PRE-AP GEOGRAPHY
Chapter 16 – Russia and the Caucasus
Chapter 19 – Central Asia
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
The physical features of Russia and the Caucasus include plains,
mountains, and rivers.
 Continents of Europe and Asia meet at the Ural Mountains. Europe to the west and
Asia to the east. Together, they form the landmass of Eurasia.
Russia is the world’s largest country. It is twice the size of the United States
South of Russia is a region known as the Caucasus, the area between the Black Sea
and the Caspian Sea. The region is named for the Caucasus Mountains.
Includes three smaller countries—Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
Landforms
 Russia’s capital, Moscow, is located in the Northern European Plain, which stretches
across western, or European, Russia.
 To the east are the low-lying Ural Mountains, which are worn down and rounded
from erosion.
 Siberia, the vast area between the Urals and the Pacific Ocean, includes the marshy
West Siberian Plain, the Central Siberian Plateau, and mountain ranges.
 Caucasus countries consist mainly of rugged uplands and mountains, including
Mount Elbrus, the highest peak in Europe.
 South of the Caucasus Mountains is a plateau.
 Lowlands lie along the Black and Caspian Seas.
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
Bodies of Water
Rivers
 Volga River, in western Russia is the longest river in Europe and the core of Russia’s river
network
Ob, Yenisey, and Lena rivers in Asian part of Russia, all flow northward to Arctic Ocean
Lakes
Russia has some 200,000 lakes.
Lake Baikal, in south-central Siberia, is world’s deepest lake. Deep enough to hold all the
water in all five of the Great Lakes. Called the Jewel of Siberia.
Seas
Black and Caspian seas border Russia and the Caucasus.
 Black Sea connects to the Mediterranean Sea and is important for trade.
 Caspian Sea holds saltwater and is the world’s largest inland sea.
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
Climate and plant life change from north to south in Russia and vary in the
Caucasus.
 Russia has short summers and long, snowy winters due in part to its location along
Arctic Circle.
Russia’s northern coast is tundra. Much of the ground is permafrost, or
permanently frozen soil. Only small plants such as mosses grow there.
 Taiga, a vast forest of evergreen trees, covers about half of Russia.
South of the taiga is a flat grassland called the steppe.
Rich, black soil and a warmer climate make this an important farming area.
Caucasus countries are warmer than Russia. Warm and wet along Black Sea
Hot and Dry in much of Azerbaijan
Russia & The Caucasus– Physical Geography
Russia and the Caucasus have a wealth of resources, but many are hard to
access.
Natural Resources
 Fertile soil for farming in Northern European plain and steppe. Wood from taiga for
building and paper products. Metals and precious gems
Energy Resources
 Main energy resources include coal, hydroelectricity, natural gas, and oil. Russia and
Azerbaijan have large oil and gas fields.
Resource Management
 Poorly managed for a long time
Many remaining resources are only in remote Siberia.
Russia – History and Culture
History
 The Slavs settled in Eastern Europe, including what is now Ukraine and western Russia.
 Developed towns and began trading with other areas
 AD 800s—Viking, or Rus, traders from Scandinavia invaded the Slavs.
 Shaped the first Russian state, Kievan Rus, centered around the city of Kiev
 Missionaries introduced the Orthodox Christian faith and Cyrillic, a form of the Greek
alphabet.
 In the 1200s Mongol invaders called Tatars came from Central Asia and conquered Kiev.
 Allowed Russian princes to rule over local states
 Muscovy became the strongest state
Russia – History and Culture
Russian Empire
 After about 200 years Muscovy’s prince, Ivan III seized control from the Mongols.
 In the 1540s Ivan IV crowned himself czar, or emperor, and became known as Ivan
the Terrible for his cruel leadership.
 Over time Muscovy developed into the country of Russia.
 Strong czars built Russia into a huge empire and world power.
 Russia remained largely a country of poor farmers, while the czars and nobles had
most of the wealth.
 In the early 1900s Russians began demanding improvements and unrest grew.
Russia – History and Culture
Russia – History and Culture
War and Revolution
World War I
 Russia entered World War I in 1914. Suffered huge losses and severe food
shortages
When the czar seemed to ignore the people’s hardship, they rose against him.
The czar was forced to give up his throne in 1917.
Russian Revolution
 Later that year the Bolsheviks, a radical Russian Communist group, seized power in
the Russian Revolution.
In 1922 the Bolsheviks formed a new country, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
(USSR), or the Soviet Union.
 Soon included 15 republics, the strongest of which was Russia
 First leader was Vladimir Lenin
Russia – History and Culture
War and Revolution
Soviet Union under Stalin
 Soviet Union led by Lenin became a Communist country. Joseph Stalin took power after
Lenin’s death in 1924.
 Command economy, in which the government owns all businesses and farms and makes all
decisions, was established.
 Stalin was a brutal and paranoid dictator and punished anyone who spoke out against the
government. Millions sent to gulags, harsh Soviet labor camps.
Cold War and Collapse
 During World War II the Soviet Union fought with the Allies. Stalin set up Communist
governments in Eastern Europe. Opposition between the Soviet Union and the United States
led to the Cold War.
 In the 1980s Mikhail Gorbachev began introducing some democracy to help save the Soviet
economy.
 In 1991 the Soviet Union collapsed and broke into 15 independent countries, including
Russia.
Russia – History and Culture
Culture
People and Religion
Population: more than 140 million. About 80 percent are ethnic Russians.
Revival of religious worship after fall of Soviet government. Main faith is Russian Orthodox Christian.
Other religions include Islam, Buddhism, and other forms of Christianity.
Customs
Russian history has shaped its customs. Religious holidays are popular.
New Year’s Eve is the main family holiday. June 12 is Russian Independence Day, the day marking the
end of the Soviet Union.
Arts and Sciences
Russia’s ballet companies are world famous. Peter Tchaikovsky is Russia’s most famous composer.
Faberge eggs, made of precious metals and covered with gems, are priceless works of art.
Major contributions to space research, including the first artificial satellite (Sputnik) in space,
launched in 1957
Russia Today
Government
 Russian leaders have struggled to change from communism to democracy.
 The Russian Federation is a federal republic, a system in which power is divided
between national and local governments.
 Increased democracy has led to more freedom for Russians.
 Problems such as government corruption, or dishonesty, have slowed the
development of a free society in Russia.
Economy
Russia is moving toward a market economy, based on free trade and competition.
The Russian government has greatly reduced its control of the economy.
Russia produces and exports oil, natural gas, timber, metals, chemicals, and crops.
Service industries now make up the largest part of economy.
Russia Today
City Life
 About 75 percent of all Russians live in cities.
 Most live in small apartments in high-rise buildings.
 More restaurants and shopping centers are available with a wider range of
consumer goods.
 Cities often have large parks and wooded areas in and around them.
Rural Life
 About 25 percent of all Russians live in rural areas.
Many live in houses.
Many richer Russians own dachas, or Russian country houses.
Russia Today
Russia’s physical geography, cities, and economy define its many culture regions.
Russia has six main culture regions
Differ in features such as population, natural resources, and economic activity
Four western culture regions make up Russia’s heartland.
Home to the vast majority of Russia’s people, the country’s capital, and largest cities
Most productive farming area
Western Culture Regions
Moscow Region
Moscow is Russia’s capital and largest city.
Center of government is housed at the Kremlin, in the heart of the city.
Most important economic area and transportation center
Russia Today
St. Petersburg Region
St. Petersburg was once the capital city and home to czars. Theaters and museums
enrich the city’s cultural life.
Its location on the Gulf of Finland has made it a major port and trade center.
Volga Region
Volga River is a major shipping route. Dams along its route form lakes and provide
hydroelectric power.
Factories produce oil and gas. Caspian Sea provides sturgeon and black caviar, a
costly delicacy.
Urals Region
Important mining region. Produce nearly every major mineral
Smelters, factories that process metal ores, process copper and iron.
Also known for gems and semiprecious stones
Russia Today
Siberia and the Russian Far East
Siberia
 Siberia means “Sleeping Land” in Tatar language. Winters long and severe
 Remote region with many valuable, but difficult to access, resources.
 Main industries are lumber, mining, and oil production.
 Jobs there pay high wages, but few people chose to live there.
 Cities tend to follow the Trans-Siberian Railroad, the world’s longest single rail line that runs
from Moscow to Vladivostok.
Russian Far East
Long coastline region along the Pacific Ocean. Land is heavily forested
In the few cities, factories process forest and mineral resources.
Farming in the Amur River valley
City of Vladivostok is a naval base and the area’s main seaport.
Islands off the coast provide oil, minerals, and commercial fishing.
Russia Today
Challenges
Russia has made great progress since 1991, but challenges remain.
Shift to a market economy has brought problems. Prices and unemployment have
risen.
Gap between rich and poor has widened.
Population is falling—more Russians are dying than are being born.
Soviet government did little to prevent pollution.
Environment has been severely harmed.
Government must repair damage.
Ethnic conflicts have resulted in fighting and terrorism.
One of the worst conflicts is in Chechnya in the Caucasus Mountains.
The Caucasus
The Caucasus
 Located where Europe blends into Asia, the Caucasus reflects a range of cultural
influences.
 Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Turks, and Mongols have all ruled or invaded the
area.
 Russians took control of much of the region in the early 1800s.
 After World War I Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia gained independence—but not
for long.
 By the early 1920s they were part of the vast Soviet Union.
 Finally in 1991 the Caucasus republics achieved true independence when the Soviet
Union fell.
The Caucasus
 Caucasus region has a long history, but its countries do not. Young countries have
had to create new governments and economies since the fall of the Soviet Union
Ethnic unrest and conflicts have slowed progress.
Caucasus republics have similar governments. An elected president governs each
nation. An appointed prime minister runs each government.
 An elected parliament, or legislature, makes the laws.
Georgia
Lies in the Caucasus Mountains east of the Black Sea
Capital: Tbilisi
About 70 percent are ethnic Georgians and most belong to Georgian Orthodox
Church.
Struggles with unrest and civil war and ethnic conflict
Economy based on services, farming, and mining
The Caucasus
Armenia
Small, landlocked country south of Georgia
Capital: Yerevan
Almost all the people are ethnic Armenian and most people belong to the Armenian
Orthodox Church.
Fought bitter territorial war with Azerbaijan in the 1990s, and the issue remained unsettled
as of the early 2000s
Diamond processing is a growing industry.
Azerbaijan
East of Armenia
Capital: Baku
About 90 percent are Azeri and most are Muslim.
Many refugees as a result of its conflict with Armenia
Economy based on oil, found along and under the Caspian Sea
Corruption is high and many people are poor.
Central Asia– Physical Geography
Physical Geography
 All of the countries in this region are landlocked, or completely surrounded by land with no direct
access to the ocean.
Mountains
 Many high mountain ranges through Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan
 Large glaciers in high mountains such as the Pamirs
 The mountains have contributed to the region’s isolation. Frequent earthquakes
Plains and Plateaus
From mountains in east, the land gradually slopes westward.
The central part of the region is covered with plains and low plateaus.
The plains region is the site of the fertile Fergana Valley, a major center of farming in the region for
thousands of years.
Rivers and Lakes
Two rivers, the Syr Darya and the Amu Darya, flow through the Fergana Valley from eastern mountains
into the Aral Sea, which is really a large lake.
Another important lake, Lake Balkhash, has freshwater at one end and salty water at the other end.
Central Asia– Physical Geography
Central Asia– Physical Geography
Climate
 High peaks in the eastern mountain area are too
cold, dry, and windy for vegetation.
 Two deserts—the Kara-Kum and the Kyzyl Kum
—have extremely high temperatures.
 Temperature ranges are not so extreme in the
north and rainfall is heavy enough for plants to
grow.
 River water used mostly to irrigate cotton fields
 So much water from the rivers is used for
irrigation that almost no water reaches the
Aral Sea today.
 Central Asia’s rivers also supply power.
 Large dams on the rivers generate hydroelectricity.
Central Asia – Physical Geography
Resources
Oil
 Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan have huge reserves of oil and natural
gas.
 Reserves must be exported to benefit the countries.
 With no ocean port, oil and gas must be transported through pipelines.
 Building and maintaining pipelines is difficult through the rugged terrain.
Other Resources
 Other minerals are also present.
 Kazakhstan has many mineral mines.
 Gold, silver, copper, zinc, uranium, and lead
 Also large amounts of coal
Central Asia – Physical Geography
Central Asia – History and Culture
History
Trade
 Beginning in about 100 BC the best trade route between Europe and China ran
through Central Asia and was called the Silk Road.
 Cities along the road, such as Samarqand and Bukhara, grew rich from the trade.
 By 1500 Europeans were sailing to East Asia through the Indian Ocean, and trade
through Central Asia declined.
Invasions
Interest in the trade route sparked many invasions, among the first were Turkicspeaking nomads from northern Asia in AD 500.
Arab armies took over much of the region in the 700s and ruled until the 1200s.
Mongol armies conquered Central Asia in the 1200s, followed later by various tribes,
such as the Uzbeks, Kazakhs, and Turkmens.
Central Asia – History and Culture
Russian and Soviet Rule
 The Russians conquered Central Asia in the mid-1800s.
 Built railroads
 Expanded cotton and oil production
 Rule came to be resented
 After the Russian Revolution in 1917 the new Soviet leaders weakened resistance to
their rule by dividing Central Asia into republics.
 They encouraged ethnic Russians to move to these areas and made other people
settle on government-owned farms.
 The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. The Central Asian republics finally became
independent countries.
Central Asia – History and Culture
Culture
 For centuries Central Asians have made a living by raising horses, cattle, sheep, and goats.
Many herders live as nomads, people who move often from place to place.
Unique homes, called yurts, make moving with the herds possible. A yurt is a movable
round house made of wool felt mats hung over a wood frame.
People
Several ethnic groups (all part of larger ethnic group, Turkic), including: Kazakh, Kyrgyz,
Turkmen, Uzbek, & Russian
Languages
Each ethnic group speaks its own language.
In most countries, more than one language is spoken.
When the Russians conquered the region, they established Russian as the official language.
They also introduced the Cyrillic alphabet, but most countries now use the Latin alphabet.
Central Asia – History and Culture
Religion
 Traders and conquerors brought their religious beliefs to the region.
 Islam is the main religion in Central Asia.
 Most of the region’s Christians attend the Russian Orthodox Church.
Central Asia Today
Afghanistan
 Long war with the Soviet Union in the 1980s
In the mid-1990s a radical Muslim group, the Taliban, took over most of the country, including the
capital, Kabul.
After September 11, 2001, attacks, U.S. and British forces attacked Taliban and al Qaeda targets and
toppled the Taliban government.
The new government has a new constitution, new voting regulations, and a new national assembly
that includes women.
Kazakhstan
 Strong Russian influence
Growing economy based on oil reserves and quick adaptation to the free market
Stable democratic republic with an elected president and parliament
Tajikistan
 Republic with an elected president
 Relies on cotton farming; only 5-6 percent of country’s land is arable, or suitable for growing crops
Central Asia Today
Kyrgyzstan
 Clan membership and nomadic traditions are important.
Mix of irrigated crops and dry land farming, or farming that relies on rainfall instead of
irrigation, is most important industry.
Low standard of living, signs of strengthening economy
Fairly stable government
Turkmenistan
 Parliament with president for life who holds all the power
 Supports Islam, but not as political movement
 Economy based on oil, gas, and cotton
Uzbekistan
President who holds all the power
Government closely controls the economy.
Economy based on oil, gold, and cotton
Central Asia Today
Challenges
Environmental Challenges
 Shrinking of the Aral Sea, with dust storms and impact on the fishing industry
 Radiation left over from Soviet nuclear bomb testing
 Overuse of chemicals in crop production
Economic Challenges
 Reliance on one crop, cotton
 Focus on cotton has not encouraged development of manufacturing industries.
 Oil and gas development slowed by outdated tools, lack of funds, poor transport
Political Challenges
 Lack of political stability
 Often faced with terrorist threats from different political groups within their own countries