The smallest region in Russia is Ingushetia. In addition, it is the youngest subject of the Russian Federation. However, the history of these lands goes back to ancient times. The population of Ingushetia is the subject of our story. The Republic ranks 74th in the Russian Federation in terms of the number of inhabitants and differs from other regions in many demographic and socio-economic indicators.
Geographic location
The Republic of Ingushetia is located in the North Caucasus. It borders on Georgia, North Ossetia, the Stavropol Territory and the Chechen Republic. The region is spread on the northern side of the Caucasus Range, in the foothills zone. The length of the Caucasus Mountains on the territory of the republic is about 150 km. The relief of Ingushetia is determined by its location, mountainous parts with deep gorges and peaks in the south prevail here, the north of the region is occupied by steppe regions.
The Republic has significantfresh water reserves, its rivers belong to the Terek river basin. The largest water artery of Ingushetia is the Sunzha River.
The soils of the republic are predominantly black earth, and this makes it possible to grow almost any crop here.
About 140,000 hectares of the region are occupied by broad-leaved forests, where valuable tree varieties such as oak, sycamore, beech grow.
The bowels of Ingushetia are rich in minerals. There are deposits of marble, oil, gas, limestone. The republic is world famous for its mineral waters of the Borjomi type.
Climate and ecology
The Republic of Ingushetia is located in a zone of favorable high-mountain continental climate. The weather varies depending on the altitude of the area. The steppe territories are characterized by long warm summers and short mild winters. In the highlands, winter lasts longer and can be quite severe. The temperature in winter is on average around -3 … + 6 degrees. In summer, the average figures are from 20 to 30 degrees Celsius. As you can see, the population of Ingushetia lives in very favorable conditions, nature here is not only beautiful, but also kind to people.
Since the Caucasus is a rather old mountain, there is relatively low seismicity here, so the main danger from the mountains is avalanches and landslides. The ecological situation in Ingushetia is quite favorable, there are few industrial enterprises, and therefore there are no large amounts of emissions into the environment. Humans are causing damage to natureprimarily tourists, as well as oil companies. But so far, the level of purity of water and air does not cause particular concern among environmentalists.
History of settlement
In the territory of Ingushetia, people have lived since the Paleolithic era. The Ingush are an ancient nation of the Caucasian race. The people were formed on the basis of local tribes and numerous ethnic influences. Several significant archaeological cultures have existed here over the long millennia. Representatives of the Koban culture are considered the immediate ancestors of the modern Ingush. The tribes living in these territories had several names: dzurdzuketia, sanars, troglodytes. The fertile lands of Ingushetia constantly attracted conquerors, so the local peoples had to build fortresses and towers for defense.
But the strong states of the neighbors are gradually pushing the Ingush into the mountains. Only in the 17th century did they manage to return to the plain. At the same time, Islam came to these lands, which gradually became the dominant religion. At the end of the 18th century, Ingushetia became part of the Russian Empire. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Nazran fortress was laid, which was rebuilt by the six largest Ingush families who swore allegiance to the Russian Tsar. In 1860, the Terek Republic was established here, which after 1917 became the Mountain Republic. During World War II, the authorities decided to deport the local population due to the growth of gangs. In 1957, the Chechen-Ingush Republic was restored. After the collapse of the USSR, due to difficult processes, the Republic was formedIngushetia. Then the population of Ingushetia was small, but gradually the people consolidated around their historical territories and began to build their own state.
Ingushetia population dynamics
Since 1926, regular counts of the number of inhabitants of the republic begin. Then 75 thousand people lived here. As a result of the unification of a large number of territories into the republic in 1959, the population of Ingushetia increased to 710 thousand, and by 1970 reached one million. In 1989, 1.2 million people lived in the republic. After the collapse of the USSR and gaining independence, the number of inhabitants dropped sharply to 189 thousand people. Since that time, a gradual increase in the population begins, the republic even managed to overcome the years of crisis almost without problems. Today, the population of Ingushetia is more than 497 thousand people.
Administrative division and population distribution
The Republic is divided into 4 districts: Nazranovsky, Sunzhensky, Dzheyrakhsky and Malgobeksky, and also includes 4 cities of republican subordination: Magas, Karabulak, Nazran and Malgobek. Since the final area of the republic has not been determined due to the territorial conflict with North Ossetia and the unapproved border with Chechnya, the statistics usually indicate an approximate size of 3685 square meters. km. The population density is 114 people per 1 sq. km. km. The most populated is the Sunzha Valley, where the density reaches 600 people per 1 sq. km. km. Ingushetia differs from many regions in that more than halfpopulation lives in villages.
Economy and standard of living
Ingushetia is a region with an underdeveloped economy, large federal subsidies come here, which ensure the stability of the region. Industry is poorly developed in the republic, it is mainly represented by the extractive industry. Most of the population works in agriculture and the public sector. Today, the number of poor people in Ingushetia is growing, as there is a decrease in production. The region has adopted a special program to support 5,000 disabled people and 28,000 large families. The Republic of Ingushetia, whose population is experiencing difficulties in finding employment, has an unemployment rate of 8.7%, which is quite a lot by Russian standards. It is especially difficult to find work for young people with higher education, as the manufacturing sector is stagnant.
