Wikijunior:Asia/Russia

Russia (Russian: Росси́я) is a country located in both Asia and Europe (but majority of the country is in Asia). Its full name is the Russian Federation (Russian: Росси́йская Федера́ция). The current president of Russia is Vladimir Putin, the capital of Russia is Moscow and the currency used is the Russian Ruble.



Where is Russia?
Russia is unusual since it is in two continents: Asia and Europe. To be precise, it is located in northern Eurasia. It is the largest country in the world by land area and stretches from Eastern Europe to Western Asia. It stretches from Eastern Europe to Western Asia. It is also bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the east. It is the largest country in the world and covers one-eighth of the world's inhabited area. Since Russia is so large, it shares border with following countries:


 * 1) Norway: Russia shares a border with Norway to the northwest, across the Barents Sea.
 * 2) Finland: Russia shares a border with Finland to the west, across the Gulf of Finland.
 * 3) Estonia: Russia shares a border with Estonia to the west, across the Lake Peipus.
 * 4) Latvia: Russia shares a border with Latvia to the west, across the River Daugava.
 * 5) Belarus: Russia shares a border with Belarus to the southwest.
 * 6) Ukraine: Russia shares a border with Ukraine to the south.
 * 7) Georgia: Russia shares a border with Georgia to the south, across the Caucasus Mountains.
 * 8) Azerbaijan: Russia shares a border with Azerbaijan to the south, across the Caspian Sea.
 * 9) Kazakhstan: Russia shares a border with Kazakhstan to the southeast.
 * 10) China: Russia shares a border with China to the far east, across the Amur River.
 * 11) North Korea: Russia shares a border with North Korea to the far east, across the Tumen River.

How many people live in Russia?
Excluding the occupied Crimea, Russia's population is just under 145 million people (2018). 8.4 people live in every square kilometre. Though it is mainly in Asia, large parts of the population are in Europe. Around 160 nationalities are found in Russia, though native Russians make up about 80% of the population.

What is the most common language in Russia?
The official language of Russia is Russian. Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet. The Cyrillic alphabet is an alphabet used to write a number of Slavic languages, as well as a number of non-Slavic languages such as Mongolian and Kurdish. It is named after the 9th-century missionary Saint Cyril, who is credited with devising the first version of the alphabet.

The Cyrillic alphabet is based on the Greek alphabet and consists of 33 letters. It has several letters that are unique to the alphabet and do not have a direct equivalent in the Latin alphabet, such as the letter "ш" (sh) and the letter "щ" (shch). The Cyrillic alphabet is used in a number of countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (such as Kazakhstan Kazakh, Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyz, Tajikistan Tajik, Turkmenistan Turkmen and Uzbekistan Uzbek, which is written using the Latin alphabet, although the Cyrillic alphabet is also used in some parts of the country.

It is the official alphabet of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. It is also used by a number of other languages spoken in the region, including Bulgarian, Serbian, and Macedonian.

Roughly 145 million people speak it as their first language and a further 110 million as an additional language. In certain regions, there are other official languages as well.

Between 13 and 15 percent of Russians know a language other than Russian. Out off all the people who know another language, the largest group is English speakers. About 80% of those who know another language know English.

What is the most common religion in Russia?
Russia is mainly Christian. Most people are Orthodox Christians. However, there are a significant number of people who are not religious or are Muslim.

What is the sport of Russia?
Ice hockey (bandy) is considered to be the national sport of Russia.

Russia's History


The ancestors of modern Russians were the eastern Slavic tribes. In year 882, they created a state called Rus. The capital city was Kiev (now in Ukraine), where the rulers from the current dynasty, called the Rurikids, lived. In the 10th century, Orthodox Christianity became a significant religion Russia.

Russia's occupation by the Tatars
In the 13th century, all Russian territory was invaded by the Mongols (also called the Tatars), who ruled the land for the next three centuries. During this period, known as the Tatar Yoke, Moscow came to power. The grand dukes of Moscow united the surrounding land and ,in the 15th century, finally defeated the Tatars.

Tsars


In 16th century, Ivan the Terrible was crowned as the first tsar (emperor) of Russia. He had no heirs, so ,after his death ,a period of unrest begun. After that a new dynasty, called the Romanovs, was started. Under their rule, the Russian Empire became very powerful.

St.Petersburg
At the beginning of 18th century, Peter the Great, the tsar of Russia, founded a new capital city, in the north, and named it St.Petersburg.

Russian revolution


In 1917, many people in Russia, lead by Vladimir Lenin, successfully revolted against the tsar, in the 'October Revolution'. The capital was then moved again to Moscow, and St Petersburg was renamed ,as Leningrad. The factories were nationalized and the farms were joined into "collective” farmlands (called kolkhoz). This nation was called the USSR.

WW2 and Russia's occupation of Europe
During World War II, Nazi Germany invaded Soviet Union. However, in the end, the Soviets drove the Germans out and followed them to Berlin. After the war, the USSR occupied large parts of Europe. But, the planned economy turned to be inefficient and the people weren't satisfied with the government. The USSR splintered into fifteen independent republics and was officially not a country in December 1991. One of them was, of course, Russia.

What are some famous sights?

 * St. Basil's Cathedral is a cathedral in Moscow, Russia's capital city. Its full name is the 'Cathedral of Vasil the Blessed'. Since 1991, it has been Russia's museum, only holding occasional services. It is a Russian Orthodox cathedral. It has ten domes and two spires. It is, at the highest point, 47.5 metres. It was concercrated, made a church, in 1561.
 * The Kremlin is in Moscow. It is a fortified complex, its name meaning 'fortress inside a city'. The area was inhabited since the 2nd century BC and the word 'Kremlin ' was first recorded in 1331. It had previously been called the 'grad of Moscow'.
 * The Bronze Horseman is a statue in St. Peterburg, Russia's second most populous city. It was built in the 18th century. The statue is on the largest stone to have ever been moved by humans, called the Thunder Stone.

Who are some important Russian people?
There are many important people from Russia. A fuller list can be found here on Wikipedia.
 * Vladimir Lenin lead the 'October Revolution' and created a philosophy called Leninism. He was the first leader of the USSR.
 * Fabian Bellingshausen was the discoverer of Antarctica.
 * Yuri Gagarin was the first person to enter space.
 * Mikhail Lomonosov is often called the 'father of Russian science'.

Government
The Russian president is not part of the Russian government, but the President get to appoint the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister of Russia is the leader of the government. The Prime Minister will become the President if the current President is unable to continue ruling or resigns. The current Prime Minister is Dmitry Medvedev, and the President is Vladimir Putin.

Currency
Russia's currency is the Russian Ruble (RUB). On the first of January, 2019, 1 Ruble was worth 0.0014 US Dollars, 0.0011 British Pounds or 0.0012 Euros.