Altai Krai (russian: Алта́йский край, r=Altaysky kray, p=ɐlˈtajskʲɪj kraj) is a

federal subject The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation (russian: субъекты Российской Федерации, subyekty Rossiyskoy Federatsii) or simply as the subjects of the federation (russian ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

krai A krai or kray (; russian: край, , ''kraya'') is one of the types of federal subjects of modern Russia, and was a type of geographical administrative division in the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR. Etymologically, the word is relate ...

). It borders clockwise from the west,

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

(

East Kazakhstan Region East Kazakhstan Region ( kk, Шығыс Қазақстан облысы, translit=Şyğys Qazaqstan oblysy; russian: Восточно-Казахстанская область, Vostochno-Kazakhstanskaya oblast) is a region of Kazakhstan. It occupi ...

and

Pavlodar Region Pavlodar Region ( kk, Павлодар облысы, translit=Pavlodar oblysy; russian: Павлодарская область, translit=Pavlodarskaya oblast) is a region of Kazakhstan. The population of the region was and ; the latest official ...

Novosibirsk Novosibirsk (, also ; rus, Новосиби́рск, p=nəvəsʲɪˈbʲirsk, a=ru-Новосибирск.ogg) is the largest city and administrative centre of Novosibirsk Oblast and Siberian Federal District in Russia. As of the Russian Census ...

and

Kemerovo Oblast Kemerovo Oblast — Kuzbass (russian: Ке́меровская о́бласть — Кузба́сс, translit=Kemerovskaya oblast — Kuzbass, ), also known simply as Kemerovo Oblast (russian: Ке́меровская о́бласть, label=non ...

s, and the

Altai Republic The Altai Republic (; russian: Респу́блика Алта́й, Respublika Altay, ; Altai: , ''Altay Respublika''), also known as Gorno-Altai Republic, and colloquially, and primarily referred to in Russian to distinguish from the neighbour ...

. The krai's

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

is the

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

Barnaul Barnaul ( rus, Барнау́л, p=bərnɐˈul) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative centre of Altai Krai, Russia, located at the confluence of the Barnaulka and Ob Rivers in the West Siberian Plain. As ...

. As of the 2010 Census, the population of the krai was 2,419,755.

Name

The region is named after the Altai mountains. In Russian, Altai Krai means the Altai region.

Geography

Altai Krai has rolling foothills, grasslands, lakes, rivers, and mountains. The highest point of the krai is high

Mayak Shangina Mayak Shangina (russian: link=no, Маяк Шангина) is a mountain in Altai Krai, Russia. At it is the highest point of Altai Krai. The summit was formerly unnamed. The choosing of the name followed a 2011 initiative of local paper Alta ...

. The climate is severe with long cold dry winters and hot, usually dry summers. The region's main waterway is the

Ob River } The Ob ( rus, Обь, p=opʲ: Ob') is a major river in Russia. It is in western Siberia; and together with Irtysh forms the world's List of rivers by length, seventh-longest river system, at . It forms at the confluence of the Biya (river), Biya ...

, which gives its name to the

Ob Plateau The Ob Plateau ( rus, Приобское плато, ''Priobskoye Plato''), is one of the great plateaus of Siberia. Administratively it falls within Altai Krai and Novosibirsk Oblast, Siberian Federal District, Russia. The plateau is named after ...

.Geographical position, geological structure and surface topography of the south of Western Siberia (in Russian)
/ref> The Biya and

Katun River The Katun (, ''Katuń''; , ''Kadın'') is a river in the Altai Republic and the Altai Krai of Russia. It forms the Ob as it joins the Biya some southwest of Biysk.

s are also important. The biggest lakes are

Lake Kulunda Lake Kulunda or Kulundinskoye (russian: Кулундинское озеро) is a lake in the southern part of the West Siberian Plain, Altai Krai, south-central Russia. The Kulunda and Suetka rivers flow into the lake, which is connected by a ch ...

Lake Kuchuk Lake Kuchuk or Kuchukskoye (russian: Кучукское озеро) is a bittern salt lake in the southern part of the West Siberian Plain, Blagoveshchensky District, Altai Krai, south-central Russia. Its waters are briny, containing sodium sul ...

Bolshoye Topolnoye Bolshoye Topolnoye (russian: Большое Топольное), meaning "big poplar", is a lake in the southern part of the West Siberian Plain, Altai Krai, south-central Russia.Google Earth Its waters are slightly saline. There are no settlem ...

and

Lake Mikhaylov A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

. Altai Krai has rich natural resources, including lumber, as well as significant mineral reserves. These include the nonferrous metals

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...

tungsten Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolat ...

molybdenum Molybdenum is a chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42 which is located in period 5 and group 6. The name is from Neo-Latin ''molybdaenum'', which is based on Ancient Greek ', meaning lead, since its ores were confused with lea ...

bauxite Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO(O ...

, and

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

, as well as

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the fo ...

. Forests cover about of the krai's land. See also

Geography of South-Central Siberia South Central Siberia is a geographical region north of the point where Russia, China, Kazakhstan and Mongolia come together. Regions of Asia North Asia The Four Corners At approximately , the borders of Russia, China, Mongolia and Kaza ...

. This region of Siberia is extremely important due to its

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

, an area of over is recognised by Unesco as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. The area is home to animals considered rare, including the endangered

snow leopard The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a Felidae, felid in the genus ''Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia, Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on the IUCN Red ...

History

Bone fragments of the

Denisova hominin The Denisovans or Denisova hominins ) are an extinct species or subspecies of archaic human that ranged across Asia during the Lower and Middle Paleolithic. Denisovans are known from few physical remains and consequently, most of what is kno ...

originate from the

Denisova Cave Denisova Cave (russian: Денисова пещера, lit= the cave of Denis, translit= Denísova peshchéra; alt, Аю-Таш, lit= Bear Rock, translit= Ayu Tash) is a cave in the Bashelaksky Range of the Altai mountains, Siberia, Russia. The ...

in Altai Krai. This area is part of a great crossroads in the ancient world.

Nomadic A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the popu ...

tribes crossed through the territory during periods of migration. These nomadic tribes consisted of different peoples. Archeological sites reveal that ancient humans lived in the area. The

Altay people The Altai people ( alt, Алтай-кижи, Altai-kizhi), also the Altaians ( alt, Алтайлар, Altailar), are a Turkic ethnic group of indigenous peoples of Siberia mainly living in the Altai Republic, Russia. Several thousand of the Alta ...

are a

Turkic people The Turkic peoples are a collection of diverse ethnic groups of West Asia, West, Central Asia, Central, East Asia, East, and North Asia as well as parts of Europe, who speak Turkic languages.. "Turkic peoples, any of various peoples whose memb ...

, some of whom settled here, who were originally nomadic and date back to the 2nd millennium BC. The territory of the krai has been controlled by the

Xiongnu The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 20 ...

Empire (209 BC-93 AD), the

Rouran Khaganate The Rouran Khaganate, also Juan-Juan Khaganate (), was a tribal confederation and later state founded by a people of Proto-Mongolic Donghu origin.*Pulleyblank, Edwin G. (2000)"Ji 姬 and Jiang 姜: The Role of Exogamic Clans in the Organizatio ...

(330-555), the

Mongol Empire The Mongol Empire of the 13th and 14th centuries was the largest contiguous land empire in history. Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Europe, ...

(1206-1368), the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongols, Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fr ...

, the

Northern Yuan The Northern Yuan () was a dynastic regime ruled by the Mongols, Mongol Borjigin clan based in the Mongolian Plateau. It existed as a rump state after the collapse of the Yuan dynasty in 1368 and lasted until its conquest by the Jurchen people, ...

(1368-1691) and the

Zunghar Khanate The Dzungar Khanate, also written as the Zunghar Khanate, was an Inner Asian khanate of Oirat Mongol origin. At its greatest extent, it covered an area from southern Siberia in the north to present-day Kyrgyzstan in the south, and from th ...

(1634–1758).History of Mongolia, Volume II, 2003 After the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...

and the rise of the

Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

, the policy of

war communism War communism or military communism (russian: Военный коммунизм, ''Voyennyy kommunizm'') was the economic and political system that existed in Soviet Russia during the Russian Civil War from 1918 to 1921. According to Soviet histo ...

was imposed on the rural population of Altai Krai, destroying the livelihood of many local farmers. In response, the

peasant rebellion of Sorokino The peasant rebellion of Sorokino, officially called the Kulak Rebellion of Sorokino by the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Soviet Russian authorities, was a popular uprising against the Soviet policy of war communism in Altai Krai an ...

broke out in 1921; this uprising was quickly crushed by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

. Many locals who had taken part in the rebellion were later put on trial and convicted to hard labor or execution, in accordance with

NKVD Order No. 00447 NKVD Order No. 00447 of July 30, 1937 (russian: О операции по репрессированию бывших кулаков, уголовников и других антисоветских элементов, "About operation to repress ...

in 1937. During the interwar period, the Soviet state collectivised the livestock and husbandry activities of the Altai population within Altai Krai, resulting in local resistance to the measures and their subsequent migration, with their herds, to China and Mongolia. In June 1942 Altai Krai was one of the territories to which the families of men deported from Eastern Europe, in particular "foreigners" and "other ethnicities" such as

Kola Norwegians The Kola Norwegians ( no, Kolanordmenn) are Norwegian people, who mostly settled along the coastline of the Kola Peninsula in Russia. History In 1860 the Russian Tsar Alexander II granted permission for Norwegian settlements on the Kola. Around ...

Lithuanians Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Uni ...

and

Latvians Latvians ( lv, latvieši) are a Baltic ethnic group and nation native to Latvia and the immediate geographical region, the Baltics. They are occasionally also referred to as Letts, especially in older bibliography. Latvians share a common Latvi ...

, by Soviet Russia to hard labor camps.

Administrative divisions

Heraldry

Flag

The

flag of Altai Krai The flag of Altai Krai, in the Russian Federation, is a vertical bicolor of light-blue and red charged with a spike of wheat on the blue band and the arms of the krai on the red band. The design follows the pattern of the flags of the Russian SFS ...

is red, with the leftmost portion blue. The blue portion contains, in golden yellow, a stylized depiction of an upright

ear of wheat An ear is the organ (anatomy), organ that enables hearing and, in mammals, Sense of balance, body balance using the vestibular system. In mammals, the ear is usually described as having three parts—the outer ear, the middle ear and the in ...

. Centered in the red field is the

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

of the territory.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Altai Krai was established in 2000. It includes a shield of

French heraldry French heraldry is the use of heraldic symbols in France. Although it had a considerable history, existing from the 11th century, such formality has largely died out in France, as far as regulated personal heraldry is concerned. Civic heraldry on ...

form with a basement of 8/10th of its height and a sharp part in the middle of the bottom part. Bottom edges of the shield are rounded. The shield is divided with a horizontal stripe into two equal parts. In the upper part has a blue background, which is a symbol of glory, is a steamy oven of the 18th century, which reflects a historical past of the krai. In the bottom part on the red background, which is a symbol of dignity, braveness and courage, is an image of the Koluvan Queen of Vases mainly in green color, which is kept in the Hermitage Museum. The shield is framed with golden wheat ears which represent agriculture as a main industry of Altai Krai.

Politics

During the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

period, the high authority in the krai was shared between three persons: The first secretary of the Altai CPSU Committee (who in reality had the most authority), the chairman of the Krai Soviet (legislative power), and the Chairman of the Krai Executive Committee (executive power). Since 1991, CPSU lost all the power, and the head of the krai administration, and eventually the governor was appointed/elected alongside elected regional parliament. The Charter of Altai Krai is the fundamental law of the region. The Legislative Assembly of Altai Krai is the

regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

standing legislative (representative) body. The Legislative Assembly exercises its authority by passing laws, resolutions, and other legal acts and by supervising the implementation and observance of the laws and other legal acts passed by it. The highest executive body is the Krai Government, which includes territorial executive bodies such as district administrations, committees, and commissions that facilitate development and run the day to day matters of the province. The Krai Administration supports the activities of the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

who is the highest official and acts as guarantor of the observance of the krai Charter in accordance with the

Constitution of Russia The Constitution of the Russian Federation () was adopted by national referendum on 12 December 1993. Russia's constitution came into force on 25 December 1993, at the moment of its official publication, and abolished the Soviet system of gov ...

. On August 7, 2005, the krai's then-head of administration

Mikhail Yevdokimov Mikhail Sergeyevich Yevdokimov (russian: Михаил Сергеевич Евдокимов; 6 December 1957 – 7 August 2005) was a Russian comedian, actor and politician. Biography Yevdokimov was born in Stalinsk (now Novokuznetsk), weste ...

died in a car crash.

List of chairpersons of the Altai Krai Legislative Assembly

The chairperson of the Altai Krai Legislative Assembly is the presiding officer of that

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

Office-holders

Economy

As of 2013 the Krai's largest enterprises were supermarket chain , coke fuel producer

Altai-Koks Open Joint-Stock Company Altai-Koks is one of the largest Russian producers of coke and by-products. It produces coke and a wide range of chemical products. The company has a 13% share of overall Russian coke production. Geography & History The ...

and

rolling stock The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can b ...

manufacturer Altaivagon.

Evalar Evalar (russian: Эвалар) is a Russian company producing dietary supplements. As of 2014, it held the largest share – 17% – of Russia's dietary supplements market. Commercial and plantation of medicinal herbs Evalar located in the Altai ...

- a prominent dietary supplement manufacturer - is also located in Altai Krai. In January 2019, the average wage in Altai Krai was 23,941 RUB, which was an increase of 6.3% over the previous year.

Demographics

Population: 2,390,638 (2014 est.);Altai Krai Territorial Branch of the

Federal State Statistics Service The Federal State Statistics Service (russian: Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Росстат), ''Federal'naya sluzhba gosudarstvennoi statistiki (Rosstat)'') is the governmental statistics ...

Оценка численности населения на 1 января 2014 года и в среднем за 2013 год
As of the 2010 Census,

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

form an overwhelming majority of the population, at 93.9%.

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

are the second-largest group, at 2.1% (see

Mennonite settlements of Altai Mennonite settlements of Altai arose after the 19 September 1906 act of the Duma and State Council of Imperial Russia, which provided for a resettlement bureau to distribute free land in Altai Krai. During 1907–1908 an area of over 6,660,000 ha ( ...

and the

German National District German National District (russian: Неме́цкий национа́льный райо́н, translit=Nemetskiy natsional'nyy rayon; german: Deutscher Nationalrajon) is an administrativeLaw #28-ZS and municipalLaw #18-ZS district (raion), one ...

). Other groups include

Ukrainians Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...

(1.4%),

Kazakhs The Kazakhs (also spelled Qazaqs; Kazakh: , , , , , ; the English name is transliterated from Russian; russian: казахи) are a Turkic-speaking ethnic group native to northern parts of Central Asia, chiefly Kazakhstan, but also parts o ...

(0.3%),

Tatars The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

(0.3%),

Belarusians , native_name_lang = be , pop = 9.5–10 million , image = , caption = , popplace = 7.99 million , region1 = , pop1 = 600,000–768,000 , region2 = , pop2 ...

(0.2%),

Armenians Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...

(0.3%), and people of other ethnicities. Additionally, 40,984 people were registered from administrative databases, and could not declare an ethnicity. It is estimated that the proportion of ethnicities in this group is the same as that of the declared group. *Births: 30,739 (2011) Естественное движение населения в разрезе субъектов Российской Федерации
Gks.ru. Retrieved on 2013-08-20. *Deaths: 35,114 (2011) ;Vital statistics for 2012 *Births: 32 695 (13.6 per 1000) *Deaths: 35 030 (14.6 per 1000) *Total fertility rate: 2009 - 1.62 , 2010 - 1.63 , 2011 - 1.65 , 2012 - 1.81 , 2013 - 1.83 , 2014 - 1.84 , 2015 - 1.81 , 2016 - 1.79(e)

Settlements

Religion

According to a 2012 survey 22.6% of the population of Altay Krai adheres to the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

, 3% are unaffiliated

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, 1% are Orthodox Christian believers without belonging to any church or are adherents of other

Orthodox church Orthodox Church may refer to: * Eastern Orthodox Church * Oriental Orthodox Churches * Orthodox Presbyterian Church * Orthodox Presbyterian Church of New Zealand * State church of the Roman Empire * True Orthodox church See also * Orthodox (dis ...

es, 1% are adherents of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. In addition, 31% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious", 27% is

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

, and 14.4% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question.

Sister district

Xinjiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

References

Notes

Sources

* * *

External links

Official website of Altai KraiOfficial website of Altai Krai
*Kommersant.com
Information about Altai KraiLibrary of Congress Russian
(pdf)

{{Use mdy dates, date=October 2014 Central Asia Krais of Russia States and territories established in 1937 Russian-speaking countries and territories