world geography todaychapter 17 russia, ukraine, and belarus preview section 1: natural...

World Geography Today Chapter 17

Russia, Ukraine, and BelarusPreview

Section 1: Natural Environments

Section 2: History and Culture

Section 3: The Region Today

Chapter Wrap-Up


Read to Discover

• What landforms and rivers are found in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus?

• What factors influence the region’s climates and vegetation?

• What natural resources does the region have?



LandformsUral MountainsCaucasus MountainsPripet MarshesCarpathian MountainsCrimean PeninsulaSiberian PlainsKamchatka Peninsula

RiversDnieper RiverDon RiverYenisey RiverAngara RiverLena RiverOb RiverVolga River

Climates/VegetationHumid continentalSubarctic Tundra in the north Taiga forest in the south Deciduous-coniferous forest

in the far south

Steppe south

Natural ResourcesWood from forestsGold and diamondsCoal, hydroelectricity, oil, and

gas, geothermalCopper, iron ore,

manganese, nickel, and platinum


RussiaUkraineBelarus


• Ural Mountains—Divide Eurasia

• Caucasus Mountains—Between Black and Caspian Seas

• Northern European Plain—Covers most of European area

• Pripet Marshes—Largest swamp in Europe

• Carpathian Mountains—Cross the Ukraine’s western borders


Landforms


• Crimean Peninsula—Southeastern Ukraine

• Volga River Basin—Dominates the heart of Russia

• West Siberian Plain—East of the Urals, with huge swamp

• Central Siberian Plateau—West of Kamchatka

• Siberian Mountains—Include volcanoes of Kamchatka Peninsula


Landforms (continued)


• Dnieper, Don, and Volga—Key south-flowing rivers; shipping, hydroelectric power, water for cities

• Ob, Yenisey, and Lena—Major Siberian rivers; flow into Arctic Ocean

• Angara—Flows through southern Siberia from Lake Baikal


Rivers


Russia’s climate and vegetation are influenced by latitude, winds and ocean currents, and the size of the land mass.

• Location in northern latitudes produces cold, harsh weather.

• During coldest months, rivers and canals freeze. A polluted icy fog often hangs over cities.

• When permafrost melts, buildings tilt, highways buckle, and railroad tracks slip sideways.

• Siberian interior is too large to receive mild ocean winds, making it very dry and cold.


Climate and Vegetation


• Moist winds from the Atlantic Ocean produce milder climate in European portion.

• Coastal areas of Russian Far East receive rain-bearing winds from Pacific Ocean.

• Climate affects vegetation, north to south

• Tundra—Low shrubs, mosses, wildflowers

• Taiga—Forest, mainly evergreen

• Mixed forest—Mixed deciduous-coniferous forest

• Steppe grasslands—Major grain-producing area


Climate and Vegetation (continued)


• Lumber and paper pulp from the taiga forests

• Gold and diamonds in eastern Siberia

• Key oil and gas reserves in Caspian Sea area, Volga River basin, Ob River basin

• Geothermal power in Far East

• Mines in Russia and Ukraine—Coal, copper, gold, iron ore, manganese, nickel, platinum


Natural Resources


Read to Discover

• What are some major events in the growth of the Russian Empire?

• How did the Soviet Union develop, and what was life like for its citizens?

• What are some features of the region’s culture?



Question

What are some of the major events in the growth of the Russian Empire?



800sKiev becomes an important trade center for the Mediterranean and Baltic Sea areas.

800 1400 1600 19001100 1500 1800

1100sEastern, or Orthodox, Christianity is the main religion of Kiev.

Late 1400sPrince Ivan III, of Moscow, wins control over parts of Russia from the Mongols.

1547Ivan the Terrible crowns himself czar of all Russia—north of Kiev to the Arctic Ocean and east to the Urals.

1637Explorers reach the Pacific coast at the Sea of Okhotsk.

1800sRussians spread into the Caucasus and Central Asia.

1905Russia retreats to its present-day boundaries with China and North Korea after losing a war to Japan.

1917The czar resigns

and the Bolsheviks overthrow the government in the Russian Revolution.



• Slavs settled region, and by 800s Kiev was an important trade center.

• Mongols conquered Russia in the 1200s.

• Russian kingdom of Muscovy emerged.

• Czar Ivan IV conquered lands and built empire.

• Russian trappers and pioneers settled eastern territory.

• Peter the Great added Baltic lands, Belarus, and Ukraine by 1725.


Growth of the Russian Empire


• Catherine the Great expanded south, adding non-Russian peoples.

• Later expansion included Caucasus and Central Asia, Alaska, Amur River region.

• In the 1800s, industrialization began, and the serfs were freed.

• The czar abdicated in 1917, clearing the way for the Bolsheviks to overthrow the government in the Russian Revolution.


Growth of the Russian Empire (continued)


• Bolsheviks established communism based on the ideas of Karl Marx.

• The workers were to elect soviets to govern locally.

• Communists restructured Russian Empire as the Soviet Union, with 15 republics.

• Soviet leaders set up one-party state; Stalin ruled brutally.

• Command economy produced few quality goods.


The Soviet Union


• State-run farms were unproductive; millions of peasants died.

• Personal freedoms were strictly limited; people were sent to labor camps.

• Soviet leaders tried to stop religious worship.

• Some success achieved in education, health care, and employment.

• Soviet Union collapsed at the end of 1991.


The Soviet Union (continued)


• Countries share a strong sense of Slavic culture.

• Many non-Slavic peoples live in the Caucasus; language and culture vary.

• Societies are highly urbanized.

• All three countries are losing population.

• Main religion is Eastern Orthodox Christianity.

• Food reveals influence of cold climates.

• Rural residents live in wood homes in the north, sod homes on the steppe.


Cultural Features


Read to Discover

• How have the economies of areas within the region developed?

• What challenges does the region face?



Question

What factors contribute to the economic development of the region?



St. Petersburg RegionWesternized, good

transportation, trade with European cities,

chemicals, machinery, ships, textiles, draws tourists and high-tech

industries

Moscow RegionEconomic center,

transportation hub, higher education,

finance, access to raw materials, millions of

Russian workers

Ukraine and KievCentrally located; rich

agricultural, energy, industrial, and human resources; fruits, vegetables, animal products; heavy industry; metalworking

SiberiaTrans-Siberian Railroad;

furs, gold, lumber, mining, and oil; small labor force

with high wages

Volga and UralsHeavy industry, abundant hydroelectricity, refineries

and petrochemicals, car and truck factories, mineral resources and smelters

The Russian Far EastFactories, forest and

mineral resources, naval bases, commercial

fishing, oil

Belarus and MinskFew resources, educated labor force, wood product industries,

peat, outdated plants

Economic Development



• Political and Economic

• Resolving tensions over reform and among ethnic groups

• Finding solutions to unemployment and crime; gap between rich and poor

• Modernizing the economy and improving production

• Geographical

• Curbing migration, which is emptying regions

• Repairing and stemming environmental damage


Challenges


Chapter Wrap-Up Understanding the Main Ideas

1. What are the main physical characteristics of the two huge areas west and east of the Ural Mountains?

2. What are some resources that Russia has in large quantities?

3. Across what physical region did early migrants come to Russia and its neighbors? How did those newcomers shape the region’s culture?

4. Where do most of the region’s people live?

5. What environmental problems remain from the Soviet era?

world geography todaychapter 17 russia, ukraine, and belarus preview section 1: natural...

Documents

world geography todaychapter

natural environments

natural environments

natural environments

vegetation slide

area section

platinum section

culture section