Adygea Explained

Republic of Adygea
Subdivision Type:	Country
Settlement Type:	Republic
Subdivision Name:	Russia
Coordinates:	44.65°N 40°W
Subdivision Type2:	Federal district^[1]
Subdivision Name2:	Southern
Subdivision Type3:	Economic region^[2]
Subdivision Name3:	North Caucasus
Leader Title:	Head
Leader Name:	Murat Kumpilov^[3]
Total Type:	Total
Area Total Km2:	7,792
Population Rank:	75th
Population Density Km2:	63.77
Population As Of:	2021 Census
Population Total:	496934
Population Footnotes:	^[4]
Timezone1:	MSK^[5]
Blank Name:	OKTMO ID
Blank Info:	79000000
Native Name:
Iso Code:	RU-AD
Registration Plate:	01
Utc Offset:	+3
Anthem:	Anthem of the Republic of Adygea^[6]
Flag Size:	120px
Flag Link:	Flag of Adygea
Shield Link:	Coat of arms of Adygea
Seat Type:	Capital
Seat:	Maykop^[7]
Population Urban:	49.4%
Population Rural:	50.6%
Blank Name Sec1:	Official language(s)
Blank Info Sec1:	Adyghe^[8] Russian^[9]
Area Footnotes:	^[10]
Mapsize:	300px
Government Type:	State Council (Khase)

The Republic of Adygea, ^[11] also known as the Adygean Republic, is a republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe. The republic is a part of the Southern Federal District, and covers an area of 7600km2, with a population of roughly 496,934 residents.^[4] It is an enclave within Krasnodar Krai and is the fifth-smallest Russian federal subject by area. Maykop is the capital and the largest city of Adygea, home to one-third of the republic's population.

Adygea is one of Russia's ethnic republics, primarily representing the indigenous Circassian people that form 25% of the Republic's population, while Russians form a majority at 60%, and with minority populations of Armenians and Ukrainians. The official languages of Adygea are Adyghe and Russian.

History

The Cherkess (Adyghe) Autonomous Oblast was established within the Russian SFSR on July 27, 1922, on the territories of the Kuban-Black Sea Oblast, primarily settled by the Adyghe people. At that time, Krasnodar was the administrative center. It was renamed Adyghe (Cherkess) Autonomous Oblast on August 24, 1922, soon after its creation. In the first two years of its existence the autonomous oblast was a part of the Russian SFSR, but on October 17, 1924, it was transferred to the jurisdiction of the newly created North Caucasus Krai within the RSFSR.^[12]

It was renamed Adyghe Autonomous Oblast (AO) in July 1928. On January 10, 1934, the autonomous oblast became part of the new Azov-Black Sea Krai, which was removed from North Caucasus Krai. Maykop was made the administrative center of the autonomous oblast in 1936. Adyghe AO became part of Krasnodar Krai when it was established on September 13, 1937.

On July 3, 1991, the oblast was elevated to the status of a republic under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation.^[13] The first President of the republic was Aslan Dzharimov, elected on 5 January 1992.^[14]

Relations between the Adyghe and ethnic Russians in Adygea are currently good. Russians make up two-thirds of the population within Adygea.^[15] The current Head of Adygea is Murat Kumpilov.^[16]

Geography

Adygea lies in Russia's Southern Federal District of Eastern Europe, in the foothills of the Northwestern Caucasus in the Caucasus Mountains System, with plains in the northern areas and mountains in the southern area. Forests (mainly of European beech, oak, and maple) cover almost 40% of its territory.

• Area — 7792km2.
• Borders — the Republic of Adygea is entirely surrounded by Krasnodar Krai.
• Highest point — Chugush Mountain: 3238m (10,623feet).

Rivers

The 870km (540miles) long Kuban River is one of the major navigable rivers in the Caucasus region. It forms part of the northern border between the Republic of Adygea and Krasnodar Krai.
Other rivers include:

• Belaya River
• Chokhrak River
• Dakh River
• Fars River
• Khodz River
• Kisha River
• Bolshaya Laba River — (forming part of the eastern border between Adygea and Krasnodar Krai)
• Psekups River
• Pshish River
• Sakhray River
• Sukhoy Kurdzhips River — flows near the archaeological site at Mezmaiskaya cave.^[17]

Lakes

The republic has no large lakes. However, the several large reservoirs include:

• Krasnodarskoye Reservoir
• Oktyabrskoye Reservoir
• Shapsugskoye Reservoir
• Tshchitskoye Reservoir

Mountains

The republic's major mountains and peaks range in height from 2000m-3238mm (7,000feet-10,623feetm), and include:

• Chugush Mountain — 3238m (10,623feet)
• Mount Fisht — 2868m (9,409feet)
• Oshten Mountain
• Pseashkho Mountain
• Shepsi Mountain

Natural resources

The republic is rich in oil and natural gas. Other natural resources include gold, silver, tungsten, and iron.

Climate

• Average January temperature:
• Average July temperature:
• Average annual precipitation: 70cm (30inches)

February 15, 2010, recorded the absolute maximum for the winter months - in the capital, the city of Maykop, the temperature was .

Politics

The chief executive of the government of the Republic of Adygea is the Head (called "President" until May 2011), who is appointed for a five-year term. Proficiency in the Adyghe language is a prerequisite for the candidate.^[18]

The current Head, Murat Kumpilov (since January 27, 2017), succeeded Aslan Tkhakushinov, initially as acting Head of the region. There is also a directly elected State Council (Khase or Xase—not to be confused with the Adyghe Khase, a union of Adyghe who supported Sovmen for a second term), which comprises the Council of Representatives and the Council of the Republic. Both councils are elected every five years and have 27 deputies each.

The Republic sends three representatives to the parliament of the Russian Federation; one to the State Duma and the other two to the Federation Council.

The Constitution of the Republic of Adygea was adopted on May 14, 1995.

Divisions

See main article: List of administrative and municipal divisions of the Republic of Adygea.

The Republic of Adygea is administratively divided into seven districts (raions), two cities/towns, and (at a lower administrative level) five urban-type settlements. Municipally, the republic is divided into two urban okrugs, five urban settlements, and 46 rural settlements.

Name	Local Name	Area in km^2	Population Census^[19] 2010	Population Estimate^[20] 1 Jan 2018
Cities (republican municipal districts)
Maykop	Городской округ Майкоп	58.6	166,540	165,279
Adygeysk	Городской округ Адыгейск	32.4	14,659	15,207
Districts
Giaginsky District	Гиагинский м.р.	790.0	31,766	31,394
Koshekhablsky District	Кошехабльский м.р.	606.7	30,422	29,726
Krasnogvardeysky District	Красногвардейский м.р.	725.5	30,868	31,765
Maykopsky District	Майкопский м.р.	3,667.4	58,439	60,107
	Тахтамукайский м.р.	440.0	69,662	82,909
	Теучежский м.р.	710.0	20,643	20,802
	Шовгеновский м.р.	521.4	16,997	16,187
Adygea Republic	Республика Адыгея	7,600.0	439,996	453,376

• Note "м.р." above is an abbreviation for "муниципальный район" (Municipal District)

Demographics

• Population:

	2019	2021
Average:	73.8 years	71.2 years
Male:	69.1 years	66.6 years
Female:	78.4 years	75.8 years

• Life expectancy:^{[21] [22]}

Vital statistics

Source: Russian Federal State Statistics Service ^[23]

	Average population	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1000)	Crude death rate (per 1000)	Natural change (per 1000)	Fertility rates
1970	386,000	5,681	3,307	2,374	14.7	8.6	6.2
1975	396,000	5,900	3,907	1,993	14.9	9.9	5.0
1980	409,000	6,610	4,828	1,782	16.2	11.8	4.4
1985	423,000	6,966	5,283	1,683	16.5	12.5	4.0
1990	436,000	6,171	5,375	796	14.2	12.3	1.8	2.06
1991	439,000	5,912	5,905	7	13.5	13.5	0.0	1.96
1992	444,000	5,306	5,969	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 663	12.0	13.5	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1.5	1.73
1993	447,000	4,774	6,662	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 888	10.7	14.9	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.2	1.54
1994	449,000	4,907	6,519	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 612	10.9	14.5	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-3.6	1.59
1995	450,000	4,798	6,475	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 677	10.7	14.4	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-3.7	1.55
1996	450,000	4,625	6,382	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 757	10.3	14.2	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-3.9	1.49
1997	450,000	4,430	6,302	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 872	9.8	14.0	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.2	1.42
1998	451,000	4,340	6,245	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 905	9.6	13.9	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.2	1.38
1999	450,000	3,879	6,215	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 336	8.6	13.8	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-5.2	1.22
2000	448,000	4,071	6,710	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 639	9.1	15.0	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-5.9	1.27
2001	447,000	4,212	6,566	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 354	9.4	14.7	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-5.3	1.31
2002	447,000	4,540	6,715	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 175	10.2	15.0	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.9	1.39
2003	446,000	4,634	6,929	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 295	10.4	15.6	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-5.2	1.40
2004	444,000	4,648	6,645	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 997	10.5	15.0	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.5	1.37
2005	443,000	4,550	6,726	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 176	10.3	15.2	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.9	1.32
2006	441,000	4,606	6,686	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2 080	10.4	15.2	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-4.7	1.33
2007	440,000	5,210	6,454	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1 244	11.8	14.7	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2.8	1.50
2008	440,000	5,601	6,558	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 957	12.7	14.9	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2.2	1.60
2009	439,000	5,513	6,219	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 706	12.5	14.2	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1.6	1.66
2010	439,000	5,721	6,065	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 476	13.0	14.1	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1.1	1.70
2011	441,000	5,511	6,197	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 554	12.5	13.8	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-1.3	1.66
2012	444,000	5,700	5,924	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 224	12.9	13.4	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-0.5	1.71
2013	445,000	5,568	5,814	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 246	12.5	13.1	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-0.6	1.68
2014	448,000	5,699	5,938	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 239	12.7	13.3	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-0.6	1.73
2015	450,000	5,613	5,841	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 228	12.5	13.0	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-0.5	1.72
2016	453,000	5,451	5,818	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 367	12.1	12.9	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-0.8	1.69(e)
2017	453,000	4,758	5,734	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 976	10.5	12.7	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-2.2
2019		4,184	5,654	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 1,470	9.1	12.3	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-3.2
2020		4,419	6,154	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	- 1,735	9.5	13.3	style="text-align:right; color:red;"	-3.8

Ethnic groups

According to the 2021 Census,^[24] ethnic Russians make up 64.4% of the republic's total population, while the ethnic Adyghe are 25.7%. Other groups include Armenians (3.3%), Kurds (1.2%), Romani people (0.7%) and Ukrainians (0.6%).

Ethnic group	1926 Census		1939 Census		1959 Census		1970 Census		1979 Census		1989 Census		2002 Census		2010 Census		2021 Census^1
	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%
Russians	29,102	25.6%	171,960	71.1%	200,492	70.4%	276,537	71.7%	285,626	70.6%	293,640	68.0%	288,280	64.5%	270,714	63.6%	287,778	64.4%
Adyghe	50,821	44.8%	55,048	22.8%	65,908	23.2%	81,478	21.1%	86,388	21.4%	95,439	22.1%	108,115	24.2%	109,699	25.8%	114,688	25.7%^2
Armenians	738	0.7%	2,348	1.0%	3,013	1.1%	5,217	1.4%	6,359	1.6%	10,460	2.4%	15,268	3.4%	15,561	3.7%	14,810	3.3%
Kurds									2	0.0%	262	0.1%	3,631	0.8%	4,528	1.1%	5,233	1.2%
Romani									1,109	0.3%	1,134	0.3%	1,844	0.4%	2,364	0.6%	2,908	0.7%
Ukrainians	26,405	23.3%	6,130	2.5%	7,988	2.8%	11,214	2.9%	12,078	3.0%	13,755	3.2%	9,091	2.0%	5,856	1.4%	2,810	0.6%
Others	6,415	5.7%	6,313	2.6%	7,289	2.6%	11,198	2.9%	13,939	3.4%	18,752	4.3%	26,355	5.9%	14,093	3.3%	18,403	4.1%

1. 50,304 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.^[25]
2. Including 397 Kabardins and 16,133 Cherkess.

Religions

According to a 2012 survey which interviewed 56,900 people 35.4% of the population of Adygea adheres to the Russian Orthodox Church, 23.6% to Islam, 3% are unaffiliated Christians and 1% are Orthodox Christian believers who do not belong to church or are members of other Orthodox churches. In addition, 19.8% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious" 8% is atheist, and 8.6% follows other religions or did not answer to the question.

Education

Adyghe State University and Maykop State Technological University, both in the capital Maykop, are the two major higher education facilities in Adygea.

Economy

Even though it is one of the poorest parts of Russia, the republic has abundant forests and rich soil. The region is famous for producing grain, sunflowers, tea, tobacco, and other produce. Hog and sheep breeding are also developed.

Food, timber, woodworking, pulp and paper, heavy engineering, and metal-working are the most developed industries.

Transportation

There is a small airport in Maykop (ICAO airport code URKM). Several rail lines pass through the republic.

Culture

The Adyghe language (Адыгабзэ) is a member of the Northwest Caucasian language family. Along with Russian, Adyghe is the official language of the republic.

There are 8 state and 23 public museums in the republic. The largest museum is the National Museum of the Republic of Adygea in Maykop.

Notable people

• Anatoly Berezovoy (1942—2014), Soviet pilot/cosmonaut.
• Aslan Dzharimov (born 1936), first president of the Republic of Adygea.
• Anna Kareyeva (born 1977), handball player.
• Mukharby Kirzhinov (born 1949), weightlifter.
• Andrei Kobenko (born 1982), footballer.
• Nikita Kucherov (born 1993), ice hockey player.
• Vladimir Nevzorov (born 1952), judoka.
• Hazret Sovmen (born 1937), second president of the Republic of Adygea.
• Aslan Tkhakushinov (born 1947), third president of the Republic of Adygea.
• Aslan Tlebzu (born 1981), Adyghe folk musician.
• Konstantin Vasilyev (1942—1976), painter.

See also

• Music in the Republic of Adygea
• Mezmaiskaya cave
• Circassian genocide
• Adyghe people

References

Sources

• Государственный Совет – Хасэ Республики Адыгея. Закон. 90. 7 июня 2007 г.. О государственных символах Республики Адыгея (текст в ред. от 7 июня 2007 г.). со дня официального опубликования. "Советская Адыгея", No. 112–113. 14 июня 2007 г. http://www.adygheya.ru/info/symbolism/index.shtml. Закона. 91. 28 апреля 2012 г.. О внесении изменений в некоторые Законы Республики Адыгея. State Council of the Republic of Adygea. Law. 90. June 7, 2007. On the Symbols of State of the Republic of Adygea (text of rev. of June 7, 2007). the day of official publication. Law. 91. April 28, 2012. On Amending Various Laws of the Republic of Adygea.
• Закон. 168-1. 14 февраля 1995 г.. О праздичных днях и памятных датах. 14 февраля 1995 г. "Ведомости ЗС (Хасэ) - Парламента РА", No. 15. 14 февраля 1995 г.. Закона. 231. 1 августа 2013 г.. О внесении изменения в статью 3 Закона Республики Адыгея "О праздичных днях и памятных датах". Law. 168-1. February 14, 1995. On Holidays and Memorial Dates. February 14, 1995. Law. 231. August 1, 2013. On Amending Article 3 of the Law of the Republic of Adygea "On Holidays and Memorial Dates".
  • Президент Республики Адыгея. Распоряжение. 46-рп. 2 апреля 2007 г.. Об организации официального Интернет-сайта исполнительных органов государственной власти Республики Адыгея. President of the Republic of Adygea. Directive. 46-rp. April 2, 2007. On Creation of the Official Website of the Executive Organs of State Power of the Republic of Adygea.
• Book: Азаренкова. А. С.. И. Ю.. Бондарь. Н. С.. Вертышева. Основные административно-территориальные преобразования на Кубани (1793–1985 гг.). 1986. Краснодарское книжное издательство. ru.

External links

• Адыгэ Республикэм и Лъэпкъ театр (in Adyghe)
• The Voice of Circassians (Adyghe Language)
• Official website of the Republic of Adygea
• Overview of the Republic of Adygea (Kommersant newspaper)
• Official Website of the Adyghe State University
• Official Website of the Adyghe State University
• Official Website of the National Museum of the Republic of Adygea

Notes and References

1. Президент Российской Федерации. Указ. 849. 13 мая 2000 г.. О полномочном представителе Президента Российской Федерации в федеральном округе. 13 мая 2000 г. "Собрание законодательства РФ", No. 20, ст. 2112. 15 мая 2000 г. Указа. 19 января 2010 г. President of the Russian Federation. Decree. 849. May 13, 2000. On the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in a Federal District. May 13, 2000. Decree. January 19, 2010.
2. Госстандарт Российской Федерации. ОК 024-95. 27 декабря 1995 г.. Общероссийский классификатор экономических регионов. 2. Экономические районы. Изменения. 5/2001 ОКЭР. Gosstandart of the Russian Federation. OK 024-95. December 27, 1995. Russian Classification of Economic Regions. 2. Economic Regions. Amendment. 5/2001 OKER.
3. Constitution of the Republic of Adygea, Article 7.4.
4. Web site: Оценка численности постоянного населения по субъектам Российской Федерации . Federal State Statistics Service. 1 September 2022.
5. Web site: http://pravo.gov.ru/proxy/ips/?docbody=&prevDoc=102483854&backlink=1&&nd=102148085 . ru:"Об исчислении времени". Официальный интернет-портал правовой информации . ru . 19 January 2019.
6. Law #90
7. Constitution of the Republic of Adygea, Article 62
8. Constitution of the Republic of Adygea, Article 5
9. Official throughout the Russian Federation according to Article 68.1 of the Constitution of Russia.
10. Web site: Территория, число районов, населённых пунктов и сельских администраций по субъектам Российской Федерации (Territory, Number of Districts, Inhabited Localities, and Rural Administration by Federal Subjects of the Russian Federation). 2011-11-01. Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service). 2004-05-21. Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. ru. September 28, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110928181511/http://perepis2002.ru/ct/html/TOM_01_03.htm.
11. Web site: Adygeya at merriam-webster.com. m-w.com. 2009-09-23.
12. Book: Политический альманах России 1997. Том 2. Социально-политические портреты регионов . Political Almanac of Russia 1997. Vol. 2. Social and Political Portraits of the Regions . online . 2007-04-17 . М. Макфола . Н. Петрова . 1998 . Московский Центр Карнеги . https://web.archive.org/web/20070630091806/http://www.carnegie.ru/ru/pubs/books/volume/218103adygeya.pdf . June 30, 2007 . ru.
13. Official website of the Republic of Adygea. Основные сведения
14. Book: Richmond. Walter. The Northwest Caucasus: Past, Present, Future. 2008. Routledge. 978-1134002498. 146.
15. Web site: http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/new_site/perepis2010/croc/perepis_itogi1612.htm . ru:ВПН-2010 . Gks.ru . 2014-02-22 . ru . March 15, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130315114013/http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/new_site/perepis2010/croc/perepis_itogi1612.htm.
16. Web site: Russian Elections: United Russia Winning Most Votes – Al-Manar TV Lebanon .
17. Palaeontology and Zooarchaeology of Mezmaiskaya Cave (Northwestern Caucasus, Russia). Baryshnikova. Gennady. John F. Hoffeckerb. Robin L. Burgess. May 1996. Journal of Archaeological Science. 23. 3. 313–335. 10.1006/jasc.1996.0030. Over 6000 large mammal and numerous small vertebrate remains have been recovered from preliminary excavations at Mezmaiskaya Cave.
18. Book: Казенин, Константин . ru:"Тихие" конфликты на Северном Кавказе . 2009 . . ru . Moscow . 978-5-91150-030-6 . 17.
19. State Committee of the Russian Federation on Statistics.
20. Web site: Federal State Statistics Service data. www.gks.ru . 2019-01-15. July 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180726010024/http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/doc_2018/bul_dr/mun_obr2018.rar.
21. Web site: Демографический ежегодник России . Federal State Statistics Service of Russia (Rosstat) . 28 June 2022 . ru . The Demographic Yearbook of Russia.
22. Web site: Ожидаемая продолжительность жизни при рождении . Unified Interdepartmental Information and Statistical System of Russia . 28 June 2022 . ru . Life expectancy at birth . February 20, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220220124657/https://www.fedstat.ru/indicator/31293.
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