An oblast ( Russian (русский язык  listen?) is the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages. Russian belongs to the group of Indo-European languages, and is therefore related to Sanskrit, Greek, and Latin, as well as the modern Germanic, Romance, and Celtic... Russian, Ukrainian is an East Slavic language, one of three members of this language group, the other two being Russian and Belarusian. Written Ukrainian bears resemblances to these two languages, but with several notable differences. Historically, Belarusian and Ukrainian diverged from Old or Middle Ruthenian language. Spoken literary Ukrainian, however finds... Ukrainian: о́бласть) is a Subnational entity is a generic term for an administrative region within a country — on an arbitrary level below that of the sovereign state — typically with a local government encompassing multiple municipalities, counties, or provinces with a certain degree of autonomy in a varying number of matters. Confusingly, in... subnational entity of The Republic of Bulgaria is a republic in the southeast of Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the east, Greece and Turkey to the south, Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Romania to the north along the river Danube. National motto: Съ... Bulgaria, the The Russian Federation (Russian: Росси́йская Федера́ция, transliteration: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya or Rossijskaja Federacija), or Russia (Russian: Росси́я, transliteration: Rossiya or Rossija), is a country that stretches... Russian Federation, Ukraine (Україна, Ukrayina in Ukrainian; Украина in Russian) is a republic in eastern Europe which borders Russia to the east, Belarus to the north, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest and... Ukraine, and the now-defunct The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) .( Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик... Soviet Union, approximately equivalent to a Province is a name for a secondary, or subnational entity of government in most countries. In some countries an alternative term is used, such as state (in Australia and the United States), department (in France), or region (in Italy, where a province is a subdivision within a region, making it... province. Official terms in other succesor states of the Soviet Union differ, e.g. voblast is used for provinces of Belarus, and oblysy for provinces of Kazakhstan.

The word is often (and sometimes inaccurately) translated as " Province is a name for a secondary, or subnational entity of government in most countries. In some countries an alternative term is used, such as state (in Australia and the United States), department (in France), or region (in Italy, where a province is a subdivision within a region, making it... province" or "region".

Oblasts in Bulgaria

In The Republic of Bulgaria is a republic in the southeast of Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the east, Greece and Turkey to the south, Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Romania to the north along the river Danube. National motto: Съ... Bulgaria, the top-level subdivision is into regions, with further division into oblasts.

Oblasts in The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) .( Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик... Soviet Union and its successor countries

In the mentioned post-Soviet republics, oblasts are one step below the national level and further subdivided into Districts are a form of local government in several countries. Austria In Austria, a district is an administrative subdivision normally encompassing several municipalities, roughly equivalent to the Landkreis in Germany. The administrative office of a district, the Bezirkshauptmannschaft is headed by the Bezirkshauptmann. It is in charge of the administration... districts called See rayon for the textile made of processed cellulose. A raion, or rayon (район in Russian and Ukrainian), is a subnational entity of Belarus, Moldova, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, or the former Soviet Union. A raion is an entity two steps below the national level. It... raiony ( Russian (русский язык  listen?) is the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages. Russian belongs to the group of Indo-European languages, and is therefore related to Sanskrit, Greek, and Latin, as well as the modern Germanic, Romance, and Celtic... Russian: райо́ны; Ukrainian is an East Slavic language, one of three members of this language group, the other two being Russian and Belarusian. Written Ukrainian bears resemblances to these two languages, but with several notable differences. Historically, Belarusian and Ukrainian diverged from Old or Middle Ruthenian language. Spoken literary Ukrainian, however finds... Ukrainian: райони). A big City lights from space. NASA. Credit-Marc Imhoff A city is an urban area, differentiated from a town, village, or hamlet by size, population density, importance, or legal status. In most parts of the world cities are generally substantial and nearly always have an urban core, but in the United... city may also be a constituent part of oblast ( Russian (русский язык  listen?) is the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages. Russian belongs to the group of Indo-European languages, and is therefore related to Sanskrit, Greek, and Latin, as well as the modern Germanic, Romance, and Celtic... Russian official: город областного подчинения; Ukrainian is an East Slavic language, one of three members of this language group, the other two being Russian and Belarusian. Written Ukrainian bears resemblances to these two languages, but with several notable differences. Historically, Belarusian and Ukrainian diverged from Old or Middle Ruthenian language. Spoken literary Ukrainian, however finds... Ukrainian official: місто обласного підпорядкування) - being at the same level as raion.

In the now-extinct The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) .( Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик... Soviet Union, oblasts were two steps below the national level (the higher step being the In its final decades of its existence, the Soviet Union consisted of 15 Soviet Socialist Republics (SSR), often called simply Soviet republics. All of them were socialist republics, and all of them, with the exception of Russia had their own Communist parties. They are all independent countries now; 12 of... Soviet Republics). Some oblasts of the State motto: Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Workers of the world, unite!) Official language None (Russian in practice) Capital Moscow Chairman of the Supreme... Russian SFSR have had a complicated structure including not only raions and cities, but also Autonomy is the condition of something that does not depend on anything else. In politics, a self_governing city or region, e.g. Kurdistan, Kosovo or Hong Kong SAR (not necessarily as a result of formal secession), is autonomous. True autonomy is usually a pre-requisite to separation or secession, however... autonomous entities.

The oblasts in other post-Soviet countries are officially called:

• Voblast in Belarus ( Belarusian: Белару́сь, Russian: Белару́сь (formerly: Белору́ссия), Polish: Białoruś) is a landlocked nation of Eastern Europe with the capital Minsk. Belarus... Belarus (see: Provinces of Belarus)
  • in The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. The correct title is Łacinka alphabet. The Łacinka alphabet is the variant of the Latin alphabet which was used for writing the Belarusian language. Texts using Łacinka first appeared during the 16th century. Official use... Lacinka vobłaść
• Oblysy in Kazakhstan ( Kazakh: Қазақстан, Qazaqstan, IPA /qɑzɑqˈstɑn/; Russian: Казахстан, Kazakhstán, IPA /kɐzəxˈstɐn/), also spelled Kazakstan, is a... Kazakhstan (see: Provinces of Kazakhstan)
• Oblasty in Kyrgyzstan (Kyrgyz: Кыргызстан) is a country in Central Asia. It borders China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Its capital is Bishkek (formerly Frunze.) National motto: none Official languages Kyrgyz, Russian Capital Bishkek President Askar Akayev Prime Minister Nikolay Tanayev Area  - Total... Kyrgyzstan (see: Provinces of Kyrgyzstan)
• Viloyat in The Republic of Tajikistan (Тоҷикистон), formerly known as the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic, is a country in Central Asia. It has borders with Afghanistan, China, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. National motto: none Official language Tajiki-Persian Capital Dushanbe President Emomali Rahmonov Prime... Tajikistan (see: Tajikistan is divided into regions, or provinces (singular: viloyat, plural: viloyatho) (capitals in parentheses)- Khatlon Viloyati Khatlon (Qurghonteppa) Sughd Viloyati Sughd (Khujand) Karotegin (Kofarnihon) and one autonomous province (viloyati mukhtor)- Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAR) Viloyati Mukhtori Kuhistoni Badakhshon (Khorugh). Additionally, the area containing the capital (RRS, Region of Republican... Provinces of Tajikistan)
• Welayat in Turkmenistan, once known as the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic is a country in Central Asia. It has borders with Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and has a coastline on the Caspian Sea. National motto: none Official language Turkmen Capital Ashgabat President and Prime Minister Saparmurat Niyazov Area  - Total  - % water... Turkmenistan (see: Provinces of Turkmenistan)
• Viloyat in The Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia (it is surrounded only by landlocked countries and, along with Liechtenstein, is one of only two such countries in the world). It shares borders with Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. National motto: none Official language Uzbek Capital... Uzbekistan (see: Provinces of Uzbekistan)

Viloyat and welayat are derived from arabic language A wilaya is an administrative subdivision of several countries, including Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, and Oman. The Turkish pronunciation of the (originally Arabic) word, vilayet, is the name for the Provinces of the Ottoman Empire. See also Provinces of Algeria Categories: Stub | Subnational entities ... wilaya.

Names of particular oblasts

One should note that a name of an oblast does not usually correspond with the name of the respective historical A region can be any area that has some unifying feature. Typically they are, but are not necessarily, smaller than a country. Regierungsbezirk (regions of Germany) Regions of England Regions of the Philippines Regions of Finland Communities, regions and provinces of Belgium List of regions in Australia List of regions... region. Oblasts are purely administrative units without any significant history: all of them have been formed in the middle of the (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... 20th century. Typically, the Soviet/post-Soviet oblasts are named after their This article concerns places that serve as centers of government and politics. For alternative meanings see capital (disambiguation) In politics a capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has an alternative meaning based on an alternative meaning of capital) is the principal city or... capital cities, officially called "oblast centers". The name of each oblast' is usually a relative An adjective is a part of speech which modifies a noun, usually making its meaning more specific. Adjectives are used in a predicative or attributive manner. In some languages, attributive adjectives precede the noun. This is the case in the Germanic languages, to which the English language belongs. In other... adjective, formed by adding a feminine Suffix has meanings in linguistics and nomenclature. Linguistics In linguistics, a suffix is an affix that succeeds the morphemes to which it can attach. Example: establish (verb) + -ment (suffix) —> establishment (noun). (See derivation and also the list of English suffixes.) Nomenclature A suffix is a style at the... suffix to the name of respective center city. E.g. Poltava is a city and oblast center in the Poltavska oblast of eastern Ukraine with some 313,400 inhabitants (2004). History The city belonged to Lithuania from the 14th century. Polish administration took over in 1569. In 1667 Poltava became part of the Russian Empire. In the Battle of... Poltava is the center of the Poltavs'ka oblast'.

Exceptions to this rule include:

• Categories: Stub | Oblasts of Russia ... Leningradskaya oblast of Russia keeps its Soviet-time name while the respective This article concerns places that serve as centers of government and politics. For alternative meanings see capital (disambiguation) In politics a capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has an alternative meaning based on an alternative meaning of capital) is the principal city or... capital has readopted its historical name Saint Petersburg (disambiguation). Saint Petersburg  listen? ( Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́... Saint-Petersburg.
• Volyns'ka and Zakarpats'ka oblasts of Ukraine (Україна, Ukrayina in Ukrainian; Украина in Russian) is a republic in eastern Europe which borders Russia to the east, Belarus to the north, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest and... Ukraine retain the names of the respective historical regions (see Volhynia (Wołyń in Polish; Волинь, Volyn’ in Ukrainian; also called Volynia, Volyň in Czech) comprises the historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Pripyat and Western Bug. The area has one of the oldest Slavic settlements in Europe... Volyn and Zakarpattya or Transcarpathia (Закарпатська область, Zakarpats’ka oblast’ in Ukrainian) is an oblast (region) of Ukraine. Its capital is Uzhhorod. Other important cities are Mukachiv and Chop, Ukraine (the bordertown housing... Transcarpathia), while their capital cities are Luts'k and Uzhhorod (Ukrainian: and Russian: Ужгород, Hungarian: Ungvár, Slovak and Czech: Užhorod, German: Ungwar, Yiddish: Ungvir, Ingver, Yngvyr) is a city in Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia. Uzhhorod is the capital of the Zakarpattya region, the westernmost region of Ukraine. The... Uzhhorod, respectively.

Political aspects of oblast subdivision

Generally, oblast is the typical Subnational entity is a generic term for an administrative region within a country — on an arbitrary level below that of the sovereign state — typically with a local government encompassing multiple municipalities, counties, or provinces with a certain degree of autonomy in a varying number of matters. Confusingly, in... subnational entity of a highly-centralized A unitary state is a state or country that is governed constitutionally as one single unit, with one constitutionally created legislature. The term is the antonym of federation. Governmental power may well be transferred to lower levels, to regionally or locally elected assemblies, governors and mayors ( devolved government), but in... unitary state.

Experts believe that The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) .( Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик... Soviet government was applying not only the objective (socio-economic and geographic), but also particular political criteria in forming the oblasts. The administrative borders of several oblasts have sometimes been changed in order to reshuffle the local The Communist Party of the Soviet Union ( Russian: Коммунисти́ческая Па́ртия Сове́тского Сою́за = К... Communist Party organization, secure "the right" local administration for an industrial company, limit an ethnic activism etc. Such decisions were a Soviet analog of The word Usa has more than one meaning: U.S.A. - The United States of America Usa, Oita - A city in Japan This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. If an article link referred you here, you... American Redrawing electoral districts in this example creates a guaranteed 3-to-1 advantage for Party 1. Gerrymandering is an unethical form of redistricting in which electoral district or constituency boundaries are manipulated for electoral advantage, usually of incumbents or a specific political party, mainly in two party first past the... gerrymandering method.

Recent trends in oblast policy

President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin  listen? (Владимир Владимирович Путин in Cyrillic lettering) (born October 7, 1952) has been the President of Russia since December 31, 1999. Term of... Putin of The Russian Federation ( Russian: Росси́йская Федера́ция, transliteration: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya or Rossijskaja Federacija), or Russia (Russian: Росси́я, transliteration: Rossiya or Rossija), is a country that stretches... Russia has dramatically reformed the actual status of the country's oblasts. Formally remaining the second level of subdivision, they De facto is a Latin expression that means in fact or in practice. It is commonly used as opposed to de jure (meaning by law) when referring to matters of law or governance or technique (such as standards), that are found in the common experience as created or developed without... de facto became included into the large Russia is a federation which consists of 89 subjects (Russian: субъект(ы); English transliteration: subyekty, sing. subyekt). These subjects are of equal federal rights in the sense that they have equal representation—two delegates each—in the Federation Council (upper house of... federal districts (Russian: федеральные округа).

In attempts to meet new regional socio-economic and political issues, numerous projects are suggested to reform the oblast system in both The Russian Federation ( Russian: Росси́йская Федера́ция, transliteration: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya or Rossijskaja Federacija), or Russia (Russian: Росси́я, transliteration: Rossiya or Rossija), is a country that stretches... Russia and Ukraine (Україна, Ukrayina in Ukrainian; Украина in Russian) is a republic in eastern Europe which borders Russia to the east, Belarus to the north, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest and... Ukraine (mostly aimed to merge particular oblasts or change their borders).

See also

• From 1987 until 1999 Bulgaria was divided into 9 regions-oblasts. In 1999 these oblasts were split into 28 smaller ones, which correspond aproximately to the 28 okrugs which existed before 1987. They old regions were (the regions which were restored in 1999 are indicated in parentheses next to the... Regions of Bulgaria
• Being the largest country in the world, and one of the most populated, Russia incorporates several types and levels of subdivisions. Federal subjects Main article: Federal subjects of Russia Russia is a federation which consists of 89 subjects (Russian: субъе́кт(ы); English transliteration... Subdivisions of Russia
  • Russia is a federation which consists of 89 subjects (Russian: субъект(ы); English transliteration: subyekty, sing. subyekt). These subjects are of equal federal rights in the sense that they have equal representation—two delegates each—in the Federation Council (upper house of... Federal subjects of Russia
  • The Russian Federation is divided into 89 subjects (administrative units), 49 of which are oblasts: Amur Arkhangelsk Astrakhan Belgorod Bryansk Chelyabinsk Chita Irkutsk Ivanovo Kaliningrad Kaluga Kamchatka Kemerovo Kirov Kostroma Kurgan Kursk Leningrad Lipetsk Magadan Moscow Murmansk Nizhny Novgorod Novgorod Novosibirsk Omsk Orenburg Oryol Penza Perm Pskov Rostov Ryazan Sakhalin... Oblasts of Russia
• Guberniya (also gubernia, guberniia, and gubernya) (Russian: губе́рния) was a major administrative subdivision of the Imperial Russia, usually translated as province or Governorate General. A guberniya was ruled by a governor (Russian: губерна́то... Guberniya, the subdivision level matching to oblasts in Imperial Russia is the term used to cover the period of Russian history from the expansion of Russia under Peter the Great, through the expansion of the Russian Empire from the Baltic to the Pacific Ocean, to the deposal of Nicholas II of Russia, the last tsar, at the start... Imperial Russia and early The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) .( Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик... Soviet Union