Chapter 15

Physical Geography of Russia

Section 1

Land Forms and Resources

Russia and the Republics occupy a large territory

• Is 3 times the size of the United States

Region sprawls across two continents

• Europe

• Asia

Region sprawls across two continents

• Cross 11 time zone throughout Europe and Asia

CHERNOZEM

• Black top soil – one of the world’s most fertile region

• See page 345

What % of the regions 290 million people

live on this plain• 75 %

• Or 217 million people live on the plains

Three largest cities on the plains

• Moscow, Russia

• St. Petersburg, Russia

• Kiev, Ukraine

Ural Mountains

• Separate the Northern European and West Siberian plains

• Divides Europe and Asia

Eurasia

• Combined continents of Europe and Asia

Caucasus Mountains(kaw-kuh-suhs)

• Stretch across the land that separates the Black and Caspian Sea

Transcaucasia

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia,

located – between Caucasus Mts. and borders of Turkey and Iran

Central Asia

• Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan• Tajikistan• Turkmenistan• Uzbekistan

SIBERIA

• Region in central and eastern Russia, from the Ural Mountains to the Pacific

• Known for mineral resources

• Russian government used this region as a political exile site

Section 2

Climate and Vegetation

CONTINENTALITY

• Russia and the Republics enormous size has a major effect on its climate

• Russia's climate increases as one travels east, with average temperature differences between the warmest (July) and coldest (January) ...

TAIGA(Tahy-guh)

Largest forest in the world

Continuous belt of evergreen forestsacross the Northern Hemisphere

North America and Eurasia

PROBLEM OF RUNOFF

• Rainfall not absorbed by soil, which can carry pesticides and fertilizers from fields to rivers which can endanger the food chain

TRANS-SIBERIAN RAILROAD

• Railroad that links Moscow (on the west) to the port of Vladivostok (on the east)

• Runs 6,000 miles across bitter cold, undeveloped region

REASONS RAILROAD IS BUILT

• Speed up travel

• Populate the region

• Develop resources

TIME ZONES

• 24 time zones in the world

• 360 degrees

• 15 degrees in each time zone

INTERNATIONAL DATELINE

• Marks where a new calendar day begins

Chapter 16

A Diverse Heritage

Section 1

Russia and the Western Republics

BALTIC REPUBLIC

• Countries of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia

• Located on the east coast of the Baltic Sea

Russian Empire develops

• 800’s

• Vikings settle between the Baltic and Black Sea

• Mixed with the Slavs

Role of the Czar in Russian History

• Czar was the ruler of Russia before the Russian Revolution in 1917

• Helped modernized Russia from 1682 to 1725

• Peter the Great attempted to modernize Russia

Peter the Great

RUSSIAN REVOLUTION

• Revolt in 1917 – Communist government of Lenin took control of the government from the Czar.

Lenin

USSR

• Union of Soviet Socialist Republic

• Formed in 1922 by the Communist government

• Dissolved in 1991

COLD WAR

• Conflict between the USSR and the US after World War II

• Nuclear power conflict

• Called a cold war because it never escalated into an open warfare

COMMAND ECONOMY

• Plan under the Communist government in the USSR

• Government controlled the production of goods and services (complete opposite of the US)

Market Economy(U.S. economy today)

• A market economy is economy based on the division of labor in which the prices of goods and services are determined in a free price system set by supply and demand.[1]

COLLECTIVE FARM

• Used by the USSR under Stalin

• A large labor force that worked together on enormous farms in the USSR

3 Republics of Transcaucasia

• Armenia

• Azerbaijan

• Georgia

Conflict in Transcaucasia

• Ethnic conflicts in the region

• Ethnicity is what ties you to your race or culture. It is your background and has a strong influence in the things you do. Ethnic groups are large and vary from location to location.

Soviet military takes control of Transcaucasian in modern times

• Red Army (former USSR)

SUPRA

• Georgian (Russian) term for dinner party

• Many foods, toasts, and short speeches

SILK ROAD

• 4000 mile route – between China and Mediterranean Sea

• Named for the expensive silk that travel from China to the west

• Road spread ideas, technology, and religion

NOMAD

• A person with no permanent home

• Moves from place to place

• In search of food, water, and grazing land

YURT

• Tent that was used by central Asia’s nomads

Chapter 17

• Russia and the Republics

CHECHNYA

• A republic that remains apart of Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union despite independence movements and violence

WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND CHECHNYA

• Chechens (people from Chechnya) want independence

WAR BETWEEN RUSSIA AND GEORGIA

• Georgia wanted their independence (after 1991)

• Resulted in thousands of deaths and refugee problems

PRIVATIZATION

• Going from a Command Economy to a Market Economy

• Selling of government owned businesses to private citizens

• Took place after 1991

RUSSIANS LIVING IN POVERTY

• After 1991 – 40% of the people lived below the poverty line

DIFFICULTIES WITH RUSSIA’S SIZE

• So big and distant from Moscow

• Some regional leaders have chosen to ignore government reform.

CONTROL OVER REGIONAL LEADERS

• Government created federal districts with governors

• Governors answered to Moscow

ORGANIZED CRIME

• Growth of organized crime

• Illegal activities are more lucrative that honest business

• Illegal activities reduced the governments tax revenues