Russia and Central Asia Culture WS
1. What is the dominant religion in Russia?
Christian (Eastern Orthodox)
2. Name a city in Siberia that grew because of its location on the Trans-Siberian
Railroad.
Novosibirsk (Central Russia) & Vladivostok (Eastern Russia)
3. Which former Soviet republics still produce oriental carpets?
Turkmenistan and the Caucasus Region (Georgia, Armenia, & Azerbaijan)
4. What is a minaret?
Mosque tower from which prayer time is called
5. What is the dominant religion in Central Asia?
Islam
6. What are the dominant ethnic groups in central Asia?
Turkic and Mongol
7. Where is Red Square?
Moscow, Russia
8. What is a Faberge egg? Illustrate
“Easter Eggs” created as gifts for the Russian czars; ornate, jewelencrusted; open to reveal a surprise
9. What types of images do Russian Icons depict?
Christian religious figures (Jesus, Mother Mary, the Saints)
10. What is a Matrioshka doll? How many usually come in a set? Illustrate.
Russian “nesting dolls”; usually 6+ to a set; traditional maternal “Matriarch”
images; hand-painted; may also depict political image
11. What is a difference between the dominant religions in Russia and the United States?
Both are Christian-based (teachings of Christ) religions!!! The U.S. is
predominantly Protestant while Russia is predominantly Eastern Orthodox.
**Remember though most Russians do not practice a religion.
12. What is a samovar? Illustrate
Russian teapot; often the central item in a Russian home
13. Where is St. Petersburg?
Northwestern border of Russia, centered on a narrow inlet of the Baltic Sea
14. What strange decision was made by Ivan the Terrible after the completion of St.
Basil’s Cathedral?
He blinded the architects to keep them from ever designing/building anything
of such beauty
15. Name three former Soviet republics where you would probably find a mosque.
Central Asia in the “Stans”: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan,
Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan
16. How was music is Russia different during the Soviet era than it is today?
Until the fall of Communism there was only traditional music (like folk music,
remember the balalaika); after 1991, western music (rock, country) became
popular
17. What is the dominant religion in the Ukraine?
Christian, primarily Eastern Orthodox
18. The tundra areas of Siberia are too cold to include inhabitants; in what climate
region(s) of Siberia might you find small villages?
Small villages may be found in the subarctic region; but, most Siberian
villages
would be found the southern most regions of Siberia
19. What is the capital city of Russia?
Moscow
20. What is the dominant ethnic group in Russia?
Slavic
21. Where is Russia would you find a world-famous ballet?
Moscow – the Bolshoi/Bolshoy Ballet and Theatre
22. What was the capital city of Russia before it was moved back to Moscow?
St. Petersburg, but it was moved following the Bolshevik Revolution and the
rise of the Communist government (Lenin changed the name to “Leningrad”
23. What type of religious structure is likely to include a minaret?
A mosque – an Islamic house of worship; a minaret is the tower from which
prayer time is called
24. What is the name for the fortified Russia citadel in the heart of Moscow?
The Kremlin (the seat of the Russian government)
25. Who works in the Kremlin?
Russian government officials and workers
26. In large Russian cities, you can still see old Soviet-style apartment blocks. What do
they look like?
Dorm-style or hotel-style apartments (very small, uniform, and poorly
constructed)
27. Where did “Red Square” get its name?
Slavic word for “beautiful”
28. What types of people were often portrayed on Russian Matrioshka dolls?
Usually the matriarch or mother figure from the peasant family; sometimes
political figures
29. St. Basil’s Cathedral is a famous church in Moscow built by followers of which
religion?
Eastern Orthodox
30. List three things that you can find inside the Kremlin’s walls.
Palaces, museums, churches and an armory
31. Why is St. Petersburg an important city for trade?
Although St. Petersburg sits on the Baltic Sea, it is a port that is open all
year, it is connected by canals to the White Sea, the Sea of Azov, the Black Sea,
and the Mediterranean Sea
32. Whose tomb can be found in Red Square?
Vladimir Lenin – the “Father” of the Bolshevik party and the first Communist
premier of the Soviet Union
33. Whose tomb was removed from Red Square?
Joseph Stalin, the successor to Lenin, however he was a cruel dictator and
was found responsible for the death of millions of Soviet people; his tomb was
removed in the 1970’s
34. What was St. Petersburg called during the Soviet era?
Leningrad
35. Which city in Uzbekistan grew because of its location along ancient trade routes
(Great Silk Road)?
Samarqand/Samarkand Uzbekistan