Romanization of the Russian alphabet is the process of transliterating the Russian language from the Cyrillic script into the Latin alphabet. Such transliteration is necessary for writing Russian names and other words in the non-Cyrillic letters.

Romanization is also essential for the input of Russian text into computers by users who either do not have a keyboard or word processor set up for input of Cyrillic, or else they are not capable of typing rapidly on the distinct Cyrillic keyboard. In the latter case, they would type using a system of transliteration fitted for their keyboard layout, such as for English QWERTY keyboards, and then use an automated tool to convert the text into Cyrillic.

Sergei Gonchar (Cyrillic: Сергей Гончар,) a popular NHL and international ice hockey player, wearing a jersey with Roman characters.

Systematic transliterations of Cyrillic to Latin[link]

Scientific transliteration[link]

Scientific transliteration, also known as the International Scholarly System, is a system that has been used in linguistics since the 19th century. It is based on the Czech alphabet and formed the basis of the GOST and ISO systems.

GOST[link]

GOST 16876 (1971)[link]

Developed by the National Administration for Geodesy and Cartography at the USSR Council of Ministers, GOST 16876-71 has been in service for over 30 years and is the only romanization system that does not use diacritics. Replaced by GOST 7.79-2000.

ST SEV 1362 (1978)[link]

This standard is an equivalent of GOST 16876-71 and was adopted as an official standard of the COMECON.

GOST 7.79 (2002)[link]

GOST 7.79-2000 System of Standards on Information, Librarianship, and Publishing-–Rules for Transliteration of the Cyrillic Characters Using the Latin Alphabet is the newest document on transliteration in the series of GOST standards. This standard is an adoption of ISO 9:1995 and is now the official standard of both Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

ISO[link]

ISO/R 9[link]

ISO/R 9, established in 1954 and updated in 1968, was the adoption of the scientific transliteration by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). It covers Russian and seven other Slavic languages.

ISO 9[link]

ISO 9:1995 is the current transliteration standard from ISO. It is based on its predecessor ISO/R 9:1968, which it deprecates; for Russian, the two are the same except in the treatment of five modern letters. ISO 9:1995 is the first language-independent, univocal system of one character for one character equivalents (by the use of diacritics) that faithfully represents the original and allows for reverse transliteration for Cyrillic text in any contemporary language.

United Nations romanization system[link]

The UNGEGN, a Working Group of the United Nations, in 1987 recommended a romanization system for geographical names, which was based on the 1983 version of GOST 16876-71. It may be found in some international cartographic products.

ALA-LC[link]

American Library Association and Library of Congress (ALA-LC) romanization tables for Slavic alphabets (updated 1997) are used in North American libraries and in the British Library since 1975.

The formal, unambiguous version of the system requires some diacritics and two-letter tie characters, which are often omitted in practice.

British Standard[link]

British Standard 2979:1958 is the main system of the Oxford University Press,^[1] and a variation is used by the British Library to catalogue publications acquired up to 1975 (the Library of Congress system is used for newer acquisitions).^[2]

BGN/PCGN[link]

The BGN/PCGN system is relatively intuitive for Anglophones to read and pronounce. In many publications, a simplified form of the system is used to render English versions of Russian names, typically converting ë to yo, simplifying -iy and -yy endings to -y, and omitting apostrophes for ъ and ь. It can be rendered using only the basic letters and punctuation found on English-language keyboards: no diacritics or unusual letters are required, although the interpunct character (·) may be used to avoid ambiguity.

This particular standard is part of the BGN/PCGN romanization system which was developed by the United States Board on Geographic Names and by the Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use. The portion of the system pertaining to the Russian language was adopted by BGN in 1944 and by PCGN in 1947.

Transliteration of the names in Russian passports[link]

Old system 1997–2010[link]

In the Soviet international passports, transliteration was based on French rules (but without diacritics), so all of the names were transliterated in a French-style system.

In 1997, with the introduction of new Russian passports, a diacritics-free English-oriented system was established by the Ministry of Internal Affairs[1], but this system was also abandoned in 2010.

New system 2010[link]

In 2006, GOST 52535.1-2006 was adopted, which defines technical requirements and standards for Russian international passports and introduces its own system of transliteration. In 2010, the Federal Migratory Service of Russia approved Order No. 26, stating that all personal names in the passports issued after 2010 must be transliterated using GOST 52535.1-2006. Because of some differences between the new system and the old one, citizens who want to retain the old version of a name's transliteration, especially which was in the old pre-2010 passport, may apply to the local migratory office before acquiring a new passport.

Transliteration table[link]

Table notes[link]

GOST 16876-71 and GOST 7.79-2000

† It is recommended to use c before i, e, y, and j but cz in all other cases.

†† In GOST 7.79-2000 Cyrillic і in Ukrainian and Bulgarian is always transliterated as Latin i as well as in Old Russian and Old Bulgarian texts where it is usually used before vowels. In the rare case that it falls before a consonant (for example, in the word мiръ), it is transliterated with an apostrophe i' .

ALA-LC

‡ ъ is not romanized at the end of a word.

British Standard

The endings -й, -ий, -ый may be simplified to -y.

** The British Library uses ы = ui

BGN/PCGN

* The digraphs ye and yë are used to indicate iotation at the beginning of a word and after vowels й, ъ, or ь.

Latin script[link]

This article's “Latin script” section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2008)

In a second sense, the romanization of Russian may also indicate the introduction of a dedicated Latin alphabet for writing the Russian language. Such an alphabet would not necessarily bound closely to the traditional Cyrillic orthography. The transition from Cyrillic to Latin has been proposed several times through history (especially during the Soviet era), but was never conducted on a large scale except for graphemic (such as the Volapuk) and phonemic (such as translit) ad hoc transcriptions due to technological restrictions (such as ASCII, SMS, IRC).

The most serious possibility of adoption of the Latin alphabet for the Russian language was discussed in 1929–30 during the campaign of latinisation of the languages of the USSR, when a special commission was created to propose a latinisation system for Russian.

See also[link]

• Romanization of Bulgarian
• Romanization of Ukrainian
• Romanization of Macedonian
• Computer russification
• Volapuk encoding
• Russian Chat Alphabet (Informal romanizations of Russian)
• Faux Cyrillic
• Kyrillisches Alphabet (from the German Wikipedia) shows how to transliterate between Russian and German.
• GOST standards

Notes[link]

References[link]

• U.S. Board on Geographic Names Foreign Names Committee Staff, 1994. Romanization Systems and Roman-Script Spelling Conventions, pp. 84–85.

External links[link]

• Summary of romanization systems for Russian (PDF) by Thomas T. Pedersen.
• United Nations-recommended romanization system for Russian (PDF)
• American Library Association & Library of Congress Romanization
• Russian toponym translations and transliterations database
• Umschrift des russischen Alphabets—Russian transliteration in several systems, including DIN 1460 (1982) [=ISO/R9:1968], GOST ST SEV 1362 (1978), and BSI BS 2979 (1958)
• GOST 7.79-2000 (in Russian) — System of standards on information, librarianship and publishing. Rules of transliteration of Cyrillic script by Latin alphabet.

This article's factual accuracy may be compromised due to out-of-date information. Please help improve the article by updating it. There may be additional information on the talk page. (June 2010)

Alexander Rybak
Rybak after he had won Eurovision 2009
Background information
Born	(1986-05-13) 13 May 1986 (age 26) Minsk, Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union
Genres	Pop, folk, classical, Baroque pop
Occupations	Singer, actor, songwriter, composer, pianist
Instruments	Vocals, violin, piano
Years active	2009–present
Associated acts	Eurovision Song Contest 2009, Frikar
Website	www.alexanderrybak.com

Alexander Igoryevich Rybak (Russian: Алекса́ндр И́горевич Рыба́к) or in Belarusian Alyaxandr Igaravich Rybak (Аляксандр І́гаравіч Рыбак), born 13 May 1986 in Byelorussian SSR, Soviet Union is a Norwegian^[1] singer-composer, violinist, pianist, writer, and actor. Representing Norway in the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest in Moscow, Russia, Rybak won the contest with 387 points—the highest tally any country has achieved in the history of Eurovision—with "Fairytale", a song he wrote and composed. His debut album, Fairytales, charted in the top 20 in nine European countries, including a No. 1 position in Norway and Russia.

Personal life[link]

Rybak was born on 13 May 1986, in Minsk, Belarus—which at that time was the Belarusian SSR in the Soviet Union. When he was 4 years old, he and his family moved to Norway.^[2] Rybak was baptized and raised in the Orthodox religion.^[3] At the age of five, Rybak began to play the piano and the violin.^[2] His parents are Natalia Valentinovna Rybak, a classical pianist, and Igor Alexandrovich Rybak, a well-known classical violinist who performs alongside Pinchas Zukerman.^[4] He stated "I always liked to entertain and somehow that is my vocation".^[5] Rybak bought a new apartment and lives now at Aker Brygge (Oslo, Norway).

In 2010, several incidents of uncontrolled anger caused commentators to question whether Rybak has an anger control problem. During the trials for the ESC 2010 finals in Bærum, Rybak became so infuriated when a sound technician was not doing what he wanted that he smashed his own hand, breaking his fingers. Also, during trials for Swedish television in June 2010, he smashed his violin on the floor. His appearance was then canceled. According to his manager, Kjell Arild Tiltnes, Rybak does not have an issue with aggression. Tiltnes stated that "as long as he abreacts on objects and on himself, I see no reason for this to be something that he needs help dealing with." Rybak said, "I never raised my voice before, and that's why I did what I did. I'm just a human being—and perhaps not the glossy image many believe. So it was good to get out frustrations so I could go on. It's only me that goes beyond the same."^[6][7]

Career[link]

Alexander at the ESC 2009

Rybak has been a student at the Barratt Due Institute of Music in Oslo since the age of 10. Due to his success in the Eurovision Song Contest, he is currently taking a break from his bachelor's degree studies at the Institute.^[8][9] In 2004, Rybak was awarded the Anders Jahre Culture Prize.^[10] In 2005, he entered the Norwegian version of Idol, Idol: Jakten på en superstjerne, reaching the semifinal. In 2006, Rybak won Kjempesjansen (“The Great Opportunity”), a talent competition hosted by the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK), with his own song, "Foolin".^[5] Alexander Rybak has collaborated with artists such as a-ha's lead singer Morten Harket and Arve Tellefsen. As of 2007, Rybak has played the fiddler in Oslo Nye Teater's production of Fiddler on the Roof and won the Hedda Award for this role.^[5]

Eurovision 2009[link]

Rybak won the 54th Eurovision Song Contest in Moscow, Russia, with a record 387 points, singing "Fairytale",^[11] a song inspired by Norwegian folk music. The song was composed and written by Rybak^[12] and was performed together with the modern folk dance company Frikar. The song received good reviews with a score of 6 out of 6 in the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet,^[5] and, in an ESCtoday poll, he scored 71.3%, making him the favourite to get into the final.^[13]

In the Norwegian national heats, Rybak achieved a clean sweep, gaining the top score from all nine voting districts and ending with a combined televote and jury score of 747,888, while the runner up, Tone Damli Aaberge, received a combined score of 121,856 (out of a total population of less then 5 million)^[14]

The song competed in the second semi-final and won a place in the Eurovision final.

Rybak later won the Eurovision final with a landslide victory, receiving votes from all the participating countries (except Norway, which was not allowed to vote for itself). Rybak finished with a total of 387 points, breaking the previous record of 292 points scored by Lordi in 2006 and scoring 169 points more than the runner-up, Iceland.

After Eurovision, film and the first album[link]

Rybak and a dancer from Frikar, at a concert in Norway, September 2009

Rybak's first album, Fairytales, was released after his Eurovision win. Rybak also co-stars as Levi in the film Yohan directed by Grete Salomonsen, which was released in March 2010.^[15] Rybak also went on a tour in Norway with former Norwegian Eurovision winner Elisabeth Andreassen, something that had been decided before his Eurovision win and participation. He and Frikar also toured Norway and Europe in 2009. In a December 2009 performance of his hit "Fairytale" at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert, held at the Oslo Spektrum, Rybak shared the stage with nine other acts.^[16] Too EMI Norway has just released a film entitled Fairytale, the movie, directed by acclaimed Norwegian director, Rune Langlo, documenting the journey of Alexander Rybak since claiming the top prize for Norway in Moscow.^[17]

In 2009, he recorded the theme song, called "I Don't Believe in Miracles / Superhero", for the Russian action movie Black Lightning produced by Timur Bekmambetov.^[18]-

[edit] 2010–present: 2nd album and Let's dance Sweden

On 30 January 2010, Rybak performed one of his new singles, "Europe Skies", in national final, Euroviisut 2010, to select the 2010 Finnish entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010. On 12 March 2010, Alexander Rybak performed his Eurovision 2009 winning song "Fairytale" on UK TV show Eurovision: Your Country Needs You. In April 2010, Rybak released a new song, featuring Opptur, called "Fela Igjen".^[19] Alexander released his second album on 14 June 2010, called No Boundaries. It was not as successuful as his first album, so far it has peaked at number 7 in Norway, number 8 in Sweden and 32 in Finland. On 7 January 2011, Rybak was one of twelve contestant on the next Swedish season of the dancing show Let's dance (Swedish version of television franchise Strictly come dancing), in the show Rybak danced to win the competition against other Swedish celebrities.^[20] Rybak made it to the Top 4 before being voted off on 11 March, having received the lowest scores from both juries and the voting public.^[21] In 2011 he released the album "Visa vid vindens ängar, a collaboration with Mats Paulson whom he describes as "a legend and a great friend" In 2012 he will release a new music video for his russian song "Strela Amura". http://www.facebookies.org/2011/01/05/9607/ The 30th of may he released a song together with Paula Seling called "I'll show you"

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Singles[link]

Other songs[link]

Filmography[link]

References[link]

• Hyllet i hjembygda (Norwegian), Østlands-Posten, 18 May 2009, about the official Alexander Rybak Fanclub on Facebook
• Du kan bli med Alex til Moskva (Norwegian), Akershus Amtstidende, 15 April 2009, about the official Alexander Rybak Fanclub on Facebook

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alexander Rybak

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Alexander Rybak

• Official homepage
• Official Facebook Page
• Official International Fansite of Alexander Rybak
• Fan web-site of Alexander Rybak
• Alexander Rybak PR in Republic of Ireland

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Dima Bilan with "Believe"	Winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 2009	Succeeded by Lena with "Satellite"
Preceded by Maria Haukaas Storeng with "Hold On Be Strong"	Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009	Succeeded by Didrik Solli-Tangen with "My Heart Is Yours"

Altai Republic
Республика Алтай (Russian) Алтай Республика (Altay)
—  Republic  —
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: National Anthem of the Altai Republic
Coordinates: 50°55′N 86°55′E / 50.917°N 86.917°E / 50.917; 86.917Coordinates: 50°55′N 86°55′E / 50.917°N 86.917°E / 50.917; 86.917
Political status
Country	Russia
Federal district	Siberian[1]
Economic region	West Siberian[2]
Established	July 1, 1922
Capital	Gorno-Altaysk
Government (as of September 2010)
- Head[3]	Alexander Berdnikov[4]
- Legislature	State Assembly—El Kurultai[3]
Statistics
Area (as of the 2002 Census)[5]
- Total	92,600 km2 (35,753.1 sq mi)
Area rank	35th
Population (2010 Census)[6]
- Total	206,168
- Rank	79th
- Density[7]	2.23 /km2 (5.8 /sq mi)
- Urban	27.6%
- Rural	72.4%
Time zone(s)	OMST (UTC+07:00)[8]
ISO 3166-2	RU-AL
License plates	04
Official languages	Russian;[9] Altay[10]
http://www.altai-republic.ru

Altai Republic (Russian: Респу́блика Алта́й, Respublika Altay; Altay: Алтай Республика, Altay Respublika^[11]) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). Its capital is the town of Gorno-Altaysk. The area of the republic is 92,600 square kilometers (35,800 sq mi). Population: 206,168 (2010 Census).^[6]

History[link]

The national autonomy for the Altai people was created on June 1, 1922 as Oyrot Autonomous Oblast (Ойро́тская автоно́мная о́бласть), part of Altai Krai. The original name for this region was Bazla. On January 7, 1948 it was renamed Gorno-Altai Autonomous Oblast (Го́рно-Алта́йская автоно́мная о́бласть). In 1991 it was reorganized into the Gorno-Altai Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (ASSR). In 1992 it was renamed as the Altai Republic.

Geography[link]

The republic is situated in the very center of Asia at the junction of Siberian taiga, steppes of Kazakhstan and semi-deserts of Mongolia. Forests cover about 25% of the republic's territory.

• Area: 92,600 km² (35,800 sq mi)
• Borders:
  • internal: Kemerovo Oblast (N), Republic of Khakassia (NE), Tuva Republic (E), and Altai Krai (W/NW).
  • international: Mongolia (Bayan-Ölgii Province) (SE), China (Altay Prefecture) (S), and Kazakhstan (East Kazakhstan Province) (S/SW)
• Highest point: Mount Belukha (4,506 m)
• Maximum N->S distance: 360 km
• Maximum E->W distance: 380 km

Rivers and lakes[link]

Katun River in the northern Altai Republic

More than 20,000 tributaries sprawl throughout the mountainous Republic, making for a total of more than 60,000 kilometers (37,000 mi) worth of waterways. The republic's largest rivers are the Katun and the Biya, both of which originate in the mountains and flow northwards. The junction of the two rivers eventually forms the Ob River, one of the longest rivers in Siberia, which flows northward to the Arctic Ocean.

The source of the black Biya River is Lake Teletskoye, the region's largest lake located in an isolated area far south in the mountains. The emerald-colored Katun River has its source at the Gebler glacier, which is situated on the Republic's highest point, Mount Belukha. The Katun River in particular holds a religious significance for native Altaians, as well as for many Russians who live in the area, as Mount Belukha is known in Altai folklore to be the gateway to the mystical kingdom of Shambhala. [1]

The hydrographic network of the Republic also includes approximately 7,000 lakes, adding up to a total area of more than 700 km² (270 sq mi). The largest lake is Lake Teletskoye, which is 80 km (50 mi) long and 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) wide, has an area of 230.8 square kilometers (89.1 sq mi), and has a maximum depth of 325 meters (1,066 ft). The mountain lakes of Altai contain enormous freshwater reserves of a very pure quality as a result of their distance from most human activity. [2] Lake Teletskoye alone contains more than 40 cubic kilometers (9.6 cu mi) of highly pure water.

Potential ground water storage is evaluated at 22 million m³ per day, while the present use constitutes about 44,000 m³ per day.

Shavlo Lake in Northern Chuysky Range

Mountains[link]

The most striking geographical aspect of the Republic of Altai is its mountainous terrain. The Republic is situated within the Russian part of the Altai Mountains system, which covers a large part of the Republic and continues into neighboring Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China. The region continues to experience periodic notable seismic activity, which is visually made apparent through the mountains' characteristically high and rugged mountain ridges, separated by narrow and deep river valleys. The Republic's highest peak, Mount Belukha (4,506 m), is the highest point in Siberia.

Natural resources[link]

Various bodies of water are among the most important natural resources of the Republic. Mineral and hot springs are popular destinations for tourists and locals, sought for their therapeutic effects. Additionally, Altai glaciers contain a great amount of fresh water. The general volume of ice for registered Altai glaciers comes to a total of 57 km³, 52 km³ of which is water. The total water stock of the glaciers exceeds the average annual effluence of all Altai rivers, which are equal to 43 km³ per year. The largest glaciers are: Bolshoy Taldurinsky (35 km²), Mensu (21 km²), Sofiysky (17 km²), and Bolshoy Maashey (16 km²).

Mineral resources in the region primarily include gold, silver, iron ores, and lithium, in addition to other smaller amounts of minerals. The large city of Barnaul in neighboring Altai Krai was originally founded as a processing center for minerals from the Altai region, although the mineral extraction industry today is much smaller than in the past.

Climate[link]

The republic has a temperate continental climate with relatively short and hot summers (June–August); and long, cold, and often quite frosty winters (November–March).

In general, the republic's climate of the southeastern areas, such as the (Ulagansky and Kosh-Agachsky Districts), is harsher than the climate of the less elevated northern areas.

• Average annual temperature: +1°C to -6.7°C.
• January temperature range: -9.2°C to -31°C.
• July temperature range: +11°C to +19°C.
• Average annual precipitation: 100–1000 mm.

Administrative divisions[link]

Demographics[link]

Population: 206,168 (2010 Census);^[6] 202,947 (2002 Census);^[12] 191,649 (1989 Census).^[13]

Vital statistics[link]

Source: Russian Federal State Statistics Service

Ethnic groups[link]

As per the 2010 Census,^[6] ethnic Russians make up 56.6% of the republic's population, with the ethnic Altai people numbering only 34.5%. Other groups include Kazakhs (6.2%), Germans (700 or 0.3%) and a host of smaller groups, each accounting for less than 0.5% of the total population.

1. including 3414 Telengits, 1384 Kumandins and 344 Teleuts
2. including 2368 Telengits, 1533 Tubalars, 931 Kumandins, 830 Chelkans, 141 Shors and 32 Teleuts
3. including 3648 Telengits, 1891 Tubalars, 1062 Kumandins, 1113 Chelkans and 87 Shors
4. 3,432 people were registered from administrative databases, and could not declare an ethnicity. It is estimated that the proportion of ethnicities in this group is the same as that of the declared group.^[14]

Politics[link]

The head of government in Altai Republic is the Head of the Republic, popularly elected for a four-year term. As of 2006, the Head of the Republic is Alexander Vasilyevich Berdnikov, who succeeded Mikhail Lapshin in this post. The supreme legislative body of the republic is the State Assembly—El Kurultai, with 41 deputies popularly elected every four years. Igor Yaimov is the current Chairman of the State Assembly-El Kurultai from January 2002.

The Republic's Constitution was adopted on June 7, 1997.

Economy[link]

The Altai Republic is a highly agricultural region. However, it does have some industry which includes foodstuffs, non-ferrous metallurgy, chemicals, gold mining, footwear, dairying and timber. Tourism has also begun to make its mark on the economy, and a large number of new hotels and resorts catering towards "New Russians" have begun to appear.

Transportation[link]

Altai Republic may be the only Russian political division without rail access. The main paved road is the Chuysky Tract, which spans the republic from the capital Gorno-Altaisk in the north to the Mongolian border in the south. A system of taxis and buses transports people between settlements. Within the settlements, people generally walk or ride horses.

Helicopters are used for emergency transportation, to supply remote government outposts, and by wealthy tourists. The airport near the capital of Gorno-Altaisk was recently revamped, but as of 2011, scheduled airplane service was not available. People generally fly through Barnaul in Altai Krai, or Novosibirsk.

Tourism[link]

With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Altai Republic's tourism industry has greatly expanded. Although wealthy Russians from neighboring Russian republics are the most common sort of tourist in Altai, foreign interest has also grown in the area, especially due to the area's spiritual significance to New Age believers and others.

Popular tourist destinations tend to be concentrated in the north, where the roads are more accessible. They are also almost entirely located along the Chuiskiy highway, which is the main road from the north into the mountains (although it is currently only two lanes wide). The north is also significantly warmer than the elevated southern areas, which tend to be chilly even in the summer.

Some of the more well-known tourist spots in the Altai region include Lake Aiya (a popular bathing spot), and the picturesque Chemal region. More adventurous travelers may wish to visit the more remote Lake Teletskoye or Mount Belukha in the south.

Education[link]

There is one university (Gorno-Altaisk State University), twelve colleges, and 205 secondary schools in the republic.

Religion[link]

The traditional religion of the native Altaians is shamanism. Ethnic Russians primarily practice Orthodox Christianity, while Kazakhs are traditionally Muslims. Tibetan Buddhism has also recently begun making some inroads by way of neighboring Mongolia and Tuva.

From 1904 until the 1930s, a new religious movement called Burkhanism (or Ak Jang, the "white faith") was popularized among native Altaians. The religion originated in Altai, and emphasized the "white" aspect of shamanistic practice. Burkhanism remains an important component of Altaian national consciousness, and is currently being revived in several forms along with indigenous Altai culture in general.

Russian New Age followers often go on pilgrimages to Mount Belukha, which is considered to be the location of Shambhala both by some New Agers and locals of Altai. One can often find manifestations of shamanistic spirituality in the region; for example, at points along the Katun River, local believers in shamanism are known to tie white ribbons to nearby trees and leave offerings of coins or food to the spirits. [3] Although shamanism is much less widely practiced today, it is regaining popularity as a result of new religious freedom following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Culture[link]

The indigenous Altai culture holds the lands of Altai to be sacred. The indigenous (Turkic) languages are focused on the stewardship of the lands. The Altai oral history is transmitted by throat-singers. The Altai culture was repressed during Soviet times, and has been rebounding since then. The clans of all ten regions gather in the village of Yelo for a biennial cultural celebration.

There is also a large contingent of "Old Believers," who fled to Altai when they split from the Russian Orthodox Church about 200 years ago. They were taken in by the Altai people, and are now integrated into the fabric of Altai culture.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site "Golden Mountains" protects the Ukok Plateau, on which there are many standing stones and "kurgans". Although archeologists consider kurgans to be burial sites, the indigenous people believe that they are highly refined magnetic instruments for directing the flow of cosmic energy into the Earth. Recent scientific studies have proven the truth of this belief.^{[citation needed]} Thus, there is great local indignation about the excavation and removal of the Siberian Ice Maiden, an extraordinary 2,500-year-old mummy that had been preserved in permafrost.

Grigory Gurkin, born in 1870 in Ulala, was the first professional Altay artist. He is notable for his Altay landscapes.

Vasily Makarovich Shukshin (Russian: Васи́лий Мака́рович Шукши́н; 25 July 1929 – 2 October 1974) was a notable Soviet/Russian actor, writer, screenwriter and movie director from the Altay region who specialized in rural themes.

See also[link]

• Music of Altai

References[link]

Notes[link]

Sources[link]

• 7 июня 1997 г. «Конституция Республики Алтай (Основной Закон)», в ред. Конституционного закона №5-КРЗ от 27 ноября 2007 г. (June 7, 1997 Constitution of the Altai Republic (Basic Law), as amended by the Constitutional Law #5-KRZ of November 27, 2007. ).

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Altai Republic

• Official website of the Altai Republic
• (Russian) Official website of the Altai Republic
• National anthem of the Altai Republic (mp3)
• (Russian) (English) Gorno-Altaisk State University
• (German) Altai-Portal
• United Nations University digital video (2009) "Rediscovering Altai's human-nature relationships - Russia": a Telengit community leader and shaman from the Russian Altai’s high altitude Kosh Agach Raion traversing Altai’s sacred lands Accessed 1 December 2009
• (Russian) Photos of Mountain Altai - Altai-Photo

v t e Turkic-speaking regions Federal subjects of Russia shown in italics.     Western Turkic  Azerbaijan1  Bashkortostan (Russia)  Chuvashia (Russia)  Northern Cyprus Eastern Turkic  Altai Republic (Russia)  Khakassia (Russia)  Gagauzia (Moldova)  Kabardino-Balkaria (Russia)  Karachay-Cherkessia (Russia)  Karakalpakstan (Uzbekistan)  Sakha Republic (Russia)  Tuva (Russia)  Kazakhstan  Kyrgyzstan  Tatarstan (Russia)  Turkey  Turkmenistan  Uzbekistan  Xinjiang (China) 1 Includes the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.