
There are many lakes in the republic. Major lakes include:
- Sindorskoye Lake
- Yam-Ozero Lake
Natural resources
The republic's natural resources include coal, oil, natural gas, gold, diamonds and timber. Native reindeer are in abundance, and have been intentionally bred for human usage by the indigenous population from the beginning.
Around 32,800 km² of mostly boreal forest (as well as some alpine tundra and meadows) in the Republic's Northern Ural Mountains have been recognized in 1995 as a UNESCO World Heritage site, Virgin Komi Forests. It is the first natural UNESCO World Heritage site in Russia and the largest expanse of virgin forests in Europe. The site includes two pre-existing protected areas: Pechora-Ilych Nature Reserve (created in 1930) and Yugyd Va National Park (created in 1994).
Climate
Winters in the republic are long and cold, and the summers, while short, are quite warm.
- Average January temperature: −17 °C (1.4 °F) (southern parts) to −20 °C (−4 °F) (northern parts)
- Average July temperature: +11 °C (51.8 °F) (northern parts) to +15 °C (59 °F) (southern parts)
- Lowest recorded temperature: −58.1 °C (−72.6 °F) (village of Ust-Shchuger)
- Average annual precipitation: 625 mm (24.6 in)
Manpupuner and the 7 Strong Men Rock Formations
Deemed one of the Seven Wonders of Russia, Komi Republic is home to Manpupuner (Man-Pupu-Nyer), a mysterious site in the northern Ural mountains, in the Troitsko-Pechorsky District, made out of seven rock towers bursting out of the flat plateau known as the “7 strong men“. Manpupuner is a very popular attraction in Russia, but not on an international level and information regarding its origin is scarce. We know however that their height and abnormal shapes make the top of these rock giants inaccessible even to experienced rock-climbers..
Administrative divisions
Demographics
- Population: 1,018,674 (2002)
- Urban: 766,587 (75.3%)
- Rural: 252,087 (24.7%)
- Male: 488,316 (47.9%)
- Female: 530,358 (52.1%)
- Females per 1000 males: 1,086
- Average age: 34.5 years
- Urban: 33.7 years
- Rural: 36.8 years
- Male: 32.3 years
- Female: 36.8 years
- Number of households: 381,626 (with 992,612 people)
- Urban: 289,854 (with 749,329 people)
- Rural: 91,772 (with 243,283 people)
- Vital statistics
| Births | Deaths | Birth rate | Death rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | 4,760 | 4,353 | ||
| 1930 | 10,256 | 6,574 | ||
| 1940 | 14,976 | 12,134 | ||
| 1945 | 6,432 | 6,185 | ||
| 1950 | 20,087 | 6,002 | 37.6 | 11.2 |
| 1960 | 25,578 | 5,010 | 30.6 | 6.0 |
| 1965 | 18,956 | 5,241 | 20.2 | 5.6 |
| 1970 | 16,462 | 6,276 | 17.0 | 6.5 |
| 1975 | 18,899 | 7,284 | 18.1 | 7.0 |
| 1980 | 20,685 | 9,169 | 18.2 | 8.1 |
| 1981 | 21,244 | 9,103 | 18.4 | 7.9 |
| 1982 | 23,420 | 8,758 | 20.0 | 7.5 |
| 1983 | 23,806 | 9,250 | 20.1 | 7.8 |
| 1984 | 24,217 | 9,486 | 20.2 | 7.9 |
| 1985 | 23,303 | 9,334 | 19.2 | 7.7 |
| 1986 | 24,176 | 8,112 | 19.7 | 6.6 |
| 1987 | 23,616 | 8,544 | 19.0 | 6.9 |
| 1988 | 20,916 | 8,930 | 16.7 | 7.1 |
| 1989 | 18,481 | 8,857 | 14.7 | 7.1 |
| 1990 | 16,930 | 9,321 | 13.6 | 7.5 |
| 1991 | 15,589 | 9,665 | 12.7 | 7.9 |
| 1992 | 13,880 | 11,426 | 11.4 | 9.4 |
| 1993 | 12,158 | 14,642 | 10.1 | 12.2 |
| 1994 | 11,835 | 16,074 | 10.1 | 13.7 |
| 1995 | 11,105 | 15,057 | 9.7 | 13.2 |
| 1996 | 10,900 | 13,674 | 9.7 | 12.2 |
| 1997 | 10,388 | 12,244 | 9.4 | 11.1 |
| 1998 | 10,793 | 11,545 | 9.9 | 10.6 |
| 1999 | 9,680 | 12,253 | 9.1 | 11.5 |
| 2000 | 9,906 | 13,594 | 9.4 | 12.9 |
| 2001 | 10,325 | 13,968 | 10.0 | 13.5 |
| 2002 | 11,177 | 15,265 | 10.9 | 14.9 |
| 2003 | 11,462 | 15,810 | 11.3 | 15.6 |
| 2004 | 11,489 | 15,210 | 11.5 | 15.2 |
| 2005 | 10,975 | 15,074 | 11.1 | 15.2 |
| 2006 | 10,872 | 13,519 | 11.1 | 13.8 |
| 2007 | 11,523 | 12,304 | 11.9 | 12.7 |
| 2008 | 11,719 | 12,270 | 12.2 | 12.7 |
- Ethnic groups
According to the 2002 Census, ethnic Russians make up 59.6% of the republic's population, while the ethnic Komi are only 25.2%. Other groups include Ukrainians (6.1%), Tatars (15,680 or 1.5%), Belarusians (15,212 or 1.5%), Ethnic Germans (9,246 or 0.9%), Chuvash (7,529 or 0.7%), Azeris (6,066 or 0.6%), and a host of smaller groups, each accounting for less than 0.5% of the total population. 5,700 people (0.6%) did not indicate their nationalities during the Census.
| census 1926 | census 1939 | census 1959 | census 1970 | census 1979 | census 1989 | census 2002 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Komi | 191,245 (92.2%) | 231,301 (72.5%) | 245,074 (30.4%) | 276,178 (28.6%) | 280,798 (25.3%) | 291,542 (23.3%) | 256,464 (25.2%) |
| Russians | 13,731 (6.6%) | 70,226 (22.0%) | 389,995 (48.4%) | 512,203 (53.1%) | 629,523 (56.7%) | 721,780 (57.7%) | 607,021 (59.6%) |
| Ukrainians | 34 (0.0%) | 6,010 (1.9%) | 80,132 (9.9%) | 82,955 (8.6%) | 94,154 (8.5%) | 104,170 (8.3%) | 62,115 (6.1%) |
| Others | 2,304 (1.1%) | 11,459 (3.6%) | 90,998 (11.3%) | 93,466 (9.7%) | 105,886 (9.5%) | 133,355 (10.7%) | 93,074 (9.1%) |
Vital statistics for 2007
Source: [1]
| Vital Statistics | Births 2007 | Deaths 2007 | BR 2007 | DR 2007 | NGR 2007 | BR Jan-aug 2007 | BR J-A 08 | DR J-A 07 | DR J-A 08 | NGR J-A 07 | NGR J-A 08 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Komi Republic | 11,523 | 12,304 | 11.9 | 13.8 | -0.19% | 11.8 | 11.9 | 12.9 | 12.6 | -0.11% | -0.07% |
| Urban | 8,087 | 8,204 | NA | NA | NA | 11.4 | 11.3 | 11.7 | 11.2 | -0.03% | 0.01% |
| Rural | 3,436 | 4,100 | NA | NA | NA | 13.0 | 13.8 | 16.4 | 17.0 | -0.34% | -0.32% |
| Syktyvkar | 3,013 | 2,733 | 12.3 | 12.1 | 0.02% | 12.3 | 11.6 | 11.6 | 11.1 | 0.07% | 0.05% |
| Vorkuta | 1,126 | 1,064 | 9.5 | 10.3 | -0.08% | 9.3 | 9.7 | 8.8 | 8.2 | 0.05% | 0.15% |
| Vuktyl | 210 | 200 | 12.6 | 12.2 | 0.04% | 12.9 | 11.2 | 12.1 | 14.7 | 0.08% | -0.35% |
| Inta | 414 | 495 | 10.2 | 13.7 | -0.35% | 10 | 10.4 | 12.1 | 13.2 | -0.21% | -0.28% |
| Pechora | 714 | 916 | 11.3 | 16.2 | -0.49% | 11.3 | 11.4 | 14.8 | 14.5 | -0.35% | -0.31% |
| Sosnogorsk | 582 | 725 | 11.6 | 15.8 | -0.42% | 10.9 | 11.7 | 14.8 | 14 | -0.39% | -0.23% |
| Usinsk | 614 | 459 | 11.9 | 8.9 | 0.30% | 11.5 | 12.1 | 8.8 | 8.8 | 0.27% | 0.33% |
| Ukhta | 1,414 | 1,612 | 11.1 | 12.7 | -0.16% | 11 | 11.4 | 13.1 | 11.4 | -0.21% | 0.00% |
| Izhemsky District | 315 | 368 | 15.6 | 1.5 | -0.09% | 15.2 | 17.4 | 18.2 | 18.2 | -0.30% | -0.08% |
| Knyazhpogostsky District | 290 | 411 | 10.9 | 16.8 | -0.59% | 10.2 | 10.2 | 15.5 | 14.6 | -0.53% | -0.44% |
| Koygorodsky District | 129 | 140 | 13.9 | 18.6 | -0.47% | 14.1 | 14.1 | 15.1 | 19.1 | -0.10% | -0.50% |
| Kortkerossky District | 314 | 373 | 13.7 | 17.8 | -0.41% | 14 | 12.2 | 15.8 | 16.7 | -0.18% | -0.45% |
| Priluzsky District | 318 | 402 | 13.9 | 21.8 | -0.79% | 13 | 14.2 | 16.6 | 19.2 | -0.36% | -0.50% |
| Syktyvdinsky District | 308 | 341 | 12.8 | 14.6 | -0.18% | 13.2 | 15.6 | 15.1 | 14.8 | -0.19% | 0.08% |
| Sysolsky District | 214 | 302 | 13.3 | 17.0 | -0.37% | 14.7 | 12 | 18.8 | 17.9 | -0.41% | -0.59% |
| Troitsko-Pechorsky District | 193 | 262 | 12.0 | 19.1 | -0.71% | 12.2 | 13.9 | 16.7 | 18.5 | -0.45% | -0.46% |
| Udorsky District | 280 | 305 | 11.9 | 14.3 | -0.24% | 11.7 | 13 | 12.5 | 13.3 | -0.08% | -0.03% |
| Ust-Vymsky District | 443 | 543 | 14.0 | 19.4 | -0.54% | 14.9 | 12.7 | 17.7 | 16 | -0.28% | -0.33% |
| Ust-Kulomsky District | 453 | 433 | 14.8 | 19.5 | -0.47% | 15.1 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 15.2 | 0.12% | -0.01% |
| Ust-Tsilemsky District | 179 | 220 | 12.5 | 16.0 | -0.35% | 11.1 | 15.3 | 16.3 | 17.8 | -0.52% | -0.25 |
History
A northernmost portion of Europe, crossing the Arctic Circle, Komi was an unspoiled land throughout most of history, dwelt in only by nomadic native peoples of the Finno-Ugric linguistic stock, known as the Komi or the Zirians. Eventually, it became a part of the Russian Empire.
Starting from the expedition led by Alexander von Keyserling in 1843, the Komi territory was most extensively explored in the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries by the Russians, who found ample reservoirs of various minerals, as well as timber, to exploit. After the founding of the Soviet Union, the Komi-Zyryan Autonomous Oblast was established on August 22, 1929, and on December 5, 1936, it was reorganized into the Komi Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic with its administrative center located at the town of Syktyvkar.
Many of the "settlers" who came in the early 20th century were prisoners of the Gulag who were sent by the hundreds of thousands to perform forced labor in the Arctic regions of the USSR. Towns sprang up around labor-camp sites, which were initially carved out of the untouched tundra and taiga by gangs of prisoners.
Politics
The head of government in the Komi Republic is the Head of the Republic. As of 2008, the head of the republic is Vladimir Torlopov, who was elected in December 2001.
The State Council is the legislature.
Economy
The Komi Republic's major industries include oil processing, timber, woodworking, natural gas and electric power industries. Major industrial centers are Syktyvkar, Inta, Pechora, Sosnogorsk, Ukhta, and Vorkuta.
Transportation
Railroad transportation is very well developed. The most important railroad line is Kotlas–Vorkuta–Salekhard, which is used to ship most goods in and out of the republic. The rivers Vychegda and Pechora are navigable. There are airports in Syktyvkar, Ukhta, and Vorkuta.
In 1997, total railroad trackage was 1,708 km, automobile roads 4,677 km.
Education
There are over 450 secondary schools in the republic (with ~180,000 students). The most important higher education facilities include Syktyvkar State University and Ukhta State Technical University.
Sports
Stroitel have played in the highest division of Russian Bandy League for a long time.
See also
|
|
References
- ↑ Президент Российской Федерации. Указ №849 от 13 мая 2000 г. «О полномочном представителе Президента Российской Федерации в федеральном округе». Вступил в силу 13 мая 2000 г. Опубликован: "Собрание законодательства РФ", №20, ст. 2112, 15 мая 2000 г. (President of the Russian Federation. Decree #849 of May 13, 2000 On the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in a Federal District. Effective as of May 13, 2000).
- ↑ Госстандарт Российской Федерации. №ОК 024-95 27 декабря 1995 г. «Общероссийский классификатор экономических регионов. 2. Экономические районы», в ред. Изменения №5/2001 ОКЭР. (Gosstandart of the Russian Federation. #OK 024-95 December 27, 1995 Russian Classification of Economic Regions. 2. Economic Regions, as amended by the Amendment #5/2001 OKER. ).
- ↑ According to Article 68.1 of the Constitution of Russia, Russian is the official language on the whole territory of the Russian Federation. Article 68.2 further stipulates that only the republics have the right to establish official languages other than Russian.
- ↑ Constitution, Article 67
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2004-05-21). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек (Population of Russia, its federal districts, federal subjects, districts, urban localities, rural localities—administrative centers, and rural localities with population of over 3,000)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. http://perepis2002.ru/ct/html/TOM_01_04_1.htm. Retrieved 2010-03-01.
- ↑ The value of density was calculated automatically by dividing the 2002 Census population by the area specified in the infobox. Please note that this value may not be accurate as the area specified in the infobox is not necessarily reported for the same year as the Census (2002).
- ↑ Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2004-05-21). "Территория, число районов, населённых пунктов и сельских администраций по субъектам Российской Федерации (Territory, Number of Districts, Inhabited Localities, and Rural Administration by Federal Subjects of the Russian Federation)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. http://perepis2002.ru/ct/html/TOM_01_03.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-17.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Constitution, Article 8
- ↑ Official website of the Komi Republic. Vyacheslav Gayzer (Russian)
Sources
- 17 февраля 1994 г. «Конституция Республики Коми», в ред. Закона №44-РЗ от 4 мая 2008 г. (February 17, 1994 Constitution of the Komi Republic, as amended by the Law #44-RZ of May 4, 2008. ).
Further reading
- Pearson, M., Ojanen, P., Havimo, M., Kuuluvainen, T. & Vasander, H. (eds.) 2007. On the European Edge — Journey through Komi Nature and Culture. University of Helsinki Department of Forest Ecology Publications 36. 216 p. ISBN 978-952-10-3898-3.
- Strogoff, M., Brochet, P. & Auzias, D. 2005. Guidebook Komi Republic. Avant-Garde Publishers, Moscow. 176. p. ISBN 5-86394-255-X.
External links
- (Russian) Official site of the Republic of Komi.
- (Russian) Website of Syktyvkar City - The Capital of the Republic of Komi.
- (Russian) Official website of the Vorkuta City.
- (English) Official site of the Syktyvkar State University).
- (Russian) Official site of the Syktyvkar State University).
- (Russian) Official site of the Ukhta State Technical University.
- (Russian) Snowboarding in Komi Republic.
- (English) Map of the Komi Republic.
- (English) Historic-demographic note on the Nenets of the Komi Republic
- (English) Virgin Komi Forests at Natural Heritage Protection Fund
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||