Kirovsk (), known as Khibinogorsk () until 1934, is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Murmansk Oblast Murmansk Oblast is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia, located in the northwestern part of the country, with a total land area of . Its only internal border is the Republic of Karelia to the south, and it is bor ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, located at the spurs of the

Khibiny Mountains The Khibiny Mountains ( ; ) is one of the two main mountain ranges of the Kola Peninsula, Russia, within the Arctic Circle, located between Imandra Lake, Imandra and Umbozero Lake, Umbozero lakes. The range is also known as Khibiny Massif, Khibin ...

on the shores of the Lake Bolshoy Vudyavr, south of

Murmansk Murmansk () is a port city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast in the far Far North (Russia), northwest part of Russia. It is the world's largest city north of the Arctic Circle and sits on both slopes and banks of a modest fjord, Ko ...

. Population:

History

A settlement which eventually became Kirovsk was founded in 1929, soon after an expedition led by Alexander Fersman had discovered large deposits of

apatite Apatite is a group of phosphate minerals, usually hydroxyapatite, fluorapatite and chlorapatite, with high concentrations of Hydroxide, OH−, Fluoride, F− and Chloride, Cl− ion, respectively, in the crystal. The formula of the admixture of ...

and

nepheline Nepheline, also called nephelite (), is a rock-forming mineral in the feldspathoid groupa silica-undersaturated aluminosilicate, Na3 K Al4 Si4 O16, that occurs in intrusive and volcanic rocks with low silica, and in their associated pegmatit ...

in the Khibiny Massif in the 1920s. By the end of 1930, its population grew to ten thousand people, and a mining and كأس مونديل العالم لكرة القدم الرجال كندا المكسيك الاو لاية المتحدة يونيو يوليو2026 العالم رياضةكرة القدم الحدث الرياضى االتارخى الميلاين والميلارة محبى الملعب ا لرياضى لكرة القدم العالم كأس موندايل العالمى الرياضية كرة القدم التصنيف القارة 6 للعالم 2026 كندا المكسيك الاولاية الم كأس مونديل العالم لكرة القدم Adbo Taer chemical plant here was well under construction.''Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast'', pp. 40–41 Due to the rapid growth, the Presidium of the Murmansk Okrug Executive Committee petitioned on January 18, 1931 to grant the settlement town status and to name it Khibinogorsk. The petition was approved by the All-Russian Central Executive Committee Resolution on October 30, 1931 and the town was subordinated directly to the Murmansk Okrug Executive Committee. On December 15, 1934, the town was renamed Kirovsk after recently assassinated

Sergey Kirov Sergei Mironovich Kirov (born Kostrikov; 27 March 1886 – 1 December 1934) was a Russian and Soviet politician and Bolshevik revolutionary. Kirov was an early revolutionary in the Russian Empire and a member of the Bolshevik faction of the Russ ...

,''Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast'', pp. 47–48 who had been in charge of planning the development of the deposits. On February 26, 1935, when new Kirovsky District was established on part of the territory of Kolsko-Loparsky District, Kirovsk was transferred to it and made its administrative center. On May 6, 1954, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, Kirovsk was elevated in status to that of a town under oblast jurisdiction.''Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast'', pp. 54–55 Kirovsky District was abolished, and its territory was subordinated to Kirovsk. By the September 20, 1965 Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR Decree, the work settlement of Kovdor located on the territory under Kirovsk's jurisdiction was granted town under district jurisdiction status and subordinated to Kirovsk Town

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

.''Administrative-Territorial Division of Murmansk Oblast'', p. 57 On January 6, 1966, the Murmansk Oblast Executive Committee petitioned to transform the work settlement of Molodyozhny located on the territory under Kirovsk's jurisdiction into a town under oblast jurisdiction called Khibinogorsk and on subordinating a part of the territory in Kirovsk's jurisdiction to it. The petition was reviewed by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR, which, however, decreed on July 7, 1966 to merge the work settlements of Molodyozhny and Apatity into a town under oblast jurisdiction, which would retain the name Apatity. Consequently, the Murmansk Oblast Executive Committee subordinated a part of the territory under Kirovsk's jurisdiction to the new town by the decision of October 13, 1966.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is, together with two rural localities, incorporated as Kirovsk Town with Jurisdictional Territory—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 #96-01-ZMO As a municipal division, Kirovsk Town with Jurisdictional Territory is incorporated as Kirovsk Urban Okrug.Law #533-01-ZMO

Miscellaneous

The northernmost

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

in Russia is located in Kirovsk.

Tourism

Kirovsk is the northernmost mountained ski area in Europe. There are two major ski resorts in the town: Bigwood and Kukisvumchorr with nearly 50 km of slopes operating from November to June. The tourism industry is developing rapidly with new hotels and ski lifts opening every year.

International relations

Twin towns and sister cities

Kirovsk is twinned with: * Alpine Meadow, Lake Tahoe, United States *

Gällivare Municipality Gällivare Municipality (; or ; ; ) is a municipality in Norrbotten County in northern Sweden. Its seat is Gällivare. It is the third largest municipality in Sweden. Gällivare Lapland Airport is the only airport in the region able to accommod ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Harstad Harstad may refer to: Places *Harstad (town) Harstad (; ) is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Harstad Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The city is also the administrative centre of Harstad Municipality. The city has a populati ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

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References

Notes

Sources

* * *

External links

Botanical Garden in Kirovsk
File:Kirovsk3.jpg, In the Botanical Garden File:Botanischer Garten in Kirovsk.jpg, A greenhouse in the Botanical Garden File:Kirovsk+.jpg, View of Kirovsk File:Kirovsk winter.jpg, View of Kirovsk from a cable car in winter {{Authority control Cities and towns in Murmansk Oblast Cities and towns built in the Soviet Union Populated places established in 1929 Monotowns in Russia Former urban-type settlements of Murmansk Oblast