The Republic of Altai is one of the subjects of the Russian Federation. It has another name - Gorny Altai. The Republic of Altai and the Altai Territory are different subjects of the Russian Federation. The capital of the republic is the city of Gorno-Altaysk.
The Altai Republic is located southeast of the Altai Territory, southwest of the Kemerovo Region, west of the republics of Khakassia and Tuva, north of Mongolia and China, and northeast of Kazakhstan.
The official languages are Russian and Altaic. The area of the region is 92,903 km2. The population of the Republic of Altai is 218,063 people, and its density is 2.35 people/km2.
Geographic features
The Republic of Altai is characterized by a pronounced mountainous relief with high and snow-covered massifs and narrow valleys. The highest point is Mount Belukha (4509 m above sea level).
The climate is characterized by sharp continentality, frosty winters and shorthot summer. There are large diurnal temperature fluctuations. Some areas correspond to the regions of the Far North in terms of the severity of climatic conditions.
The hydrographic network is well developed. There are approximately 7,000 lakes and over 20,000 different streams in the region.
Local time is 4 hours ahead of Moscow time and corresponds to Krasnoyarsk time.
The Republic of Altai is one of the poorest regions in Russia.
Population
In 2018, the population was 218,063 people. The population density of the Altai Republic was 2.35 people. per sq. km. The proportion of urban residents was 28.65%.
Population dynamics shows constant growth, which has continued in recent years. In 1897, the number of inhabitants was only 41,983. Population growth continued in the 1990s. Such dynamics is unusual for Russian regions, in most of which the number of inhabitants has been declining or relatively stable since 1990.
Birth rate and natural increase do not have such a clear dynamics and change in different directions in different directions.
Life expectancy is quite low and hardly changes over time. In 1990 it was 64.4 years, and in 2013 it was 67.3 years.
Features of the population of Altai
Altai is a sparsely populated region with low population density. One of the reasons for this is the harsh mountain conditions. The economy traditional for local residents prevails. All this contributes to the conservationnatural environment of this region. Recently, tourism has been actively developing here. The Republic of Altai is one of the smallest in Russia. It is in fourth place after Chukotka, the Magadan Region and the Jewish Autonomous Region, where the number of inhabitants is also small.
Another feature of the population of Altai is a high birth rate. Here it is 22.4 people/1000 and is 2 times higher than the mortality rate. As a result, the population is growing. For the same reason, there are much fewer pensioners here than young people.
Unemployment is quite significant in the region. Salaries, as in most other regions of Russia, are not high. However, another big disadvantage is the lack of jobs themselves. Together with harsh climatic conditions, low soil fertility and lack of natural resources, this creates unfavorable conditions for the life of the population of the Altai Republic, the number of which, despite growth, is rather low. The infrastructure here is also poorly developed.
Ethnic composition of the population
In the Republic of Altai, the share of Russians is much lower than in most other subjects of the Russian Federation. Here it is 57.5%. Approximately one third of the population of the region are Altaians. The share of Kazakhs is up to 6%. The rest of the nationalities are represented by fractions of a percent. The most numerous of them are Ukrainians (0.71%).
Religious composition of the population
According to a large-scale survey in 2012, 28% of the inhabitants of the republic are Orthodox believers,oriented towards the Russian Orthodox Church. 13% of respondents adhere to the traditional religion of Altai. Islam is professed by 6%, and Christianity (excluding Orthodoxy) - 3%. Another 1.6 percent profess Eastern religions, 25% believe in God as a higher power, 14% are atheists. Other religions are followed by 1% of the total number of respondents.
Population of cities in the Republic of Altai
The largest city is Gorno-Altaysk (over 60,000 people). In second place in terms of the number of inhabitants is Maima (from 10 to 20 thousand people). The rest of the cities are quite small (population less than 10,000 people). From 5 to 10 thousand people. live in the cities: Turochak, Shebalino, Onguday, Kosh-Agach. In the remaining settlements, the number of inhabitants is below 5,000 people.
