Orsk (russian: Орск) is the second largest
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 ...
in
Orenburg Oblast
Orenburg Oblast (russian: Оренбургская область, ''Orenburgskaya oblast'') is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Orenburg. From 1938 to 1957, it bore the name ''Chkalov Oblast'' () ...
, Russia, located on the steppe about southeast of the southern tip of the
Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western ...
. The city straddles the
Ural River
The Ural (russian: Урал, ), known before 1775 as Yaik (russian: Яик, ba, Яйыҡ, translit=Yayıq, ; kk, Жайық, translit=Jaiyq, ), is a river flowing through Russia and Kazakhstan in the continental border between Europe and Asia ...
. Population: It lies adjacent to the
Kazakhstan–Russia border
The Kazakhstan–Russia border (russian: Казахстанско-российская граница, kk, Қазақстан-Ресей шекарасы) is the international border between the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federatio ...
.
Geography
The city is located where the Ural River turns from south to west and where the
Or River comes in from the southeast (hence the name). It was part of the
Orenburg Line of forts.
History
Orsk was founded (as
Orenburg
Orenburg (russian: Оренбу́рг, ), formerly known as Chkalov (1938–1957), is the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Ural River, southeast of Moscow. Orenburg is also very close to the border with Kazakhst ...
) in 1735 in the process of the
Russian colonization of Bashkiria and the Southern Ural region.
[С.М.Стрельников. Географические названия Оренбургской области. — Изд. 2-е, доп. и испр. — Кувандык, 2002. — 176 с.] The first settlement was founded by an expedition headed by
Ivan Kirilov
Ivan () is a Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John) from Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. The earliest person known to bear the name was Bulga ...
as a military fortification at the
Mount Preobrazhenskaya on the left bank of the Yaik River (presently Ural River). Originally called Orenburg, its name was changed to Orsk in 1739. In 1743, the name of
Orenburg
Orenburg (russian: Оренбу́рг, ), formerly known as Chkalov (1938–1957), is the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies on the Ural River, southeast of Moscow. Orenburg is also very close to the border with Kazakhst ...
was transferred to the town which is now known under this name; it is located west of Orsk. At its foundation it marked a southeastern projection of European Russia toward the steppes of Central Asia. It housed an exchange post and Russian customs that dealt with traders from
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 ...
and Asia.
From June 22, 1847 to May 11, 1848, the fortress of Orsk was home of the exiled
Ukrainian
Ukrainian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Ukraine
* Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe
* Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine
* So ...
poet and painter
Taras Shevchenko
Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko ( uk, Тарас Григорович Шевченко , pronounced without the middle name; – ), also known as Kobzar Taras, or simply Kobzar (a kobzar is a bard in Ukrainian culture), was a Ukrainian poet, wr ...
. In 1861, the fortress was decommissioned and became a station of the Orenburg
Cossack
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 ...
army. In 1865, Orsk was granted the city status and became the uyezd center in
Orenburg Governorate.
The city grew dramatically starting from the 1870s. The population was mainly occupied with trade in cattle and grain, reprocessing of agricultural products, and various arts and crafts. Many women were involved in the business of weaving famous
Orenburg shawl
The Orenburg shawl is a Russian knitted lace textile using goat down and stands as one of the classic symbols of Russian handicraft, along with Tula samovars, the Matrioshka doll, Khokhloma painting, Gzhel ceramics, the Palekh miniature, ...
s. By 1913, the population of Orsk was over 21,000, and by 1917 there were eleven churches and minarets, and sixteen educational facilities of various types and levels. During the
Russian Civil War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Russian Civil War
, partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I
, image =
, caption = Clockwise from top left:
{{flatlist,
*Soldiers ...
, from 1918 to 1919, Orsk withstood a three-month-long blockade and then four times changed hands between warring sides.
In the 1930s, the construction of large industrial enterprises, which drew their resources from the mineral rich soils of the region, started. One of the most notable stones excavated within the Orsk city line in the
Mount Polkovnik is
jasper
Jasper, an aggregate of microgranular quartz and/or cryptocrystalline chalcedony and other mineral phases,Kostov, R. I. 2010. Review on the mineralogical systematics of jasper and related rocks. – Archaeometry Workshop, 7, 3, 209-213PDF/ref ...
. Orsk jasper is revered for its variety of natural designs and colors. All colors except for blue are represented in this stone.
Administrative and municipal status
Within the
framework of administrative divisions, it is, together with eight
rural localities, incorporated as 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 ...
of Orsk—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...
.
[Law #1370/276-IV-OZ] As a
municipal division, the City of Orsk is incorporated as Orsk Urban Okrug.
[Law #2367/495-IV-OZ]
Economy
Orsk is the most important industrial center of Orenburg Oblast. The main industries are
metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys.
Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
,
machine building
Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, an ...
,
petroleum chemistry, food and light industries. Most important enterprises are ''Yuzhuralnikel'', ''Orsknefteorgsintez'', and ''Yuzhuralmashzavod''. During post USSR time chronic under-investment, sanctions and lack of reforms lead to loss of 50,000 jobs and 30 plants, Forbes.com reported.
Transportation
200px, Orsk railway station
The city is served by
Orsk Airport and their is a former
Russian Air Force
"Air March"
, mascot =
, anniversaries = 12 August
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
, battles =
, decorations =
, batt ...
base located north east of the city,
Orsk (air base).
Education and culture
A branch of
Orenburg State Institute of Management (OSIM) operates in the city. Other than that, there is one major institute in Orsk: Orsk' humanitary-technological institute. There are also a number of different schools and colleges, State Drama Theater, Museum of Local History, Laboratory of Archeological Studies, Children's Art Gallery, Children's Folk Theater "Blue Bird" and a municipal brass band.
Some of the peculiar landmarks of industrial Orsk are forty archeological monuments including ancient settlements, mass and single grave sites. Those that have been excavated became famous in the scientific world. For instance, grave sites in
Kumak, that date back to the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
provide convincing evidence to the hypothesis of Eastern European roots of Indo-European peoples.
In the grave sites that date back to the early
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...
(7th–6th centuries BCE) left by "
savromatian" or "
sormatian" tribes scientists found many ancient items including a clay vessel bearing the name of the Persian ruler
Artaxerxes I, the sixth such vessel found in the world.
References
Notes
Sources
*
*
External links
*
Official website of Orsk
*Orsk Business Director
Orsk.jsprav.ru
*Information portal of Orenburg Oblast
History of Orsk
{{Use mdy dates, date=May 2011
Cities and towns in Orenburg Oblast
Orsky Uyezd
Populated places established in 1735