Koryaksky Autonomous Okrug
The Koryak Autonomous Okrug is located in the northern part of the peninsula and includes part of the surrounding mainland. It is about the size of Arizona with a population of about 35,000 people. Only one-fifth of those are Koryaks. Chukchi, Itelmens, and Evens constitute the other native groups in the Regions, but Russians and Ukrainians make up over 75% of the total population. A steady emigration of non-natives back to their homes in the European part of the former Soviet Union has changed these number since the 1989 census, but reliable current statistics are not available.
The Region is divided into four districts: Tigilsky, Karaginsky, Oliutorsky, and Penzhinsky. The Regional capital, Palana, is the largest town with about 4000 people. Karaginsky District, capital Ossora, is the most populous and developed area. The northern districts of Penzhinsky and Oliutorsky have the most indigenous people who still use their traditional language in everyday life.
The Koryaks call themselves by two different names: the traditionally nomadic reindeer-herding tribes use the name chavchu 'reindeer rearers', 'rich in reindeer', the resident tribes nymylan 'resident, settler' (nym = a dwelling place, settlement). Koryak originates from a neighbouring people who derived the name from the Koryak stem kor 'reindeer (korak 'at the reindeer', 'with the reindeer'). The Russians adopted this variant and popularized it.
Most probably the Koryaks were first mentioned in writing in 1755 by Russian explorer S. Krasheninnikov in his book of travels. The national policy of the 1930s encouraged the use of self-designations as the official variant. In the case of the Koryaks the name nymylan predominated but after the war the former name was reinstated.
REGIONS OF RUSSIA
Aginsky-Buryat AO I
Altaisky Krai I
Amurskaya Oblast I
Arkhangelskaya Oblast I
Astrakhanskaya Oblast
Belgorodskaya Oblast I
Bryanskaya Oblast I
Chelyabinskaya Oblast I
Chitinskaya Oblast I
Chukotsky AO I
Evenksky AO I
Irkutskaya Oblast I
Ivanovskaya Oblast
Jewish Autonomous Oblast I
Kaliningradskaya Oblast I
Kaluzhskaya Oblast I
Kamchatskaya Oblast I
Kemerovskaya Oblast I
Khabarovsky krai I
Khanty - Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug I
Kirovskaya Oblast I
Komi-Permyatsky AO I
Koryaksky Autonomous Okrug I
Kostromskaya Oblast I
Krasnodarsky Krai I
Krasnoyarsky Krai I
Kurganskaya Oblast I
Kurskaya Oblast I
Leningradskaya Oblast I
Lipetskaya Oblast I
Magadanskaya Oblast I
Moscovskaya Oblast I
Murmanskaya Oblast I
Nenetsky AO I
Nizhegorodskaya Oblast I
Novgorodskaya Oblast I
Novosibirskaya Oblast I
Omskaya Oblast I
Orenburgskaya Oblast I
Orlovskaya Oblast I
Penzenskaya Oblast I
Permskaya Oblast I
Primorsky krai I
Pskovskaya Oblast I
Rostovskaya Oblast I
Ryazanskaya Oblast I
Sakhalinskaya Oblast I
Samarskaya Oblast I
Saratovskaya Oblast I
Smolenskaya Oblast I
Stavropolsky krai I
Sverdlovskaya Oblast I
Taimyrsky AO I
Tambovskaya Oblast I
The Adygea Republic I
The Altai Republic I
The Bashkortostan Republic I
The Buryatia Republic I
The Chechnya Republic I
The Chuvash Rebublic I
The Dagestan Republic I
The Ingushetia Republic I
The Kabardino-Balkaria I
The Kalmykia Republic I
The Karachayevo-Circassian Republic I
The Karelia Republic I
The Khakasia Republic I
The Komi Republic I
The Mari El Republic I
The Mordovian Republic I
The North Ossetia I
The Sakha Republic (Yakutia) I
The Tatarstan Republic I
The Tyva Republic I
The Udmurtia Republic I
Tomskaya Oblast I
Tulskaya Oblast I
Tverskaya Oblast I
Tyumenskaya Oblast I
Ulyanovskaya Oblast I
Ust-Ordynsky Buryatsky AO I
Vladimirskaya Oblast I
Volgogradskaya Oblast I
Vologodskaya Oblast I
Voronezhskaya Oblast I
Yamalo-Nenetsky AO I
Yaroslavskaya Oblast I
[ About Russia ]
[ Listen to the national anthem of Russia ]
[ The State flag ]
[ The State emblem ]
[ Power structure of Russia ]
[ Regions of Russia ]
[ Cities of Russia ]
[ Nations of Russia ]
|