The population of Elista is about 103 thousand people. This is the data provided by the latest census. This city is the capital of the Republic of Kalmykia, one of three in the Russian Federation, where the dominant religion is not Orthodoxy or Islam, but Buddhism. This is its main feature.
Residents of Elista
The official record of the population of Elista has been conducted since 1880. Then, according to documents, 331 residents were registered in the settlement. Since then, it has become a city and has grown substantially. By 1888, the population had tripled. Then the growth of the population of Elista was observed both during the time of Tsarist Russia and during the years of Soviet power. The milestone of 10 thousand inhabitants was overcome in the 30s. More than 50 thousand Elista residents began to live in the capital of Kalmykia since 1973. In 1998, the 100,000th resident was registered in the city. All this is explained by the rapid development of the republican center.
Growth in the population of Elista was observed even in the crisis years of the 1990s, when the rest of Russia was mostly in decline. The peak point was reached in 2001, when 107 thousand 800 inhabitants were registered in the city. Thereafter, a decline began, whichIn fact, it is still going on. At the moment, the population of Elista is 103 thousand 899 people. As of January 1, 2017, the city ranks 166th in Russia in terms of population. It is the only settlement in Kalmykia with over one hundred thousand inhabitants.
National composition
Information about the national composition of the population of Elista has been conducted since 1939. At that time, 17 thousand 100 people lived in the city, more than 13 thousand of which were Russians. In percentage terms, their share was more than 75 percent. In second place were the Kalmyks - the indigenous people of Kalmykia. There were about three and a half thousand of them. This is approximately 20% of the total population of the city. There were a small number of Ukrainians, Armenians and Kazakhs.
By 2010, the situation has changed dramatically. Firstly, the population of the city of Elista has multiplied. In 2010, as there is official information about the ethnic composition of the settlement, 103 thousand 749 people lived here. Then the vast majority of them were Kalmyks. This is more than 68 thousand people - 65%. Russians in the city left a little less than 26 thousand people (this is about 25%). There are hundreds of Ukrainians, Armenians, Kazakhs and Gypsies. The latter, by the way, are not in the lists of 1939. By 2010, 309 gypsies officially lived in Elista.
History of the Republican capital
In order to better understand why the numerical and national composition of Elista changed so much, let's turn to its history. It all started with Nicholas I,who in 1845 issued a decree on the settlement of the Kalmyk steppes. Before the very first settlement appeared on this place, the Kalmyks, who had long been a nomadic people, arranged their camps here. The Kalmyks called this place Elista, which means "sandy" in their language. The entire left slope consisted of abundant loose sands. So the name was assigned to the village formed in this place.
The founder of Elista is officially considered Stepan Kiykov, who was previously a serf. After the abolition of serfdom, he freed himself from this yoke and in 1862, on the advice of a local resident named Bola, built the first dugout in this place. Already by 1865, as many as 15 courtyards could be counted on the site of the future republican capital. It is 1865 that is today considered the year of the founding of the city. Elista soon became popular and famous thanks to the large livestock fairs that were regularly organized in the Kalmyk steppes.
Soviet power
Initially, Elista herself belonged to the Astrakhan province. The situation changed only after the arrival of Soviet power in these places. This happened in 1918. Two years later, a decree was issued that formalized the creation of an autonomous region of the Kalmyk people. But at first, the authorities were based in Astrakhan in the old fashioned way.
In 1925, it was decided to transfer the center of the region to the city of Elista, whose population at that time numbered about two thousand people. From 1927 they beganactively allocate funds for the construction of cultural, administrative, household buildings, as well as residential buildings for a growing settlement every year. In 1930, a decree was issued to transform the village of Elista into a city.
During the war years
During the Great Patriotic War, the city was occupied by the Germans. The Soviet underground operated here, which opposed the coming fascists. In the vicinity of Elista, two partisan detachments were operating at once. Elista was liberated on December 31, 1942. On the one hand, it was almost less than other Soviet cities under occupation, on the other hand, retreating, the Germans burned almost the entire city. In December 1943, a black streak began in the life of the Kalmyk people. Together with the Caucasian peoples, the Kalmyks were forcibly deported, considering them unreliable. They went from their homes to Northern Kazakhstan, Siberia and the Far East. In 1944, the Kalmyk SSR was liquidated. This situation continued until 1957.
In 1944, Elista was renamed the city of Stepnoy. She again became part of the Astrakhan region. And in 1952, the Soviet government included it in the Stavropol Territory. The fate of Elista after the end of the Great Patriotic War was sad. The Kalmyks were deported, the autonomy was liquidated, and the city practically did not recover. Data on the population during this period was not preserved, almost no records were kept. Residents remained only on the outskirts and in the suburbs. The main building of the House of Soviets stood destroyed moreten years. Only a mill, a collective farm named after Stalin and a small dairy factory remained functioning within the city. Only here people could get a job at that time.
Restoration of Elista
Restoration of the future republican capital began in 1957. The population of Elista only then began to increase. The impetus for this was the debunking of Stalin's personality cult. After that, the rehabilitation of the Kalmyk population took place, and a decision was made to restore statehood. By 1959, the population of the city of Elista exceeded 23 thousand people. In 1969, a railway station was opened here in a solemn atmosphere, which was a clear sign of the restoration of the city. Many jobs have been opened: at the plant for the production of reinforced concrete structures, the expanded clay plant, the production of sand-lime bricks, and panel construction of houses has been developed.
In the 70-80s, following the active development of housing construction, new educational institutions and centers of cultural and social life began to open in the city. Asph alt roads appeared that connected Elista with Volgograd and Astrakhan. Elista is a city in Russia where, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, they seriously took up the construction of buildings and monuments that would reflect the culture and traditions of the Kalmyk people. Nowadays, the city is one of the key Buddhist centers in Russia.
City economy
Employment of the population of Elista is provided by large industrial enterprises that are inrepublican center. The basis of the urban industry is formed by oil and gas enterprises with a high level of average wages. There are also companies associated with the manufacturing industry, printing, clothing, food industry. Kalmyk companies are engaged in the production and redistribution of electricity, as well as water and gas.
PJSC "Kalmneft" is considered one of the largest enterprises in the city. This is an oil company that is engaged in exploration and development drilling exclusively in open fields. Gazprom Gas Distribution Elista, which produces and supplies natural gas, also operates here.
The clothing and food industries are represented mainly by small enterprises that belong to the sphere of small and medium-sized businesses. Pulp and paper production and printing house are well developed. The construction complex is well developed in the region. Several large companies are engaged in the construction of apartment buildings.
Vocational education
After the end of the Great Patriotic War, a large number of educational institutions were opened, in which it became possible to get a profession in demand. At the moment, the Kalmyk Institute for Humanitarian Research of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Research Institute of Agriculture, the Institute for Comprehensive Research of Arid Territories is considered the largest.
Unemployment rate
Traditionally in KalmykiaThe unemployment rate has been high in recent years. For example, in 2010 it was the highest in the entire Southern Federal District, amounting to more than 17%. Recently, the situation has gradually stabilized. As of 2017, the official unemployment rate is 9.2%. Of the 133,000 economically active population of Elista, more than twelve thousand people do not have a permanent job and salary. At the same time, the average unemployment rate in Russia is 5.5 percent. The maximum is observed in Ingushetia (almost a third of the economically active population remains unemployed there), the lowest unemployment rate in Moscow and St. Petersburg - a little more than one and a half percent.
