Republic of Buryatia | |
---|---|
Anthem: Anthem of the Republic of Buryatia [1] | |
Coordinates: 53°48′N109°20′E / 53.800°N 109.333°E | |
Country | Russia |
Federal district [2] | Far Eastern |
Economic region [3] | Far Eastern |
Capital | Ulan-Ude |
Government | |
• Type | People's Khural [4] |
• Head [4] | Alexey Tsydenov [5] |
Area | |
• Total | 351,334 km2 (135,651 sq mi) |
Population | |
• Total | 978,588 |
• Rank | 54th |
• Density | 2.79/km2 (7.2/sq mi) |
• Urban | 59.1% |
• Rural | 40.9% |
Time zone | UTC+8 (MSK+5 [8] ) |
ISO 3166 code | RU-BU |
Vehicle registration | 03 |
Official language(s) | Buryat; [9] Russian [10] |
Website | egov-buryatia |
Buryatia, [a] officially the Republic of Buryatia, [b] is a republic of Russia located in the Russian Far East. Formerly part of the Siberian Federal District, it has been administered as part of the Far Eastern Federal District since 2018. It borders Irkutsk Oblast and Lake Baikal, the deepest lake in the world to the north, Zabaykalsky Krai to the east, Tuva to the west and Mongolia to the south. [11] Its capital is the city of Ulan-Ude. It has an area of 351,300 square kilometers (135,600 sq mi) with a population of 978,588 (2021 Census). [7] It is home to the indigenous Buryats.
The republic is located in the south-central region of Siberia along the eastern shore of Lake Baikal.
Major rivers include:
Over 80% of the republic's territory is located in the mountainous region, including the Baikal Mountains on the northern shores of Lake Baikal, the Ulan-Burgas east of the lake, and the Selenga Highlands in the south near the Mongolia–Russia border.
The republic's natural resources include gold, tungsten, zinc, uranium, and more.
The climate varies, with the capital Ulan-Ude having a humid steppe climate and the north with a humid continental climate.
Mongolian people have lived around the area of Lake Baikal since the fifth century, with Mongolic-related Slab Grave cultural monuments found in Baikal territory. [12] [13] Over time, the Mongolic peoples of the regions developed into distinct groups, one of which became the Buryats. Further divisions of the Buryats came from those living on the western shore of Lake Baikal, with better land for agriculture, and those in the east, who practiced nomadism more regularly and continued residing in moveable felt yurts. As a result of the superior farmland, the western side of Lake Baikal was settled by European peasants during the time of the Russian Empire – western Buryats were more exposed to and influenced by the culture, religions, and economy of their European neighbors, whereas the eastern Buryats maintained closer ties to other Mongolic peoples, Buddhism, and Asian civilizations. [12]
The territory of Buryatia has been governed by the Xiongnu Empire (209 BC-93 CE) and Mongolian Xianbei state (93–234), Rouran Khaganate (330–555), First Turkic Khaganate (552-603), Eastern Turkic Khaganate (682-744), Tang dynasty (647–784), Uyghur Khaganate (744-840), Yenisei Kyrgyz Khaganate (840-1208), Mongol Empire (1206–1368), and Northern Yuan (1368–1635). [14] Medieval Mongol tribes such as the Merkit, Bayads, Barga Mongols and Tümeds inhabited Buryatia. [14]
Cossacks and other tsarists officials began moving eastward into the western Buryat lands in 1625, where they estimated 30,000 Buryats were living in southeastern Siberia, collecting tribute from other, small Siberian tribes. [12] The Buryats resisted the incorporation into the Russian Empire's tribute system ( yasak ) that demanded a yearly supply of furs; it was not until the 1680s that the last of the eastern Buryat lands were forced to participate in the yasak system. In 1666, the fort of Udinskoye was founded. This area later became known as Verkhneudinsk – in 1934, it was renamed Ulan-Ude, the present-day capital of Buryatia. [15]
From 1727 it was the border crossing for the Kyakhta trade between Russia and China. [16] Kyakhta's founder, the Serb Sava Vladislavich, established it as a trading point between Russia and the Qing Empire. [17] The 1820 reforms of Mikhail Speransky established indirect rule over Buryatia by codifying the local clan leaders as official members of the "steppe duma" in order to incorporate them into the existing imperial government. [15]
Buddhism was recognized as an official religion of the Russian Empire by Empress Elizabeth in 1741, with the first Pandito Khambo Lama, the spiritual leader of Buryat Buddhists, elected in 1764. The first person to serve in this role was Damba Dorzha Zaiaev (1711–1776). At the time of the Bolshevik Revolution, Dashi-Dorzho Itigilov served as the 12th Pandito Khambo Lama of Eastern Siberia from 1911 to 1917. [15] Itigilov stepped down in 1917 at the time of the revolution and later encouraged his students to flee to Mongolia, though he refused to flee himself.
National movements, including that of Buryatia, began to foment after the February Revolution in 1917. From March 1917, the leading Buryat intelligentsia organized a number of conferences in cities such as Petrograd, Chita, Irkutsk, and Verkhneudinsk (present-day Ulan-Ude) and invited representatives from Buryat administrative districts of the Irkutsk and Transbaikalia regions. The culmination of these conferences was the first All-Buryat Congress in April 23–25, 1917 in Chita, where activists advocated for a self-governing Buryat Autonomous Region, based on the models of Poland and Finland, with an elected body, the Buryat National Duma, that all Buryats, men and women, over the age of 18 and without criminal convictions, would participate in. This Duma would elect a permanent executive body, the Buryat National committee, which would take on responsibilities such as organizing the elections, assembling the Buryat Duma, and publishing works in the Buryat language. [18] Among other topics discussed at the Congress were the establishment of an Education Council to create Buryat schools, trained educators, and curricula that included the history of the Buryats and Mongols and Buryat studies.
After the November Revolution in 1917, the Buryats bid for independence was complicated by the arrival of a Japanese expeditionary force into Buryatia in 1918. [18] The Buryat national leaders saw the Japanese as potential and critical allies in assisting the independence movement, but the cooperation ultimately failed due to the conflicting agendas. The Red Army advanced in Buryatia in 1920 and continued to Outer Mongolia in 1921. Attracted to the promises of self-determination and territorial autonomy by the Bolsheviks, and having lost the cooperation of the Japanese, the Buryat leaders embraced the idea of building a Buryat nation with the new Soviet state. In 1923, the Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Buryat : Буряадай Автономито Совет Социалис Республика; Russian : Бурятская Автономная Советская Социалистическая Республика) was created as a result of the merger of State of Buryat and Buryat Oblast and promised territorial autonomy. In 1929, a revolt was suppressed in Buryatia, caused by collectivisation and repression of Buddhism. In 1937, Aga Buryatia and Ust-Orda Buryatia were detached from the Buryat-Mongolian ASSR and merged with Chita and Irkutsk Oblasts, respectively. In 1958, the name "Mongol" was removed from the name of the republic and simply became the Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic of Buryatia within the vast multi-ethnic, diverse Soviet Union.
The Ivolginsky Datsan was opened in 1945 as the only Buddhist spiritual centre of the USSR, home to the Central Spiritual Board of Buddhists of the USSR, the state-controlled sangha.
The Buryat intelligentsia were active throughout Buryatia and beyond, into Tibet and Mongolia. At the turn of the 20th century, Buryats leaders, such as Batu-dalai Ochirov and Mikhail Bogdanov, began actively writing political articles about the threat to Buryatia and Buryat existence from Russia. Despite their noted influence from 1900 to 1930, most of them were purged, killed outright or sent to concentration camps, in the 1930s. [19]
The leader of the Buryat ASSR from 1962 to 1984 was Andrei Urupkheevich Modogoev. [20] In the 1970s, Soviet authorities began two major industrial projects in Buryatia: the Gusinoozerskii power station to the south of Ulan-Ude and the construction of the Baikal–Amur Mainline railway in northern Buraytia. The construction of both projects, particularly the railway, required recruiting campaigns to bring workers from other parts of the country to Buryatia. Towns developed along the railroad, and the urban population in northern Buryatia doubled between 1979 and 1989. [12] In addition to the Russians who moved to Buryatia for work, Buryats from other parts of southern Siberia also migrated to the Buryat ASSR, particularly Ulan-Ude and other cities for jobs and educational opportunities. Prior to World War II, less than 10% of Buryats lived in urban areas, compared to almost half at the time of the fall of the Soviet Union. By 1989, one-third of the Buryat population of the Buryat ASSR was living in Ulan-Ude.
The Buryat ASSR declared its sovereignty in 1990 and adopted the name Republic of Buryatia in 1992. However, it remained an autonomous republic within the Russian Federation. On 11 July 1995 Buryatia signed a power-sharing agreement with the federal government, granting it autonomy. [21] This agreement was abolished on 15 February 2002. [22]
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, autonomous republics such as Buryatia did not have the right to secede. However they retained considerable autonomy, with a separate legislature and president. However this autonomy has been curtailed following the 2004 law passed by Vladimir Putin that decreed regional governors and presidents were to be appointed, rather than directly elected. [15]
The head of the Republic is the Head (formerly President), who the voters of the republic elect for a four-year term. From 2004 to 2012 the head of Buryatia (along with all other heads of regions in Russia) was nominated directly by the Russian President. [23] [24]
Between 1991 and 2007, the President was Leonid Vasilyevich Potapov, who was elected on July 1, 1994, re-elected in 1998 (with 63.25% of votes), and then re-elected again on June 23, 2002 (with over 67% of votes). Prior to the elections, Potapov was the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic—the highest post at that time.
The current Head of the Republic is Alexey Tsydenov, who was elected by popular vote on 10 September 2017. Prior to this he was acting Head, having been appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in February 2017. [25]
The Republic's parliament is the People's Khural, popularly elected every five years. The People's Khural has 66 deputies and is currently dominated by the country's ruling party, United Russia, with 45 seats. Vladimir Anatolyevich Pavlov has been Chairman of the People's Khural since September 2019.
The Republic's Constitution was adopted on February 22, 1994.
In the 2024 Russian presidential election, which critics called rigged and fraudulent, President Vladimir Putin won 87.96% of the vote in Buryatia. [26] [27]
Population: 972,021 (2010 Census); [28] 981,238 (2002 Census); [29] 1,041,119 (1989 Soviet census). [30]
Largest cities or towns in Buryatia 2010 Russian Census | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Administrative division | Pop. | |||||||
Ulan-Ude Severobaykalsk | 1 | Ulan-Ude | City of republic significance of Ulan-Ude | 404,426 | Gusinoozyorsk Kyakhta | ||||
2 | Severobaykalsk | Town of republic significance of Severobaykalsk | 24,929 | ||||||
3 | Gusinoozyorsk | Selenginsky District | 24,582 | ||||||
4 | Kyakhta | Kyakhtinsky District | 20,041 | ||||||
5 | Selenginsk | Kabansky District | 14,546 | ||||||
6 | Zakamensk | Zakamensky District | 11,524 | ||||||
7 | Onokhoy | Zaigrayevsky District | 10,689 | ||||||
8 | Taksimo | Muysky District | 9,438 | ||||||
9 | Bichura | Bichursky District | 9,145 | ||||||
10 | Khorinsk | Khorinsky District | 8,138 |
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1926 | 388,900 | — |
1939 | 545,766 | +40.3% |
1959 | 673,326 | +23.4% |
1970 | 812,251 | +20.6% |
1979 | 900,812 | +10.9% |
1989 | 1,041,119 | +15.6% |
2002 | 981,238 | −5.8% |
2010 | 972,021 | −0.9% |
2021 | 978,588 | +0.7% |
Source: Census data |
Census date | 1926 | 1939 | 1959 | 1970 | 1979 | 1989 | 2002 | 2010 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total population | 491,236 | 545,766 | 673,326 | 812,251 | 899,398 | 1,038,252 | 981,238 | 972,021 |
Average annual population growth | +1.7% | +1.1% | +1.5% | −0.4% | −0.1% | |||
Males | 248,513 | 467,984 | ||||||
Females | 242,723 | 513,254 | ||||||
Females per 1000 males | 977 | 1,097 | ||||||
Proportion urban | 9.3% | 59.6% | ||||||
Territory (km2) | 368,392 | 351,334 | 351,334 | 351,334 | 351,334 | 351,334 | 351,334 | 351,334 |
Population density/km2 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 2.6 | 3.0 | 2.8 | 2.8 |
Year | Average population (thousands) | Live births | Deaths | Natural change | Crude birth rate (per 1000) | Crude death rate (per 1000) | Natural change (per 1000) | Fertility rates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1970 | 816 | 14,766 | 6,301 | 8,465 | 18.1 | 7.7 | 10.4 | |
1975 | 862 | 17,751 | 7,586 | 10,165 | 20.6 | 8.8 | 11.8 | |
1980 | 921 | 19,859 | 8,734 | 11,125 | 21.6 | 9.5 | 12.1 | |
1985 | 993 | 23,975 | 9,529 | 14,446 | 24.1 | 9.6 | 14.5 | |
1990 | 1,050 | 19,185 | 9,602 | 9,583 | 18.3 | 9.1 | 9.1 | 2.18 |
1991 | 1,052 | 16,868 | 9,753 | 7,115 | 16.0 | 9.3 | 6.8 | 2.03 |
1992 | 1,049 | 13,944 | 10,347 | 3,597 | 13.3 | 9.9 | 3.4 | 1.87 |
1993 | 1,043 | 11,981 | 12,388 | −407 | 11.5 | 11.9 | −0.4 | 1.65 |
1994 | 1,039 | 12,327 | 13,650 | −1,323 | 11.9 | 13.1 | −1.3 | 1.66 |
1995 | 1,035 | 12,311 | 12,588 | −277 | 11.9 | 12.2 | −0.3 | 1.60 |
1996 | 1,031 | 12,159 | 12,441 | −282 | 11.8 | 12.1 | −0.3 | 1.57 |
1997 | 1,025 | 11,555 | 12,111 | −556 | 11.3 | 11.8 | −0.5 | 1.51 |
1998 | 1,017 | 11,746 | 11,481 | 265 | 11.6 | 11.3 | 0.3 | 1.53 |
1999 | 1,009 | 11,468 | 13,114 | −1,646 | 11.4 | 13.0 | −1.6 | 1.42 |
2000 | 1,001 | 11,654 | 13,155 | −1,501 | 11.6 | 13.1 | −1.5 | 1.42 |
2001 | 992 | 11,678 | 13,858 | −2,180 | 11.8 | 14.0 | −2.2 | 1.44 |
2002 | 983 | 12,830 | 14,404 | −1,574 | 13.1 | 14.7 | −1.6 | 1.52 |
2003 | 977 | 13,177 | 15,056 | −1,879 | 13.5 | 15.4 | −1.9 | 1.51 |
2004 | 973 | 13,399 | 14,868 | −1,469 | 13.8 | 15.3 | −1.5 | 1.49 |
2005 | 969 | 13,551 | 15,144 | −1,593 | 14.0 | 15.6 | −1.6 | 1.41 |
2006 | 966 | 14,193 | 13,930 | 263 | 14.7 | 14.4 | 0.3 | 1.41 |
2007 | 965 | 15,460 | 12,802 | 2,658 | 16.0 | 13.3 | 2.8 | 1.60 |
2008 | 966 | 16,372 | 12,948 | 3,424 | 16.9 | 13.4 | 3.5 | 1.68 |
2009 | 968 | 16,729 | 12,466 | 4,263 | 17.3 | 12.9 | 4.4 | 2.03 |
2010 | 972 | 16,535 | 12,386 | 4,149 | 17.0 | 12.7 | 4.3 | 1.99 |
2011 | 972 | 16,507 | 12,299 | 4,208 | 17.0 | 12.7 | 4.3 | 2.03 |
2012 | 972 | 17,006 | 12,064 | 4,942 | 17.5 | 12.4 | 5.1 | 2.14 |
2013 | 973 | 17,108 | 11,479 | 5,629 | 17.6 | 11.8 | 5.8 | 2.21 |
2014 | 976 | 17,093 | 11,182 | 5,911 | 17.5 | 11.5 | 6.0 | 2.26 |
2015 | 980 | 16,981 | 11,152 | 5,829 | 17.3 | 11.4 | 5.9 | 2.28 |
2016 | 983 | 16,128 | 11,047 | 5,081 | 16.4 | 11.2 | 5.2 | 2.21(e) |
2017 | 984 | 14,315 | 10,445 | 3,870 | 14.5 | 10.6 | 3.9 | |
2018 | 984 | 13,892 | 10,347 | 3,545 | 14.1 | 10.5 | 3.6 | |
2019 | 12,471 | 10,844 | 1,627 | 12.7 | 11.0 | 1.7 | ||
2020 | 12,682 | 11,786 | 896 | 12.9 | 12.0 | 0.9 |
Source: [33]
District | Births | Deaths | Growth | Pop (2007) | BR | DR | NGR |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Republic of Buryatia | 12,337 | 9,833 | 2,504 | 960,000 | 17.13 | 13.66 | 0.35% |
Ulan-Ude | 4,260 | 3,517 | 743 | 373,300 | 15.22 | 12.56 | 0.27% |
Bichursky District | 339 | 318 | 21 | 26,900 | 16.80 | 15.76 | 0.10% |
Dzhidinsky District | 512 | 309 | 203 | 30,800 | 22.16 | 13.38 | 0.88% |
Yeravninsky District | 244 | 191 | 53 | 18,600 | 17.49 | 13.69 | 0.38% |
Zaigrayevsky District | 714 | 630 | 84 | 48,700 | 19.55 | 17.25 | 0.23% |
Zakamensky District | 492 | 322 | 170 | 30,400 | 21.58 | 14.12 | 0.75% |
Ivolginsky District | 498 | 320 | 178 | 31,000 | 21.42 | 13.76 | 0.77% |
Kabansky District | 702 | 779 | −77 | 64,400 | 14.53 | 16.13 | −0.16% |
Kizhinginsky District | 303 | 192 | 111 | 18,700 | 21.60 | 13.69 | 0.79% |
Kyakhtinsky District | 629 | 393 | 236 | 40,500 | 20.71 | 12.94 | 0.78% |
Mukhorshibirsky District | 338 | 319 | 19 | 28,000 | 16.10 | 15.19 | 0.09% |
Pribaykalsky District | 423 | 357 | 66 | 28,900 | 19.52 | 16.47 | 0.30% |
Selenginsky District | 628 | 522 | 106 | 47,500 | 17.63 | 14.65 | 0.30% |
Tarbagataysky District | 205 | 216 | −11 | 16,900 | 16.17 | 17.04 | −0.09% |
Tunkinsky District | 304 | 249 | 55 | 23,000 | 17.62 | 14.43 | 0.32% |
Khorinsky District | 314 | 222 | 92 | 19,200 | 21.81 | 15.42 | 0.64% |
Barguzinsky District | 367 | 272 | 95 | 25,600 | 19.11 | 14.17 | 0.49% |
Bauntovsky Evenkiysky District | 126 | 92 | 34 | 10,500 | 16.00 | 11.68 | 0.43% |
Kurumkansky District | 232 | 129 | 103 | 15,600 | 19.83 | 11.03 | 0.88% |
Muysky District | 179 | 112 | 67 | 15,600 | 15.30 | 9.57 | 0.57% |
Okinsky District | 73 | 37 | 36 | 5,100 | 19.08 | 9.67 | 0.94% |
Severo-Baykalsky District | 196 | 161 | 35 | 15,200 | 17.19 | 14.12 | 0.31% |
Severobaykalsk | 259 | 174 | 85 | 25,600 | 13.49 | 9.06 | 0.44% |
According to the 2021 Census, [34] ethnic Russians make up 64% of the republic's population, while the ethnic Buryats comprise 32.5% of the population. Other groups include Soyots (0.5%) and a host of smaller groups, each accounting for less than 0.5% of the total population.
Ethnic group | 1926 Census1 | 1939 Census | 1959 Census | 1970 Census | 1979 Census | 1989 Census | 2002 Census | 2010 Census | 2021 Census2 | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | |
Buryats | 214,957 | 43.8% | 116,382 | 21.3% | 135,798 | 20.2% | 178,660 | 22.0% | 206,860 | 23.0% | 249,525 | 24.0% | 272,910 | 27.8% | 286,839 | 30.0% | 295,273 | 32.5% |
Soyots | 161 | 0.0% | 2,739 | 0.3% | 3,579 | 0.4% | 4,316 | 0.5% | ||||||||||
Russians | 258,796 | 52.7% | 393,057 | 72.0% | 502,568 | 74.6% | 596,960 | 73.5% | 647,785 | 72.0% | 726,165 | 69.9% | 665,512 | 67.8% | 630,783 | 66.1% | 581,764 | 63.9% |
Tatars | 3,092 | 0.6% | 3,840 | 0.7% | 8,058 | 1.2% | 9,991 | 1.2% | 10,290 | 1.1% | 10,496 | 1.0% | 8,189 | 0.8% | 6,813 | 0.7% | 4,035 | 0.4% |
Evenks | 2,808 | 0.6% | 1,818 | 0.3% | 1,335 | 0.2% | 1,685 | 0.2% | 1,543 | 0.2% | 1,679 | 0.2% | 2,334 | 0.2% | 2,974 | 0.3% | 2,995 | 0.3% |
Ukrainians | 1,982 | 0.4% | 13,392 | 2.5% | 10,183 | 1.5% | 10,769 | 1.3% | 15,290 | 1.7% | 22,868 | 2.2% | 9,585 | 1.0% | 5,654 | 0.6% | 2,007 | 0.2% |
Others | 9,440 | 1.9% | 17,277 | 3.2% | 15,384 | 2.3% | 14,186 | 1.7% | 17,630 | 2.0% | 27,519 | 2.7% | 19,969 | 2.0% | 18,360 | 1.9% | 19,325 | 2.1% |
1In 1926, the Buryat-Mongolian ASSR included Aga-Buryatia, Ust-Orda Buryatia, and Olkhonsky District. These territories were transferred to Chita and Irkutsk Oblasts in 1937. Consequently, the results of the 1926 census cannot be compared to the results of the censuses of 1939 and later. 268,873 people were registered from administrative databases, and could not declare an ethnicity. It is estimated that the proportion of ethnicities in this group is the same as that of the declared group. [35] |
Traditionally, Buryats adhered to belief systems that were based on the deification of nature, belief in spirits, and the possibility of their magic influence on the surroundings. They were led by shamans, who systematized tribal beliefs and cults. From the second half of the 17th century, beliefs and cults in the shamanic form were displaced by Buddhism, which became widespread in ethnic Buryatia. By the end of the 19th century, the majority of Buryats were part of the Buddhist tradition. A synthesis of Buddhism and traditional beliefs that formed a system of ecological traditions has constituted a major attribute of Buryat culture. [38] In 2003, the Local Religious Organization of Shamans, Tengeri was officially registered as a religious organization in Buryatia. [15]
As of a 2012 survey [36] 27.4% of the population adheres to the Russian Orthodox Church, 19.8% to Buddhism, 2% to the Slavic Native Faith, Tengrism or Buryat shamanism, 4% declares to be unaffiliated Christian (excluding Protestants), 1% are Orthodox Christian believers without belonging to churches or are members of other Orthodox churches, 1% are members of Protestant churches. In addition, 25% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious", 13% to be atheist, and 10.8% follows another religion or did not give an answer to the survey. [36]
Tibetan Buddhism and Orthodox Christianity are the most widespread religions in the republic. Many Slavs, who constitute around 67% of the population, are Russian Orthodox. Since the breakup of the USSR in 1991, a small number have converted to various Protestant denominations or to Rodnovery, also known as the Slavic native faith. There are also some Catholics among the Slavs. Most of the Germans (0.11% of the population) are also Orthodox, so are some other non-European groups like Armenians (0.23%), Georgians (0.03%), and Soyot (0.37%). Buryats constitute 30.04% of the total population.
Most urban Buryats are either Buddhist or Orthodox, while those in the rural areas often adhere to Yellow shamanism, a mixture of shamanism and Buddhism, or to Black shamanism. [39] There are also Tengrist movements. Siberian Tatars are around 0.7% of the population. However, due to isolation from the main body of Tatars, many of them now are either non-religious or Orthodox. Islam is followed by immigrant groups like Azeris and Uzbeks, who constitute another 0.7% of the population.
The higher education institutions of the republic include Buryat State University, Buryat State Academy of Agriculture, East Siberian State Academy of Arts and Culture, and East Siberia State University of Technology and Management.
The republic's economy is composed of agricultural and commercial products including wheat, vegetables, potatoes, timber, leather, graphite, and textiles. Fishing, hunting, fur farming, sheep and cattle farming, mining, stock raising, engineering, and food processing are also important economic generators. The unemployment rate of Buryatia was 11% in 2020. [40]
GDP pro person nominal in 2018 was 3,650 USD [41] and PPP in 2009 was 11,148 USD. [42]
Lake Baikal is a popular tourist destination, especially in summer.
The Buryats are a Mongolic ethnic group native to southeastern Siberia who speak the Buryat language. They are one of the two largest indigenous groups in Siberia, the other being the Yakuts. The majority of the Buryats today live in their titular homeland, the Republic of Buryatia, a federal subject of Russia which sprawls along the southern coast and partially straddles Lake Baikal. Smaller groups of Buryats also inhabit Ust-Orda Buryat Okrug and the Agin-Buryat Okrug which are to the west and east of Buryatia respectively as well as northeastern Mongolia and Inner Mongolia, China. They traditionally formed the major northern subgroup of the Mongols.
Ulan-Ude is the capital city of Buryatia, Russia, located about 100 kilometers (62 mi) southeast of Lake Baikal on the Uda River at its confluence with the Selenga. According to the 2021 Census, 437,565 people lived in Ulan-Ude; up from 404,426 recorded in the 2010 Census, making the city the third-largest in the Russian Far East by population.
Irkutsk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia, located in southeastern Siberia in the basins of the Angara, Lena, and Nizhnyaya Tunguska Rivers. The administrative center is the city of Irkutsk. It borders the Republic of Buryatia and the Tuva Republic in the south and southwest, which separate it from Khövsgöl Province in Mongolia; Krasnoyarsk Krai in the west; the Sakha Republic in the northeast; and Zabaykalsky Krai in the east. It had a population of 2,370,102 at the 2021 Census.
Kyakhta is a town and the administrative center of Kyakhtinsky District in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the Kyakhta River near the Mongolia–Russia border. The town stands directly opposite the Mongolian border town of Altanbulag. Population: 20,041 (2010 Census); 18,391 (2002 Census); 18,307 (1989 Soviet census). From 1727 it was the border crossing for the Kyakhta trade between Russia and China.
The Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as Buryat ASSR, was an autonomous republic of the Russian SFSR within the Soviet Union.
Babushkin, known as Mysovsk (Мысовск) before 1941, is a town in Kabansky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the southern shore of Lake Baikal on the Trans-Siberian Railway. Population: 4,831 (2010 Census); 4,953 (2002 Census); 7,298 (1989 Soviet census); 9,000 (1967).
Gusinoozersk is a town and the administrative center of Selenginsky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia. Population: 24,582 (2010 Census); 26,502 (2002 Census); 29,790 (1989 Soviet census); 13,800 (1970). It was previously known as Shakhty.
Severobaikalsk is a town in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the northern end of Lake Baikal at the mouth of the Tyya River, 440 kilometers (270 mi) northwest of Ulan-Ude and 490 kilometers (300 mi) northeast of Irkutsk. Population: 24,233 (2021 Census);
Ust-Barguzin is an urban locality in Barguzinsky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the shore of Lake Baikal at the mouth of the Barguzin River and 270 kilometers (170 mi) northeast of Ulan-Ude, the capital of the republic. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 7,173.
Zabaykalsky Krai is a federal subject of Russia, located in the Russian Far East. Its administrative center is Chita. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 1,107,107.
Nizhneangarsk is an urban locality and the administrative center of Severo-Baykalsky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located at the northern tip of Lake Baikal, 23 kilometers (14 mi) north of Severobaykalsk. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 5,030.
Novy Uoyan is an urban locality in Severo-Baykalsky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located in the basin of the Upper Angara River, 550 kilometers (340 mi) from Ulan-Ude, the capital of the republic. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 3,963.
Novoselenginsk is a rural locality in Selenginsky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the Selenge River south of Lake Baikal. Formerly called simply Selenginsk, it was one of the most important towns in Siberia before 1800.
Pribaykalsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the twenty-one in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia. It is located in the center of the republic. The area of the district is 15,472 square kilometers (5,974 sq mi). Its administrative center is the rural locality of Turuntayevo. As of the 2010 Census, the total population of the district was 26,856, with the population of Turuntayevo accounting for 22.0% of that number.
Selenginsk is an urban locality in Kabansky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located at the head of the Selenga River delta about 30 kilometers (19 mi) from Lake Baikal and about 50 kilometers (31 mi) northwest of Ulan-Ude, the capital of the republic. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 14,546.
Kurumkan is a rural locality and the administrative center of Kurumkansky District of the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located 413 kilometers (257 mi) from Ulan-Ude. Population: 5,465 (2010 Census); 5,957 (2002 Census); 6,687 (1989 Soviet census).
Buddhism in Buryatia, a region in Siberia, Russia, has a deep-rooted history dating back to the 17th century when Tibetan Buddhism first arrived in the area. Initially adopted by ethnic groups like the Selenga and Zede Buryats, Buddhism gradually spread throughout the Transbaikal region. In 1741, it gained formal recognition as an official religion in the Russian Empire, with the establishment of Buddhist monastic universities known as datsans. Despite facing significant challenges during the Soviet era, including persecution and the closure of religious institutions, Buddhism in Buryatia has persisted and experienced a revival in the post-Soviet period.
The State Anthem of the Republic of Buryatia is one of the state symbols of Buryatia, together with the flag and coat of arms of the Russian federal subject. It was first used unofficially for the Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, between 1983 and 1990 titled "Song of the Native Land" with original lyrics in Russian.
Gunsyn Ayusheevna Tsydenova was a Soviet veterinarian and politician who served as the chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic from 1941 until 1947, leading the ASSR through World War II. Tsydenova also served a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union from 1937 until 1954.
The Buryat liberation movement is the centuries-long social and military confrontation of ethnic Buryats against the Russian Empire, which actually colonized the region. In modern history - rallies and actions against the policy of the Russian Federation.