Rybachy Peninsula (russian: полуо́стров Рыба́чий, ''poluostrov Rybachiy''; se, Giehkirnjárga; no, Fiskerhalvøya; fi, Kalastajasaarento) is the northernmost part of continental European Russia. Its name is translated as "Fisher Peninsula". It is connected with the

Sredny Peninsula Sredny Peninsula (russian: Сре́дний полуо́стров, lit. ''middle peninsula'') is a peninsula at north part of continental European Russia. The peninsula is connected with the continent by a thin isthmus and with Rybachy Peninsula ...

, "Middle Peninsula" by a thin

isthmus An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmus ...

. So the peninsula is in fact nearly completely surrounded by water. Administratively, it is included into

Pechengsky District Pechengsky District (russian: Пе́ченгский райо́н; fi, Petsamo; no, Peisen; se, Beahcán; sms, Peäccam) is an administrative district (raion), one of the six in Murmansk Oblast, Russia.Law #96-01-ZMO As a municipal division, ...

of Murmansk Oblast and is within several hours of ride from

Murmansk Murmansk (Russian: ''Мурманск'' lit. "Norwegian coast"; Finnish: ''Murmansk'', sometimes ''Muurmanski'', previously ''Muurmanni''; Norwegian: ''Norskekysten;'' Northern Sámi: ''Murmánska;'' Kildin Sámi: ''Мурман ланнҍ'') ...

. Main occupations of the population are

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 sub ...

herding Herding is the act of bringing individual animals together into a group (herd), maintaining the group, and moving the group from place to place—or any combination of those. Herding can refer either to the process of animals forming herds in ...

and (since 2003)

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...

drilling.

History

The peninsula lies in an area where borders were marked relatively late; the Norwegian-Russian border was drawn in 1826, leaving Rybachy on the Russian side of the border. At the time, several Norwegian settlers lived on the peninsula. After the Russian Revolution, the western parts of Sredny and Rybachy were ceded to Finland. After the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

of 1939–1940, Finland ceded them to the Soviet Union by the

Moscow Peace Treaty The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on 12 March 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on 21 March. It marked the end of the 105-day Winter War, upon which Finland ceded border areas to the Soviet Union. The ...

.''Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast'', p. 53 The Norwegian settlers became "trapped" in Soviet Russia after the revolution; some of their descendants were allowed Norwegian citizenship after the fall of the Iron Curtain. During the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

for three years it was an arena of a positional war between Germans and Soviets. The peninsula covered the access to Murmansk and

Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ; rus, Арха́нгельск, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near ...

, which were the main gates for the Lend-Lease. The front split the peninsula in two parts, both sides having heavily fortified positions. Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union the territory was heavily militarized because of the immediate vicinity of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

, a

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

member. Now the military is removed, but in 2005 the territory was still closed to foreigners.

References

Notes

Sources

External links

News article regarding the dispute
{{Authority control Peninsulas of Murmansk Oblast

History

See also

References

Notes

Sources

External links