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Kabardino-Balkar Republic

 
 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Kabardino-Balkar Republic
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Kabardino-Balkar Republic (kăb'ərdē'nō-bălkâr') or Kabardino-Balkaria, constituent republic (1990 est. pop. 760,000), c.4,800 sq mi (12,400 sq km), SE European Russia, in the northern part of the Caucasus Mts. Nalchik is the capital. The area is a largely unsettled, roadless mountain wilderness. The population-Kabards, Balkars, Russians, and Ukrainians-is concentrated in the narrow gorges of the streams flowing into the Terek River. The Kabards speak a Caucasian language and are Muslims (Sunni); the Balkars speak a Turkic language. Kabards and Balkars make up 57% of the population; Russians make up 30%. Livestock and poultry are raised, and wheat, corn, hemp, and fruit are grown. Much of the republic's industry is related to agricultural processing. Lumbering and mining are also important. The Kabards were known in the 9th cent. They occupied the land in the foothills of the central Caucasus between the 13th and 15th cent. It is not known when the Balkars settled. They have a mixed Black Bulgar, Alan, and Cuman heritage. The Kabard area became a Muscovite protectorate in 1557. Its annexation by Russia began with the treaty of Kuchuk Kainarji (1774) and was completed in 1827. The area was organized as an region in 1922 and became an autonomous republic in 1936. In 1943 the Balkars, accused of collaborating with the Germans, were deported, and their area, the upper Baksan valley, was ceded to the Georgian SSR. The area was then renamed Kabardinian Autonomous SSR. In 1956 the Balkars were returned, and in 1957 the area assumed its old name. Karbardino-Balkar became a full republic in 1991, and was a signatory to the Mar. 31, 1992, treaty that created the Russian Federation (see Russia). In 2005 the violence in nearby Chechnya spilled over into the republic when militants with ties to the Chechen rebels mounted coordinated attacks in Nalchik.

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Wikipedia: Kabardino-Balkaria
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Kabardino-Balkar Republic (English)
Кабардино-Балкарская Республика (Russian)
Къэбэрдей-Балъкъэр Республикэ Qeberdey-Balqar Respublike (Kabardian)
Къабарты-Малкъар Республика Qabartı-Malqar Respublika (Balkar)
Map of Russia - Kabardino-Balkar Republic (2008-03).svg
Coordinates: n/a
Coat of Arms Flag
Coat of Arms of Kabardino-Balkaria.svg
Coat of arms of Kabardino-Balkaria		 Flag of Kabardino-Balkaria.svg
Flag of Kabardino-Balkaria
Anthem: National Anthem of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic
Capital Nalchik
Established January 5, 1936
Political status Republic
Federal District Southern[1]
Economic region North Caucasus[2]
Area[3] 12,500 km2 (4,826.3 sq mi)
- Rank within Russia 78th
Code
ISO 3166-2:RU		 07
RU-KB
Population (as of the 2002 Census)
Population[4] 901,494 inhabitants
- Rank within Russia 60th
- Density 72.1 /km2 (186.7/sq mi)
- Urban[4] 56.6%
- Rural[4] 43.4%
Official language(s) Russian, Kabardian, Balkar[5]
Government (as of October 2008)
President[6] Arsen Kanokov[7]
Legislative body Parliament[6]
Constitution Constitution of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic
Official website
none

The Kabardino-Balkar Republic (Russian: Кабарди́но-Балка́рская Респу́блика; Kabardian: Къэбэрдей-Балъкъэр Республикэ; Balkar: Къабарты-Малкъар Республика), or Kabardino-Balkaria (Russian: Кабарди́но-Балка́рия), is a federal subject of Russia (a republic) located in the North Caucasus. The direct romanization of the republic's name in the Russian language is Kabardino-Balkarskaya Respublika, or Kabardino-Balkariya.

Contents

Geography

The republic is situated in the North Caucasus mountains, with plains in the northern part.

Time zone

Map of Russia - Moscow time zone.svg

Kabardino-Balkaria is located in the Moscow Time Zone (MSK/MSD). UTC offset is +0300 (MSK)/+0400 (MSD).

Rivers

Major rivers include:

Lakes

Detailed map of Kabardino-Balkaria

There are around one hundred lakes in the Republic, none of which are large. Just over half (fifty-five) are located between the Baksan and Malka Rivers, the largest each of an area of no more than 0.01 square kilometers (0.0 sq mi). Some of the lakes are:

  • Tserikkel Lake (area 26,000 m²; depth 368 m)
  • Lower Goluboye Lake
  • Kel-Ketchen Lake (depth 177 m)
  • Upper Goluboye Lake (depth 18 m)
  • Sekretnoye Lake
  • Tambukan Lake (area 1.77 km²; depth 1.5 to 2 m), partially within Stavropol Krai.

Mountains

Other major mountains include:

Natural resources

Kabardino-Balkaria's natural resources include molybdenum, tungsten, and coal.

Climate

The republic has a continental type climate.

  • Average January temperature: −12 °C (10.4 °F) (mountains) to −4 °C (24.8 °F) (plains)
  • Average July temperature: +4 °C (39.2 °F) (mountains) to +23 °C (73.4 °F) (plains)
  • Average annual precipitation: 500-2,000 mm.

Administrative divisions

Main article: Administrative divisions of Kabardino-Balkaria

Demographics

  • Population: 901,494 (2002)
    • Urban: 510,346 (56.6%)
    • Rural: 391,148 (43.4%)
    • Male: 422,720 (46.9%)
    • Female: 478,774 (53.1%)
  • Females per 1000 males: 1,133
  • Average age: 30.9 years
    • Urban: 32.4 years
    • Rural: 29.0 years
    • Male: 29.1 years
    • Female: 32.8 years
  • Number of households: 227,922 (with 891,783 people)
    • Urban: 144,872 (with 504,085 people)
    • Rural: 83,050 (with 387,698 people)
  • Vital statistics (2005)
    • Births: 8,991 (birth rate 10.0)
    • Deaths: 9,034 (death rate 10.1)
  • Ethnic groups

Kabardino-Balkaria consists of two ethnic territories, one predominantly of Kabardin (speakers of a North-West Caucasian language) and the other predominantly Balkars (speakers of a Turkic language). According to the 2002 Census, Kabardin make up 55.3% of the republic's population, followed by Russians (25.1%) and Balkars (11.6%). Other groups include Ossetians (9,845, or 1.1%), Turks (8,770, or 1.0%), Ukrainians (7,592, or 0.8%), Armenians (5,342, or 0.6%), Koreans (4,722, or 0.5%), Chechens (4,241, or 0.5%), and a host of smaller groups, each accounting for less than 0.5% of the total population.

census 1926 census 1939 census 1959 census 1970 census 1979 census 1989 census 2002
Kabardins 122,402 (60.0%) 152,237 (42.4%) 190,284 (45.3%) 264,675 (45.0%) 303,604 (45.5%) 364,494 (48.2%) 498,702 (55.3%)
Balkars 33,197 (16.3%) 40,747 (11.3%) 34,088 (8.1%) 51,356 (8.7%) 59,710 (9.0%) 70,793 (9.4%) 104,951 (11.6%)
Russians 15,344 (7.5%) 129,067 (35.9%) 162,586 (38.7%) 218,595 (37.2%) 234,137 (35.1%) 240,750 (31.9%) 226,620 (25.1%)
Ossetians 4,078 (2.0%) 4,608 (1.3%) 6,442 (1.5%) 9,167 (1.6%) 9,710 (1.5%) 9,996 (1.3%) 9,845 (1.1%)
Ukrainians 17,213 (8.4%) 11,142 (3.1%) 8,400 (2.0%) 10,620 (1.8%) 12,139 (1.8%) 12,826 (1.7%) 7,592 (0.8%)
Others 11,772 (5.8%) 21,328 (5.9%) 18,315 (4.4%) 33,790 (5.7%) 47,246 (7.1%) 55,672 (7.4%) 53,784 (6.0%)

History

Main article: History of Kabardino-Balkaria

Politics

The head of government in Kabardino-Balkaria is the President. The current President is Arsen Kanokov, who has held the position since September 2005.

The legislative body of the Republic is the Parliament comprising 72 deputies elected for a five year term.[6][8]

The Constitution of Kabardino-Balkaria was adopted on September 1, 1997.

Economy

The economy of Kabardino-Balkaria is primarily agricultural, with lumber production and mining. Most of the industry centers on agricultural processing. The fall of the Soviet Union and the outbreak of the various conflicts in the Caucasus have hit the republic hard, causing a collapse in tourism in the region and producing an unemployment level estimated to be as high as 90%. Poverty is reported to be an endemic problem in the republic. Russian investors have invested in local ski resorts in order to attract more tourists.

See also

References

  1. ^ Госстандарт Российской Федерации. №ОК 024-95 27 декабря 1995 г. «Общероссийский классификатор экономических регионов. 1. Федеральные округа», в ред. Изменения №5/2001 ОКЭР. (Gosstandart of the Russian Federation. #OK 024-95 December 27, 1995 Russian Classification of Economic Regions. 1. Federal Districts, as amended by the Amendment #5/2001 OKER. ).
  2. ^ 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. ).
  3. ^ 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. 
  4. ^ a b c 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 2008-10-17. 
  5. ^ Constitution, Article 76.1
  6. ^ a b c Constitution, Article 11.1
  7. ^ Official website of the President of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic
  8. ^ Constitution, Article 94.

Sources

  • Парламент Кабардино-Балкарской Республики. №28-РЗ 1 сентября 1997 г. «Конституция Кабардино-Балкарской Республики», в ред. Закона №39-РЗ от 10 июля 2008 г. (Parliament of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic. #28-RZ September 1, 1997 Constitution of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic, as amended by the Law #39-RZ of July 10, 2008. ).

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