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Central Asia/ Russia. Physical and Human Geography. Major Landforms. Northern European Plain Ural Mountains Caucasus Mountains Turan Plain. Northern European Plain. Chernozem : black earth Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kiev 75% live here. Ural Mountains.
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Central Asia/ Russia Physical and Human Geography
Major Landforms • Northern European Plain • Ural Mountains • CaucasusMountains • TuranPlain
Northern European Plain Chernozem: black earth • Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kiev • 75% live here
Ural Mountains • the divider between Asia and Europe. • Tilts north = rivers flow to Arctic Ocean
CaucasusMountains Separates Black and Caspian Seas Transcaucasia
TuranPlain Includes 2 large deserts • Kara Kum Desert • Kyzyl Kum Desert • Aral Sea
Bodies of Water • Volga River – Europe’s longest • Caspian Sea – saltwater lake, largest inland sea • Aral Sea-has lost 80% of water content
Caspian Sea • saltwater lake, largest inland sea • Oil and natural gas • sturgeon live in its waters, and the caviar produced from their eggs is a valuable commodity
Lake Bailak • Deepest lake in the world • About 1 mile deep • Holds 20% of world’s freshwater • Tourist attraction
Russia and the Western Republics • Russian state began in region between Baltic and Black Seas • 9th Century, Vikings settled and adopted the customs of the local Slavic population • Settlements began to expand
13th Century, Mongolian invaders entered • Controlled this region until the 1500s when Ivan the Great, Prince of Moscow, put an end to their rule • Russia began to expand to the Pacific Ocean
Russia’s growth was rapid, but it lagged behind in science and technology • Peter the Great, tried to change this • He moved the capital to St. Petersburg • Russia did not begin to industrialize until the end of the 1800s
Trans- Siberian Railroad • Czar Alexander III. • 5,700 miles • 10 years to build • This was the first major step towards connecting all of Russia together physically and economically.
Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union • Russian Revolution (1917): ended rule of the czars • Communist Party, led by Lenin, took control
By 1922, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was formed • Stalin had taken over by WWII
Building a Command Economy • Inspired by Karl Marx • Soviet leaders adopted a command economy. • Soviet government created collective farms
After the war, Stalin installed pro-Soviet governments in parts of Eastern Europe • The Cold War soon began between the U.S. and USSR and continued until the 1980s.
By the 1980s, Mikhail Gorbachev began to give more freedom to the Soviet people • This led to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 • The region was divided into 15 independent republics
Area of Conflicts After the Fall of USSR • Chechnya • Remained part of Russia • Russia invaded in 1994 and 1999 • 2009 Russia pulled out • Georgia • In a conflict with the Ossetian people • Armenia and Azerbaijan • Fought of the Nagorno-Karabakh
Transcaucasia • Consists of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia • Used as a migration route between Europe and Asia • This has led to a variety of cultures
Transcaucasia has a history of outside control • The czars of Russia entered in the 1700s • Transcaucasian countries enjoyed some independence during the Russian Revolution until the Soviet Red Army retuned in the 1920s
Central Asia • Consists of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
History of Central Asia • The Great Game • Competition between Great Britain and Russia over Central Asia • By the end of the 19th century, Russia won control of Central Asia • In 1920s the USSR took control and governed until 1991
Silk Road • 4,000 mile journey from China to the Mediterranean Sea • Gold, Silver, Ivory • Wine, Spices, Porcelain • Spreading of ideas, technology, and religion
Steps Toward Capitalism • Privatization • Government-owned businesses to individuals and private companies • Economic crash in 1998 • 40% of Russians live below the poverty line • Distance Decay • Long distances between places is an obstacle facing economic reformers.
Environmental Concerns • Nuclear testing • Lack of federal regulations • Nuclear testing • Nuclear power plants
Chernobyl • Ukraine • April 26, 1986 • everyone living within the 30 kilometer radius was evacuated. • The last reactor was not shut down until December 2000.