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![[HQ] Russia, Black Sea - Holiday Resort Sochi / Sotschi | Сочи](http://web.archive.org./web/20121120104643im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Zqf0fxuOMXQ/default.jpg "Sochi is a Russian resort city, situated in Krasnodar Krai just north of the southern Russian border. It sprawls along the shores of the Black Sea and against the background of the snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus Mountains. At 145 km (90 mi), Greater Sochi claims to be the longest city in Europe.[3] As of the 2002 Census, it had a population of 328809,[1] down from 336514 recorded in the 1989 Census. In 2006, the population was estimated to be 395012.[4] The city has been selected to be the host of the XXII Olympic Winter Games in 2014.[5] Layout and landmarks Sochi is almost unique among larger Russian cities as having some aspects of a subtropical resort. Apart from the scenic Caucasus Mountains, pebbly and sand beaches, the city attracts vacation-goers with its subtropical vegetation, numerous parks, monuments, and extravagant Stalinist architecture. About two million people visit Greater Sochi each summer,[13] when the city is home to the annual film festival")
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Abinsk
Coordinates: 44°52′N 38°10′E / 44.867°N 38.167°E / 44.867; 38.167
Abinsk (Russian: Аби́нск), known as Abinsky (Аби́нский) before 1963, is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located 75 kilometers (47 mi) southwest of Krasnodar. Population: 34,926 (2010 Census preliminary results); 33,734 (2002 Census); 29,182 (1989 Census); 23,000 (1968).
vep:Abinsk
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Abkhazia
Abkhazia (Abkhaz: Аҧсны́ Apsny, IPA /apʰsˈnɨ/; Georgian: აფხაზეთი Apkhazeti; Russian: Абхазия Abkhaziya) is a disputed territory on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.
Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny. This status is recognised by Russia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nauru, Tuvalu and Vanuatu and also by the partially recognised states of South Ossetia, Transnistria and Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Georgian government and the majority of the world's governments consider Abkhazia a part of Georgia's territory. Under Georgia's official designation it is an autonomous republic, called the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia, whose government sits in exile in Tbilisi. On 28 August 2008, the Parliament of Georgia passed a resolution declaring Abkhazia a "Russian-occupied territory".
The status of Abkhazia is a central issue of the Georgian–Abkhazian conflict. The wider region formed part of the Soviet Union until 1991. As the Soviet Union began to disintegrate towards the end of the 1980s, ethnic tensions grew between Abkhaz and Georgians over Georgia's moves towards independence. This led to the 1992–1993 War in Abkhazia that resulted in a Georgian military defeat, de facto independence of Abkhazia and the mass exodus and ethnic cleansing of the Georgian population from Abkhazia. In spite of the 1994 ceasefire agreement and years of negotiations, the status dispute has not been resolved, and despite the long-term presence of a United Nations monitoring force and a Russian-dominated Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) peacekeeping operation, the conflict has flared up on several occasions. In August 2008, the sides again fought during the South Ossetia War, which was followed by the formal recognition of Abkhazia by Russia, the annulment of the 1994 cease fire agreement and the termination of the UN and CIS missions.[citation needed]
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Anapa
Anapa (Russian: Ана́па) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. Population: 58,983 (2010 Census preliminary results); 53,493 (2002 Census); 54,796 (1989 Census).
The area around Anapa was settled in antiquity. It was originally a major seaport (Sinda) for the Natkhuay tribe of the Adyghe people[citation needed] and then the capital of Sindica. The colony of Gorgippia was built on the site of Sinda in the 6th century BCE by Pontic Greeks, who named it after a king of the Cimmerian Bosporus. In the 2nd and 3rd centuries BCE, Gorgippia flourished, as did its guild of shipowners, which controlled maritime trade in the eastern part of the Black Sea. A fine statue of Neokles (a local potentate, son of Herodoros) was unearthed by Russian archaeologists and is now on exhibit at the Russian Museum. Gorgippia was inhabited until the 3rd century CE, when it was overrun by nomadic tribes. These tribes are a Circassian or Adyghe origin, gave Anapa its modern name. Anapa was part of Sarmatians, Ostrogoths, European Huns, Avars, Gokturks, Khazars, Circassians and Golden Horde.
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Apsheronsk
Apsheronsk (Russian: Апшеро́нск) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Pshekha River (Kuban's basin). Population: 40,229 (2010 Census preliminary results); 39,608 (2002 Census); 34,505 (1989 Census); 33,400 (1968).
It was founded in 1863 as the stanitsa of Apsheronskaya (Апшеронская).
The town's main industries are forestry and woodworking.[citation needed]
vep:Apšeronsk
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Armavir, Russia
Armavir (Russian: Армави́р) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the left bank of the Kuban River. Population: 188,897 (2010 Census preliminary results); 193,964 (2002 Census); 160,983 (1989 Census); 144,000 (1969). Armavir was formerly the second-largest industrial center of Krasnodar Krai, after Krasnodar.
It was founded in 1839 by Cherkesogai Armenians as Armyansky aul (Армя́нский ау́л). It happened due to the strengthening of Islamic radicalism in mountain areas originally inhabited by the Cherkesogai, which motivated Christian Armenians to leave those settlements. It was renamed in 1848 in honor of the ancient capital of Armenia and was granted town status on January 18, 1914. During the Russian Civil War of 1918–1920, a number of brutal battles took place near the city. The Taman army's military campaign ended in Armavir in 1918. The Soviet authority was established in Armavir in March 1920. During World War II the city was occupied by the German Army. It was liberated by the Red Army in January 1943.
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Austria
Austria (
i/ˈɒstriə/ or /ˈɔːstriə/; German: Österreich [ˈøːstɐˌʁaɪç] (
listen)), officially the Republic of Austria (German: 
Republik Österreich (help·info)), is a landlocked country of roughly 8.47 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The territory of Austria covers 83,855 square kilometres (32,377 sq mi) and has a temperate and alpine climate. Austria's terrain is highly mountainous due to the presence of the Alps; only 32% of the country is below 500 metres (1,640 ft), and its highest point is 3,798 metres (12,461 ft). The majority of the population speak local Austro-Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, and German in its standard form is the country's official language. Other local official languages are Burgenland Croatian, Hungarian and Slovene.
The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty when the vast majority of the country was a part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Austria became one of the great powers of Europe and, in response to the coronation of Napoleon I as the Emperor of the French, the Austrian Empire was officially proclaimed in 1804. In 1867, the Austrian Empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary.
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British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1922 the British Empire held sway over about 458 million people, one-fifth of the world's population at the time, and covered more than 33,700,000 km2 (13,012,000 sq mi), almost a quarter of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its political, linguistic and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, it was often said that "the sun never sets on the British Empire" because its span across the globe ensured that the sun was always shining on at least one of its numerous territories.
During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and Spain pioneered European exploration of the globe, and in the process established large overseas empires. Envious of the great wealth these empires generated, England, France and the Netherlands began to establish colonies and trade networks of their own in the Americas and Asia. A series of wars in the 17th and 18th centuries with the Netherlands and France left England (and then, following union between England and Scotland in 1707, Great Britain) the dominant colonial power in North America and India. The loss of the Thirteen Colonies in North America in 1783 after a war of independence deprived Britain of some of its oldest and most populous colonies.
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Calgary
Calgary /ˈkælɡᵊri/ is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately 80 km (50 mi) east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies. The city is located in the grassland and parkland natural regions of Alberta.
As of 2011, the City of Calgary had a population of 1,096,833 and a metropolitan population of 1,214,839, making it the largest city in Alberta, and the third-largest municipality and fifth-largest metropolitan area in Canada.
Located 294 km (183 mi) south of Edmonton, Statistics Canada defines the narrowly populated area between these cities as the "Calgary–Edmonton Corridor."
Economic activity in Calgary is mostly centred on the petroleum industry and agriculture. In 1988, Calgary became the first Canadian city to host the Olympic Winter Games.
Before the Calgary area was settled by Europeans, it was inhabited by pre-Clovis people whose presence has been traced back at least 11,000 years. In 1787, cartographer David Thompson spent the winter with a band of Peigan encamped along the Bow River. He was the first recorded European to visit the area, and John Glenn was the first documented European settler in the Calgary area, in 1873.
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California
California (pronouncedi/kælɨˈfɔrnjə/) is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third most extensive (after Alaska and Texas). It is home to the nation's second- and sixth-largest census statistical areas (Los Angeles Metropolitan Area and San Francisco Bay Area), and eight of the nation's fifty most populated cities (Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Fresno, Sacramento, Long Beach and Oakland). The capital city is Sacramento.
California's diverse geography ranges from the Pacific Coast in the west, to the Sierra Nevada mountains in the east – from the Redwood–Douglas-fir forests of the northwest, to the Mojave Desert areas in the southeast. The center of the state is dominated by Central Valley, a major agricultural area. California contains both the highest and lowest points in the contiguous United States (Mount Whitney and Death Valley), and has the third-longest coastline of all states (after Alaska and Florida). Earthquakes are a common occurrence due to the state's location along the Pacific Ring of Fire: about 37,000 are recorded annually.
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Caucasus Mountains
The Caucasus Mountains are a mountain system in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea in the Caucasus region (Turkish: Kafkas Dağları Azerbaijani: Qafqaz dağları Armenian: Կովկասյան լեռներ Georgian: კავკასიონი Chechen: Kavkazan lämnaš Russian: Кавказские горы).
The Caucasus Mountains include:
The Greater Caucasus Range extends from the Caucasian Natural Reserve in the vicinity of Sochi on the northeastern shore of the Black Sea, generally trending east-southeast and reaching nearly to Baku on the Caspian Sea, while the Lesser Caucasus runs parallel to the greater range, at a distance averaging about 100 km (62 mi) south. The Meskheti Range is a part of the Lesser Caucasus system. The Greater and Lesser Caucasus ranges are connected by the Likhi Range, which separates the Kolkhida Lowland from the Kura-Aras Lowland. In the southeast are the Talysh Mountains. The Lesser Caucasus and the Armenian Highland constitute the Transcaucasian Highland. The highest peak in the Caucasus range is Mount Elbrus in the Greater Caucasus, which rises to a height of 5,642 metres (18,510 ft) above sea level. Mountains near Sochi will host part of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
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China
China (i/ˈtʃaɪnə/; Chinese: 中国; pinyin: Zhōngguó; see also Names of China), officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is the world's most-populous country, with a population of over 1.3 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometres, the East Asian state is the world's second-largest country by land area, and the third- or fourth-largest in total area, depending on the definition of total area.
The People's Republic of China is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party of China. It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four directly controlled municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), and two mostly self-governing special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau). Its capital city is Beijing. The PRC also claims Taiwan—which is controlled by the Republic of China (ROC), a separate political entity—as its 23rd province, a claim controversial due to the complex political status of Taiwan and the unresolved Chinese Civil War. The PRC government denies the legitimacy of the ROC.
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Crimea
Crimea ( /kraɪˈmiːə/), or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Ukrainian: Автономна Республіка Крим, Avtonomna Respublika Krym; Russian: Автономная Республика Крым, Avtonomnaya Respublika Krym; Crimean Tatar: Qırım Muhtar Cumhuriyeti, Къырым Мухтар Джумхуриети), is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name. It was often referred to with the definite article, as the Crimea, until well into the 20th century.
The territory of Crimea was conquered and controlled many times throughout its history. The Cimmerians, Greeks, Scythians, Goths, Huns, Bulgars, Khazars, the state of Kievan Rus', Byzantine Greeks, Kipchaks, Ottoman Turks, Golden Horde Tatars and the Mongols all controlled Crimea in its early history. In the 13th century, it was partly controlled by the Venetians and by the Genovese; they were followed by the Crimean Khanate and the Ottoman Empire in the 15th to 18th centuries, the Russian Empire in the 18th to 20th centuries, Germany during World War II and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and later the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, within the Soviet Union during most of the rest of the 20th century.
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Dagomys
Dagomys (Adyghe: Дэгъумес); is a microraion of Sochi, Russia (18 km from the city centre), known for its resorts, vacation spots and tea plantations. It was developed as a resort since before the Russian Revolution, when a botanical garden was founded by order of Tsar Nicholas II. A modern hotel complex was opened there in 1982.
Dagomys adjoins Bocharov Ruchey, a dacha built for Kliment Voroshilov in the 1950s, but later upgraded into a country residence of the President of Russia, where he normally spends his vacations and confers with leaders of other states.
The name of microraion came from the indigenous and the first dwellers of the area the Circassians or Adyghe they preferred to call their selves. In the 14th-17th centuries, the area was dominated by one of the Adyghe tribes; the Shapsugs, and was a village within historical Circassia. After the end of Caucasian War and as a result of the Russian invasion over Circassia (during the period of 1817–1864) the Shapsugs who lived in the area were either killed in the Circassian Genocide or expelled to the Ottoman Empire (see Muhajir).
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Espoo
Espoo (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈespoː]; Swedish: Esbo, [ˈɛsbo]) is the second largest city and municipality in Finland. The population of the city of Espoo is 252,730 (31 January 2012). It is part of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area along with the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, and Kauniainen. Espoo shares its eastern border with Helsinki and Vantaa, while enclosing Kauniainen. Espoo is the only municipality in Finland to fully enclose another municipality. The city is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, in the region of Uusimaa.
Other bordering municipalities of Espoo are Nurmijärvi and Vihti in the north and Kirkkonummi in the west. The national park of Nuuksio is situated in northwest Espoo.
Espoo encompasses 528 square kilometres (204 sq mi), of which 312 km2 (120 sq mi) is land.
Espoo has several local regional centers. Espoo is thus divided into seven major areas (Finnish: suuralueet, Swedish: storområden): Vanha-Espoo (with administrative center), Suur-Espoonlahti, Pohjois-Espoo, Suur-Kauklahti, Suur-Leppävaara, Suur-Matinkylä and Suur-Tapiola.
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Finland
Coordinates: 65°N 27°E / 65°N 027°E / 65; 027
Finlandi/ˈfɪnlənd/ ( Finnish: Suomi; Swedish: Finland (help·info)), officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.
Around 5.4 million people reside in Finland, with the majority concentrated in the southern region. It is the eighth largest country in Europe in terms of area and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. Finland is a parliamentary republic with a central government based in Helsinki and local governments in 336 municipalities, and an autonomous region of the Åland Islands. About one million residents live in the Greater Helsinki area, which consists of Helsinki, Espoo, Kauniainen and Vantaa, and a third of the country's GDP is produced there. Other larger cities include Tampere, Turku, Oulu, Jyväskylä, Lahti and Kuopio.
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Florida
Florida (i/ˈflɒrɪdə/) is a state in the southeastern United States, bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. Florida is the 22nd most extensive, the 4th most populous, and the 8th most densely populated of the 50 United States. The state capital is Tallahassee, its largest city is Jacksonville, and the South Florida metropolitan area is the largest metropolitan area in the southeastern U.S.
Much of Florida is situated on a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Straits of Florida. Its geography is marked by a coastline, by the omnipresence of water and the threat of hurricanes. Florida has the longest coastline in the contiguous United States, encompassing approximately 1,350 miles (2,170 km), and is the only state to border both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. Much of the state is at or near sea level and its terrain is characterized by sedimentary soils. The climate varies from subtropical in the north to tropical in the south. Its symbolic animals like the American alligator, Florida panther and the manatee, can be found in the Everglades, one of the most famous national parks in the world.
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France
France (Englishi/ˈfræns/ FRANSS or /ˈfrɑːns/ FRAHNSS; French: [fʁɑ̃s] ( listen)), officially the French Republic (French: République française [ʁepyblik fʁɑ̃sɛz]), is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is often referred to as l’Hexagone ("The Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its territory. It is the largest western European country and it possesses the second-largest exclusive economic zone in the world, covering 11,035,000 km2 (4,260,000 sq mi), just behind that of the United States (11,351,000 km2 / 4,383,000 sq mi).
Over the past 500 years, France has been a major power with strong cultural, economic, military and political influence in Europe and around the world. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France colonised great parts of North America and Southeast Asia; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, France built the second largest colonial empire of the time, including large portions of North, West and Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and many Caribbean and Pacific Islands.
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Gagra
Gagra (Abkhaz and Russian: Гагра; Georgian: გაგრა) is a town in Abkhazia, sprawling for 5 km on the northeast coast of the Black Sea, at the foot of the Caucasus Mountains. Its subtropical climate made Gagra a popular health resort in Imperial Russian and Soviet times.
It had a population of 26,636 in 1989, but this has fallen considerably due to ethnic-cleansing and mass expulsion of ethnic Georgians from Abkhazia.
Gagra is the centre of the district of the same name. It is located in the western part of Abkhazia and river Psou serves as a border with Krasnodar Kray of Russia.
According to the Georgian scholars, Gagra is derived from Gakra meaning walnut in the Svan language. According to the Soviet sports tourism master Bondaryev, the name of the city originates from the local Gagaa clan. According to V. Kvarchija, Gagra (< *ga-kʼə-ra) means ‘the holder of the coast’ in Abkhaz (Gagra was mentioned as Kakara, Kakkari on old maps).
The town was established as a Greek colony called Triglite, Τριγλίτη, inhabited by Greeks and Colchians. It came under the control of the kingdom of Pontus in the 1st century BC before being absorbed by the Roman Empire, which renamed the town as Nitica. Its geographical position led the Romans to fortify the town, which was repeatedly attacked by Goths and other invaders. After the fall of Rome, its successor, the Byzantine Empire, took control of the town. Along with the rest of Abkhazia, Gagra was incorporated into the Georgian kingdom of Imereti from the 9th century onwards. It became a major trading settlement in which Genoan and Venetian merchants were prominent, trading in the town's main exports - wood, honey, wax and slaves. The name "Gagra" appears for the first time on a map of 1308 made by the Italian Pietro Visconti, which is now in the Library of Saint Mark in Venice.
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Geilo
Geilo (help·info) is a centre in the municipality of Hol in Norway, in the valley of Hallingdal, with around 2300 inhabitants. The Bergen Line facilitated its development as the first skiing resort in the country, and it is still one of the largest. It is also famous for having the most luxurious and expensive holiday homes in Norway.
Geilo is primarily a ski resort town, but also offers summer activities. Geilo is in a valley with mountain ranges on each side. The center of the town lies at 800 meters above sea level, and its highest point is 1178 meters above sea level. It is 250 km from Oslo and 260 km from Bergen.
It has a train station (Geilo stasjon) with roughly five trains a day going to either Bergen (to the west) or Oslo (to the east). The closest airport is Geilo Airport, Dagali (24 km away), while the closest airport that accepts international flights is Fagernes Airport. Geilo has three lakes, Slåttahølen, Vestlefjorden, and Ustedalsfjorden, by far the largest of the three.
The ski resort is named after the old farm Gjeilo. The name is the dative plural of geil f 'fenced road for cattle'.
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Gelendzhik
Gelendzhik (Russian: Геленджи́к) is a resort town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the Gelendzhik Bay of the Black Sea, between Novorossiysk (31 kilometers (19 mi) to the northwest) and Tuapse (93 kilometers (58 mi) to the southeast). Greater Gelendzhik sprawls for 102 kilometers (63 mi) along the coastline and covers an area of 122,754 ha (of which only 1,926 ha fall within the boundaries of Gelendzhik proper). Population: 54,813 (2010 Census preliminary results); 50,012 (2002 Census); 47,711 (1989 Census).
In antiquity, the Gelendzhik Bay was the site of a minor Greek outpost, mentioned as Torikos in the Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax. It is unknown to Hellenistic sources, but reappears in Roman ones under the name of Pagrae in 64 BC. The colony was wiped out by the invading Huns, which were succeeded by the Zygii soon after. During the Middle Ages, the bay was of some mercantile importance to the Genoese traders who referred to the seaside village as Maurolaca.
Before Russia secured the coast by the Treaty of Adrianople (1829), a brisk slave trade had been carried on between the mountaineers and the Ottoman Empire. Since the Circassian beauties were usually traded for gold and other commodities before being taken to Turkish seraglios, the market place became known as "Gelendzhik" (from "gelincik"), literally, "little meadow" in Adyghe Language. In 1831, one of the first forts of the Black Sea Coastal Line was set up at Gelendzhik. At the outbreak of the Crimean War the fort had to be blown up and abandoned, but it was resettled by the Cossacks in 1864, at the conclusion of the Russian-Circassian War, and became known as Stanitsa Gelendzhiksaya. The town of Gelendzhik was incorporated in 1915.
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Genoa
Genoa
/ˈdʒɛnoʊ.ə/ (Italian: Genova [ˈdʒɛːnova] (
listen); Genoese and Ligurian Zena [ˈzeːna]; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is the capital of Liguria and the sixth largest city in Italy, with a population of 608,676 within its administrative limits on a land area of 243.6 km2 (94 sq mi). The urban zone of Genoa extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 718,896. The urban area of Genoa has a population of 800,709. In the metropolitan area live between 859,000 and 1.4 million or 1.5 million people. Genoa is one of Europe's largest cities on the Mediterranean Sea and the largest seaport in Italy.
Genoa has been nicknamed la Superba ("the Superb one") due to its glorious past and impressive landmarks. Part of the old town of Genoa was inscribed on the World Heritage List (UNESCO) in 2006 (see below). The city's rich art, music, gastronomy, architecture and history, allowed it to become the 2004's European Capital of Culture. It is the birthplace of Christopher Columbus.
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Georgia (country)
Georgiai/ˈdʒɔrdʒə/ (Georgian: საქართველო Sakartvelo, IPA: [sɑkʰɑrtʰvɛlɔ] ( listen)) is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the south by Turkey and Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of Georgia is Tbilisi. Georgia covers a territory of 69,700 km² and its population is almost 4.7 million. Georgia is a unitary, semi-presidential republic, with the government elected through a representative democracy.
During the classical era independent kingdoms became established in what is now Georgia. The kingdoms of Colchis and Iberia adopted Christianity in the early 4th century. A unified Georgia reached the peak of its political and economic strength during the reign of King David IV and Queen Tamar in the 11th–12th centuries. At the beginning of the 19th century, Georgia was annexed by the Russian Empire. After a brief period of independence following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Georgia was occupied by Soviet Russia in 1921, becoming the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic and part of the Soviet Union. After independence in 1991, post-communist Georgia suffered from civil unrest and economic crisis for most of the 1990s. This lasted until the Rose Revolution of 2003, after which the new government introduced democratic and economic reforms.
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Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire (i/ˈɡlɒstərʃər/ GLOSS-tər-shər; abbreviated Glos.) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gloucester, and other principal towns include Cheltenham, Cirencester, Stroud, and Tewkesbury.
When considered as a ceremonial county, Gloucestershire borders the preserved county of Gwent in Wales (now Monmouthshire), and in England the ceremonial counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire and Somerset. Ceremonially, it includes the area covered by the South Gloucestershire unitary authority.
According to a 2002 campaign by the charity Plantlife, the county flower of Gloucestershire is the Wild Daffodil.
Gloucestershire is a historic county mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in the 10th century, though the areas of Winchcombe and the Forest of Dean were not added until the late 11th century. Gloucestershire originally included the then "small town" of Bristol. The "local" rural community moved to the port city, (as Bristol was to become) and Bristol's population growth accelerated during the industrial revolution. Bristol became part of the administrative County of Avon in 1974.
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Goryachy Klyuch
Goryachy Klyuch (Russian: Горя́чий Ключ, lit. hot spring), also known as Psekups (Псекупс; Adyghe: Псыфабэ) is a town and a balneological resort in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Psekups River (Kuban's tributary) 65 kilometers (40 mi) south of Krasnodar. Population: 30,093 (2010 Census preliminary results); 27,693 (2002 Census); 25,610 (1989 Census); 20,000 (1970).
Goryachy Klyuch was established in 1864 and granted town status in 1965.[citation needed]
Administratively, along with thirty rural localities, it is incorporated as the Town of Goryachy Klyuch—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.Municipally, the Town of Goryachy Klyuch is incorporated as Goryachy Klyuch Urban Okrug.
vep:Hul Purde
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Greece
Greecei/ˈɡriːs/ (Greek: Ελλάδα, Ellada, IPA: [eˈlaða] ( listen) historically in Katharevousa and Ancient Greek: Ἑλλάς, Hellas, IPA: [eˈlas] and [helːás] respectively), officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία, Elliniki Dimokratia, IPA: [eliniˈci ðimokraˈtia]), is a country in Southern Europe, politically considered part of Western Europe.Athens is the capital and the largest city in the country (its urban area also including Piraeus). The population of the country is around 11 million.
Greece has land borders with Albania, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to the east. The Aegean Sea lies to the east of mainland Greece, the Ionian Sea to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Greece has the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13,676 km (8,498 mi) in length, featuring a vast number of islands (approximately 1,400, of which 227 are inhabited), including Crete, the Dodecanese, the Cyclades, and the Ionian Islands among others. Eighty percent of Greece consists of mountains, of which Mount Olympus is the highest at 2,917 m (9,570 ft).
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Gulkevichi
Coordinates: 45°21′34″N 40°42′26″E / 45.35944°N 40.70722°E / 45.35944; 40.70722
Gulkevichi (Russian: Гульке́вичи) is a town and the administrative center of Gulkevichsky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located 150 kilometers (93 mi) northeast of Krasnodar. Population: 35,225 (2010 Census preliminary results); 35,141 (2002 Census); 31,668 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1875. Town status was granted to it in 1961.
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Innsbruck
Innsbruck is the capital city of the federal state of Tyrol in western Austria. It is located in the Inn Valley at the junction with the Wipptal (Sill River), which provides access to the Brenner Pass, some 30 km (18.6 mi) south of Innsbruck. Located in the broad valley between high mountains, the Nordkette (Hafelekar, 2,334 metres or 7,657 feet in the north, Patscherkofel (2,246 m or 7,369 ft) and Serles (2,718 m or 8,917 ft) in the south. It is an internationally renowned winter sports centre, and hosted the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics as well as the 1984 and 1988 Winter Paralympics. Innsbruck hosted the first Winter Youth Olympics in 2012. The word bruck comes from the German word Brücke meaning "bridge" which leads to "the bridge over the Inn".
Earliest traces suggest initial inhabitation in the early Stone Age. Surviving pre-Roman place names show that the area has been populated continuously. In the fourth century the Romans established the army station Veldidena (the name survives in today's urban district Wilten) at Oenipons (Innsbruck), to protect the economically important commercial road from Verona-Brenner-Augsburg.
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Israel
Coordinates: 31°N 35°E / 31°N 35°E / 31; 35
Israel, officially the State of Israel ( /ˈɪzriːəl/ or /ˈɪzreɪəl/; Hebrew: מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, Medīnat Yisrā'el, IPA: [me̞diˈnät jisʁäˈʔe̞l] ( listen); Arabic: دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل, Dawlat Isrāʼīl, IPA: [dawlat ʔisraːˈʔiːl]), is a parliamentary republic in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan and the West Bank in the east, Egypt and the Gaza Strip on the southwest, and the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea to the south, and it contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area. Israel is defined as a Jewish and Democratic State in its Basic Laws and is the world's only Jewish-majority state.
Following the adoption of a resolution by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 29 November 1947 recommending the adoption and implementation of the United Nations plan to partition Palestine, on 14 May 1948 David Ben-Gurion, the Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization and president of the Jewish Agency for Palestine, declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be known as the State of Israel, a state independent from the British Mandate for Palestine. Neighboring Arab states invaded the next day in support of the Palestinian Arabs. Israel has since fought several wars with neighboring Arab states, in the course of which it has occupied the West Bank, Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights. Portions of these territories, including east Jerusalem, have been annexed by Israel, but the border with the neighboring West Bank has not yet been permanently defined.[neutrality is disputed] Israel has signed peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, but efforts to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have so far not resulted in peace.
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Italy
Italyi/ˈɪtəli/ (Italian: Italia [iˈtaːlja]), officially the Italian Republic or the Republic of Italy (Italian: Repubblica italiana), is a unitary parliamentary republic in south-central Europe. To the north, it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia along the Alps. To the south, it consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Sardinia–the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea–and many other smaller islands. The independent states of San Marino and the Vatican City are enclaves within Italy, while Campione d'Italia is an Italian exclave in Switzerland. The territory of Italy covers some 301,338 km2 (116,347 sq mi) and is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. With 60.6 million inhabitants, it is the fifth most populous country in Europe, and the 23rd most populous in the world.
Rome, the capital of Italy, was for centuries a political and religious centre of Western civilisation as the capital of the Roman Empire and site of the Holy See. After the decline of the Roman Empire, Italy endured numerous invasions by foreign peoples, from Germanic tribes such as the Lombards and Ostrogoths, to the Byzantines and later, the Normans, among others. Centuries later, Italy became the birthplace of Maritime republics and the Renaissance, an immensely fruitful intellectual movement that would prove to be integral in shaping the subsequent course of European thought.
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Kabarda
The Kabardino-Balkar Republic (Russian: Кабарди́но-Балка́рская Респу́блика, Kabardino-Balkarskaya Respublika; Kabardian: Къэбэрдей-Балъкъэр Республикэ; Karachay-Balkar: Къабарты-Малкъар Республика), or Kabardino-Balkaria (Russian: Кабарди́но-Балка́рия, Kabardino-Balkariya), is a federal subject of Russia (a republic) located in the North Caucasus. Population: 859,939 (2010 Census).
The republic is situated in the North Caucasus mountains, with plains in the northern part.
Kabardino-Balkaria is traversed by the northeasterly line of equal latitude and longitude.
Major rivers include:
There are about a hundred lakes in the republic, none of which are large. Just over half (fifty-five) are located between the Baksan and Malka Rivers, the largest each of an area of no more than 0.01 square kilometers (0.0039 sq mi). Some of the lakes are:
Other major mountains include:
Kabardino-Balkaria's natural resources include molybdenum, tungsten, and coal.
The republic has a continental type climate.
Population: 859,939 (2010 Census); 901,494 (2002 Census); 759,586 (1989 Census).
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Kerch
Kerch (Ukrainian: Керч, Russian: Керчь, Crimean Tatar: Keriç, Old East Slavic: Кърчевъ, Ancient Greek: Παντικάπαιον Pantikapaion, Turkish: Kerç) is a city on the Kerch Peninsula of eastern Crimea, an important industrial, transport and tourist centre of Ukraine. Kerch, founded 2600 years ago, is considered as one of the most ancient cities in Ukraine.
Archeological digs at Mayak village near the city ascertained that the area had already been inhabited in 17th–15th centuries BC.
Kerch as a city starts its history in 7th century BC, when Greek colonists from Miletus founded a city-state named Panticapaeum on Mount Mithridat near the mouth of the Melek-Chesme river. Panticapaeum subdued nearby cities and by 480 BC became a capital of the Kingdom of Bosporus. Later, during the rule of Mithradates VI Eupator, Panticapaeum for a short period of time became the capital of much more powerful and extensive Kingdom of Pontus.
The city located at the intersection of trade routes between the steppe and Europe grew rapidly. The city's main exports were grain and salted fish, wine-making was also common. Panticapaeum minted its own coins. According to a few extant documents the Melek-Chesme river (small and shallow nowadays) was navigable in the Bosporan times, and sea galleys were able to enter the river. A large portion of the city's population was ethnically Scythian, later Sarmatian, as the large royal barrow at Kul-Oba testifies.
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Khadyzhensk
Coordinates: 44°25′32″N 39°31′55″E / 44.42556°N 39.53194°E / 44.42556; 39.53194
Khadyzhensk (Russian: Хадыженск) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Pshish River, 113 kilometers (70 mi) southeast of Krasnodar. Population: 21,580 (2010 Census preliminary results); 21,286 (2002 Census); 18,998 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1864 as the stanitsa of Khadyzhenskaya (Хадыженская). Town status was granted to it in 1949.
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Korenovsk
Coordinates: 45°28′7″N 39°27′7″E / 45.46861°N 39.45194°E / 45.46861; 39.45194
Korenovsk (Russian: Корено́вск) is a town and the administrative center of Korenovsky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Beysuzhyok Levy River (a tributary of the Beysug) 64 kilometers (40 mi) northeast of Krasnodar. Population: 41,179 (2010 Census preliminary results); 40,844 (2002 Census); 35,768 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1794 as Korenovskoye (Корено́вское). Since the end of the 19th century, it was known as the stanitsa of Korenovskaya (Корено́вская). Town status was granted to it in 1961.
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Krasnodar
Krasnodar (Russian: Краснода́р; IPA: [krəsnɐˈdar]) is a city in Southern Russia, located on the Kuban River about 148 kilometers (92 mi) northeast of the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. It is the administrative center of Krasnodar Krai (also known as Kuban). Population: 744,933 (2010 Census preliminary results); 646,175 (2002 Census); 620,516 (1989 Census).
It was founded on January 12, 1794 (Gregorian calendar) as Yekaterinodar (Екатеринода́р). The original name meant "Catherine's Gift" simultaneously in recognition of Catherine the Great's grant of land in the Kuban region to the Black Sea Cossacks (later the Kuban Cossacks) and in recognition of Saint Catherine, the Martyr, who is considered to be the patron of the city. After the October Revolution, Yekaterinodar was renamed Krasnodar (December 1920). There is meaning for the new communist name of the city: Krasno- (Красно-), meaning 'red' (especially relevant considering the political atmosphere of the time); and -dar (-дар), meaning 'gift'. Thus, the city's name means red gift (i.e. 'gift of the reds').
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Krasnodar Krai
Krasnodar Krai (Russian: Краснода́рский край, Krasnodarsky kray) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), located in the Southern Federal District. Its administrative center is the city of Krasnodar. Population: 5,226,647 (2010 Census).
Krasnodar Krai encompasses the western part of the Forecaucasus and a part of the northern slopes of Caucasus Major. Krasnodar Krai borders, clockwise from the west, Ukraine—from which it is separated by the Strait of Kerch and the Sea of Azov—Russia's Rostov Oblast, Stavropol Krai, and the Karachay–Cherkess Republic, and Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia. The krai territory encircles the Republic of Adygea. Krasnodar Krai's southern border is formed by what is left of Russia's Black Sea coast, with the most important port (Novorossiysk) and resort (Sochi) in this part of the country.
Geographically, the area is split by the Kuban River into two distinct parts. The southern, seaward third (Circassia) is the western extremity of the Caucasus range, lying within the Crimean Submediterranean forest complex ecoregion; the climate is Mediterranean or, in the south-east, subtropical. The northern two-thirds lies on the Pontic Steppe and shares continental climate patterns. The largest lake is Abrau in the wine-making region of Abrau-Dyurso.
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Krymsk
Krymsk (Russian: Крымск) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Population: 57,370 (2010 Census preliminary results); 56,623 (2002 Census); 50,893 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1858 as the fortress and stanitsa of Krymskaya (Кры́мская), named after the Crimean Cossack Regiment.[citation needed] The stanitsa was granted town status and given its present name a century later, in 1958.[citation needed] The town's railway station, however, retains the name Krymskaya.
Krymsk serves as the administrative center of Krymsky District, although it is not administratively a part of it. Administratively, it is incorporated separately as an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.Municipally, Krymsk is incorporated within Krymsky Municipal District as Krymskoye Urban Settlement.
Krymsk is known for its experimental plant-breeding station, which holds important scientific collections of, among other crops, green peas, sweetcorn, tomatoes, peppers, aubergines, cucumbers, apples, plums, peaches, pears, apricots, and strawberries. The station's stone fruit and quince collections are the largest and most important in Russia or any part of the former Soviet Union. Of the 9,000 accessions of Prunus, about 5,000 to 6,000 are wild species and forms, 500 to 1,000 local varieties, and 2,000 to 3,000 cultivars and breeding materials. The station is also known for the creation of fruit-tree rootstocks, which are named after the town + a number (e.g. Krymsk 1, Krymsk 2, etc.)
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Kurganinsk
Coordinates: 44°52′48″N 40°35′55″E / 44.88°N 40.59861°E / 44.88; 40.59861
Kurganinsk (Russian: Курга́нинск) is a town and the administrative center of Kurganinsky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the right bank of the Bolshaya Laba River 248 kilometers (154 mi) east of Krasnodar. Population: 47,974 (2010 Census preliminary results); 46,618 (2002 Census); 40,763 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1855 as the stanitsa of Kurgannaya (Курга́нная) by the Cossacks. It was renamed and granted town status in 1961.
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Labinsk
Labinsk (Russian: Ла́бинск) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Bolshaya Laba River (Kuban's tributary) 145 kilometers (90 mi) southeast of Krasnodar and 50 kilometers (31 mi) southwest of Armavir. Population: 62,822 (2010 Census preliminary results); 61,446 (2002 Census); 57,958 (1989 Census); 53,000 (1972).
The stanitsa of Labinskaya was founded in autumn of 1841. It was name after the Bolshaya Laba River on which it stands. Its history is closely connected with the history of the Caucasian War and establishment of a special strategic defense line on the Bolshaya Laba River. The stanitsa was originally one of the fortresses that were founded along the southern border of the Russian Empire neighboring the Caucasus mountains and were protected by the Don Cossacks who eventually became the first settlers of Labinskaya. Later, many peasants belonging to the Cossack social class, both Russians and Ukrainians, moved to Labinskaya from the inner territories of Russia. With a population over 30,000 people, Labinskaya soon became a big trade center among the neighboring stanitsas owing to its favorable location in the river valley.
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Lebanon
Lebanon (i/ˈlɛbənɒn/ or /ˈlɛbənən/; Arabic: لبنان Libnān or Lubnān, Lebanese Arabic: [lɪbˈneːn]), officially the Lebanese Republic (Arabic: الجمهورية اللبنانية al-Jumhūrīyah al-Libnānīyah, Lebanese Arabic: [elˈʒʊmhuːɾɪjje l.ˈlɪbneːnɪjje]), is a country in the East Mediterranean. It is bordered by Syria to the north and east, and Israel to the south. Lebanon's location at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian hinterland has dictated its rich history, and shaped a cultural identity of religious and ethnic diversity.
The earliest evidence of civilization in Lebanon dates back more than 7,000 years—predating recorded history. Lebanon was the home of the Phoenicians, a maritime culture that flourished for nearly 2,500 years (3000–539 BC). Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, the five provinces that comprise modern Lebanon were mandated to France. The French expanded the borders of Mount Lebanon, which was mostly populated by Maronite Catholics and Druze, to include more Muslims. Lebanon gained independence in 1943, and established a unique political system, known as confessionalism, a power-sharing mechanism based on religious communities – Bechara El Khoury who became independent Lebanon's first President and Riad El-Solh, who became Lebanon's first prime minister, are considered the founders of the modern Republic of Lebanon and are national heroes for having led the country's independence. French troops withdrew from Lebanon in 1946.
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Lillehammer
Lillehammer (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈlɪləˈhɑmər] (listen)) is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of May 2011, the population of the town of Lillehammer was 26,639 . The city centre is a late 19th century concentration of wooden houses, which enjoys a picturesque location overlooking the northern part of lake Mjøsa and the river Lågen, surrounded by mountains. Lillehammer hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics and will host the 2016 Winter Youth Olympics.
The municipality is named for the old timur (Old Norse: Hamarr, "rocky hill") farm, since the first church was built there. To distinguish it from the nearby town and bishopric of Hamar, it began to be called "little Hamar": Lilþlæ Hamar and Litlihamarr and finally Lillehammer.
It is also mentioned in the Old Norse sagas as Litlikaupangr ("Little Trading Place").
The coat-of-arms was granted in 1898. The arms show a birkebeiner, carrying a spear and a shield, who is skiing down a mountainside. It symbolizes the historical importance of when the Birkebeiners carried the to-be-King Haakon from Lillehammer to Rena on skis.
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Maykop
Maykop (Russian: Майко́п; Adyghe: Мыекъуапэ, Myequape) is the capital city of the Republic of Adygea, Russia, located on the right bank of the Belaya River (a tributary of the Kuban). Population: 144,246 (2010 Census preliminary results); 156,931 (2002 Census); 148,608 (1989 Census).
Maykop was founded in 1857 as a Russian Kuban Cossack fortress. It served as an important strategic outpost during the finale of the Caucasian War in 1858–1863. It was granted town status in 1870.
The early Bronze Age Maykop culture has been named after the city after the discovery of a royal burial site there in 1897.
In 1911, oil deposits were discovered in the vicinity of Maykop.
In 1936, Maykop and the surrounding region was merged with Adyghe Autonomous Oblast, and became the administrative center of the autonomy. Maykop was occupied by the Wehrmacht on August 9, 1942 without a fight as a result of Brandenburger commando operation. In January 1943 it was liberated by the Transcaucasian Front of the Red Army.
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Metro Manila
Metropolitan Manila (Filipino: Kalakhang Maynila, Kamaynilaan), the National Capital Region (NCR) (Filipino: Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), or simply Metro Manila, is the metropolitan region encompassing the City of Manila and its surrounding areas in the Philippines. It is composed of 16 cities, namely City of Manila, Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Pasay, Pasig, Parañaque, Quezon City, San Juan, Taguig, and Valenzuela, plus the smaller Municipality of Pateros.
The region is the political, economic, social, cultural, and educational center of the Philippines. As proclaimed by Presidential Decree No. 940, Metro Manila as a whole is the Philippines' seat of government but the City of Manila is the capital. The largest city in the metropolis is Quezon City, while the largest business district is the Makati Central Business District.
Metro Manila is the most populous of the twelve defined metropolitan areas in the Philippines and the 11th most populous in the world. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 11,855,975, comprising 13% of the national population. The sum total population of provinces with a provincial density above 700 people per square kilometer (more than double the national average) in a contiguous zone with Metro Manila is 25.5 million people as of the 2007 census, one way to refer to the conurbation around Metro Manila is Greater Manila.
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Novokubansk
Coordinates: 45°06′N 41°03′E / 45.1°N 41.05°E / 45.1; 41.05
Novokubansk (Russian: Новокуба́нск) is a town and the administrative center of Novokubansky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the Kuban River. Population: 34,847 (2010 Census preliminary results); 35,400 (2002 Census); 30,201 (1989 Census). Population of Novokubansk accounts for 40.4% of the total district's population.
When the Caucasian War ended, in 1867, former soldiers decided to settle and found a new town which is now known as Novokubansk. In 1936, Novokubansk became the administrative center of Novokubansky District. During World War II, the town was occupied by the German troops on August 6, 1942 and remained occupied until its liberation on January 25, 1943. Six soldiers were killed and sixteen were wounded during the last battle. Rapidly growing Novokubansk was granted the town status 1966.
Major federal roads and railway pass near Novokubansk. The town is very developed and it is the center of local food processing industry and agriculture. Surrounding Novokubansk are a number of orchards and wineries. A local brandy Big Prize is a famous product of one of the biggest wineries in the town. A large sugar cane production plant is situated at outskirts of Novokubansk. Also one of the largest local experimental-industrial farms is headquartered in Novokubansk.
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Novorossiysk
Novorossiysk (Russian: Новоросси́йск; IPA: [nəvərɐˈsʲijsk]; Adyghe: Цӏэмэз, Ts'emez) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the country's main port on the Black Sea and the leading Russian port for importing grain. It is one of the few cities honored with the title of the Hero City. Population: 241,788 (2010 Census preliminary results); 232,079 (2002 Census); 185,938 (1989 Census).
In antiquity, the shores of the Tsemess Bay were the site of Bata, an ancient Greek colony that specialized in the grain trade. It is mentioned in the works of Strabo and Ptolemy, among others. The Genoese merchants from the Ghisolfi family maintained a trade outpost there in the Middle Ages. Archaeological investigation of the area is in its infancy, but some interesting items have already been uncovered.[1]
Since 1722, the bay was commanded by the Ottoman fortress of Sujuk-Qale or Soğucak. After the coastline was ceded to Russia in 1829 as a result of a Russo-Turkish War, the admirals Mikhail Lazarev and Nikolay Raevsky founded an eastern base for the Black Sea Fleet on the shore in 1838. Named after the province of Novorossiya, the port formed a vital link in the chain of forts known as the Black Sea Coastal Line, which stretched south to Sochi.
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Oslo
Oslo (English pronunciation: /ˈɒzloʊ/, OZ-loh,Norwegian pronunciation: [²ʊʃlʊ] ( listen) or [²ʊslʊ]) is the capital of and most populous city in Norway. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III, the city was elevated to a bishopric in 1070 and a capital under Haakon V around 1300. Personal unions with Denmark from 1397 to 1523 and again from 1536 to 1814 and with Sweden from 1814 to 1905 reduced its influence. After being destroyed by a fire in 1624, the city was moved closer to Akershus Castle during the reign of King Christian IV and renamed Christiania in his honour. It was established as a municipality (formannskapsdistrikt) on 1 January 1838. Following a spelling reform, it was known as Kristiania from 1877 to 1925, when its original Norwegian name was restored.
Oslo is the economic and governmental centre of Norway. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important centre for maritime industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to many companies within the maritime sector, some of which are amongst the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and maritime insurance brokers. Oslo is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission intercultural cities programme.
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Philippines
The Philippines
i/ˈfɪlɨpiːnz/ FI-lə-peenz (Filipino: Pilipinas [ˌpɪlɪˈpinɐs]), officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas) is a sovereign country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam. The Sulu Sea to the southwest lies between the country and the island of Borneo, and to the south the Celebes Sea separates it from other islands of Indonesia. It is bounded on the east by the Philippine Sea. Its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire and its tropical climate make the Philippines prone to earthquakes and typhoons but have also endowed the country with natural resources and made it one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the world. An archipelago comprising 7,107 islands, the Philippines is categorized broadly into three main geographical divisions: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Its capital city is Manila.
With an estimated population of about 98 million people, the Philippines is the 7th most populated Asian country and the 12th most populated country in the world. An additional 12.5 million Filipinos live overseas. Multiple ethnicities and cultures are found throughout the islands. In prehistoric times, Negritos were some of the archipelago's earliest inhabitants. They were followed by successive waves of Austronesian peoples who brought with them influences from Malay, Hindu, and Islamic societies. Trade introduced Chinese cultural influences which remain to this day.
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Pitsunda
Pitsunda (Abkhaz: Пиҵунда, Georgian: ბიჭვინთა, Bichvinta; Russian: Пицунда) is a resort town in Gagra district of Abkhazia.
The town was founded by the Greeks in the 5th century BC as a trade colony Pityus (Ancient Greek: Pityus, Πιτυοῦς, genitive Pityuntos, Πιτυοῦντος) or Pitiunt. Excavations guided by Andria Apakidze unearthed remains of three 4th-century churches and a bath with superb mosaic floors. The former "Great Pityus" harbour is now a mere lake within the town. Saint John Chrysostom was exiled there and died near the shore in 407. Like Dioskurias, remained under Roman control within the Diocese of Pontus until the 7th century. The city passed under Abasgian control and became one of the major political and religious centres of the kingdom of Egrisi (Lazica). An archbishopric of Pitiunt was instituted in 541. In medieval Georgia, the town's name was spelled as Bichvinta. At the end of the 10th century, King Bagrat III of Georgia built there the Pitsunda Cathedral which survives to this day and contains vestiges of wall-painting from the 13th and the 16th centuries. Bichvinta also served as the seat of the Georgian Orthodox Catholicate of Abkhazia until the late 16th century when Abkhazia came under the Ottoman hegemony. It is still a titular see of the Roman Catholic Church. In the late 13th century, the area housed a short-lived Genoese trade colony called Pezonda.
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Primorsko-Akhtarsk
Coordinates: 46°2′36″N 38°10′35″E / 46.04333°N 38.17639°E / 46.04333; 38.17639
Primorsko-Akhtarsk (Russian: Примо́рско-Ахта́рск) is a port town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the coast of the Sea of Azov, 151 kilometers (94 mi) northwest of Krasnodar. Population: 32,677 (2002 Census).
Founded in 1829 and town status was granted to it in 1949.
vep:Primorsko-Ahtarsk
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Pyeongchang
Pyeongchang (Pyeongchang-gun) is a county in Gangwon province, South Korea located in the Taebaek Mountains region. It is also home to several Buddhist temples, including Woljeongsa. It is located approximately 180 km (110 mi) east of Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Pyeongchang will host the 2018 Winter Olympics.
The altitude of Pyeongchang is wide-ranging, with 84% of its territory comprising mountains with average elevations of 750 m (2,460 ft).
Its best-known place, the township of Daegwallyeong-myeon, averages between 700 to 800 m (2,300 to 2,600 ft) above sea level, with some areas over 1,000 m (3,300 ft) high. Daegwallyeong-myeon has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb/Dfw) with warm, humid summers and long, cold winters (see climate).
The area is popular with mountain hikers, especially at the southern part of Mount Seoraksan.
Alpensia ski resort is a tourist attraction and has 6 slopes for skiing and snowboarding, with runs up to 1.4 km (0.87 mi) long, for beginners and advanced skiers, and an area reserved for snowboarders. The resort is open year-round.
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Pärnu
Pärnu (German: Pernau, Polish: Parnawa) is a city in southwestern Estonia on the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Riga in the Baltic Sea. It is a popular summer vacation resort with many hotels, restaurants, and large beaches. The Pärnu River flows through the city and drains into the Gulf of Riga. The city is served by Pärnu Airport.
The city is occasionally referred to as Pyarnu, an incorrect reverse-transliteration from Russian Пярну.
Perona, (German: Alt-Pernau, Estonian: Vana-Pärnu) was founded by the bishop of Ösel-Wiek ca. 1251, suffered heavily under pressure of the concurrent town, and was finally destroyed ca. 1600. Another town, Embeke (later German: Neu-Pernau, Estonian: Uus-Pärnu) was founded by the Livonian Order, who began building an Ordensburg nearby in 1265. The latter town, then known by the German name of Pernau, was a member of the Hanseatic League and an important ice-free harbor for Livonia. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took control of town between 1560–1617; the Poles and Lithuanians fought the Swedes nearby in 1609. Sweden took control of the town during the 16th century Livonian War, but it was subsequently taken by the Russian Empire in the 1710 Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia and the 1721 Treaty of Nystad, following the Great Northern War. It belonged to Imperial Russian Governorate of Livonia then.
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Republic of Adygea
The Republic of Adygea (English pronunciation: /ɑːdɨˈɡeɪ.ə/;Russian: Респу́блика Адыге́я, tr. Respublika Adygeya; IPA: [ɐdɨˈɡʲejə]; Adyghe: Адыгэ Республик, Adıge Respublik) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic) enclaved within Krasnodar Krai. Its area is 7,600 square kilometers (2,900 sq mi) with a population of 439,996 (2010 Census). Its capital is the city of Maykop.
Adygea lies in southeastern Europe in the northern foothills of the Caucasus Mountains, with plains in the north and mountains in the south. Forests cover almost 40% of its territory.
The 870-kilometer (540 mi) long Kuban River is one of the major navigable rivers in the Caucasus region. It forms part of the northern border between Adygea and Krasnodar Krai. Other rivers include:
The republic has no large lakes. However, the several large reservoirs include:
The republic's major mountains range in height from 2,000 to 3,238 m and include:
The republic is rich in oil and natural gas. Other natural resources include gold, silver, tungsten, and iron.
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Rimini
Rimini (Italian pronunciation: [ˈriːmini] ( listen); Latin: Ariminum) is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient Ariminus) and Ausa (ancient Aprusa). It is one of the most famous seaside resorts in Europe, thanks to its 15 km-long sandy beach, over 1,000 hotels and thousands of bars, restaurants and discos. The first bathing establishment opened in 1843. An art city with ancient Roman and Renaissance monuments, Rimini is the hometown of the famous film director Federico Fellini as well.
Founded by the Romans in 268 BC, throughout their period of rule Rimini was a key communications link between the north and south of the peninsula, and on its soil Roman emperors erected monuments like the Arch of Augustus and the Tiberius Bridge, while during the Renaissance, the city benefited from the court of the House of Malatesta, which hosted artists like Leonardo and produced works such as the Malatesta Temple. In the 19th century, Rimini was one of the most active cities in the revolutionary front, hosting many of the movements aimed at the unification of Italy. In the course of World War II the city was the scene of clashes and bombings, but also of a fierce partisan resistance that earned it the honor of a gold medal for civic valor. Finally, in recent years it has become one of the most important sites for trade fairs and conferences in Italy.
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Russia
Russiai/ˈrʌʃə/ or /ˈrʊʃə/ (Russian: Россия, tr. Rossiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijə] ( listen)), also officially known as the Russian Federation (Russian: Российская Федерация, tr. Rossiyskaya Federatsiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijskəjə fʲɪdʲɪˈratsɨjə] ( listen)), is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (both via Kaliningrad Oblast), Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, and North Korea. It also has maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk, and the US state of Alaska by the Bering Strait. At 17,075,400 square kilometres (6,592,800 sq mi), Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than one eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area. Russia is also the eighth most populous nation with 143 million people. It extends across the whole of northern Asia and 40% of Europe, spanning nine time zones and incorporating a wide range of environments and landforms. Russia has the world's largest reserves of mineral and energy resources and is the largest producer of oil and natural gas globally. Russia has the world's largest forest reserves and its lakes contain approximately one-quarter of the world's fresh water.
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Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,145,905. Salt Lake City is further situated in a larger urban area known as the Wasatch Front, which has a population of 2,328,299. It is one of only two major urban areas in the Great Basin (the other being Reno, Nevada), and the largest in the Intermountain West.
The city was founded in 1847 by Brigham Young and his Mormon followers, who extensively irrigated and cultivated the arid valley. Due to its proximity to the Great Salt Lake, the city was originally named "Great Salt Lake City"—the word "great" was dropped from the official name in 1868. Although Salt Lake City is still home to the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), less than half the population of Salt Lake City proper are members of the LDS Church today.
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Sarajevo
Sarajevo (Cyrillic: Сарајево) (pronounced [sǎrajɛʋɔ]) is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with an estimated population of over 311,161 people within its administrative limits. It is also the capital of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity, as well as the center of the Sarajevo Canton, which has a population of 438,757. Nestled within the greater Sarajevo valley of Bosnia, it is surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans.
Sarajevo is the leading social and cultural center of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and its region-wide influence in politics, education, entertainment, media, fashion, science, and the arts contribute to its status as Bosnia and Herzegovina's major economic center.
The city is historically famous for its traditional cultural and religious diversity, with adherents of Islam, Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Judaism coexisting there for centuries. Due to this long and rich history of religious and cultural variety, Sarajevo is often called the "Jerusalem of Europe" or "Jerusalem of the Balkans". It was, until recently in the 20th century, the only major European city to have a mosque, cathedral, Orthodox church and synagogue within the same neighborhood.
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Shandong
Coordinates: 36°24′N 118°24′E / 36.4°N 118.4°E / 36.4; 118.4
Shandong (help·info) (simplified Chinese: 山东; traditional Chinese: 山東; pinyin: Shāndōng; Wade–Giles: Shan1-tung1) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese Buddhism, and Confucianism. Shandong's Mount Tai is the most revered mountain of Taoism and one of the world's sites with the longest history of continuous religious worship. The Buddhist temples in the mountains to the south of the provincial capital of Jinan were once among the foremost Buddhist sites in China. The city of Qufu is the birthplace of Confucius, and was later established as the center of Confucianism. Shandong's location at the intersection of ancient as well as modern north-south and east-west trading routes have helped to establish it as an economic center. After a period of political instability and economic hardship that began in the late 19th century, Shandong has emerged as one of the most populous (95,793,065 inhabitants at the 2010 Census) and most affluent provinces in the People's Republic of China (GDP of 3.94 trillion CNY in 2010).
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Sidon
Coordinates: 33°33′38″N 35°23′53″E / 33.56056°N 35.39806°E / 33.56056; 35.39806
Sidon or Saïda (Arabic: صيدا, Ṣaydā; Phoenician:
, Ṣydwn; Greek: Σιδών; Latin: Sidon; Hebrew: צידון, Ṣīḏōn, Turkish: Sayda) is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate of Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast, about 40 km (25 mi) north of Tyre and 40 km (25 mi) south of the capital Beirut. In Genesis, Sidon is the son of Canaan the grandson of Noah. Its name coincides with the modern Arabic word for fishery.
Sidon is a city of 200,000 inhabitants who are overwhelmingly Muslims.
Sidon has been inhabited since very early in prehistory. The archaeological site of Sidon II shows a lithic assemblage dating to the Acheulean, whilst finds at Sidon III include a Heavy Neolithic assemblage suggested to date just prior to the invention of pottery. It was one of the most important Phoenician cities, and may have been the oldest. From here, and other ports, a great Mediterranean commercial empire was founded. Homer praised the skill of its craftsmen in producing glass, purple dyes, and its women's skill at the art of embroidery. It was also from here that a colonizing party went to found the city of Tyre. Tyre also grew into a great city, and in subsequent years there was competition between the two, each claiming to be the metropolis ('Mother City') of Phoenicia. Glass manufacturing, Sidon's most important enterprise in the Phoenician era, was conducted on a vast scale, and the production of purple dye was almost as important. The small shell of the Murex trunculus was broken in order to extract the pigment that was so rare it became the mark of royalty.
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Slavyansk-na-Kubani
Slavyansk-na-Kubani (Russian: Славя́нск-на-Куба́ни) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located in the Kuban River delta. Population: 63,768 (2010 Census preliminary results); 64,136 (2002 Census); 57,790 (1989 Census); 56,000 (1975).
Slavyansk originated in the Middle Ages as Copa or Coparia, a Genoese trade outpost controlled by the Ghisolfi family. After the fall of the Genoese power in the Pontic region, the site was abandoned until 1747 when the Crimean Khanate erected a small fort, known in Russian sources as Kopyl.
After the conquest of the Taman Peninsula by the Russian Empire, the Tatar fort gave way to the Cossack stanitsa of Kopylskaya. In 1865, it was renamed after the Slavyansky regiment that had been quartered there under Catherine the Great. In 1958, it was incorporated as the town of Slavyansk-na-Kubani (so called in order to distinguish it from the eponymous city in Ukraine).[citation needed]
Slavyansk-na-Kubani serves as the administrative center of Slavyansky District, although it is not administratively a part of it. Administratively, it is incorporated separately as an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.Municipally, Slavyansk-na-Kubani is incorporated within Slavyansky Municipal District as Slavyanskoye Urban Settlement.
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Sochi
Sochi (Russian: Сочи; IPA: [ˈsotɕɪ]) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for 145 kilometers (90 mi) along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a permanent population of 343,285; up from 328,809 recorded in the 2002 Census, making it Russia's largest resort city.
Sochi will host the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games in 2014, as well as the Russian Formula 1 Grand Prix from 2014 until at least 2020. It is also one of the host cities for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Sochi has a humid subtropical climate with mild winters (average +11 °C (52 °F) during the day and +4 °C (39 °F) at night in the period from December to March) and comfortable summers (average +24 °C (75 °F) during the day and +16 °C (61 °F) at night period from May to October).
At 145 kilometers (90 mi), Greater Sochi claims to be the longest city in Europe. Other sources using the Caucasus Mountains as the Europe-Asia divide place Sochi in Southwest Asia as it falls on the southern (Asian) side of the Greater Caucasus.
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Sochi National Park
Sochi National Park (Russian: Сочинский национальный парк, Sochinsky National Park) is a national park in Western Caucasus, near the city of Sochi, in Southern Russia. It is Russia's second oldest national park, established on May 5, 1983.
Sochi National Park covers 1,937.37 square kilometres (478,730 acres) within the Western Caucasus World Heritage Site. The park occupies the Greater Sochi area, from the border with the Tuapsinsky District, between the mouths of Shepsi River and Magri River in the north-west, to the border with Abkhazia along the Psou River in the south-east, and between the Black Sea to the water divide crest of the Greater Caucasus.
From this territory, the park does not include the areas of settlement, such as the city of Sochi and various urban and rural settlements. The area of the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve is also distinct.
Coordinates: 43°03′00″N 39°47′00″E / 43.05°N 39.7833°E / 43.05; 39.7833
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South Korea
South Korea ( listen), officially the Republic of Korea (Hangul: 대한민국; Hanja: 大韓民國; Daehan Minguk listen), is a sovereign state in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula. The name "Korea" is derived from Goryeo, a dynasty which ruled in the Middle Ages (an initial "G" in Korean is pronounced like an English "K").
Its neighbors are China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the Korea Strait to the south. South Korea lies in the north temperate zone with a predominantly mountainous terrain. It covers a total area of 99,392 square kilometers and has a population of almost 50 million. The capital and largest city is Seoul, with a population of 9,794,304.
Archaeological findings show that the Korean Peninsula was occupied by the Lower Paleolithic period.Korean history begins with the founding of Gojoseon in 2333 BC by the legendary Dan-gun. Following the unification of the Three Kingdoms of Korea under Silla 668 AD, Korea went through the Goryeo Dynasty and Joseon Dynasty as one nation until the end of the Korean Empire in 1910, when it was annexed by Japan. After liberation and occupation by Soviet and U.S. forces at the end of World War II, the nation was divided into North and South Korea. The latter was established in 1948 as a democracy, though political turmoil and times of military rule and martial law characterized much of the period until the foundation of the Sixth Republic in 1987.
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South Ossetia
South Ossetia ( /əˈsɛtiə/ə-SET-ee-ə or /ɒˈsiːʃə/o-SEE-shə; Ossetic: Хуссар Ирыстон, Xussar Iryston; Georgian: სამხრეთ ოსეთი, Samxret Oseti; Russian: Южная Осетия, Yuzhnaya Osetiya) or Tskhinvali Region (Georgian: ცხინვალის რეგიონი, Tsxinvalis regioni; Russian: Цхинвальский регион, Tskhinvalskiy region) is a disputed region and partly recognized state in the South Caucasus, located in the territory of the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within the former Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic.
South Ossetians declared independence from Georgia in 1990, calling themselves the Republic of South Ossetia. The Georgian government responded by abolishing South Ossetia's autonomy and trying to retake the region by force. This led to the 1991–1992 South Ossetia War. Georgian fighting against those controlling South Ossetia occurred on two other occasions, in 2004 and 2008. The last conflict led to the 2008 South Ossetia war, during which Ossetian and Russian forces gained full, de facto control of the territory of the former South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast.
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Tbilisi
Tbilisi (Georgian: თბილისი [tʰb̥ilisi] ( listen)) is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi (ტფილისი) and it was officially known as Tpilisi (in Georgian) or Tiflis (in Russian) until 1936. The city covers an area of 726 km2 (280 sq mi) and has 1,480,000 inhabitants.
Founded in the 5th century by Vakhtang Gorgasali, the monarch of Georgia's precursor Kingdom of Iberia, Tbilisi has served, with various intervals, as Georgia's capital for nearly 1500 years and represents a significant industrial, social, and cultural center of the country. Located near the southeastern edge of Europe, Tbilisi's proximity to lucrative east-west trade routes often made the city a point of contention between various rival empires throughout history and the city's location to this day ensures its position as an important transit route for global energy and trade projects. Tbilisi's varied history is reflected in its architecture, which is a mix of medieval, classical, and Soviet structures.
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Temryuk
Coordinates: 45°16′N 37°23′E / 45.267°N 37.383°E / 45.267; 37.383
Temryuk (Russian: Темрю́к) is the largest town and the administrative center of Temryuksky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Taman peninsula on the right bank of the Kuban River not far from its entry into the Temryuk Bay, amid a field of mud volcanoes. The seaport of Temryuk is situated 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) from the town itself. Population: 38,014 (2010 Census preliminary results); 36,118 (2002 Census); 33,163 (1989 Census); 26,600 (1975).
Situated in the proximity of the site of ancient Tmutarakan, Temryuk was vied by various powers as a vantage point commanding the mouth of the Kuban River. The first recorded settlement on the site was Tumnev, a Tatar fortress, which passed to the Genoese merchants in the 14th century. It was known as Copa until occupied by the Khanate of Crimea in 1483.
The Russians, allied with a local potentate, Teimriqwe (Temgryuk, Temryuk) of Kabarda, captured Tumnev and built a fortress of New Temryuk there. The Crimean Tatars retook the fort in 1570; it was known as Adis for a century to come. In the 18th century the site was settled by the Cossacks, whose stanitsa was incorporated as a town of Temryuk in 1860.
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Tikhoretsk
Tikhoretsk (Russian: Тихоре́цк) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Population: 61,825 (2010 Census preliminary results); 65,005 (2002 Census); 67,105 (1989 Census).
Tikhoretsk serves as the administrative center of Tikhoretsky District, although it is not administratively a part of it. Administratively, together with two rural localities, it is incorporated separately as an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.Municipally, Tikhoretsk and the two rural localities are incorporated within Tikhoretsky Municipal District as Tikhoretskoye Urban Settlement.
The town is an important part of the southern rail network.
vep:Tihoreck
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Timashyovsk
Coordinates: 45°37′1″N 38°56′43″E / 45.61694°N 38.94528°E / 45.61694; 38.94528
Timashyovsk (Russian: Тимашёвск) is a town and the administrative center of Timashyovsky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the Kirpili River 73 kilometers (45 mi) north of Krasnodar. Population: 53,921 (2010 Census preliminary results); 54,116 (2002 Census); 45,556 (1989 Census).
It was founded in 1794 and was granted town status in 1966.
Timashyovsk is twinned with:
vep:Timašovsk
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Trabzon
Trabzon (Turkish: Trabzon, see other names, Turkish pronunciation: [ˈtrabzon]) is a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Iran in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast. The Venetian and Genoese merchants paid visits to Trebizond during the medieval period and sold silk, linen and woolen fabric; with the Republic of Genoa having an important merchant colony within the city that was similar to Galata near Constantinople (across the Golden Horn) in present-day Istanbul. Trabzon formed the basis of several states in its long history and was the capital city of the Empire of Trebizond between 1204 and 1461. During the Ottoman period, Trabzon, because of the importance of its port, became a focal point of trade to Iran and the Caucasus. The population of the center urban is 230,399 (2009 census).
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Tuapse
Tuapse (Russian: Туапсе́; Adyghe: ТIуапсэ) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the northeast shore of the Black Sea, south of Gelendzhik and north of Sochi. Population: 63,233 (2010 Census preliminary results); 64,238 (2002 Census); 63,081 (1989 Census).
Tuapse is a sea port and the northern center of a resort zone which extends south to Sochi.
Tuapse is a large center (native land) for the Shapsugs tribe with other areas in Circassia, with about 10,000 speakers of the language living in Tuapse. The name of the town is itself Adyghe (literally meaning "two waters") since Tuapse was part of historical Circassia and it became a part of Russia during the rule of Tsar Alexander I in 1801-1825. In early Greek sources the town was also attested as Topsida.
The modern settlement dates back to 1838, when the Russian fort of Velyaminovsky was established in the area after this region became a part of Russia in 1829 by Treaty of Adrianople. During the Crimean War, the Ottomans seized the fort and held it for two years (1857–1859). The village of Velyaminovskoye (Вельяминовское) was established here in 1864; it is the village that later became Tuapse. Urban status was granted to Tuapse in 1896.
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Turin
Turin (Italian: Torino, pronounced [toˈriːno] ( listen); Piedmontese: Turin, pronounced [tyˈɾiŋ]; Latin: Augusta Taurinorum) is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 (November 2008) while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 1.7 million inhabitants. The Turin metropolitan area is estimated by the OECD to have a population of 2.2 million.
The city has a rich culture and history, and is known for its numerous art galleries, restaurants, churches, palaces, opera houses, piazzas, parks, gardens, theatres, libraries, museums and other venues. Turin is well known for its baroque, rococo, neo-classical, and Art Nouveau architecture. Much of the city's public squares, castles, gardens and elegant palazzi such as Palazzo Madama, were built in the 16th and 18th century, after the capital of the Duchy of Savoy (later Kingdom of Sardinia) was moved to Turin from Chambery( nowadays France) as part of the urban expansion.
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Turkey
Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye), known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( Türkiye Cumhuriyeti (help·info)), is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia (mostly in the Anatolian peninsula) and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe. Turkey is bordered by eight countries: Bulgaria to the northwest; Greece to the west; Georgia to the northeast; Armenia, Azerbaijan (the exclave of Nakhchivan) and Iran to the east; and Iraq and Syria to the southeast. The Mediterranean Sea and Cyprus are to the south; the Aegean Sea is to the west; and the Black Sea is to the north. The Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles (which together form the Turkish Straits) demarcate the boundary between East Thrace and Anatolia; they also separate Europe and Asia.
Turkey is one of the six independent Turkic states. The vast majority of the population are Muslims. The country's official language is Turkish, whereas Kurdish and Zazaki languages are spoken by Kurds and Zazas, who constitute 18% of the population.
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Ukraine
Ukraine (i/juːˈkreɪn/ yew-KRAYN; Ukrainian: Україна, transliterated: Ukrayina, [ukrɑˈjinɑ]; Russian: Украина; Crimean Tatar: Ukraina) is a country in Central and Eastern Europe. Ukraine borders the Russian Federation to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the southwest, and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast, respectively. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after the Russian Federation.
According to a popular and well established theory, the medieval state of Kievan Rus was established by the Varangians in the 9th century as the first historically recorded East Slavic state which emerged as a powerful nation in the Middle Ages until it disintegrated in the 12th century. By the middle of the 14th century, Ukrainian territories were under the rule of three external powers—the Golden Horde, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Kingdom of Poland. After the Great Northern War (1700–1721) Ukraine was divided between a number of regional powers and, by the 19th century, the largest part of Ukraine was integrated into the Russian Empire with the rest under Austro-Hungarian control. A chaotic period of incessant warfare ensued, with several internationally recognized attempts at independence from 1917 to 1921, following World War I and the Russian Civil War. Ukraine emerged from its own civil war, and on December 30, 1922 Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic became one of the founding republics of the Soviet Union. The Ukrainian SSR's territory was enlarged westward during the civil war shortly before, and after World War II, and further south in 1954 with the Crimea transfer. In 1945, the Ukrainian SSR became one of the founding members of the United Nations.
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Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR (Ukrainian: Українська Радянська Соціалістична Республіка, Українська РСР; Russian: Украинская Советская Социалистическая Республика, Украинская ССР; See Name section) or Soviet Ukraine was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state (Article 68, Constitution of Ukraine 1978) and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 (the Ukrainian SSR was formally established in 1919) to the breakup in 1991.
Although the Ukrainian SSR was a founding member of the United Nations formed after the end of World War II, it practically had no say in its foreign affairs, which was tightly controlled by Moscow authorities. Upon the Soviet Union's dissolution and perestroika, the Ukrainian SSR was transformed into the modern nation-state of Ukraine, although Ukraine's new constitution was only ratified on June 28, 1996.
Throughout its 72-year history, the republic's borders changed many times, with a significant portion of what is now Western Ukraine being annexed by Soviet forces in 1939 and the addition of formerly Russian Crimea in 1954. From the start, the eastern city of Kharkiv served as the republic's capital. However, in 1934, the seat of government was subsequently moved to the city of Kiev, which remained the capital of newly-independent Ukraine.
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United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, or Britain) is a sovereign state located off the north-western coast of continental Europe. The country includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea.
The United Kingdom is a unitary state governed under a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary system, with its seat of government in the capital city of London. It is a country in its own right and consists of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. There are three devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff, the capitals of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Associated with the UK, but not constitutionally part of it, are three Crown Dependencies. The United Kingdom has fourteen overseas territories. These are remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in 1922, encompassed almost a quarter of the world's land surface and was the largest empire in history. British influence can still be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former territories.
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United States
The United States of America (commonly abbreviated to the United States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west, across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.
At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km2) and with over 312 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest by both land area and population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The U.S. economy is the world's largest national economy, with an estimated 2011 GDP of $15.1 trillion (22% of nominal global GDP and over 19% of global GDP at purchasing-power parity). Per capita income is the world's sixth-highest.
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Ust-Labinsk
Coordinates: 45°12′45″N 39°41′11″E / 45.2125°N 39.68639°E / 45.2125; 39.68639
Ust-Labinsk (Russian: Усть-Ла́бинск) is a town and the administrative center of Ust-Labinsky District of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. Population: 43,268 (2010 Census preliminary results); 43,824 (2002 Census); 41,759 (1989 Census).
The Laba and the Kuban Rivers flow through the town.
It was established as the stanitsa of Ust-Labinskaya (Усть-Лабинская) in 1794. On May 28, 1958, it was granted town status and renamed.
Administratively, along with two rural localities, it is incorporated as the Town of Ust-Labinsk—an administrative division of Ust-Labinsky District.
Municipally, the territory of Ust-Labinsk, along with one of the rural localities, is incorporated as Ust-Labinskoye Urban Settlement of Ust-Labinsky Municipal District. The other rural locality is incorporated as Dvubratskoye Rural Settlement of Ust-Labinsky Municipal District.
vep:Ust'-Labinsk
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Vancouver
Vancouver (/vænˈkuːvər/) is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. The 2011 census recorded more than 603,000 people in the city, making it the eighth largest among Canadian cities. The metropolitan area, with more than 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country and the most populous in Western Canada. With 5,249 people per square kilometre (13,590 per sq mile), the City of Vancouver is the most densely populated Canadian municipality among those with 5,000 residents or more. Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada, with 52% for whom English is not their first language.
The original settlement, named Gastown, grew around the Hastings Mill logging sawmill and a nearby tavern, both established in 1867. Enlarging to become the townsite of Granville, with the announcement that the railhead would reach the site it was renamed "Vancouver" and incorporated as a city in 1886. By 1887, the transcontinental railway was extended to the city to take advantage of its large natural seaport, which soon became a vital link in a trade route between the Orient, Eastern Canada, and London. As of 2009, Port Metro Vancouver is the busiest and largest port in Canada, and the most diversified port in North America. While forestry remains its largest industry, Vancouver is well known as an urban centre surrounded by nature, making tourism its second-largest industry. Major film production studios in Vancouver and Burnaby have turned Metro Vancouver into the third-largest film production centre in North America after Los Angeles and New York City, earning it the film industry nickname, Hollywood North.
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Weihai
Weihai (Chinese: 威海; pinyin: Wēihǎi) is a city in eastern Shandong Province, People's Republic of China. It is the easternmost prefecture-level city of the province and a major seaport. Between 1898 and 1930, the town was a British colony known as Weihaiwei or the Weihai Garrison (traditional Chinese: 威海衛; simplified Chinese: 威海卫; pinyin: Wēihǎi Wèi), and sometimes as Port Edward. Weihai was not developed in the way that Hong Kong, the other British colony in the region, was developed, because Shandong Province of which Weihaiwei was part of, was inside Germany's sphere of influence and had only been obtained as a counterbalance to the Russian presence at Port Arthur 130 kilometres across the sea in Manchuria. It was largely used as a naval station and a sanatorium. Weihai borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east.
Its population is 2,804,800 at the 2010 census. 591,982 live in the built up area (Huancui urban district). One can notice that Rongcheng, a county level city, has a built up area with 1,006,795 inhabitants.
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Western Caucasus
The Western Caucasus is a western region of the Caucasus in Southern Russia, extending from the Black Sea to Mount Elbrus.
The Western Caucasus includes a natural UNESCO World Heritage Site comprising the extreme western edge of the Caucasus Mountains. As stated by the UNESCO specialists, it is the only large mountain area in Europe that has not experienced significant human impact. Its habitats are exceptionally varied for such a small area, ranging from lowlands to glaciers. The site is situated 50 km to the north from the Russian resort of Sochi.
The Western Caucasus also contains the Caucasian State Nature Biosphere Reserve (Russian Кавказский государственный природный биосферный заповедник), nature reserve (IUCN management category Ia ) set up by the Soviet government in Krasnodar Krai, Adygea and Karachay–Cherkessia in 1924 to preserve some 85 m-high specimens of the Nordmann Fir (Abies nordmanniana), thought to be the tallest trees in Europe, and a unique forest formed by English Yew (Taxus baccata) and European Box (Buxus sempervirens) within the city of Sochi.
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Yeysk
Yeysk (Russian: Ейск) is a port and a resort town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the shore of the Taganrog Gulf of the Sea of Azov. The town is build primarily on the Yeya Spit, which separates the Yeya River from the Sea of Azov. Population: 87,771 (2010 Census preliminary results); 86,349 (2002 Census); 78,150 (1989 Census).
The town was founded in 1848 by Prince Mikhail Semyonovich Vorontsov in accordance with a royal order from the Tsar of Russia.[citation needed]
Yeysk serves as the administrative center of Yeysky District, although it is not administratively a part of it. Administratively, together with seven rural localities, it is incorporated separately as an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.Municipally, Yeysk and the seven rural localities are incorporated within Yeysky Municipal District as Yeyskoye Urban Settlement.
Yeysk is known for its mineral waters and its medicinal mud baths. This mud is brought from the neighboring Lake Khanskoye. The town has a number of parks, a sanatorium, several recreation centers, hotels, and beaches. The bathing season lasts from May until September. Yeysk offers a variety of attractions, restaurants, open-air cafes, clubs, bars, and night clubs.
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Örnsköldsvik
Örnsköldsvik [œɳɧœldsˈviːk] is a locality and the seat of Örnsköldsvik Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden with 28,991 inhabitants in 2010.
Its natural harbour and archipelago is in the Gulf of Bothnia and the northern boundaries of the High Coast area. It is well known as an exporter of paper products and heavy machinery goods. It has a strong environment record and is the "testbed" for ethanol powered cars.
The name comes from Governor Per Abraham Örnsköld (1762–1769) and literally translated means Eagle-shield's-bay (Örn-skölds-vik).
Traces of human activity in the area date back to the Nordic Bronze Age, and there's a reconstructed iron age village called Gene fornby, which is a popular tourist attraction, just outside of town. Örnsköldsvik itself is however a relatively young city, it was founded as a market town (a köping) in 1842 and became a city in 1894.
The town of Örnsköldsvik is the centre of Örnsköldsviks Kommun or Örnsköldsvik Municipality. The Municipality has a much larger population than the town itself, at over 55,000 inhabitants, as the municipality is vast with very large forest areas, and consists of several rural communities in the countryside.
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Abkhaz people
The Abkhaz or Abkhazians (Abkhaz: Аҧсуа, Apswa) are a Caucasian ethnic group, mainly living in Abkhazia, a disputed region on the Black Sea coast. A large Abkhaz diaspora population resides in Turkey, the origins of which lie in the emigration from the Caucasus in the late 19th century known as muhajirism. Many Abkhaz also live in other parts of the former Soviet Union, particularly in Russia and Ukraine.
The Abkhaz language belongs to the Northwest Caucasian languages group. Classical sources speak of several tribes dwelling in the region, but their exact identity and location remains controversial. The Abasgoi and Apsilai of the Graeco-Roman authors are considered as the predecessors of modern-day Abkhaz.
The integration of various smaller ethnic subgroups into the modern-day Abkhaz people was basically completed by the late 10th century, but some of these groups were deprived of their homeland when the Russian conquest of northwestern Caucasus forced them to become muhajirun and emigrate to the Ottoman possessions.
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Adyghe people
The Adyghe or Adygs (Adyghe: Адыгэ or Adǝgă, Arabic: شركس/جركس, Jarkas/Sharkas,Persian: چرکس,charkas), also often known as Circassians or Cherkess, are in origin a North Caucasian ethnic group who were displaced in the course of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century, especially after the Russian–Circassian War of 1862.
Adyghe people mostly[dubious – discuss] speak Circassian (called Adyghe in the west and Kabardin in the east), and most practise Sunni Islam.
There remain about two million speakers of Circassian, mostly in the republics of Kabardino-Balkaria, Adygea, and Karachay–Cherkessia, as well as a number in the Russian Federation outside these republics.
The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization estimates that there are as many as 3.7 million "ethnic Circassians" outside of the Circassian republics (meaning that only one in seven "ethnic Circassians" is a speaker of the Circassian language), of whom about 2 million live in the Republic of Turkey, 700,000 in the Russian Federation, about 150,000 in the Levant, and about 50,000 in western countries (Europe and USA).
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Alexander Kaminsky
Alexander Stepanovich Kaminsky (1829–1897, Russian: Александр Степанович Каминский, sometimes spelled Kamensky, Каменский) was a Russian architect working in Moscow and suburbs. One of the most successul and prolific architects of 1860s - 1880s, Kaminsky was a faithful eclecticist, equally skilled in Russian Revival, Neo-Gothic and Renaissance Revival architecture. He is best remembered for the extant Tretyakovsky Proyezd shopping arcade and the cathedral of Nikolo-Ugresh monastery in present-day town of Dzerzhinsky.
Kaminsky was born in a noble family in Kiev Governorate. In 1848-1857 he studied architecture under Konstantin Thon at the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg; meanwhile Alexander's brother, Joseph Kaminsky, was a construction manager for Thon's Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. Alexander served as a liaison between Petersburg-based Thon and Moscow crews, acquiring his first practical experience.
In 1857, Kaminsky won a state-paid postgraduate tour of Europe, and travelled extensively until 1861. In Paris, he met Pavel Tretyakov, a young member of an influential Muscovite business family and an art collector. Back in Moscow, friendship with Tretyakovs resulted in his first independent commissions. Next year, Alexander married Sophia, sister of Pavel Tretyakov; he remained Tretyakov's house architect until the end of his career.
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Alexey Shchusev
Alexey Viktorovich Shchusev (Russian: Алексе́й Ви́кторович Щу́сев, 26 September (8 October (new style)), 1873, Chişinău—24 May 1949, Moscow) was an acclaimed Russian and Soviet architect whose works may be regarded as a bridge connecting Revivalist architecture of Imperial Russia with Stalin's Empire Style.
Shchusev studied under Leon Benois and Ilya Repin at the Imperial Academy of Arts in 1891–1897. From 1894 to 1899, he travelled in North Africa and Central Asia. Shchusev was a diligent student of old Russian art and won public acclaim with his restoration of the 12th-century St. Basil Church in Ovruch, Ukraine. He dwelt on 15th-century Muscovite architecture to design the Trinity Cathedral in Pochayiv Lavra and a memorial church on the Kulikovo Field. He was then commissioned by the royal family to design a cathedral for Marfo-Mariinsky Convent in Moscow. The result was a charming medieval structure of the purest Novgorodian style (1908–1912).
Shchusev embarked upon his most wide-scale project in 1913, when his design for the Kazan Railway Station won a contest for a Moscow terminus of the Trans-Siberian Railway. This Art Nouveau design fused elements of the Kremlin towers and traditional Tatar architecture in one of the most imaginative Revivalist designs ever put to execution. The construction of the railway station, however, was not finished until 1940.
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Alexey Voevoda
Alexey Ivanovich Voyevoda (Russian: Алексей Иванович Воевода) (born May 9, 1980, Sochi) is a Russian bobsledder and professional armwrestler.
http://armwrestling.hut4.ru/ - Official page of The Professional Armwrestling League
A professional bobsleigher since 2002, Voyevoda won silver in the four-man bobsleigh event with teammates Philippe Egorov, Alexei Seliverstov, and Alexandre Zoubkov at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. He also won a bronze in the two-man event at the 2008 FIBT World Championships in Altenberg, Germany. At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Voyevoda won a bronze in the two-man event.
Alexey Voevoda was Born on May 9 in Ukraine - Kalinovitsa Village.
Voyevoda holds a good deal of recognition as a professional arm wrestler, having secured several Russian arm wrestling championships. He was defeated by Travis Bagent at the 2003 WAF championship, but won the Zloty Tur 2004 cup one year later, defeating high level armwrestlers such as Bagent, John Brzenk, Matt Girdner, and Alexy Semerenko. Voyevoda reclaimed the WAF championship in 2004 (left- and right-handed) and won the European Championship the same year. After a left hand vendetta match with Alexey Semerenko (winning 4-2) and Travis Bagent (losing 5-1) in 2005, Voyevoda took a break from his professional arm wrestling career to return bobsleigh training until 2007. As of 2007, Alexey Voyevoda returned to the arm wrestling scene once again, he won a vendetta match 6-0 against Michael Todd from USA in Bulgaria on May 26. After that short comeback he resigned from armwrestling scene due to his bobsleigh training and Olympic judo training and since then, has not appeared in any other event.
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Anatoly Pakhomov
Anatoliy Nikolayevich Pakhomov (Russian Анатолий Николаевич Пахомов) (born 1960 in Krasnodar Krai) is a Russian politician. He is currently the acting mayor of Sochi.
Pakhomov served as the mayor of the town of Anapa from 2005 until 2008. In October 2008 Pakhomov became the fourth occupant of the mayoralty of Sochi since the announcement of the city as the host of the 2014 Winter Olympics. On 24 March 2009 the United Russia party announced that Pakhomov would be its candidate for the April 26 elections for mayor of Sochi On 27 April 2009 it was announced that Pakhomov had won the election with 77% of the vote. Boris Nemtsov, who came second with around 14% of the vote, contested the fairness of the election, alleging that he was denied media access and that government workers had been pressured to vote for Pakhomov. He received the Olympic flag from IOC president Jacques Rogge at the 2010 Winter Olympics closing ceremony.
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Andre Geim
Sir Andre Konstantin Geim, FRS (Russian: Андрей Константинович Гейм; born 21 October 1958) is a Russian-born British-Dutch physicist working at the University of Manchester. Geim was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics jointly with Konstantin Novoselov for his work on graphene. He is the Langworthy Professor and director of the Manchester Centre for Mesoscience and Nanotechnology at the University of Manchester.
Andre Geim was born to Konstantin Alekseyevich Geim and Nina Nikolayevna Bayer on October 21, 1958. Both his parents were Russian German engineers. Geim has stated, "My mother's grandmother was Jewish. I suffered from anti-Semitism in Russia because my name sounds Jewish". Geim has one brother, Vladislav. In 1965, the family moved to Nalchik, where he studied at an English-language high school. After graduation, he applied to the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute. He took the entrance exams twice, but was not accepted. He then applied to the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT), where he was accepted. He said the students had to work extremely hard: "The pressure to work and to study was so intense that it was not a rare thing for people to break and leave, and some of them ended up with everything from schizophrenia to depression to suicide." He received an MSc degree in 1982, and in 1987 obtained a PhD degree in metal physics from the Institute of Solid State Physics (ISSP) at the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) in Chernogolovka. He said that at the time he would not have chosen to study solid-state physics, preferring particle physics or astrophysics, but is now happy with his choice.
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Arrian
Lucius Flavius Arrianus 'Xenophon' (ca. AD 86 - 160), known in English as Arrian[pronunciation?] (Ἀρριανός), and Arrian of Nicomedia, was a Roman (ethnic Greek) historian, public servant, military commander and philosopher of the 2nd-century Roman period. As with other authors of the Second Sophistic, Arrian wrote primarily in Attic (Indica is in Herodotus' Ionic dialect, his philosophical works in Koine Greek) .
Anabasis of Alexander is perhaps his best known work and is generally considered one of the best sources on the campaigns of Alexander the Great, not to be confused with Anabasis, then best-known work of the Athenian military leader and author Xenophon from the 4th century BC. Arrian is also considered as one of the founders of a primarily military-based focus on history. His other works include Discourses of Epictetus and Indica.
Arrian was born of Greek ethnicity in the coastal town of Nicomedia (present-day Izmit), the capital of the Roman province of Bithynia, in what is now north-western Turkey, about 70 km from Byzantium (later Constantinople, now Istanbul). He studied philosophy in Nicopolis in Epirus, under the Stoic philosopher Epictetus, and wrote two books about the philosopher's teachings. At the same time he entered the Imperial service, and served as a junior adviser on the consilium of Gaius Avidius Nigrinus, governor of Achaea and a close friend of the future Emperor Hadrian, around 111-114. Very little is known about his subsequent career - though it is probable that he served in Gaul and on the Danube frontier, and possible that he was in Baetica and Parthia - until he held the office of Consul in 129 or 130. In 131 he was appointed governor of the Black Sea province of Cappadocia and commander of the Roman legions on the frontier with Armenia. It was unusual at this time for a Greek to hold such high military command.
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Austria
Austria (i/ˈɒstriə/ or /ˈɔːstriə/; German: Österreich [ˈøːstɐˌʁaɪç] ( listen)), officially the Republic of Austria (German: Republik Österreich (help·info)), is a landlocked country of roughly 8.47 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The territory of Austria covers 83,855 square kilometres (32,377 sq mi) and has a temperate and alpine climate. Austria's terrain is highly mountainous due to the presence of the Alps; only 32% of the country is below 500 metres (1,640 ft), and its highest point is 3,798 metres (12,461 ft). The majority of the population speak local Austro-Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, and German in its standard form is the country's official language. Other local official languages are Burgenland Croatian, Hungarian and Slovene.
The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty when the vast majority of the country was a part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Austria became one of the great powers of Europe and, in response to the coronation of Napoleon I as the Emperor of the French, the Austrian Empire was officially proclaimed in 1804. In 1867, the Austrian Empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary.
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Bernie Ecclestone
Bernard Charles "Bernie" Ecclestone (born 28 October 1930) is an English business magnate, as president and CEO of Formula One Management and Formula One Administration and through his part-ownership of Alpha Prema, the parent company of the Formula One Group of companies. As such, he is generally considered the primary authority in Formula One racing. He is most commonly addressed in tabloid journalism as "F1 Supremo". His early involvement in the sport was as a competitor and then as a manager of drivers Stuart Lewis-Evans and Jochen Rindt. In 1972, he bought the Brabham team, which he ran for fifteen years. As a team owner he became a member of the Formula One Constructors Association. His control of the sport, which grew from his pioneering the sale of television rights in the late 1970s, is chiefly financial, but under the terms of the Concorde Agreement he and his companies also manage the administration, setup and logistics of each Formula One Grand Prix. Ecclestone himself entered two Grand Prix races during the 1958 season, failing to qualify for either of them.
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Boris Nemtsov
Boris Efimovich Nemtsov (Russian: Борис Ефимович Немцóв; born 9 October 1959) is a Russian politician who was Deputy Prime Minister of Russia from 1997 to 1998. He was a co-founder of the Russian political party Union of Rightist Forces and is an outspoken critic of Vladimir Putin.
Boris Nemtsov was born on 9 October 1959 in Sochi to Jewish parents, Efim Davidovich Nemtsov and Dina Yakovlevna Eidman. In his autobiography, Nemtsov recounts that his Russian Orthodox grandmother had him baptized as an infant, something Nemtsov, now a practicing Orthodox Christian, found out many years later. From 1976 to 1981 he studied physics at Gorky State University, and in 1985 received a Ph. D. in Physics and Mathematics, defending his dissertation at the age of 25. Until 1990 Boris Nemtsov worked as a senior scientist at the Gorky Radio-Physics Research Institute (Горьковский научно-иссследовательский радиофизический институт, НИРФИ).
In 1986, in the wake of the Chernobyl disaster, Nemtsov organized a protest movement in his hometown, which effectively prevented the construction of a new nuclear power plant in the region.
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China
China (i/ˈtʃaɪnə/; Chinese: 中国; pinyin: Zhōngguó; see also Names of China), officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is the world's most-populous country, with a population of over 1.3 billion. Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometres, the East Asian state is the world's second-largest country by land area, and the third- or fourth-largest in total area, depending on the definition of total area.
The People's Republic of China is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party of China. It exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four directly controlled municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), and two mostly self-governing special administrative regions (Hong Kong and Macau). Its capital city is Beijing. The PRC also claims Taiwan—which is controlled by the Republic of China (ROC), a separate political entity—as its 23rd province, a claim controversial due to the complex political status of Taiwan and the unresolved Chinese Civil War. The PRC government denies the legitimacy of the ROC.
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Circassian Coast
Circassian Coast (Adyghe: Адыгэ хы аушу ); was the coast of historical Circassia on the Black Sea before 1864 , extending from Anapa in the North to Adler in the south, and including cities like Tuapse and Sochi.
The coastline was ceded to Russia in 1829 as a result of the Caucasian War and the Russo-Turkish War, However, in 1828 the Circassians did not admit the Russian control over Circassia because Circassia was not considered a part of the Ottoman Empire, claiming the Circassians were the real owners of Circassia, hence kept resisting the newly established Russian outposts along the Circassian Coast and the inner lands in the Circassians Russian War.
Provision of weapons and ammunition from abroad to the Circassians caused a diplomatic conflict between the Russian Empire and Great Britain in 1836 referred to as the Mission of Vixen.
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Daria Kondakova
Daria Kondakova (Russian: Дарья Кондакова; born 30 July 1991) is a Russian rhythmic gymnast from Moscow, Russia. She is a three time (2011,2010,2009) All around World silver medalist and the 2010 European All around silver medalist. She is coached by Anna Shumilova.
Kondakova's breakthrough was in 2009 when she obtained very good results in her first senior season, culminating in her all around silver medal at the Worlds Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Mie just behind teamate and 2008 Olympic Champion Yevgeniya Kanayeva. She is a three time World Championship Silver Medalist in All-around for three consecutive years having won the silver medal in four individual apparatus in clubs, hoop, ribbon and ball.
In 2010, she repeated her success as the silver all around medalist for World Cup events in Pesaro and Portimao as well as in Grand Prix and International tournaments.
In 2011 season, Kondakova won the All around Gold Medal at the World Cup events in Kiev, Sofia and in Portimao, she won against teammate Yevgeniya Kanayeva. In September 2011, at the 2011 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Montpellier, France. She won the silver medal in the all around and in all four individual apparatus with a gap of 0.05 points from the Gold medalist and compatriot Yevgeniya Kanayeva.
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Elena Vesnina
Elena Sergeevna Vesnina (Russian: Елена Сергеевна Веснина) (born Lviv, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, on 1 August 1986) is a professional female tennis player from Russia. Her career high rank was #22, achieved on 12 October 2009. She is coached by former ATP tour player Andrei Chesnokov.
In October 2002, aged sixteen years and two months, she gained direct entry into the qualifying draw for her first $10,000 tournament at Giza, Egypt, and succeeded in qualifying for the main draw before losing a close three-set match.
The very next week, once again qualifying at Al-Mansoura to enter the main draw, where she won two further matches in straight sets, beating Hana Šromová of the Czech Republic in Round Two, to reach her first ever $10,000 quarter-final in just her second event played. However, she defaulted her quarter-final tie to her opponent.
In 2003 she began the year entering two successive ITF events India. at Chennai and Bangalore, and not only succeeded in qualifying both times, but also reached her first semi-final and another quarter-final in the main draws, notably losing to future star Akgul Amanmuradova at the quarter-final stage at Bangalore.
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Grigory Leps
Grigory Victorovich Lepsveridze (Russian: Григо́рий Ви́кторович Лепсверидзе), commonly known as Grigory Leps, is a Russian singer-songwriter of Georgian origin. He created a unique style mixing between rock music, pop music, and in his early career shanson. He's known for his low, strong voice with long-range vocals[clarification needed].[dead link]
Grigory Leps was born Grigory Lepsveridze in the city of Sochi, Russian SFSR in an ethnically Georgian family. He finished music school in the class of Percussion instrument. After the army he started to play and sing in a few rock bands, and worked as a singer in restaurants.
He suffered from alcoholism and drug addiction, and to get far from that life he went to Moscow. There he started singing in restaurants, until he received a record deal, and in 1995 he released the album May God Keep You (Khrani vas bog). The song "Natali" became a huge hit, but he didn't know that because he was hospitalized for drugs and alcoholism. The doctors told him that one more drop of any of the drugs could kill him completely.
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Hadrian
Hadrian (Latin: Publius Aelius Traianus Hadrianus Augustus 24 January 76 – 10 July 138), was a Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in all his tastes. He was the third of the so-called Five Good Emperors.
Hadrian was born Publius Aelius Hadrianus to an ethnically Italian family in Italica near Seville. His predecessor Trajan was a maternal cousin of Hadrian's father. Trajan never officially designated an heir, but according to his wife Pompeia Plotina, Trajan named Hadrian emperor immediately before his death. Trajan's wife and his friend Licinius Sura were well-disposed towards Hadrian, and he may well have owed his succession to them.
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Heraclius
Heraclius (Latin: Flavius Heraclius Augustus, Greek: Φλάβιος Ἡράκλειος, c. 575 – February 11, 641) was Byzantine Emperor from 610 to 641.
He was responsible for introducing Greek as the Eastern Empire's official language. His rise to power began in 608, when he and his father, Heraclius the Elder, the exarch of Africa, successfully led a revolt against the unpopular usurper Phocas.
Heraclius' reign was marked by several military campaigns. The year Heraclius came to power, the empire was threatened on multiple frontiers. Heraclius immediately took charge of the ongoing war against the Sassanids. The first battles of the campaign ended in defeat for the Byzantines; the Persian army fought their way to the Bosphorus. However, because Constantinople was protected by impenetrable walls and a strong navy, Heraclius was able to avoid total defeat. Soon after, he initiated reforms to rebuild and strengthen the military. Heraclius drove the Persians out of Asia Minor and pushed deep into their territory, defeating them decisively in 627 at the Battle of Nineveh. The Persian king Khosrau II was assassinated soon after and peace was restored to the two deeply strained empires.
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Ivan Aivazovsky
Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky (Armenian: Հովհաննես Այվազովսկի – Hovhannes Aivasovsky, originally Aivazian, Russian: Иван Константинович Айвазовский) July 29, 1817 – May 5, 1900) was a Russian world-renowned painter of Armenian descent living and working in Crimea, most famous for his seascapes, which constitute more than half of his paintings. Aivazovsky is widely considered as one of the greatest seascape painters of all times.
Aivazovsky was born in the town of Feodosiya (Theodosia), Crimea (Russian Empire) to a poor Armenian family. His brother was the Armenian Archbishop Gabriel Aivazovsky. His family moved to the Crimea from Galicia (then in southern Poland, now in Ukraine) in 1812. His parents' family name was Aivazian but in Poland it was written Haivazian. Some of the artist's paintings bear a signature, in Armenian letters, "Hovhannes Aivazian" (Հովհաննես Այվազյան). His father taught him to play the violin and speak Polish and Ukrainian fluently. His talent as an artist earned him sponsorship and entry to the Simferopol gymnasium №1 and later the St.Petersburg Academy of Arts, which he graduated with a gold medal. Earning awards for his early landscapes and seascapes, he went on to paint a series of portraits of Crimean coastal towns before travelling throughout Europe. In later life, his paintings of naval scenes earned him a long-standing commission from the Russian Navy stationed in the Black Sea.
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Ivan Zholtovsky
Ivan Vladislavovich Zholtovsky (Russian: Иван Владиславович Жолтовский Belarusian: Іван Уладзіслававіч Жалтоўскі, 1867–1959) was a Russian-Soviet architect and educator. He worked primarily in Moscow since 1898 till his death. An accomplished master of Renaissance Revival before the Russian Revolution of 1917, later he became a key figure of Stalinist architecture.
Ivan Zholtovsky was born in Pinsk (now in Belarus) November 27, 1867. He joined Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg at the age of 20. Degree studies took 11 years till 1898 – strapped for cash, Ivan used to take long leaves working as apprentice for the Saint Petersburg architectural firms. By the time of graduation, Zholtovsky had a first-rate practical experience in design, technology and project management. He retained this hands-on approach for the rest of his career, being a construction manager in the original sense of architectural profession. Zholtovsky planned to relocate to Tomsk after graduation, but eventually received and accepted a quick job offer from Stroganov Art School in Moscow. He became a tutor in architecture just weeks after earning his own diploma – a part-time job that allowed plenty of time for professional practice.
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Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (Russian: Иосиф Виссарионович Сталин; born Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili, Russian: Иосиф Виссарионович Джугашвили; 18 December 1878 – 5 March 1953) was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution in Russia in 1917 and later held the position of General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee from 1922 until his death in 1953. While the office of the General Secretary was officially elective and not initially regarded as the top position in the Soviet state, Stalin managed to use it to consolidate more and more power in his hands after the death of Vladimir Lenin in 1924 and gradually put down all opposition groups within the Communist Party. This included Leon Trotsky, a socialist theorist and the principal critic of Stalin among the early Soviet leaders, who was exiled from the Soviet Union in 1929. Whereas Trotsky was an exponent of permanent revolution, it was Stalin's concept of socialism in one country that became the primary focus of Soviet politics.
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Khazars
The Khazars were semi-nomadic Turkic people who established one of the largest polities of medieval Eurasia, with the capital of Atil and territory comprising much of modern-day European Russia, western Kazakhstan, eastern Ukraine, Azerbaijan, large portions of the northern Caucasus (Circassia, Dagestan), parts of Georgia, the Crimea, and northeastern Turkey.
A successor state of the Western Turks, Khazaria was a polyethnic-multifaith state with a population of Turkic, Uralic, Slavic, and Palaeo-Caucasian peoples. Khazaria was the first feudal state to be established in Eastern Europe. During the 9th and 10th centuries, Khazaria was one of the major arteries of commerce between northern Europe and southwestern Asia, as well as a connection to the Silk Road. The name "Khazar" is found in numerous languages and seems to be tied to a Turkic verb form meaning "wandering" (Modern Turkish: Gezer).Pax Khazarica is a term used by historians to refer to the period during which the Khazaria dominated the Pontic steppe and the Caucasus Mountains.
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Kliment Voroshilov
Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov (Russian: Климе́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов (help·info), Ukrainian: Климент Охрімович Ворошилов, Klyment Okhrimovych Voroshylov), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (Russian: Клим Вороши́лов, Klim Vorošilov) (4 February 1881 – 2 December 1969) was a Soviet military officer, politician, and statesman. He served as Defense Minister and Marshal of the Soviet Union from 1935 and 1936, respectively, until his death in 1969.
Voroshilov was born in the settlement Verkhnye, Bakhmut county (uyezd), Yekaterinoslav Governorate (now part of Lysychansk city in Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine), in the Russian Empire, into a railway worker's family of Russian ethnicity. However, according to the Soviet Major General Pyotr Grigorenko Voroshilov himself was pointing out to his Ukrainian heritage and previous family name of Voroshilo. Voroshilov joined the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1905. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Voroshilov became a member of the Ukrainian Council of People's Commissars and Commissar for Internal Affairs along with Vasili Averin. He was well known for aiding Joseph Stalin in the Military Council (led by Leon Trotsky), having become closely associated with Stalin during the Red Army's 1918 defense of Tsaritsyn. Voroshilov was instrumental as a commander of the Southern Front during the Russian Civil War and the Polish-Soviet War while with the 1st Cavalry Army. As Political Commissar serving co-equally with Stalin, Voroshilov was responsible for the morale of the 1st Cavalry Army, whose men were composed chiefly of peasants from southern Russia. Voroshilov's efforts as Commissar did not prevent a resounding defeat at the Battle of Komarów or regular outbreaks of murderous anti-Semitic violence within the Cavalry army's ranks.
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Maria Sharapova
Maria Yuryevna Sharapova (Russian: Мария Юрьевна Шарапова [mɐˈrʲijə ˈjurʲjɪvnə ʂɐˈrapəvə] ( listen), US: /ʃɑrəˈpoʊvə/, UK: /ʃærəˈpoʊvə/; born April 19, 1987) is a Russian professional tennis player and former world no. 1. A United States resident since 1994, Sharapova has won 26 WTA singles titles, including three Grand Slam singles titles at the 2004 Wimbledon, 2006 US Open and 2008 Australian Open. She has also won the year-end WTA Tour Championships in 2004. The Women's Tennis Association has ranked Sharapova world no. 1 in singles on four separate occasions. She became the world no. 1 for the first time on August 22, 2005, and last regained the ranking for the fourth time on May 19, 2008. As of May 28, 2012, Sharapova is ranked world no. 2. She has been in six Grand Slam finals with the final record 3–3.
Sharapova made her professional breakthrough in 2004 at age 17, when she defeated two-time defending champion and top seed Serena Williams in the 2004 Wimbledon final for her first Grand Slam singles title. She entered the top 10 of the WTA Rankings with the win. Despite not winning a major in 2005, Sharapova briefly held the no. 1 ranking, and reached three Grand Slam semifinals, losing to the eventual champion each time. She won her second major at the 2006 US Open defeating then-world no. 1 Amélie Mauresmo in the semifinals and world no. 2 Justine Henin in the final.
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Mikhail Lazarev
Admiral Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev (Russian: Михаил Петрович Лазарев, November 3, 1788 – April 11, 1851) was a Russian fleet commander and explorer who discovered Antarctica.
Lazarev was born in Vladimir, a scion of the old Russian nobility from the Vladimir province. In 1800, he enrolled in Russia's Naval College. Three years later he was sent to the British fleet, where he would stay for a continuous five-year navigation. From 1808 to 1813, Lazarev served in the Baltic Fleet. He took part in the Russo-Swedish War of 1808-1809 and Patriotic War of 1812.
Lazarev first circumnavigated the globe in 1813-1816, aboard the vessel Suvorov; the expedition began at Kronstadt and reached Alaska. During this voyage, Lazarev discovered the Suvorov Atoll.
As a commander of the ship Mirny and Fabian von Bellingshausen's deputy on his world cruise in 1819-1821 (Bellingshausen commanded Vostok), Lazarev took part in the discovery of Antarctica and numerous islands. On January 28, 1820 the expedition discovered the Antarctic mainland, approaching the Antarctic coast at the coordinates 69°21′28″S 2°14′50″W / 69.35778°S 2.24722°W / -69.35778; -2.24722 and seeing ice-fields there.
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Mordechai Spiegler
Mordechai "Motaleh" Spiegler (Hebrew: מרדכי שפיגלר, born in Sochi, Soviet Union, 19 August 1944) is a former Israeli footballer. He remains Israel's record goalscorer, with 33 goals in 83 caps.
In 2005, he was voted the 105th-greatest Israeli of all time, in a poll by the Israeli news website Ynet to determine whom the general public considered the 200 Greatest Israelis.
As a striker, he played for Maccabi Netanya along with Paris Saint Germain in France and alongside Pelé for New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League in the 1970s.
He was chosen as the Israeli Player of the Year a record four times, in 1967/68, 1968/69, 1969/70, and in 1970/71.
Spiegler made his international debut for Israel on 2 January 1964 against Hong Kong. He took part in the Israeli win in the 1964 AFC Asian Cup, and scored 2 goals at the tournament, which made him a joint top scorer of the tournament.
His major achievement was helping Israel qualify for the Football World Cup 1970 in Mexico. He scored Israel's lone goal in World Cup history in a 1–1 draw against Sweden.
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Muhajir (Caucasus)
Circassians, the indigenous peoples of the Northwest Caucasus were cleansed from their homeland at the end of the Caucasian War by victorious Russia, which by its manner of suppression of the Caucasus directed at the Crimean Tartars and Circassians can be credited with "inventing the strategy of modern ethnic cleansing and genocide." The expulsion was launched even before the end of the war in 1864 and it continued into the 1870s, although it was mostly completed by 1867. The peoples involved were mainly the Circassians (Adyghe in their own language), Ubykhs, Abkhaz, and Abaza.
This expulsion involved an unknown number of people, perhaps numbering hundreds of thousands. The Russians had come to refer to them as mountain-people (горцы, górtsy). The Russian army rounded up people, driving them from their villages to ports on the Black Sea, where they awaited ships provided by the neighboring Ottoman Empire. The explicit Russian goal was to expel the groups in question from their lands. They were given a choice as to where to be resettled: in the Ottoman Empire or in Russia far from their old lands. Only a small percentage (the numbers are unknown) accepted resettlement within the Russian Empire.
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Nicholas II
Nicholas II (Russian: Николай II, Николай Александрович Романов, tr. Nikolay II, Nikolay Alexandrovich Romanov [nʲɪkɐˈlaj ftɐˈroj, nʲɪkɐˈlaj əlʲɪkˈsandrəvʲɪtɕ rɐˈmanəf]) (18 May [O.S. 6 May] 1868 – 17 July 1918) was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Duke of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is known as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church. He has often been referred to as Saint Nicholas the Martyr.
Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until his abdication on 15 March 1917. His reign saw Imperial Russia go from being one of the foremost great powers of the world to economic and military collapse. Critics nicknamed him Bloody Nicholas because of the Khodynka Tragedy, Bloody Sunday, the anti-Semitic pogroms, his execution of political opponents, and his pursuit of military campaigns on a hitherto unprecedented scale.
Under his rule, Russia was defeated in the Russo-Japanese War, including the almost total annihilation of the Russian fleet at the Battle of Tsushima. As head of state, he approved the Russian mobilization of August 1914, which marked the beginning of Russia's involvement in World War I, a war in which 3.3 million Russians were killed. The Imperial Army's big losses and the monarchy's incompetent handling with the war, along with other policies directed by Nicholas during his reign, are often cited as the leading causes of the fall of the Romanov dynasty.
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Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 15 [O.S. April 3] 1894, – September 11, 1971) led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964. Khrushchev was responsible for the partial de-Stalinization of the Soviet Union, for backing the progress of the early Soviet space program, and for several relatively liberal reforms in areas of domestic policy. Khrushchev's party colleagues removed him from power in 1964, replacing him with Leonid Brezhnev as First Secretary and Alexei Kosygin as Premier.
Khrushchev was born in the Russian village of Kalinovka in 1894, close to the present-day border between Russia and Ukraine. He was employed as a metalworker in his youth, and during the Russian Civil War was a political commissar. With the help of Lazar Kaganovich, he worked his way up the Soviet hierarchy. He supported Joseph Stalin's purges, and approved thousands of arrests. In 1939, Stalin sent him to govern Ukraine, and he continued the purges there. During what was known in the Soviet Union as the Great Patriotic War (Eastern Front of World War II), Khrushchev was again a commissar, serving as an intermediary between Stalin and his generals. Khrushchev was present at the bloody defense of Stalingrad, a fact he took great pride in throughout his life. After the war, he returned to Ukraine before being recalled to Moscow as one of Stalin's close advisers.
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Nikolay Raevsky
Nikolay Nikolayevich Raevsky (Russian: Николай Николаевич Раевский) (September 25 [O.S. 14] 1771 — September 28 [O.S. 16] 1829) was a Russian general and statesman who achieved fame for his feats of arms during the Napoleonic wars. His family left a lasting legacy in Russian society and culture.
Nikolay Raevsky was born in Saint Petersburg. He descended from an old noble family of remote Scandinavian ancestry, who left Denmark to settle in Livonia during the fourteenth century. By the sixteenth century, they had acquired Polish nationality, and were granted the (Łabędź Coat of Arms) by King Sigismund III, in the early seventeenth century. His grandfather, Semyon Raevsky, was the Prosecutor of the Holy Synod.
The family rose to prominence in Russia when Raevsky's father, Colonel Nikolay Semyonovich Raevsky, commander of the elite Izmaylovsky Regiment, married Ekaterina Samoylova. Ekaterina was a lady-in-waiting and close friend of Empress Catherine II, and a niece of the Empress’ influential favorite, Prince Potemkin. Ekaterina’s brother was the general and statesman, Count Alexander Samoylov.
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Otto Schmidt
Otto Yulyevich Schmidt (Russian: О́тто Ю́льевич Шмидт) (September 30 [O.S. September 18] 1891 — September 7, 1956) was a Soviet scientist, mathematician, astronomer, geophysicist, statesman, academician, Hero of the USSR (27 June 1937), and member of the Communist Party.
He was born in Mogilev, Russian Empire (now Belarus). His father was a descendant of German settlers in Courland, while his mother was a Latvian.
In 1913, Schmidt married Vera Yanitskaia and graduated from the University of Kiev, where he worked as a privat-docent starting from 1916. After the October Revolution of 1917, he was a board member at several People's Commissariats (narkomats) – such as Narkomprod from 1918 to 1920 (Narodnyi Komissariat Prodovolstviya, or People's Commissariat for Supplies), People's Commissariat for Finance from 1921 to 1922 (Narodnyi Komissariat Finansov, or People's Commissariat for Finances). Schmidt was one of the chief proponents of developing the higher education system, publishing, and science in Soviet Russia.
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Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire or Turkish Empire or Sublime Ottoman State or sometimes also referred to as Turkey (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِيّهٔ عُثمَانِیّه Devlet-i ʿAliyye-yi ʿOsmâniyye (also عثمانلى دولتى Osmanlı Devleti),Modern Turkish: Osmanlı Devleti or Osmanlı İmparatorluğu) was a Turkish empire which lasted from 27 July 1299 to 1 November 1922, when the Sultanate was abolished.
The Ottoman Empire was one of the largest and longest lasting empires in history; such that the Ottoman State, its politics, conflicts, and cultural heritage in a vast geography provide one of the longest continuous narratives. During the 16th and 17th centuries, in particular at the height of its power under the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, the empire was one of the most powerful states in the world – a multinational, multilingual empire that stretched from the southern borders of the Holy Roman Empire to the outskirts of Vienna, Royal Hungary (modern Slovakia) and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the north to Yemen and Eritrea in the south; from Algeria in the west to Azerbaijan in the east; controlling much of southeast Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. At the beginning of the 17th century the empire contained 32 provinces and numerous vassal states, some of which were later absorbed into the empire, while others were granted various types of autonomy during the course of centuries.
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Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War (25 October 1917 – October 1922) was a multi-party war in the former Russian Empire fought between the Bolshevik Red Army and the White Army, the loosely allied anti-Bolshevik forces. Many foreign armies warred against the Red Army, notably the Allied Forces and the pro-German armies. The Red Army defeated the White Armed Forces of South Russia in Ukraine and the army led by Aleksandr Kolchak in Siberia in 1919. The remains of the White forces commanded by Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel were beaten in the Crimea and were evacuated in the autumn of 1920. A number of independent countries – Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland – emerged from the war.
After the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, the Russian Provisional Government was established during the February Revolution of 1917.
In the wake of the October Revolution, the old Russian Imperial Army had been demobilized; the volunteer-based Red Guard was the Bolsheviks' main military force, augmented by an armed military component of the Cheka, the Bolshevik state security apparatus. In January, after significant reverses in combat, War Commissar Leon Trotsky headed the reorganization of the Red Guard into a Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, in order to create a more professional fighting force. Political commissars were appointed to each unit of the army to maintain morale and ensure loyalty.
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Shandong
Coordinates: 36°24′N 118°24′E / 36.4°N 118.4°E / 36.4; 118.4
Shandong (help·info) (simplified Chinese: 山东; traditional Chinese: 山東; pinyin: Shāndōng; Wade–Giles: Shan1-tung1) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese Buddhism, and Confucianism. Shandong's Mount Tai is the most revered mountain of Taoism and one of the world's sites with the longest history of continuous religious worship. The Buddhist temples in the mountains to the south of the provincial capital of Jinan were once among the foremost Buddhist sites in China. The city of Qufu is the birthplace of Confucius, and was later established as the center of Confucianism. Shandong's location at the intersection of ancient as well as modern north-south and east-west trading routes have helped to establish it as an economic center. After a period of political instability and economic hardship that began in the late 19th century, Shandong has emerged as one of the most populous (95,793,065 inhabitants at the 2010 Census) and most affluent provinces in the People's Republic of China (GDP of 3.94 trillion CNY in 2010).
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Ubykh people
The Ubykh are a group who spoke the Northwest Caucasian Ubykh language, until other local languages displaced it and its last speaker died in 1992.
The Ubykh used to inhabit an area just northwest of Abkhazia in the Caucasus. They may well have been inhabitants of the ancient state of Colchis. Outside of mythology, the probable ancestors of the Ubykh were mentioned in book IV of Procopius' De Bello Gothico (The Gothic War), under the name βροῦχοι (Bruchi), a corruption of the native term tʷaχ. The Ubykh were semi-nomadic horsemen, and their language contained a finely differentiated vocabulary related to horses and tack. Some Ubykh also practised favomancy and scapulomancy.
However, the Ubykh gained more prominence in modern times. By 1864, during the reign of Tsar Alexander II, the Russian conquest of the Northwestern Caucasus had been completed. The Adyghe and Abkhaz were decimated, and the Abaza were partially driven out of the Caucasus. Faced with the threat of subjugation by the Russian army, the Ubykh, as well as other Muslim peoples of Caucasus, left their homeland en masse beginning on March 6, 1864. By May 21, the entire Ubykh nation had departed from the Caucasus. They eventually settled in a number of villages in western Turkey around the municipality of Manyas.
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Ubykhs
The Ubykh are a group who spoke the Northwest Caucasian Ubykh language, until other local languages displaced it and its last speaker died in 1992.
The Ubykh used to inhabit an area just northwest of Abkhazia in the Caucasus. They may well have been inhabitants of the ancient state of Colchis. Outside of mythology, the probable ancestors of the Ubykh were mentioned in book IV of Procopius' De Bello Gothico (The Gothic War), under the name βροῦχοι (Bruchi), a corruption of the native term tʷaχ. The Ubykh were semi-nomadic horsemen, and their language contained a finely differentiated vocabulary related to horses and tack. Some Ubykh also practised favomancy and scapulomancy.
However, the Ubykh gained more prominence in modern times. By 1864, during the reign of Tsar Alexander II, the Russian conquest of the Northwestern Caucasus had been completed. The Adyghe and Abkhaz were decimated, and the Abaza were partially driven out of the Caucasus. Faced with the threat of subjugation by the Russian army, the Ubykh, as well as other Muslim peoples of Caucasus, left their homeland en masse beginning on March 6, 1864. By May 21, the entire Ubykh nation had departed from the Caucasus. They eventually settled in a number of villages in western Turkey around the municipality of Manyas.
wn.com/Ubykhs -
Vera Mukhina
Vera Ignatyevna Mukhina (Russian: Вера Игнатьевна Мухина; Latvian: Vera Muhina; born 1 July [O.S. 19 June] 1889 in Riga; died 6 October 1953 in Moscow) was a prominent Soviet sculptor.
Mukhina was born in Riga into a wealthy merchant family, and lived at Turgeneva st. 23/25, where a memorial plaque has now been placed. She later moved to Moscow, where she studied at several private art schools, including those of Konstantin Yuon and Ilya Mashkov. In 1912 she traveled to Paris, where she attended the Académie de la Grande Chaumière and took lessons from Emile-Antoine Bourdelle, then continued on to Italy to explore the art and sculptures of the Renaissance period.
In 1915 and 1916, she served as assistant to Aleksandra Ekster at Alexander Tairov's Chamber Theater in Moscow. In 1918 she married Alexei Zamkov, a military surgeon.
In the 1920s Mukhina rose to become one of the Soviet Union's most prominent sculptors, and although she continued to produce cubist sculpture as late as 1922, she became a leading figure of Socialist realism, both in style and ideology. She taught at the state school, Vkhutemas, in 1926-1927, and came to international attention with the 1937 Worker and Kolkhoz Woman. Her studio's work on official monuments and architectural sculpture on state commissions continued through her death. She also experimented with glass, producing glass figural busts. According to legend, the classic Soviet faceted table-glass was designed by Mukhina.
wn.com/Vera_Mukhina -
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (Russian: Влади́мир Влади́мирович Пу́тин; IPA: [vɫɐˈdʲimʲɪr vɫɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ ˈputʲɪn] ( listen); born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician who has been the President of Russia since 7 May 2012. Putin previously served as President from 2000 to 2008 and as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000, and again from 2008 to 2012. Putin also serves as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when president Boris Yeltsin resigned in a surprising move. Putin won the 2000 presidential election; in 2004 he was re-elected for a second term lasting until 7 May 2008.
Because of constitutionally mandated term limits, Putin was ineligible to run for a third consecutive presidential term. After his successor Dmitry Medvedev won the 2008 presidential election, Putin was nominated by Medvedev to be Russia's Prime Minister; Putin took office on 8 May 2008 and a period of so-called "tandemocracy" followed. In September 2011, Putin and Medvedev agreed he should seek a third, non-consecutive term in the 2012 presidential election, which he won in the first round on 4 March 2012.
wn.com/Vladimir_Putin -
Vladimir Tkachenko
Vladimir Pyotrovich Tkachenko (Russian: Владимир Петрович Ткаченко; born September 20, 1957 in Golovinka, USSR) is a retired Ukrainian professional basketball player. Tkachenko won two Olympics Basketball medals and three FIBA World Championship medals with the Soviet Union national basketball team in a career that lasted 16 years. He was named both the Euroscar and the Mr. Europa European Player of the Year in 1979.
Tkachenko, a 7 ft 3 1⁄2 in (2.22 m), 245 lb (111 kg) center was a great defensive player. He could block out 2-3 opponents to give teammates a chance to grab a rebound. His offensive ability was however important too; as his post up moves were basic but effective and his shooting was good for a player of his size, with a range of approximately 17 feet.
Tkachenko began playing for Stroitel Kiev in the 1973-74 season, when he was 16 years old. He continued to play for them through the 1980-81 season. In 1983, he began playing for CSKA Moscow and he stayed there until his retirement after the 1988-89 season.
wn.com/Vladimir_Tkachenko -
Yevgeny Kafelnikov
Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Kafelnikov (Russian: Евгений Александрович Кафельников; IPA: [jɪvˈɡʲenʲɪj ɐlʲɪˈksandrəvʲɪtɕ ˈkafʲɪlʲnʲɪkəf]; born 18 February 1974) is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Russia. He won two Grand Slam singles titles, which were the 1996 French Open and the 1999 Australian Open. He also won four Grand Slam doubles titles, and the men's singles gold medal at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000. He also helped Russia win the Davis Cup in 2002. He is the last man to have won both the singles and men's doubles titles at the same Grand Slam tournament, which he did at the 1996 French Open.
Since retiring, Kafelnikov cashed three times at the 2005 World Series of Poker. He also played golf on the European PGA tour at the 2005 and 2008 Russian Open. He stated that he was there not to make up the numbers, before finishing last by 20 odd shots in 2005 (and second to last in 2008).
He now works as a commentator for Russian TV covering tennis. During the 2008 Miami Masters, Kafelnikov coached Marat Safin in the absence of Hernán Gumy.
wn.com/Yevgeny_Kafelnikov -
Zygii
The Zygii (also known as Ζυγοί, Zygoi, Zygi or Zygians) has been described by the ancient Greek intellectual Strabo as a nation to the north of Colchis.
He wrote:
And on the sea lies the Asiatic side of the Bosporus, or the Syndic territory. After this latter, one comes to the Achaei and the Zygii and the Heniochi, and also the Cercetae and the Macropogones. And above these are situated the narrow passes of the Phtheirophagi (Phthirophagi); and after the Heniochi the Colchian country, which lies at the foot of the Caucasian, or Moschian, Mountains. (Strabo, Geographica 11.2)
William Smith observes that "they were partly nomad shepherds, partly brigands and pirates, for which latter vocation they had ships specially adapted". They inhabited the region known as Zyx, which is on the northern slopes of the Caucasus east of Elbrus. To the east were the Avars, and to the west were the Circassians. To the north was Sarmatian territory, and to the south lay the part of Colchis inhabited by the Svans (Soanes of Strabo and Pliny the Elder).
wn.com/Zygii
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Sochi 2014: Run up to the Olympics (RT Documentary)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 26:10
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
In 2007, the Russian seaside city of Sochi was chosen to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. In two years, tourists from across the globe will flock to the Black Sea for the start of the Games. Although much has already been accomplished, Sochi still has a lot of work left to ready itself for Olympic athletes and guests. RT's James Brown heads to southern Russia to explore both the Olympic sites and the city itself. Watch more on RT's documentary channel rtd.rt.com RT LIVE http Subscribe to RT! www.youtube.com Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com Follow us on Twitter twitter.com Follow us on Google+ plus.google.com RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 500 million YouTube views benchmark.
http://wn.com/Sochi_2014_Run_up_to_the_Olympics_RT_Documentary
Sochi 2014 Games Lessons: Legacy
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 13:14
- Updated: 14 Nov 2012
http://wn.com/Sochi_2014_Games_Lessons_Legacy
Sochi 2014: Mountain Life (RT Documentary)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 26:13
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
As the city of Sochi prepares to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games, RT ventures off into the mountains in search of the region's natural atmosphere. Join James Brown as he discovers the wonders of this rugged terrain: Bee husbandry, tea harvesting and even a British bath house! Watch more on RT's documentary channel rtd.rt.com RT LIVE http Subscribe to RT! www.youtube.com Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com Follow us on Twitter twitter.com Follow us on Google+ plus.google.com RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 500 million YouTube views benchmark.
http://wn.com/Sochi_2014_Mountain_Life_RT_Documentary
Discover Sochi Russia
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 12:35
- Updated: 18 Oct 2012
Video brought to you byTravelindex.com and the Travel & Tourism Foundation. Travelindex.com is the World's largest Travel Directory. The International Olympic Committee has chosen Sochi to be the host city of the 2014 Winter Games; the first time Russia has hosted the Winter Games. With a population 329481, Sochi is one of the smallest cities to ever host the Winter Games. Sochi is 930 miles south of Moscow in Krasnodarsky Krai, just north of the Russia's southern border. It stretches along the shore of the Black Sea against the backdrop of the snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus Mountains, where Mount Elbrus, the highest mountain in Europe, stands 18500 feet high. France's Mont Blanc is a mere 15700 feet. We invite you to submit your tourism, travel or destination site for publication, its free, at http - Publish and distribute your Travel News and Press Releases at www.TravelCommunication.Net More travel and tourism information and travel videos at www.RussiaTravelGuide.net http www.BestDestination.com http and more...
http://wn.com/Discover_Sochi_Russia
Sochi (Russia)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:14
- Updated: 18 Nov 2012
Photos of Sochi and the black sea coast I taken on my two birthday trip my Fiance surprised me with. Photos and music by me. Sorry I did poorly on photos and edited them bad.
http://wn.com/Sochi_Russia
SOCHI.PARK DIGITAL TOUR
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:45
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
During the London 2012 Olympics, Sochi.Park showcases preparations for the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. Sochi Park is one of two venues at the overall site called Russia.Sochi.Park and its visually staggering displays encompass Russian culture, traditions, sport and innovation, all as part of the "Journey to Sochi" concept in which a number of themed zones are presented. As they enter Sochi.Park, guests initially are shown a striking film about Russia and its people in the "Visit Russia" area, featuring several well-known Sochi 2014 ambassadors. Visitors then move to the "Krasnodar Region" area and learn about the specific cultures and traditions of the region. Here, they can play interactive games, including a simulation of being a "Formula 1" driver, and have their picture taken under a giant sunflower, the unofficial symbol of Kuban. Visitors then move to an area dedicated to international and national Olympic partners. Here they have the opportunity to travel on a simulated train ride, glimpsing well-known Russian landscapes through the "windows". There is also be an interactive stand representing the Gorki Gorod resort, host of the Media village in 2014. Guests also is able to enjoy a 3D "flight" along a bobsleigh track and even try their hand at curling.
http://wn.com/SOCHIPARK_DIGITAL_TOUR
Sochi Presentation Ceremony - Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:27
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
See what Sochi has in store, with a presentation of the next Winter Games host, during the closing ceremony at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games. www.olympic.org www.olympic.org
http://wn.com/Sochi_Presentation_Ceremony_Vancouver_2010_Winter_Olympic_Games
Russian Federation, Sochi Adler Black Sea Beach Tour, in HD
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:39
- Updated: 25 Oct 2012
Russian Federation, Sochi Adler Beach Tour and Aeroflot 767-300ER Wingview Takeoff and Landing with Safety (Video) Information.
http://wn.com/Russian_Federation,_Sochi_Adler_Black_Sea_Beach_Tour,_in_HD
World's longest sliding track - in Sochi
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:54
- Updated: 09 Oct 2012
Meanwhile athletes have given the thumbs up to latest venue completed for the Sochi Winter Olympics. The Sanki Centre boasts the longest track in the world for bobsleigh, luge and skeleton. RT's Konstantin Potapov has more.
http://wn.com/World's_longest_sliding_track_in_Sochi
RUSLAN NIGMATULLIN TV @ Episode 16 SOCHI
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:12
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
Booking : +7-919-999-96-04 email: Alla@concertgala.ru Official site RuslanNigmatullin.ru PromoDj promodj.com Facebook www.facebook.com Twitter twitter.com Instagram instagram.com Vkontakte vk.com Odnoklassniki www.odnoklassniki.ru Soundcloud soundcloud.com
http://wn.com/RUSLAN_NIGMATULLIN_TV_@_Episode_16_SOCHI
Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, Russia - Venue Preview - Unravel Travel TV
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 12:35
- Updated: 18 Nov 2012
Sochi 2014 staged in Russia will be the most compact Winter Games in the history of the Olympic Movement. It will be possible to get from one venue to another in just a matter of minutes and all Olympic and Paralympic competition will take place in the same venues. It is for this reason that all athletic facilities for the Sochi 2014 Games are being built with the needs of disabled people in mind. Eleven athletic venues will be built for the Sochi 2014 Games, which will be divided into two clusters - mountain and coastal. The clusters will be located within 48km of each other, which is less than a 30 minute ride along a new railway. Each cluster will contain an Olympic Village. The travel time from the Olympic Village to a competition venue in the coastal cluster will be no more than five minutes. Additionally, travel time from the Olympic Village to a competition venue in the mountain cluster is less than 15 minutes. The central focus of the coastal cluster will be the Olympic Park. It will connect up all competition venues, the parking zone and the infrastructure elements. For the first time in the history of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, all ice arenas will be within walking distance of one other. The Olympic Park will be able to accommodate about 70000 visitors when full. The Mountain Cluster will include Biathlon and Ski Complexes, a Bobsleigh Track, a Ski Center, a Ski Jump Complex, as well as a Snowboard Park and Freestyle Center. 5500 Olympic athletes, 1350 ...
http://wn.com/Sochi_2014_Winter_Olympics,_Russia_Venue_Preview_Unravel_Travel_TV
[HQ] Russia, Black Sea - Holiday Resort Sochi / Sotschi | Сочи
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 8:38
- Updated: 13 Nov 2012
Sochi is a Russian resort city, situated in Krasnodar Krai just north of the southern Russian border. It sprawls along the shores of the Black Sea and against the background of the snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus Mountains. At 145 km (90 mi), Greater Sochi claims to be the longest city in Europe.[3] As of the 2002 Census, it had a population of 328809,[1] down from 336514 recorded in the 1989 Census. In 2006, the population was estimated to be 395012.[4] The city has been selected to be the host of the XXII Olympic Winter Games in 2014.[5] Layout and landmarks Sochi is almost unique among larger Russian cities as having some aspects of a subtropical resort. Apart from the scenic Caucasus Mountains, pebbly and sand beaches, the city attracts vacation-goers with its subtropical vegetation, numerous parks, monuments, and extravagant Stalinist architecture. About two million people visit Greater Sochi each summer,[13] when the city is home to the annual film festival "Kinotavr" and a getaway for Russia's elite. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the 2957 square kilometres (731000 acres) Caucasian Biosphere Reserve, lies just north from the city.[14] Sochi also has Europe's most northerly tea plantations. It is served by the Adler-Sochi International Airport. The Sochi Light Metro is under construction, projected to be complete by 2014. Sotschi Sotschi ist das beliebteste Reiseziel der Russen. An die russische Riviera fährt jeder, der es sich leisten kann. Neben dem milden Klima ...
http://wn.com/_HQ_Russia,_Black_Sea_Holiday_Resort_Sochi_Sotschi_|_Сочи
See you in Sochi!
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 1:42
- Updated: 24 Oct 2012
http://wn.com/See_you_in_Sochi!
Olympics Pre Tests at Sochi Russia
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:10
- Updated: 17 Oct 2012
Video brought to you byTravelindex.com and the Travel & Tourism Foundation. Travelindex.com is the World's largest Travel Directory. The International Olympic Committee has chosen Sochi to be the host city of the 2014 Winter Games; the first time Russia has hosted the Winter Games. With a population 329481, Sochi is one of the smallest cities to ever host the Winter Games. Sochi is 930 miles south of Moscow in Krasnodarsky Krai, just north of the Russia's southern border. It stretches along the shore of the Black Sea against the backdrop of the snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus Mountains, where Mount Elbrus, the highest mountain in Europe, stands 18500 feet high. France's Mont Blanc is a mere 15700 feet. We invite you to submit your tourism, travel or destination site for publication, its free, at http - Publish and distribute your Travel News and Press Releases at www.TravelCommunication.Net More travel and tourism information and travel videos at www.RussiaTravelGuide.net http www.BestDestination.com http and more...
http://wn.com/Olympics_Pre_Tests_at_Sochi_Russia
Russian Railways at Russia Investment Roadshow Sochi
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:08
- Updated: 30 Oct 2012
As you all know, Russian Railways is the general partner of the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. During the Russian Investment Roadshow in Dubai we presented our key Olympic project -- construction of 48 km-long combined road and rail route connecting Adler, the Olympic Park and Krasnaya Polyana. The new high-speed line will pass through mountains and tunnels and along bridges and overpasses, providing quick and comfortable travel between the Olympic sites.
http://wn.com/Russian_Railways_at_Russia_Investment_Roadshow_Sochi
Piste Twist: Olympic downhill test-run as Sochi hosts World Cup
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:14
- Updated: 24 Oct 2012
As Russia's city of Sochi gears up for the winter Olympics, some of the biggest stars of winter sports have gathered at the resort to test out the slopes. The resort is hosting a leg of the Alpine Skiing World Cup. Preparing pistes for the race was a challenge due to sudden heavy fog and blizzard. But organizers got everything ready in time, and the weather too eventually favored the event, RT's Denis Bolotsky reports. RT on Twitter twitter.com RT on Facebook www.facebook.com
http://wn.com/Piste_Twist_Olympic_downhill_test-run_as_Sochi_hosts_World_Cup
Jean-Claude Killy: Sochi Olympics will be unique
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:30
- Updated: 22 Oct 2012
Now, with 16 months to go until the Sochi Winter Olympics IOC supremo, Jean-Claude Killy Believes these will be a Games to remember As the triple Olympic skiing champion told RT
http://wn.com/Jean-Claude_Killy_Sochi_Olympics_will_be_unique
No Sochi: Day 3 London Olympics - Russia House
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 11:12
- Updated: 10 Oct 2012
Circassian Genocide, Sochi Protest Members of the No Sochi 2014 Committee traveled to the opening ceremonies of the London Olympics. This is an account of their third day. For more information about Sochi, the Circassian Land of Genocide, please visit: nosochi2014.com
http://wn.com/No_Sochi_Day_3_London_Olympics_Russia_House
Amateur Videos: Huge waterspout filmed on Sochi shoreline
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 1:35
- Updated: 10 Nov 2012
Witnesses were able to film a huge waterspout moving along the shoreline near the Russian coastal city of Sochi. It closely passed vessels at sea before hitting the city with heavy rain and hail. There are no reports of damages. Subscribe to RT! www.youtube.com Watch RT LIVE on our website rt.com Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com Follow us on Twitter twitter.com Follow us on Google+ plus.google.com RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 500 million YouTube views benchmark.
http://wn.com/Amateur_Videos_Huge_waterspout_filmed_on_Sochi_shoreline
Ticket touts to face huge fines at Sochi Olympics
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:06
- Updated: 25 Oct 2012
http://wn.com/Ticket_touts_to_face_huge_fines_at_Sochi_Olympics
Sochi, Russia - Home of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:43
- Updated: 25 Oct 2012
1. Various: aerial views of Sochi mountains. 00:00-01:06 2. Various: aerial views of mountain cluster venues. 01:06-01:10 3. Various: aerial views of Olympic village in mountain cluster. 01:10-01:27 4. Various: aerial views of roads, bridges. 01:27-01:48 5. Various: aerial views of Sochi Olympics site. 01:48-01:52 6. Various: aerial views of springboard. 01:52-01:58 7. Various: aerial views of Biathlon Center. 01:58-02:13 8. Various: aerial views of Biathlon Center. 02:13-02:20 9. Various: aerial views of Roza Khutor. 02:20-02:32 10. Various: aerial views of "Sanki" Sliding Center. 02:32-02:41 11. Various: aerial views of springboard. 02:41-02:51 12. Various: aerial views of train station at Krasnaya Polyana. 02:51-03:10 13. Various: aerial views of Sochi Olympics site, coastal cluster. 03:10-03:26 14. Various: aerial views of "Fisht" Olympic Stadium. 03:26-03:51 15. Various: aerial views of coast. 03:51-03:54 16. Various: views of construction worker in crane. 03:54-04:01 17. Various: aerial views from crane of "Fisht" Olympic Stadium. 04:01-04:14 18. Various: views of construction workers building "Fisht" Olympic Stadium. 04:14-04:25 19. Various: aerial views of Sochi Olympics site, coastal cluster. 04:25-04:41 20. Various: aerial views of "Bolshoi" Ice Dome. 04:41-04:52 21. Various: views of "Bolshoi" Ice Dome. 04:52-05:01 22. Various: aerial views of Sochi Olympics site, Coastal Cluster, "Iceberg" Skating Palace. 01-05:11 23. Various: views of "Iceberg" Skating Palace ...
http://wn.com/Sochi,_Russia_Home_of_the_2014_Winter_Olympic_Games
Abkhazia and Sochi district are Georgia
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:40
- Updated: 29 Oct 2012
Sochi is georgian town because "i " suffix is widely used in Georgian language and nearly all Georgian cities end with it. EG Tbilisi, Qutaisi, Rustavi etc.. Question - What suffix does Sochi has? Sochi in Georgian language means FIR-TREE. The Sanigs,The Heniochi, The Apsilae where georgian ancient tribes. The Apsilae camed into contact with abaza tribe, and formed apsuas. In 1897 the majority of Sochi district where georgians, and in the town itself they formed 95 % of the population (see this video about this issue): www.youtube.com (Ethnic makeup of Abkhazia georgians where a majority in 1897 in Abkhazia and Sochi) and here are some more informations on Abkhazia and its history www.docstoc.com Also here are some other recomanded videos: www.youtube.com www.youtube.com The circassian population called UBIKH wich also lived there is no more, because of the russian opression.
http://wn.com/Abkhazia_and_Sochi_district_are_Georgia
Sochi 2014 on track!
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:12
- Updated: 20 Oct 2012
Sochi 2014 reports progress towards Winter Games preparations
http://wn.com/Sochi_2014_on_track!
Photo: AP / Hatem Moussa
18 Nov 2012
Israeli air strikes killed 16 Palestinians in Gaza on Saturday, prompting the Arab League to announce a visit to the battered enclave and a review of its Middle East peace policy. Egypt’s President...
Photo: AP / Hatem Moussa
19 Nov 2012
Gaza/Jerusalem - Israel bombed dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip on Monday and said that while it was prepared to step up its offensive by sending in troops, it preferred a diplomatic solution that...
Photo: UN / UN
17 Nov 2012
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel's new offensive against the Gaza Strip has turned into a political bonanza for the territory's Hamas rulers, while sidelining Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas,...
Photo: EC / EC
19 Nov 2012
BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The shadow banking system - blamed for aggravating the financial crisis - grew to a new high of $67 trillion globally last year, a top regulatory group said, calling...
Photo: WN / Ahmed Deeb
18 Nov 2012
Article by WN.com Correspondent Dallas Darling Israel's ongoing uprooting of hundreds of Palestinian olive trees in the West Bank, including possibly sabotaging Palestine's recent bid for state...
Justin Bieber Violated by Jenny McCarthy, Lives
20 Nov 2012
Yahoo Daily News
Last night saw the celebration of the annual American Music Awards, an ancient tradition of song and dance during which many wacky and wild things are prone to happen. One such wild and maybe not all that wacky depending on how you look at it thing that happened was that Justin Bieber, teenage...(size: 26.9Kb)
New York Magazine
The NHL lockout has been in effect for more than two months now, and so, with no actual games to report on, we're going to link to a different hockey video every day until a new CBA is reached. Today: reliving the Vancouver Games. As of right now, the NHL has still not decided whether it will break...(size: 2.8Kb)
Sky Sports
Rio de Janeiro are struggling to be ready to host the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics with building work behind schedule, Sky Sports reports. Sky reporter Orla Chennaoui is in Brazil for the official debrief of the 2012 Games where London Olympic organisers, led by Sebastian Coe, are among around...(size: 2.5Kb)
State boosts RZD's capital
19 Nov 2012
Mura wins Trophee Bompard
19 Nov 2012
Japan Times
PARIS — Takahito Mura defeated overnight leader Jeremy Abbott of the United States to win gold at the Trophee Bompard on Saturday, while Yuko Kawaguchi and Alexander Smirnov of Russia captured the pairs title. Ashley Wagner of the United States had a strong free program to win the women's...(size: 3.6Kb)
Wagner Books Sochi Spot With Paris Win
18 Nov 2012
Novosti
MOSCOW, November 18 (R-Sport) - American skater Ashley Wagner continued her breakout season with a second Grand Prix gold in Paris that ensures she will compete at the finals in Sochi. The California-based skater’s best Grand Prix finish before this season had been second...(size: 1.8Kb)
LOCOG pledges support to Rio 2016
18 Nov 2012
Newstrack India
Tweet Rio de Janeiro, Nov 18 (IANS) London Olympic organising committee (LOCOG) chairman Sebastian Coe has pledged to offer Rio officials support in the lead up to the 2016 Games. Speaking during the 2012 Olympic debriefing in Rio Saturday, Coe dispelled fears of a rift with Brazilian officials...(size: 2.2Kb)
The Salt Lake Tribune
Park City • It might have been the preview of an epic gold-medal bobsled showdown at the 2014 Sochi Olympics in Russia, the American defending champion against the longtime Russian rival hoping to finally win on home soil in probably his last major race before retirement. Steven Holcomb just hopes...(size: 7.8Kb)
Rio hopes to learn from London's 'brilliant job'
18 Nov 2012
Jakarta Post
The official debriefing of the 2012 Olympics has started with Rio organizers saying they hope to follow in the footsteps of the London team in organizing successful games. Rio officials will have five days to learn from the London team in the IOC event that began Saturday and will run through...(size: 2.9Kb)
The Salt Lake Tribune
Park City • It might have been the preview of an epic gold-medal bobsled showdown at the 2014 Sochi Olympics in Russia, the American defending champion against the longtime Russian rival hoping to finally win on home soil in probably his last major race before retirement. Steven Holcomb just hopes...(size: 6.6Kb)
NZ Herald
The official debriefing of the 2012 Olympics has started with Rio organisers saying they hope to follow in the footsteps of the London...(size: 0.9Kb)
Other Sports
18 Nov 2012
Seattle Times
Gymnastics President Obama impresses Maroney Even McKayla Maroney was impressed. A photo of the Olympic gold medalist and President Barack Obama doing her now-famous "McKayla Maroney is not impressed" face went viral Saturday after the White House posted it on Twitter. The two took the picture...(size: 3.6Kb)
CBC
Alexander Zubkov put together two solid runs Saturday to win the World Cup four-man bobsled event, depriving Park City native Steven Holcomb of a gold-medal sweep on his home course. "It's hard to be upset when you're losing to Zubkov," Holcomb said about the four-time Olympian who's gunning for...(size: 4.3Kb)
| Sochi (English) Сочи (Russian) |
|
|---|---|
| - City[citation needed] - | |
 View of Sochi |
|
.svg) Location of Krasnodar Krai in Russia |
|
 Sochi
|
|
| Coordinates: 43°35′07″N 39°43′13″E / 43.58528°N 39.72028°E / 43.58528; 39.72028Coordinates: 43°35′07″N 39°43′13″E / 43.58528°N 39.72028°E / 43.58528; 39.72028 | |
.png) |
.png){kind=small} |
|
|
|
| Administrative status (as of December 2001) | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Krasnodar Krai |
| Administratively subordinated to | City of Sochi[1] |
| Administrative center of | City of Sochi[1] |
| Municipal status (as of June 2009) | |
| Urban okrug | Sochi Urban Okrug[2] |
| Administrative center of | Sochi Urban Okrug[2] |
| Head[citation needed] | Anatoly Pakhomov (acting)[citation needed] |
| Representative body | City Assembly[citation needed] |
| Statistics | |
| Area | 3,505 km2 (1,353 sq mi)[3][4] |
| Population (2010 Census, preliminary) |
343,285 inhabitants[5] |
| - Rank in 2010 | 52nd |
| Population (2002 Census) | 328,809 inhabitants[6] |
| - Rank in 2002 | 55th |
| Density | 98 /km2 (250 /sq mi)[7] |
| Time zone | MSK (UTC+04:00)[8] |
| Founded | 1838[3][4] |
| Previous names | Chatsha (until 1864),[3] Dakhovsky (until 1896)[3] |
| Postal code(s) | 354000-354999[citation needed] |
| Dialing code(s) | +7 8622[citation needed] |
| Official website | |
| Sochi on WikiCommons | |
Sochi (Russian: Сочи; IPA: [ˈsotɕɪ]) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia,[notes 1] on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for 145 kilometers (90 mi) along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a permanent population of 343,285;[5] up from 328,809 recorded in the 2002 Census,[6] making it Russia's largest resort city.
Sochi will host the XXII Olympic Winter Games and XI Paralympic Winter Games in 2014, as well as the Russian Formula 1 Grand Prix from 2014 until at least 2020.[9][10] It is also one of the host cities for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Sochi has a humid subtropical climate[11][12] with mild winters (average +11 °C (52 °F) during the day and +4 °C (39 °F) at night in the period from December to March) and comfortable summers (average +24 °C (75 °F) during the day and +16 °C (61 °F) at night period from May to October).
Geography[link]
At 145 kilometers (90 mi), Greater Sochi claims to be the longest city in Europe.[13] Other sources using the Caucasus Mountains as the Europe-Asia divide place Sochi in Southwest Asia as it falls on the southern (Asian) side of the Greater Caucasus.[14][15]
History[link]
Main article: History of Sochi
The Zygii people lived in the area in antiquity. From the 6th to the 11th centuries, the area successively belonged to the kingdoms of Lazica and Abkhazia who built a dozen churches within the city boundaries. From the 11th to the middle of the 15th century it was a part of the Georgian Kingdom. The Christian settlements along the coast were destroyed by the invading Gokturks, Khazars, and other nomadic empires whose control of the region was slight. The northern wall of an 11th-century Byzantinesque basilica still stands in the Loo Microdistrict.[citation needed]
In the 14th–17th centuries, the region was dominated by the Abkhaz, Ubykh and Adyghe tribes, the current location of the city of Sochi known as Ubykhia was part of historical Circassia, and was controlled by the native people of the local mountaineer clans of the north-west Caucasus, nominally under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire, which was their principal trading partner in the Muslim world. The coastline was ceded to Russia in 1829 as a result of a Caucasian War and Russo-Turkish War, 1828–1829; however, the Circassians did not admit the Russian control over Circassia and kept resisting the newly established Russian outposts along the Circassians coast (Adyghe: Адыгэ хы аушу ); .[3][16] Provision of weapons and ammunition from abroad to the Circassians caused a diplomatic conflict between the Russian Empire and the United Kingdom that occurred in 1836 and was named the Mission of Vixen.[17]
The Russians had no detailed knowledge of the area until Baron Feodor Tornau investigated the coastal route from Gelendzhik to Gagra, and across the mountains to Kabarda, in the 1830s.[citation needed] In 1838, the fort of Alexandria, renamed Navaginsky a year later, was founded at the mouth of the Sochi River as part of the Black Sea coastal line, a chain of seventeen fortifications set up to protect the area from recurring Circassian resistance. At the outbreak of the Crimean War, the garrison was evacuated from Navaginsky in order to prevent its capture by the Turks, who effected a landing on Cape Adler soon after.
The last battle of the Caucasian War took place at the Godlikh river on March 18, 1864 O.S., where the ubykhs were defeated by the Dakhovsky regiment of the Russian Army. On March 25, 1864, the Dakhovsky fort was established on the site of the Navaginsky fort. The end of Caucasian War was proclaimed at Kbaade tract (modern Krasnaya Polyana) on June 2 (May 21 O.S.), 1864, by the manifesto of Emperor Alexander II read aloud by Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia.[3]
After the end of Caucasian War (during the period of 1864–1870) almost all Ubykhs and a major part of the Shapsugs, who lived on the territory of modern Sochi, were either killed in the Circassian Genocide or expelled to the Ottoman Empire (see Muhajir). Starting in 1866 the coast was actively colonized by Russians, Armenians, Ukrainians, Belorussians, Greeks, Estonians, Germans, Moldavians, Georgians and other people from inner Russia.[3][16]
In 1874–1891, the first Russian Orthodox church, St. Michael's Church, was constructed, and the Dakhovsky settlement was renamed Dakhovsky Posad on April 13, 1874 (O.S.). In February 1890, the Sochi Lighthouse was constructed. In 1896, the Dakhovsky Posad was renamed Sochi Posad (after the name of local river) and incorporated into the newly formed Black Sea Governorate. In 1900–1910, Sochi burgeoned into a sea resort. The first resort, "Kavkazskaya Riviera", opened on June 14, 1909 (O.S.). Sochi was granted town status in 1917.[3]
During the Russian Civil War, the littoral area saw sporadic armed clashes involving the Red Army, White movement forces, and the Democratic Republic of Georgia. In 1923, Sochi acquired one of its most distinctive features, a railway which runs from Tuapse to Abkhazia within a kilometer or two of the coastline. Although this branch of the Northern Caucasus Railway may appear somewhat incongruous in the setting of beaches and sanatoriums, it is still operational and vital to the region's transportation infrastructure.[3]
Sochi was established as a fashionable resort area under Joseph Stalin, who had his favorite dacha built in the city; Stalin's study, complete with a wax statue of the leader, is now open to the public.[18] During Stalin's reign the coast became dotted with imposing Neoclassical buildings, exemplified by the opulent Rodina and Ordzhonikidze sanatoriums. The centerpiece of this early period is Shchusev's Constructivist Institute of Rheumatology (1927–31). The area was continuously developed until the demise of the Soviet Union.[3]
Following Russia's loss of the traditionally popular resorts of the Crimean peninsula (transferred away from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR in 1954 by Nikita Khrushchev), Sochi emerged as the unofficial summer capital of the country. During Vladimir Putin's term in office, the city witnessed a significant increase in investment, although many Russian holidaymakers still flock to the cheaper resorts of neighbouring Abkhazia, Ukraine, or to the Mediterranean coast of Turkey.[citation needed] Additionally, Sochi has also served as the location for the signing of many treaties, especially those between the Georgian, separatist Abkhazian, and separatist South Ossetian governing authorities.
Administrative and municipal status[link]
Administratively, along with seventy-five rural localities, it is incorporated as the City of Sochi—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.[1] Municipally, the City of Sochi is incorporated as Sochi Urban Okrug.[2]
City divisions[link]
Sochi proper[link]
Further information: Tsentralny City District, Sochi and Category:Tsentralny City District
Tsentralny City District, or Sochi proper, covers an area of 32 square kilometers (12 sq mi) and, as per the preliminary results of the 2010 Census has a population of 137,607.[5] The highlights include:
- Michael Archangel Cathedral, a diminutive church built in 1873–1891 to Kaminsky's designs in order to commemorate the victorious conclusion of the Caucasian War.
- The red-granite Archangel Column, erected in 2006 in memory of the Russian soldiers fallen in Sochi during the Caucasian War. It is capped by a 7-metre bronze statue of Sochi's patron saint, Michael the Archangel.
- Sochi Art Museum occupies a large building with a four-columned portico, completed in 1939. The Neoclassical design is by Ivan Zholtovsky.
- Arboretum, a large botanical garden with tropical trees from many countries and the Mayors Alley—the line of palm-trees planted by the mayors of different cities of the world.
- The Winter Theater (1934–1937) is another rigorously Neoclassical edifice, surrounded by 88 Corinthian columns, with a pediment bearing the statues of Terpsichore, Melpomene and Thalia, all three cast by Vera Mukhina.
- Hall of Organ and Chamber Music. Located centrally in the city of Sochi it conducts organ, symphony, chamber-ensemble, choral, vocal music concerts. All year round local actors of the city art groups, famous Russian and international performers, International Contests Winners and Laureates give concerts here.
- The Maritime Passenger Terminal (1955) is notable for its distinctive 71-meter-high steepled tower and four statues symbolizing the cardinal points.
- The Railway Station (1952) is one of the most remarkable buildings of Sochi.
- The Riviera Park was established by Vasily Alexeyevich Khludov in 1883 in the part of the city which later became known as Khludovskaya. The park is popular with tourists and local residents alike. It has a variety of attractions, including an outcrop of funny statues and a "glade of friendship" where magnolia trees were planted by every Soviet cosmonaut, among other notables.
- The Tree of Friendship is a lemon tree planted by Otto Schmidt in 1934. Multiple cultivars from foreign countries were grafted onto this tree as a token of friendship. The associated museum boasts a collection of 20,000 presents from all over the world.
Lazarevsky City District[link]
Further information: Category:Lazarevsky City District
Lazarevsky City District lies to the northwest from the city center; the preliminary results of the 2010 Census showed the population of 63,914 people.[5] It is the largest city district by area, covering some 1,744 square kilometers (673 sq mi) and comprising several microdistricts:
- Lazarevskoye, 59 km from the downtown core, contains a delphinarium, an old church (1903), and a new church (1999). The settlement was founded as a Russian military outpost in 1839 and was named after Admiral Mikhail Lazarev.
- Loo, 18 km from the city center, was once owned by Princes Loov, a noble Abkhazian family claiming patrilineal descent from King Anos, whose royal title was sanctioned by Emperor Heraclius in 623 AD. The district contains the ruins of a medieval church, founded in the 8th century, rebuilt in the 11th century, and converted into a fortress in the Late Middle Ages.
- Dagomys, 18 km from the city center, has been noted for its botanical garden, established by order of Nicholas II, as well as tea plantations and factories. A sprawling hotel complex was opened there in 1982. Dagomys adjoins Bocharov Ruchey, a dacha built for Kliment Voroshilov in the 1950s, but later upgraded into a country residence of the President of Russia, where he normally spends his vacations and often confers with leaders of other states.[19]
- Golovinka is a historic location at the mouth of the Shakhe River. Formerly marking the border between the Ubykhs and the Shapsugs, the settlement was noted by Italian travelers of the 17th century as Abbasa. On 3 May 1838, it was the site of the Subashi landing of the Russians, who proceeded to construct Fort Golovinsky where many convicted Decembrists used to serve. The fort was intentionally destroyed by Russian forces at the beginning of the Crimean War, so as to avoid its capture by the enemy.
- Fort Godlik, of which little remains, had a turbulent history. It was built at the mouth of the Godlik River in the Byzantine period (5th to 8th centuries), was destroyed by the Khazars and revived by the Genoese in the High Middle Ages.
Khostinsky City District[link]
Further information: Khostinsky City District, Sochi and Category:Khostinsky City District
Khostinsky City District, sprawling to the southeast from the city center, occupies approximately 374 square kilometers (144 sq mi), with a population of 64,245 (2010 Census preliminary results).[5] The district is traversed by many rivulets which give their names to the microdistricts of Matsesta ("flame-coloured river"), Kudepsta, and Khosta ("the river of boars"):
- Matsesta has been a spa since 1902. A 1,316-metre long tunnel, constructed between 1996 and 2000, connects it to Khosta and Sochi proper. The area does not retain many marks of antiquity, although the eponymous river was noted as Masaitica as early as 137 AD, in a letter from Arrian to Emperor Hadrian.
- Kudepsta is another seashore resort, notable for the Vorontsov Caves, stretching for some four kilometers away from the shore. There are fourteen entrances to the caves. The largest hall has a length of twenty meters.
- Khosta is an old village, attested in medieval documents as Casto and Khamysh. It contains the ruins of a medieval church, going back to the 14th century, and the comparatively modern Transfiguration Church, consecrated in 1914. Khosta has an array of tourist attractions:
- Khosta Fortress, or rather the ruins thereof, perched on the top of a 100-meter high cliff within six kilometers from the sea coast.
- The fortress stands on the grounds of an ancient grove of yews and boxwood, which may be up to 30 mya old. The largest yews attain a height of 50 meters; some are estimated to be 2,000 years old. The grove covers an area of 301 ha and has been affiliated with the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve since 1931.
- The Akhun massif comprises Greater Akhun Mtn. (663 m), Lesser Akhun Mtn. (501 m), and Eagle Bluff (380 m). Greater Akhun is crowned by a Neo-Romanesque limestone tower (1936) that offers glimpses of Pitsunda and Gagra across the border in Abkhazia. There is also a chain of twenty karst caves in the massif.
- The Sochi Arboretum, which goes back to 1889, possesses the most comprehensive collection of subtropical flora in Russia, including 76 species of pine, 80 species of oak, and 24 species of palm.
- The Summer Theatre is a rather ordinary Neoclassical structure, erected in 1937 and extensively renovated in 2001.
Adlersky City District[link]
Further information: Adlersky City District and Category:Adlersky City District
Adlersky City District, with an area of 1,352 square kilometers (522 sq mi) and a population of 76,519 people (2010 Census preliminary results),[5] is the southernmost district of the city, located just north of the border with Abkhazia. Until the establishment of Greater Sochi in 1961, it was administered as a separate town, which had its origin in an ancient Sadz village and a medieval Genoese trading post.
Among the natural wonders of the district is the Akhshtyr Gorge with a 160-meter-long cave that contains traces of human habitation from about 30,000 years ago. The upland part of the district includes a network of remote mountain villages (auls), the Estonian colony at Estosadok, and the ski resort of Krasnaya Polyana which will host the events (Alpine and Nordic) of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Also located here are the largest trout fishery in Russia (founded in 1964) and a breeding nursery for great apes.
Demographics[link]
| Year | Total population | Urban population |
|---|---|---|
| 1887 | 98 | no data |
| 1891 | 460 | no data |
| 1897 | 1,352 | no data |
| 1904 | 8,163 | no data |
| 1916 | 13,254 | no data |
| 1926 | 13,000 | no data |
| 1939 | 72,597 | 49,813 |
| 1959 | 127,000 | 81,912 |
| 1970 | 245,300 | 203,100 |
| 1979 | 292,300 | 245,600 |
| 1989[20] | 385,851 | 339,814 |
| 1992 | 369,900 | 322,400 |
| 1994 | 378,300 | no data |
| 1997 | 388,200 | no data |
| 2002[6] | 397,103 | 332,778 |
| 2006 | 395,012 | 329,481 |
| 2007 | 402,043 | 331,059 |
| 2008 | 406,800 | 334,282 |
| 2009 | 410,987 | 337,947 |
| 2010[5] | 420,526 | 347,884 |
| Source, unless otherwise marked:[21][22] | ||
Religion[link]
Before 1864 Sochi was a Muslim town dominated by the native people of the local mountaineer of Ubykhia clans and the north of Sochi was dominated by the Shapsugs who are a part of the Adyghe nation. Currently, Sochi is a predominantly Christian city, though there are thought to be around 20,000 Muslims living there (the majority are from Adyghe) plus other eastern caucasians, Turks, Tatars, and other smaller Muslim groups.
Despite this fact, there is no mosque in the city of Sochi, the nearest being around 60 km (37 miles) away in the north from the city center[23][24] in the Adyghe village of T'hagapsh (Adyghe: Тхьагъапшъ Къоджэ, Tkhag’apsh’ K’odzhe; Russian: Тхагапш, Tkhagapsh). In 2009, President Medvedev promised that a permanent mosque would be built in the city but so far permission has not been given.[24]
Climate[link]
Sochi has a humid subtropical climate (Koppen climate classification Cfa)[11]—, at the lower elevations. Its average annual temperature is +14 °C (57 °F): +18.4 °C (65.12 °F) during the day and +10.9 °C (51.62 °F) at night. In the coldest month—January—the average temperature is about +10 °C (50 °F) during the day, the average sea temperature is about +9 °C (48 °F). In the warmest months—July and August—the temperature typically ranges from +25 to +29 °C (77 to 84 °F) during the day, about +20 °C (68 °F) at night and the average sea temperature is about +23–+24 °C (73–75 °F). Yearly sunshine hours are about 2,200. Generally, the summer season lasts six months (from May to October). December, January, February and March are the coldest months, with average temperature (of these four months) +10.6 °C (51.08 °F) during the day and +4.1 °C (39.38 °F) at night. Average annual precipitation is about 1,700 millimeters (67 in).[4][12][25] Sochi lies at 8b/9a hardiness zone, so the city supports different types of palm trees. Sochi is situated on the same latitude as Nice but strong cold winds from Asia makes winter less warm. In fact, temperatures drop below freezing every winter for one or two days.
| Climate data for Sochi | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 21.2 (70.2) |
23.8 (74.8) |
30.0 (86.0) |
31.6 (88.9) |
34.3 (93.7) |
35.2 (95.4) |
39.4 (102.9) |
36.3 (97.3) |
36.0 (96.8) |
32.1 (89.8) |
29.1 (84.4) |
23.1 (73.6) |
39.4 (102.9) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 9.7 (49.5) |
9.9 (49.8) |
12.4 (54.3) |
16.6 (61.9) |
20.5 (68.9) |
24.6 (76.3) |
27.3 (81.1) |
27.8 (82.0) |
24.8 (76.6) |
20.5 (68.9) |
15.3 (59.5) |
11.8 (53.2) |
18.4 (65.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 6.0 (42.8) |
6.0 (42.8) |
8.3 (46.9) |
12.0 (53.6) |
16.0 (60.8) |
20.2 (68.4) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.6 (74.5) |
20.0 (68.0) |
15.8 (60.4) |
10.9 (51.6) |
7.9 (46.2) |
14.2 (57.6) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 3.4 (38.1) |
3.1 (37.6) |
5.1 (41.2) |
8.8 (47.8) |
12.5 (54.5) |
16.6 (61.9) |
19.6 (67.3) |
19.8 (67.6) |
16.2 (61.2) |
12.4 (54.3) |
7.8 (46.0) |
5.2 (41.4) |
10.9 (51.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −13.4 (7.9) |
−12.6 (9.3) |
−6.9 (19.6) |
−5 (23.0) |
3.0 (37.4) |
7.1 (44.8) |
12.6 (54.7) |
10.4 (50.7) |
2.7 (36.9) |
−3.2 (26.2) |
−5.4 (22.3) |
−8.3 (17.1) |
−13.4 (7.9) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 181 (7.13) |
137 (5.39) |
119 (4.69) |
116 (4.57) |
106 (4.17) |
100 (3.94) |
124 (4.88) |
123 (4.84) |
131 (5.16) |
167 (6.57) |
198 (7.8) |
182 (7.17) |
1,684 (66.3) |
| Avg. precipitation days | 12.9 | 10.1 | 11.0 | 10.5 | 8.0 | 6.8 | 6.1 | 5.9 | 7.2 | 8.5 | 11.1 | 14.4 | 112.5 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 96.1 | 110.2 | 145.7 | 162.0 | 220.1 | 258.0 | 279.0 | 282.1 | 225.0 | 189.0 | 120.0 | 86.8 | 2,174 |
| Source: Pogoda.ru.net,[26] Hong Kong Observatory[27] for data of avg. precipitation days & sunshine hours | |||||||||||||
Layout and landmarks[link]
Sochi is almost unique among larger Russian cities as having some aspects of a subtropical resort. Apart from the scenic Caucasus Mountains, pebble and sand beaches, the city attracts vacation-goers with its subtropical vegetation, numerous parks, monuments, and extravagant Stalinist architecture. About two million people visit Greater Sochi each summer,[28] when the city is home to the annual film festival "Kinotavr" and a getaway for Russia's elite.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the 2,957 square kilometers (731,000 acres) Caucasian Biosphere Reserve, lies just north from the city.[29] Sochi also has Europe's most northerly tea plantations. It is served by the Adler-Sochi International Airport. The Sochi Light Metro is under construction, projected to be complete by 2014.
Sports facilities[link]
Sochi is also known for its sport facilities: a local tennis school spawned the careers of such notable players as Grand Slam champions Maria Sharapova and Yevgeny Kafelnikov (Kafelnikov spent much of his childhood here, while Sharapova relocated to Florida at the age of seven). In late 2005, the Russian Football Union announced that it was planning to establish a year-round training center for the country's national teams in Sochi. The city's warm climate was cited as one of the main incentives. And it's home of FC Zhemchuzhina who play in the Russian First Division.
2014 Winter Olympics and Paralympics[link]
Main articles: 2014 Winter Olympics and 2014 Winter Paralympics
In June 2006, the International Olympic Committee announced that Sochi had been selected as a finalist city to host the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2014 Winter Paralympics. On July 4, 2007, Sochi was announced as the host city of the 2014 Winter Games, edging out Pyeongchang, South Korea and Salzburg, Austria.[30]
This will be the Russian Federation's first time to host the Winter Olympic Games, and the first time to host the Paralympic Games. The site of a training centre for aspiring Olympic athletes, as of 2008, the city has no world-class level athletic facilities fit for international competition.[31] To get the city ready for the Olympics, the Russian government has committed to a $12 billion investment package,[32] shared 60-40 between the government and private sector.[33] By some estimates, the investments necessary to bring the location up to Olympic standards may exceed that of any previous Olympic games.[31]
Sochi Olympics 2014: controversies[link]
Environmental impact[link]
"Sadly, the Olympic bid is being used as a way for construction companies simply to get their hands on the most valuable land," Greenpeace Russia's Mikhail Kreindlin said. "The last time the Russian government looked at this issue, which was in January 2007 they made no mention of the Olympic bid. They simply said that the land could be used for social infrastructure, whereas it was patently obvious that it would be snapped up by elite resorts and golf clubs [with] nothing to do with the Olympics."[19] Putin had apparently chided construction firms working round-the-clock to get Sochi up to ready, the St. Petersburg Times reported.[34] "It would be a huge mistake not to take into account what the environmental organizations think", said Putin. "We are going to make sure that builders maintain contact with" environmentalists, who had voiced concerns about the work’s impact on the Sochi National Park, in Western Caucasus.
Greenpeace Russia had told the US-funded Radio Liberty[35] on 12 September 2006 that it wanted to prevent construction work inside a national park, which it said would break Russia's environmental protection laws.
Construction work[link]
The state-controlled RAO UES announced in July 2007 that it might spend 30 billion roubles (about US$1.2 billion) on upgrading the electrical power system in the Sochi area by 2014.[36] The power generating companies Inter RAO UES and RusHydro would have to build or modernize four thermal power plants and four hydroelectric plants—and the federal grid company FGC UES has to replace the Central-Shepsi electricity transmission line, which reportedly often fails in bad weather. The new power line would run partly on power towers and partly across the bottom of the Black Sea. By 2011, the power supply of the resort area would increase by 1129 MW—of which 300 MW would be used for Olympic sports facilities “The cost of the work is estimated at 83.6 billion roubles (about US $3.26 billion), of which 50 billion roubles (about US$2 billion dollars) will go to investments in the electricity grid,” power company announced. They did not say how much of the bill the state would foot. In February 2007, when UES had planned to spend 48.8 billion roubles (about US$1.9 billion) on the Sochi area, the share the state had been ready to pay 38 billion roubles (about US$1.48 billion) of that.
Main article: Sochi Light Metro
The coming of 2014 Olympics also urges the construction of a medium capacity rapid transit system, the Sochi Light Metro. The current alignment would connect the Sochi Olympic Village, Sochi International Airport, two major railway stations of Northern Caucasus Railway, the downtown of Sochi, and the Alpine skiing area Krasnaya Polyana.
Other sports events[link]
The Silk way Rally which is part of Dakkar series took place in Sochi in 2010 for the last stage between the capital of the Republic of Adygea Maykop to the city of Sochi through Pseshwap.[37]
The Bandy World Championships 2014 will be held in the city at the same time as the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has reportedly reached a deal with Bernie Ecclestone for the city to host the Formula One Russian Grand Prix from 2014.[38]
Sochi Olympic Stadium will also be used to host 2018 World Cup matches.
Notable people[link]
- Daria Kondakova, rhythmic gymnast
- Yuri Nikolaevich Denisyuk, physicist
- Andre Geim, physicist, inventor of graphene, and 2010 Nobel Prize winner[39]
- Yevgeny Kafelnikov, tennis player
- Elena Vesnina, tennis player
- Grigory Leps, singer, songwriter, musician
- Slava Metreveli, Soviet association football player
- Boris Nemtsov, politician
- Mordechai Spiegler, Russian-Israeli association football player and manager
- Vladimir Tkachenko, basketball player
- Alexey Voevoda, bobsledder and professional armwrestler
International relations[link]
Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Russia
Sister cities[link]
Sochi has been twinned with the following cities:
|
Gallery[link]
-
Sochi. Hall of Organ and Chamber Music
-
Sochi streets
-
Dendrarium Sochi
-
An Adyghe strike on a Russian Military Fort which built over a Shapsugian village that aim to free the Circassian Coast from the occupiers in 1840 during the Circassians Resistance
-
The "Kavkazskaya Riviera" resort in Sochi, ca. 1909
See also[link]
- Gagra and Pitsunda, adjacent resorts in Abkhazia
- Sochi Police
Notes[link]
- ^ Abkhazia's status is disputed. It considers itself to be an independent state, but this is recognised by only a few other countries. The Georgian government and most of the world's other states consider Abkhazia de jure a part of Georgia's territory. In Georgia's official subdivision it is an autonomous republic, whose government sits in exile in Tbilisi.
References[link]
- ^ a b c Reference Information #20-2969/11-03
- ^ a b c Law #679-KZ
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Exposition of the Historical Museum of Sochi, partly reflected in Russian in История Сочи (History of Sochi) at the official cite of the city
- ^ a b c Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Entry on Sochi (Russian)
- ^ a b c d e f g Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (2011). "Предварительные итоги Всероссийской переписи населения 2010 года (Preliminary results of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года (2010 All-Russia Population Census). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis-2010.ru/results_of_the_census/results-inform.php. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
- ^ a b c Федеральная служба государственной статистики (Federal State Statistics Service) (May 21, 2004). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек (Population of Russia, its federal districts, federal subjects, districts, urban localities, rural localities—administrative centers, and rural localities with population of over 3,000)" (in Russian). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года (All-Russia Population Census of 2002). Federal State Statistics Service. http://www.perepis2002.ru/ct/doc/1_TOM_01_04.xls. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
- ^ The value of density was calculated automatically by dividing the 2010 Census population by the area specified in the infobox. Please note that this value may not be accurate as the area specified in the infobox does not necessarily correspond to the area of the entity proper or is reported for the same year as the population.
- ^ Правительство Российской Федерации. Постановление №725 от 31 августа 2011 г. «О составе территорий, образующих каждую часовую зону, и порядке исчисления времени в часовых зонах, а также о признании утратившими силу отдельных Постановлений Правительства Российской Федерации». Вступил в силу по истечении 7 дней после дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Российская Газета", №197, 6 сентября 2011 г. (Government of the Russian Federation. Resolution #725 of August 31, 2011 On the Composition of the Territories Included into Each Time Zone and on the Procedures of Timekeeping in the Time Zones, as Well as on Abrogation of Several Resolutions of the Government of the Russian Federation. Effective as of after 7 days following the day of the official publication.).
- ^ Sochi hosts 2014 Winter Olympics BBC Sport, 4 July 2007
- ^ PM Putin confirms Russian GP for 2014 GPUpdate, October 15, 2010
- ^ a b "World Map of Köppen−Geiger Climate Classification". http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/.
- ^ a b V. A. Drozdov, O. B. Glezer, T. G. Nefedova and I. V. Shabdurasulov (1992). "Ecological and geographical characteristics of the coastal zone of the Black Sea". GeoJournal 27 (2): 169–178. DOI:10.1007/BF00717701.
- ^ Port of Sochi at Russia.com; Retrieved July 8, 2007
- ^ National Geographic Atlas. National Geographic Society. 2011. p. 59.
- ^ Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. 1997. p. 37, 80.
- ^ a b Sochi – from ancient sites to 2014 Olympics, information from the Historical Museum of Sochi
- ^ Peter Hopkirk The great game: On Secret Service in High Asia, Chapter 12 “The Greatest Fortress in the World”, pp 158-159, Oxford University Press, 2001 ISBN 0-19-280232-1
- ^ Stalin's ghost haunts Black Sea hotel at Mail & Guardian Online, Retrieved July 7, 2007
- ^ a b Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Russia: Environmentalists Oppose Sochi's Olympic Bid Retrieved 7 July 2007
- ^ "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров. (All Union Population Census of 1989. Present population of union and autonomous republics, autonomous oblasts and okrugs, krais, oblasts, districts, urban settlements, and villages serving as district administrative centers.)" (in Russian). Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года (All-Union Population Census of 1989). Demoscope Weekly (website of the Institute of Demographics of the State University—Higher School of Economics. 1989. http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus89_reg.php. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
- ^ Population of Russian Federation by cities, towns, and districts as of 1 January 2007: Rosstat, Moscow, 2007
- ^ Половинкина Т. В. Сочинское Причерноморье – Нальчик (2006) pp. 216–218
- ^ http://shapsugiya.ru/index.php?newsid=43 (Russian Language)
- ^ a b Sochi: a city with no mosque, OpenDemocracy, 22 October 2010
- ^ Elena A. Rybak, Oleg O. Rybak and Yuri V. Zasedatelev (1994). "Complex geographical analysis of the Greater Sochi region on the Black Sea coast". GeoJournal 34 (4): 507–513. DOI:10.1007/BF00813147.
- ^ "Pogoda.ru.net" (in Russian). http://www.pogoda.ru.net/climate/37171.htm. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
- ^ "Climatological Information for Soci, Russia" – Hong Kong Observatory
- ^ "Сочи, Пхенчхан и Зальцбург — претенденты на Олимпиаду-2014" (in Russian). ITAR-TASS. July 4, 2007. http://www.itar-tass.com/level2.html?NewsID=11684508&PageNum=0. Retrieved July 9, 2007.
- ^ Western Caucasus at Unesco Heritage Site. Retrieved July 7, 2007
- ^ International Olympic Committee (July 4, 2007). "Sochi Elected as Host City of XXII Olympic Winter Games". http://olympic.org/uk/news/olympic_news/full_story_uk.asp?id=2221. Retrieved July 4, 2007.
- ^ a b A Major Tuneup for a Sports Machine NYTimes.com, July 29, 2008
- ^ sportsline.com: Sochi, Russia wins, awarded 2014 Winter Olympics
- ^ Iht.com: Sochi Olympic bid organizers says venue projects conform to environmental norms, federal law, Retrieved 7 July 2007
- ^ The St. Petersburg Times: Putin Takes to Slopes to Back Olympic Bid Retrieved 7 July 2007
- ^ Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Sochi Olympic Bid Faces Greenpeace Challenge Retrieved 7 July 2007
- ^ Kommersant: Power Supply to Be Stepped Up to Sochi by 2014 Retrieved 7 July 2007
- ^ Silk Way Rally
- ^ English, Steven (2010-10-14). "Russia set to announce race from 2014". autosport.com (Haymarket Publications). http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/87444. Retrieved 2010-10-14.
- ^ The Nobel Prize in Physics 2010: Andre Geim, Konstantin Novoselov, Nobel Prize winners (Physics, 2010)
- ^ Official website of Cheltenham
- ^ Website of the President of France
- ^ Official website of Rimini
- ^ Official website of Espoo
- ^ Sister Cities information obtained from Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI), Retrieved 5 July 2007
- ^ a b c Official website of Sochi (international). The page spotlights similarities of the twin towns to Sochi in that all of them are "summer resorts".
- ^ "Греческий Волос и российский Сочи стали городами-побратимами". Interfax. 26 May 2005. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070930223556/http://www.interfax.ru/r/B/ug/182.html?menu=35&id_issue=11749829. Retrieved 8 July 2007.
Sources[link]
- Департамент по взаимодействию с правоохранительными органами администрации Краснодарского края. Справочная информация №20-2969/11-03 от 9 декабря 2011 г. «Выписка из реестра административно-территориальных единиц Краснодарского края». (Department of Cooperation with the Public Safety Organs of the Administration of Krasnodar Krai. Reference Information #20-2969/11-03 of December 9, 2001 Excerpt from the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units of Krasnodar Krai. ).
- Законодательное Собрание Краснодарского края. Закон №679-КЗ от 1 апреля 2004 г. «Об установлении границ муниципального образования город-курорт Сочи и наделении его статусом городского округа», в ред. Закона №1756-КЗ от 3 июня 2009 г «О внесении изменений в некоторые законодательные акты Краснодарского края об установлении границ муниципальных образований». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Кубанские новости", №64–65, 17 апреля 2004 г. (Legislative Assembly of Krasnodar Krai. Law #679-KZ of April 1, 2004 On Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formation of the Resort City of Sochi and on Granting It Urban Okrug Status, as amended by the Law #1756-KZ of June 3, 2009 On Amending Various Legislative Acts of Krasnodar Krai on Establishing the Borders of the Municipal Formations. Effective as of the day of the official publication.).
- Journal of a residence in Circassia during the years 1837, 1838, and 1839 – Bell, James Stanislaus
External links[link]
- Official website of the Resort City of Sochi Administration
- Unofficial website of Sochi (Russian)
- Secrieru, Stanislav: "The 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi: Implications for the Caucasus" in the Caucasus Analytical Digest No.19
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ruslan Karimovich Nigmatullin Руслан Каримович Нигматуллин Руслан Кәрим улы Нигъмәтуллин |
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| Date of birth | (1974-10-07) 7 October 1974 (age 37) | ||
| Place of birth | Kazan, Tatarstan, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1992–1994 | KAMAZ | 20 | (0) |
| 1995–1997 | Spartak Moscow | 27 | (0) |
| 1998–2001 | Lokomotiv Moscow | 115 | (0) |
| 2002–2004 | Hellas Verona | 10 | (0) |
| 2002 | → CSKA Moscow (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2003 | → Salernitana (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2004 | Lokomotiv Moscow | 1 | (0) |
| 2005 | Terek Grozny | 19 | (0) |
| 2008 | SKA Rostov | 15 | (0) |
| 2009 | Anzhi Makhachkala | 0 | (0) |
| 2009 | Lokomotiv-2 Moscow | 8 | (0) |
| 2009 | Maccabi Ahi Nazareth | 20 | (0) |
| Total | 263 | (0) | |
| National team | |||
| 2000–2002 | Russia | 24 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Ruslan Karimovich Nigmatullin (Russian: Руслан Каримович Нигматуллин, Tatar Cyrillic: Руслан Кәрим улы Нигъмәтуллин, Latin: Ruslan Kərim ulı Niğmətullin) (born 7 October 1974 in Kazan, Tatarstan, Soviet Union) is a retired association footballer who played goalkeeper of Tatar ethnicity. He has appeared for the Russian national team 24 times (including 5 Olympic appearances) and was their starting keeper at the 2002 World Cup. He was voted Russian Player of the Year 2001 and is considered the best Russian goalkeeper of this period.
Contents |
Biography[link]
Retirement[link]
Despite officially retiring from football in February 2006, in September 2008, Nigmatullin decided to make a deal with FC SKA Rostov-on-Don, Russian club from First Division. After playing for another year for 3 different clubs, he retired again in November 2009.
Time in Israel[link]
Nigmatullin signed with Israeli club, Maccabi Ahi Nazareth for the 2009–10 season. His start was a shaky one but his performance improved over the weeks as he acclimated to Israel. Nevertheless, he requested to leave the club in November 2009.[1]
Honours[link]
- Russian Premier League champion: 1996, 1997, 2004.
- Russian Premier League runner-up: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002.
- Russian Premier League bronze: 1995, 1998.
- Russian Cup winner: 2000, 2001.
- Russian Cup finalist: 1998.
Career statistics[link]
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Russia | League | Russian Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1992 | KAMAZ Naberezhnye Chelny | 7 | 0 | |||||||||
| 1993 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | |||||||||
| 1994 | 11 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1995 | Spartak Moscow | Premier League | 15 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1996 | 10 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1997 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 1998 | Lokomotiv Moscow | Premier League | 30 | 0 | ||||||||
| 1999 | 29 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 2000 | 29 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 2001 | 27 | 0 | ||||||||||
| Italy | League | Coppa Italia | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2001–02 | Hellas Verona | Serie A | 1 | 0 | ||||||||
| Russia | League | Russian Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2002 | CSKA Moscow | Premier League | 14 | 0 | ||||||||
| Italy | League | Coppa Italia | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2002–03 | Salernitana | Serie B | 14 | 0 | ||||||||
| 2003–04 | Hellas Verona | Serie B | 9 | 0 | ||||||||
| Russia | League | Russian Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2004 | Lokomotiv Moscow | Premier League | 1 | 0 | ||||||||
| 2005 | Terek Grozny | Premier League | 19 | 0 | ||||||||
| Israel | League | Israel State Cup | Toto Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2009–10 | Maccabi Ahi Nazareth | Ligat ha'Al | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 |
| Total | Russia | 196 | 0 | |||||||||
| Italy | 24 | 0 | ||||||||||
| Israel | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 228 | 0 | ||||||||||
Footnotes[link]
- ^ Nasser, Mahsan (2 November 2009). "מסתמן: מאייבי יחליף את ניגמטולין בשער נצרת [Mayebi Will Replace Nigmatullin in Nazareth Goal]" (in Hebrew). One.co.il. http://www.one.co.il/Article/09-10/1,1,16,0/146992.html. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
| Preceded by Yegor Titov |
Russian Footballer of the Year 2001 |
Succeeded by Dmitri Loskov |
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Nigmatullin, Ruslan |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | Russian footballer |
| Date of birth | 7 October 1974 |
| Place of birth | Kazan, Tatarstan, Soviet Union |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
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 Killy in May 2012 |
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| Disciplines | Downhill, Giant Slalom, Slalom, Combined |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | (1943-08-30) August 30, 1943 (age 68) Saint-Cloud, Hauts-de-Seine, France |
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| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup debut | January 1967 (age 23) inaugural season |
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| Retired | April 1968 (age 24) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Olympics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 2 – (1964, '68) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Medals | 3 (3 gold) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championships | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | 4 – (1962, '64, '66, '68) includes two Olympics (injured in 1962) |
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| Medals | 6 (6 gold) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Cup | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Seasons | 2 – (1967, '68) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wins | 18 – (6 DH, 7 GS, 5 SL) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Podiums | 24 – (8 DH, 9 GS, 7 SL) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Overall titles | 2 – (1967, '68) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline titles | 4 – (1 DH, 2 GS, 1 SL) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Jean-Claude Killy (born August 30, 1943) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from France. Born in Saint-Cloud, Hauts-de-Seine, he dominated the sport in the late 1960s. He was a triple Olympic champion, winning the three alpine events at the 1968 Winter Olympics, becoming the most successful athlete there. He also won the first two World Cup titles, in 1967 and 1968.
Contents |
Early life[link]
Killy was born in Saint-Cloud, a suburb of Paris, during the Nazi occupation of World War II, but was brought up in Val-d'Isère in the Alps, where his family had relocated in 1945 following the war. His father, Robert, was a former Spitfire pilot for the Free French, and opened a ski shop in the Savoie village, and would later operate a hotel. In 1950, his mother Madeline abandoned the family for another man, leaving Robert to raise Jean-Claude, age 7, his older sister (France), and their infant brother (Mic). Jean-Claude was sent to boarding school in Chambéry, 80 miles (130 km) down the valley, but he despised being shut up in a classroom.[1]
Early career[link]
Killy turned his attention to skiing rather than school. His father allowed him to drop out at age 15, and he made the French national junior team a year later. As a young racer, Killy was fast, but did not usually complete his races, and the early 1960s were not entirely successful for him.[1]
In December 1961, at age 18, Killy won his first international race, a giant slalom. The event took place in his home village of Val-d'Isere. Killy had started 39th, a position that should have been a severe disadvantage.[1]
The French coach picked Killy for the giant slalom in the 1962 World Championships in Chamonix, France, 50 miles (80 km) away in the shadow of Mont Blanc. But Killy, unaware of his selection, was still attempting to qualify for the downhill event in northeastern Italy at Cortina d'Ampezzo. Only three weeks before the world championships, he skied in his typical reckless style. About two hundred yards (180 m) from the finish, Killy hit a stretch of ice in a compression and went down, rose immediately, then crossed the finish on just one ski—and the fastest time. Unfortunately, his other leg was broken, and he watched the 1962 World Championships on crutches.[1]
Two years later, at age 20, Killy was entered in all three of the men's events at the 1964 Olympics, because his coach wanted to prepare him for 1968. Unfortunately, Killy was plagued by recurrences of amoebic dysentery and hepatitis, ailments that he had contracted in 1962 during a summer of compulsory service with the French Army in Algeria. His form was definitely off, and he fell a few yards after the start of the downhill, lost a binding in the slalom, and finished fifth in the giant slalom, in which he had been the heavy favorite.[1]
Although the first half of the decade was a relative disappointment, Killy begin to improve his results in August 1966. Killy won his first downhill race against an international field at the 1966 World Championships in Portillo, Chile in August, and also took gold in the combined. Killy was peaking as the first World Cup season was launched in January 1967, with the 1968 Winter Olympics in France only a year away.
Dominance – 1967–68[link]
World Cup results[link]
Season standings[link]
| Season | Age | Overall | Slalom | Giant Slalom |
Super G | Downhill | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 1 | not run |
1 | not awarded |
| 1968 | 24 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
Season titles[link]
| Season | Discipline |
|---|---|
| 1967 | Overall |
| Downhill | |
| Giant Slalom | |
| Slalom | |
| 1968 | Overall |
| Giant Slalom |
Individual races[link]
| Season | Date | Location | Discipline |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | 9 Jan 1967 |  Adelboden, Switzerland |
Giant Slalom |
| 14 Jan 1967 | Wengen, Switzerland |
Downhill | |
| 15 Jan 1967 | Slalom | ||
| 21 Jan 1967 |  Kitzbühel, Austria |
Downhill | |
| 22 Jan 1967 | Slalom | ||
| 27 Jan 1967 |  Megève, France |
Downhill | |
| 3 Mar 1967 |  Sestriere, Italy |
Downhill | |
| 10 Mar 1967 |  Franconia, NH, USA |
Downhill | |
| 11 Mar 1967 | Slalom | ||
| 12 Mar 1967 | Giant Slalom | ||
| 19 Mar 1967 | Vail, CO, USA |
Giant Slalom | |
| 25 Mar 1967 | Jackson, WY, USA |
Giant Slalom | |
| 1968 | 8 Jan 1968 | Adelboden, Switzerland |
Giant Slalom |
| 9 Feb 1968 | Grenoble, France 1968 Winter Olympics ^ |
Downhill | |
| 12 Feb 1968 | Giant Slalom | ||
| 17 Feb 1968 | Slalom | ||
| 10 Mar 1968 | Méribel, France |
Giant Slalom | |
| 29 Mar 1968 |  Rossland, BC, Canada |
Slalom |
^ Results from the 1968 Winter Olympics (and 1970 World Championships) were included in the World Cup standings.
Killy was the first World Cup champion in 1967, winning 12 of 17 races to easily take the overall title. He also won the season titles in each of the three disciplines; he won all five of the downhill races and four of the five giant slalom races.
The following year, Killy won the Triple Crown of Alpine Skiing with a sweep of all three gold medals (downhill, giant slalom, and slalom) in controversial circumstances at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France. By finishing first in both the downhill and slalom, he also easily won the world championship medal in the combined event.
Killy wasn't just faster than the other skiers, he was smarter. Electrical timing by Omega was accurate to one-hundredth of a second. The starting official counted aloud, "3-2-1-Go" and the skier's boot moved forward to push a pivoting rod aside and start the timer. Everyone knew that the closer they got to the bar, the less distance they would travel. Killy, however, relied on enormous upper-body strength and outwitted his opponents. Rather than crowd as close as possible to the bar, Killy knew that he was allowed a 6-second window to push it aside. When the official began counting, he could trip the lever any time he chose from the beginning of the "3-" call and up to 3 seconds after the "Go" signal. Therefore, he rose backward, raised his body completely off the ground with his arms and poles, pulled his feet backwards, and propelled himself forward. Instead of beginning from a standing start right at the bar, as everyone else did, he hit the bar while already moving forward, giving himself a slight edge.
With the Olympic events included (for the only time) in the World Cup standings, Killy easily repeated in 1968 as the overall champion, placing first in the giant slalom and second in the downhill and slalom season standings. He retired following the 1968 season, and moved to Geneva, Switzerland, in 1969.
Post-Olympic career[link]
In May 1968, Killy signed with International Management Group, the sports management firm headed by Mark McCormack. After racing on Dynamic VR17 skis during the part of his career when he was dominant, Killy signed a deal with Head Skis in early 1969 to endorse a metal and fiberglass ski named for him, the Killy 800. Head, which was acquired by AMF later that year, manufactured a line of Killy skis for at least two years.
Killy also became a spokesman for Schwinn bicycles and Chevrolet automobiles; the latter, a role detailed by journalist Hunter S. Thompson in his 1970 article "The Temptations of Jean-Claude Killy" for Scanlan's Monthly.
Killy starred as a ski instructor in the 1972 crime movie Snow Job, released in the UK as The Ski Raiders, and US TV as The Great Ski Caper. American children in the early 1970s knew Killy from a TV commercial where he introduces himself, his thick accent making his name into "Chocolate Kitty." Killy played himself in the 2004 movie Copper Mountain: A Club Med Experience, starring Jim Carrey and Alan Thicke, set at Copper Mountain, Colorado.
Although Killy did not compete in the 1972 Olympic Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan, he was a celebrity guest, and used a classic stiff-arm fend to knock a 5'-2", 17-year-old female American exchange student from out of the path of his entourage, into a snowbank.
Jean-Claude Killy also had a short career as a racing driver between 1967 and 1970, participating in the Paris Dakar Rally. In team with fellow Frenchman Bernard Cahier, Killy was 7th overall in the 1967 Targa-Florio in a Porsche 911 S.
In November 1972, Killy came out of ski racing retirement at age 29 to compete on the pro circuit in the U.S. for one season. After a spirited challenge from two-time defending champion Spider Sabich, Killy won the 1973 season title, taking $28,625 in race winnings and a $40,000 bonus for the championship.[2]
In addition to trying his skill as a car racer, Killy made two television series. One, The Killy Style, was a thirteen-week series that showcased various ski resorts, and the other, The Killy Challenge, featured him racing against celebrities, who were all given handicaps. He was also sponsored by a champagne company, Moët & Chandon, which paid him to be seen with a bottle of their champagne on his table everywhere he went. In 1974 Killy, as part of this sponsership deal was paid to ski down the previously unskied eastern slope of Mt Ngaurohoe (Mt Doom) in New Zealand.The average slope on this side of the live volcano is 35 degrees. A radar recorded his speed at over 100 miles per hour. He did this twice as cloud cover spoilt the first filming shoot.
Read more: Jean-Claude Killy – Three Gold Medals – Junior Johnson, Slalom, Wins, Ski, Johnson, Downhill, and Time http://sports.jrank.org/pages/2514/Killy-Jean-Claude-Three-Gold-Medals.html#ixzz11uboewfi
From 1977 to 1994, he was a member of the Executive board of the Alpine Skiing Committee of the FIS. Killy served as co-president of the 1992 Winter Olympics, held in Albertville, France, and as the President of the Société du Tour de France cycling race between 1992 and 2001. From 1995 to 2008, he was a member of the International Olympic Committee.
The ski area of Val d'Isère and Tignes in the French Alps was given the name l'Espace Killy, in his honor.
Jean-Claude Killy became Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur in 2000.
Intrawest credits Jean-Claude Killy with the design of a ski trail, "Cupp Run," at their Snowshoe resort in West Virginia.
Personal life[link]
From 1973 to 1987, he was married to French actress Danièle Gaubert, until her death from cancer. Together they had a daughter, Emilie; he also adopted her two children from her first marriage to Rhadamés Trujillo, the son of Rafael Trujillo, the assassinated dictator of the Dominican Republic. Gaubert and Trujillo were divorced in 1968 and later that year she met Killy. [1]
References[link]
- ^ a b c d e Sports Illustrated - Killy: A Man and his Kingdom – 1990-02-12
- ^ vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com – March 1973
External links[link]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jean-Claude Killy |
- Jean-Claude Killy at the International Ski Federation
- Ski-db.com – results – Jean-Claude Killy
- BBC.net.uk – Killy's killer instinct
- Sports Illustrated – Killy: A Man and his Kingdom – 12 February 1990
- Sports Illustrated – Goodby, Broadway, Hello, Schranz – 16 April 1973
- Sports Illustrated – cover stories of Jean-Claude Killy – 1966–68
- cover (& articles) – 18 November 1968
- cover (& articles) – 27 March 1967
- cover (& articles) – 21-Feb-1966
- Jean-Claude Killy at the Internet Movie Database
- The Christian Science Monitor – Whatever Happened To...Jean-Claude Killy? – 4 November 1999
| Preceded by Frank King |
President of Organizing Committee for Winter Olympic Games 1992 |
Succeeded by Gerhard Heiberg |
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| Persondata | |
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| Name | Killy, Jeanclaude |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | French skier |
| Date of birth | 30 August 1943 |
| Place of birth | Saint-Cloud, Hauts-de-Seine, France |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
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This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Claude_Killy
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This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
