Olyokminsk ( rus, Олёкминск, p=ɐˈlʲɵkmʲɪnsk; sah, Өлүөхүмэ, ''Ölüökhüme'') is a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
and the
administrative center
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
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or ...
of
Olyokminsky District
Olyokminsky District (russian: Олёкминский улу́с; sah, Өлүөхүмэ улууһа, ''Ölüökhüme uluuha'') is an administrativeConstitution of the Sakha Republic and municipalLaw #172-Z #351-III district (raion, or ''ulus''), ...
in the
Sakha Republic
Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia),, is the largest republic of Russia, located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of roughly 1 million. Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far Eas ...
,
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 ...
, southwest of
Yakutsk
Yakutsk (russian: Якутск, p=jɪˈkutsk; sah, Дьокуускай, translit=Djokuuskay, ) is the capital city of the Sakha Republic, Russia, located about south of the Arctic Circle. Fueled by the mining industry, Yakutsk has become one of ...
, the
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
of the republic. As of the
2010 Census, its population was 9,494.
History
It was founded in 1635
[''Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Divisions of the Sakha Republic''] as an ''
ostrog'' by the
Cossacks
The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...
led by
Pyotr Beketov
Pyotr Beketov (russian: link=no, Пётр Иванович Бекетов, c. 1600 – c. 1661) was a Cossack explorer of Siberia and founder of various fortified settlements in the region, which later developed into modern cities such as Yakutsk, ...
, sited on the left bank of the Lena opposite the mouth of the
Olyokma River
, image = Olyokma river.jpg
, image_size =
, image_caption = View of the river
, pushpin_map = Russia Sakha Republic
, pushpin_map_size =
, pushpin_map_caption= Location in the Sakha Republic, R ...
. The outpost was later moved a few kilometers upstream, to a location less prone to flooding in spring.
As the junction for river traffic on the Lena and Olyokma, it was the base for Russian expeditions further east and eventually became a trade center on the river route to
Yakutsk
Yakutsk (russian: Якутск, p=jɪˈkutsk; sah, Дьокуускай, translit=Djokuuskay, ) is the capital city of the Sakha Republic, Russia, located about south of the Arctic Circle. Fueled by the mining industry, Yakutsk has become one of ...
. Town status was granted to it in 1783.
Decembrists
The Decembrist Revolt ( ru , Восстание декабристов, translit = Vosstaniye dekabristov , translation = Uprising of the Decembrists) took place in Russia on , during the interregnum following the sudden death of Emperor Ale ...
Nikolay Chizhov and
Andrey Andreyev were exiled here.
During
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 opposin ...
, an airfield was built here for the Alaska-Siberian (
ALSIB ALSIB (or the Northern Trace) was the Soviet Union portion of the Alaska-Siberian air road receiving Lend-Lease aircraft from the Northwest Staging Route. Aircraft manufactured in the United States were flown over this route for World War II combat ...
) air route used to ferry American
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
aircraft to the
Eastern Front.
[Igor Lebedev. ''Aviation Lend-Lease to Russia''. Nova Publishers, 1997, pp. 44–49]
Geography
The town is located on the left bank of the
Lena River
The Lena (russian: Ле́на, ; evn, Елюенэ, ''Eljune''; sah, Өлүөнэ, ''Ölüöne''; bua, Зүлхэ, ''Zülkhe''; mn, Зүлгэ, ''Zülge'') is the easternmost of the three great Siberian rivers that flow into the Arctic Ocean ...
. To the north rises the
Lena Plateau
The Lena Plateau, also known as Prilensky Plateau ( rus, Приленское плато, ''Prilenskoye Plato''; sah, Өлүөнэтээҕи хаптал хайалаах сир), is one of the great plateaus of Siberia. Administratively it is m ...
and to the south, beyond the right bank of the Lena, lies the
Olyokma-Chara Plateau
The Olyokma-Chara Plateau ( rus, Олёкмо-Чарское плоскогорье; sah, Өлүөхүмэ-Чаара хаптал хайалаах сир) is a mountainous area in the Sakha Republic and Irkutsk Oblast, Far Eastern Federal Di ...
.
Google Earth
Google Earth is a computer program that renders a 3D computer graphics, 3D representation of Earth based primarily on satellite imagery. The program maps the Earth by superimposition, superimposing satellite images, aerial photography, and geog ...
Administrative and municipal status
Within the
framework of administrative divisions, Olyokminsk serves as the
administrative center
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
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or ...
of
Olyokminsky District
Olyokminsky District (russian: Олёкминский улу́с; sah, Өлүөхүмэ улууһа, ''Ölüökhüme uluuha'') is an administrativeConstitution of the Sakha Republic and municipalLaw #172-Z #351-III district (raion, or ''ulus''), ...
.
As an
inhabited locality, Olyokminsk is classified as a town under district jurisdiction.
As an administrative division, it is, together with four
rural localities, incorporated within Olyokminsky District as the
Town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
of Olyokminsk.
As a
municipal division, the Town of Olyokminsk is incorporated within Olyokminsky Municipal District as Olyokminsk Urban Settlement.
[Law #173-Z #353-III]
Economy and infrastructure
Timber processing and a power plant are the focus of the town's economy, along with farming in the surrounding area.
Transportation
Olyokminsk is served by the
Olyokminsk Airport
Olyokminsk Airport is an airport serving the urban locality of Olyokminsk, Olyokminsky District, in the Sakha Republic of Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country ...
.
Culture and sights
The town is notable for a number of surviving pre-20th century wooden architecture, including the Alexander Nevsky Chapel (1891) and Cathedral of
Our
Our or OUR may refer to:
* The possessive form of " we"
* Our (river), in Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany
* Our, Belgium, a village in Belgium
* Our, Jura, a commune in France
* Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), a government utility regulato ...
Savior (1860).
Climate
Olyokminsk has a
subarctic climate
The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''Dfc''). Winters have temperatures averaging from in January, while summers have average temperatures from in July. In the summer months of June, July, and August, it is not uncommon for temperatures to surpass during the day.
Precipitation
In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
is significantly higher in summer than at other times of the year. Although summers are similar to republic capital
Yakutsk
Yakutsk (russian: Якутск, p=jɪˈkutsk; sah, Дьокуускай, translit=Djokuuskay, ) is the capital city of the Sakha Republic, Russia, located about south of the Arctic Circle. Fueled by the mining industry, Yakutsk has become one of ...
, winters are less severe courtesy of the lower latitude. As a result, Olyokminsk is rare for the Sakha Republic cities in that it has recorded above-freezing temperatures during January and February. Those episodes are rare and very short-lived.
On August 6, 1986, Olyokminsk recorded its highest ever temperature of .
[ (Select year to 1986, month to 8 and click "View Data" to verify)] The record low for Olyokminsk was in 1907.
July is the only month when temperatures never dropped below and December is only month when temperatures have never reached .
References
Notes
Sources
*Official website of the Sakha Republic. ''Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Divisions of the Sakha Republic''
Olyokminsky District
*
*
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in the Sakha Republic
Road-inaccessible communities of the Sakha Republic
Populated places on the Lena River