Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia Introduction
Welcome to the land of frozen tundra, vast snowy steppes and tropical beaches... Wait, what? Let's begin.
Regional Boundaries
The red line in this map represents the border of this region.
As you can tell by the map above, this region is massive. We often talk about regions as places that have a common characteristic; what do you think that might be here? Do Russians that live right next to North Korea on the Pacific Ocean actually have anything in common with Ukrainians that live 6,000 miles away in Europe? We will find out, but first let's take a look at the individual regions.
Russian Federation
Commonly known as Russia, the Russian Federation is the largest country in the world. The capital, and largest city by population in Europe, is Moscow (far left on the map). Roughly 30% of Russia is in Europe and 70% is in Asia.
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a difficult region to define. As mentioned above, 30% of Russia is also in the region. The Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), Belarus and Ukraine make up the bulk of the area.
Central Asia
Central Asia is often known as the land of "the Stans" because most of the countries there end in -stan. The suffix "Stan" means land of; so that means that Kazakhstan is the land of the Kazakhs. This region is one of the most mysterious and intriguing that we will study.
Interactive Map
Feel free to move, zoom and interact with the map below. See if you can find:
- Moscow
- Armenia (What mountain range is just to the north?)
- Lake Baikal (This lake holds more fresh water than all the Great Lakes Combined)
- The Russia-North Korea Border
- The Aral Sea (Check this feature out on Google ( link ), notice anything...?)
- HINT: In the upper left corner is a spyglass button, click it to search for locations.
Interactive overview of the Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia Region
Physical Geography
This region is vast and contains a lot of diversity in terms of physical geography.
Elevation Map of the region
Tundra in the North
In the far northern reaches of Russia you find tundra. This landscape is some of the harshest on the planet and yet people still live there. One of the key characteristics of tundra is permafrost, water in the ground that is frozen year-round. Temperatures in winter can routinely dip below negative sixty (-60) degrees Fahrenheit.
The Steppes
The steppes are a vast arid (dry) grassland that stretch across most of Asia. If you have ever driven through the American Great Plains then you have an idea of what this area looks like. If not, check out the picture below.
The Steppes
Warm Regions in the South
Although we often think of Russia as a cold and dark place, the region both in and around Russia stretches far to the south as well. Sochi, which you might remember from the 2014 Olympics, is a sub-tropical destination spot in Russia. Check out the picture from within a city park below.
Sochi Park
Population Density
- Where do most people in this region live? (North or South, East or West?)
- What is the largest city in the Russia by population?
- Why do you think that orange line running along the southern edge of Russia exists? (from Omsk all the way to the Pacific Ocean) Why might that be there?
Complete the following quiz using the information from this Story Map presentation.
Microsoft Forms