Until recently, only the inhabitants of this country and former citizens of the USSR heard about this region of Ukraine. Today, Lugansk region is on everyone's lips.
General information
Luhansk region is the easternmost region of Ukraine. It is located on a plain running from the valley of the river. Seversky Donets. In the south of it is the Donetsk Ridge, and in the north are the spurs of the Central Russian Upland. Thanks to good climatic conditions and a good location, this area has always been inhabited by people. Luhansk region borders on Donetsk (southwest) and Kharkov (northwest) regions of Ukraine. In addition, it has a long border with Russia. In the east, north and south, it borders on the Voronezh, Belgorod, Rostov regions of the Russian Federation.
Key Features
Luhansk region stretches from north to south for 250 km. From west to east, its length is 190 km. The territory of the Luhansk region is 26.7 thousand km, which is 4.4% of the Ukrainian land. The relief of the region is an undulating plain rising from the Seversky Donets to the south and north.
Educational History
For many centuries this territory, called the Wild Field,separated Russia from the Crimean Khanate. In the XVI century. guard services begin to form here. At this time, a huge number of royal troops appeared in this territory. At the end of the XVII century. a new historical region was formed here - Slobozhanshchina. In order to unite the coal regions into one whole, in 1919 the Donetsk province was formed with the center in the city of Lugansk, which existed until 1925. From 1925 to 1930 there was the Lugansk district. In June 1925, the provinces in Ukraine were abolished, and the district became directly subordinate to the Ukrainian SSR.
The Luhansk region received its current name in 1958. And before that, since the division of the Stalin region in 1938, it was called Voroshilovgrad. However, the original name was returned in the period from 1970 to 1990. Then it was decided to re-select the second option. After the collapse of the USSR, the Lugansk region remained part of independent Ukraine.
Mineral resources
These territories are famous for their deposits of high quality coal. They are in the billions of tons. One third of them are coking, and two thirds are anthracites. Natural gas deposits have also been discovered here. Sandstone, limestone, marl, chalk, and various clays have been found in several districts of the Luhansk region. Mineral water springs discovered in Lugansk, Lisichansk, Severodonetsk, Starobelsk.
Climatic conditions
Temperate continental climate prevails on the territory of the Luhansk region. In January, the average temperature is -15 °C, and in July+35°C. This area has relatively cold winters. Its distinctive feature is sharp southeast and east winds and severe frosts. Summer here is hot and dry. In autumn, the Luhansk region is warm, dry and sunny. Precipitation is about 500 mm per year.
Soils and vegetation
Fertile lands are what Ukraine has always been famous for. Luhansk region in this case is no exception. Chernozems predominate here. The thickness of the fertile layer in some places reaches 1-1.5 m thick. Soddy soils are also common here. Most of the Luhansk region is steppe. There are few forests here - they occupy approximately 7% of the region's territory.
Economy
The favorable geographical position of the region contributed to the development of the economy. This is a territory of long developed lands. Its benefits are:
- proximity to areas rich in raw materials, such as the North Caucasus, the Dnieper region, the Black Earth region of Russia;
- presence of a well-developed network of roads and railways;
- proximity of large industrial centers and regions (Kharkov, Center of Russia, Rostov-on-Don).
What is the Luhansk region famous for? 2014 brought destruction to all sectors of the economy in this region. Until recently, mining and chemical industries, heavy engineering, metallurgy, and agriculture flourished in it. This region was one of the five most developed industrial and economic regions of Ukraine. Up to 5% of all labor resources and approximately 4.6% of the country's fixed assets were concentrated here. Industry was the leading branch of the economy. Hershare in the gross domestic product amounted to three quarters.
Industrial complex of Luhansk region
In the diversified complex of the Lugansk region, the processing industry was in the lead. In the total volume of production, its share was about 72%. It is represented by enterprises of oil refining, coke production, mechanical engineering, petrochemical and chemical industries. Plants for the production of pulp and paper products, foodstuffs, building materials worked in the region. The products of the Luhansk region could be found not only on the territory of Ukraine, but also far beyond its borders. The main trading partner of this region was the Russian Federation.
Industry area
There are several heavy industries in the region. The fuel and energy complex is also developed here, the main part of which is mining enterprises. They account for about 18% of the total production volume. The extractive industry consists mainly of coal enterprises. The Luhansk region in the industrial complex of the country stands out for its scale of coal mining, primary oil refining capacity, production of machine tools, window glass, synthetic resins, plastics, soda ash, container board.
3 largest industrial hubs have formed in this region:
- Lugansky - its specialization is determined by metalworking enterprises, machine building, light industry.
- Lysichansko-Rubezhansko-Severodonetsky -enterprises of the petrochemical, chemical industry.
- Alchevsko-Stakhanovskiy - metallurgical, coal and machine-building complexes.
In the ranking of the 100 largest enterprises in Ukraine are:
- JSC Alchevsk Metallurgical Plant.
- PP Rovenkianthracite.
- GAEK Luganskoblenergo.
- Zhidachevsky Pulp and Paper Mill.
- SE Severodonetsk Azot.
- Stakhanov Ferroalloy Plant.
- JSC Linos.
- JSC Lisichanskaya Soda.
Agriculture
The villages of the Lugansk region are the basis of agriculture in this territory. Producers specialize in the production of oil (sunflower) and grain (winter wheat, corn) crops. Animal husbandry and vegetable growing are quite developed. Rural residents raise dairy and beef cattle, pigs, and sheep. Poultry farming is well developed in the region. All agricultural production is concentrated in 19 administrative units. They are divided into 3 production zones (depending on soil-climatic and economic conditions): southern, northern and suburban. At the disposal of agricultural producers is 2.2 million hectares of land, of which 1.3 million hectares are sown areas. The use of modern agricultural technology helps to collect very high yields of various crops, vegetables and melons.
Population of Luhansk region
Luhansk region is characterized by a high level of urbanization. In this region, about 86,5% of the population lives in cities. The density is 96 people per 1 sq. km. This figure is the seventh among all Ukrainian cities. More than 53% of the population are women. Approximately 60% of the region's residents are people of working age. There are 706 children and pensioners per thousand able-bodied. The birth rate in the region is 6.1 ppm. In recent years, the Luhansk region has maintained a downward trend in population. The natural decline in the administrative regions was not the same.
In 2013, the population of the Lugansk region amounted to 2.3 million people. This region ranks 6th in terms of the number of people in Ukraine. For the period from 01.01.2014 to 01.09. In 2014, the population decreased by 6.6 thousand people.
National composition
Representatives of 104 nationalities (nationalities) live in the Lugansk region. The share of Ukrainians is slightly more than 50% of the total population. Russians - about 40%. Most of them live in areas located near Lugansk. Other representatives include Belarusians (1%) and Tatars (less than 1%).
Religion
Ukraine (including Luhansk region) is distinguished by the presence of many confessions. On the territory of the region under consideration, there are 45 areas of religion. They are represented by 791 religious organizations (764 communities, 10 regional administrations and associations, 5 educational institutions, 6 spiritual missions, 6 monasteries). There are 188 Sunday schools in the region. On the territory of the Lugansk region, the church is engaged in 1107clergy.
Among the total number of communities in the region:
- 58, 2% - Orthodox (444 communities);
- 24, 2% Protestants (185);
- 14% - non-traditional and new religious movements (107);
- 1, 7% - Jews (13);
- 1, 3% - Muslims (10);
- 0, 5% - Greek Catholics (4 congregations);
- 0, 1% - Roman Catholics (1 community).
Administrative divisions
Districts of the Luhansk region: Troitsky, Starobelsky, Slavyanoserbsky, Stanichno-Lugansky, Sverdlovsky, Svatovsky, Perevalsky, Popasnyansky, Novopskovsky, Melovsky, Novoaydarsky, Markovsky, Kremenskoy, Lutuginsky, Krasnodonsky, Belovodsky, Antratsitovsky, Belokurakinsky. It has 933 settlements, of which:
- 37 - cities (14 - regional and 23 - district);
- 109 - urban-type settlements;
- 787 - sat.
On the territory of the region there are: 17 district and 37 city councils, 84 village and 206 village councils.
Industrial centers
In addition to Lugansk, which is a major industrial center of the East of Ukraine, other settlements play an important role in the economic development of the region. These include, for example, Sverdlovsk. The Luhansk region is different in that even in relatively small settlements, various enterprises operate. Here are: coal processing complex "Sverdlovanthracite", GOAO "Mayak", the Canadian company East Coal Company, JV "Intersplav", OJSC "Sverdlovsk Machine-Building Plant", a miningequipment. Sverdlovsk (Lugansk region) has in its subordination: the city of Chernopartizansk, 6 urban-type settlements (Volodarsk, Pavlovka, Kalininsky, Leninsky, Miner, Fedorovka), 3 settlements (Kiselyovo, Prokhladny, Ustinovka), 7 villages (Kuryache, Malomedvezhye, Utkino, Matveevka, Rytikovo, Antrakop, Provalye) and the Ivashchensky farm.
Cities of Luhansk region
The high level of urbanization in this region was mentioned earlier. The majority of people live in cities and numerous villages. Most of them are large industrial enterprises. The cities of the Lugansk region, the population of which exceeds 18 thousand people, are: Lugansk (424.1 thousand people), Alchevsk (110.5), Severodonetsk (108.9), Lisichansk (103.5), Krasny Luch (82, 2), Stakhanov (77, 2), Sverdlovsk (64, 9), Rubizhnoye (60, 0), Anthracite (54, 2), Rovenki (47, 4), Bryanka (46, 8), Krasnodon (44, 0), Pervomaisk (38, 2), Kirovsk (28, 2), Perevalsk (25, 7), Molodogvardeysk (23, 1), Popasnaya (21, 8), Sukhodolsk (20, 9), Kremennaya (20, 1).
Language situation
The population of the Lugansk region speaks mostly two languages. In 2001, 30% of the region's population considered Ukrainian as their mother tongue. However, this percentage varies greatly, depending on the type of settlements. Thus, only 25.5% of the townspeople consider Ukrainian as their native language. In villages, this figure reaches 63.8%. Only 40% of schools in the region teach in Ukrainian. In some citiesthere are no Ukrainian-language educational institutions at all. The most Russified areas are: Perevalsky (77%), Stanichno-Lugansky (68%) and Lutuginsky (73%).
