The history of Buryatia is fundamentally much more ancient in nature than it seems to many. Already in the 16th century BC, a developed culture existed on its territory, which archaeologists called the culture of tiled graves due to the fact that its representatives had a special way of burial, based on folding of specially treated stone slabs of burial grounds of a recognizable shape. Subsequently, Proto-Mongol and Mongol tribes, as well as some Turkic peoples, left their traces in the territory of Transbaikalia.
History of Buryatia to the Mongols
People on the banks of the river She settled in the Upper Paleolithic era. There were later settlements, however, most of the ancient man’s sites on the territory of modern Buryatia, although they existed for quite some time in one place, have not survived to our time.
At the turn of a new era in the territory of Transbaikalia, where Buryatia is located today, the first state formations founded by the Hunnu tribes appear. A century later, Buryatia came under the control of the East Turkic Kaganate, and later under the control of the Uyghurs.
In the tenth and eleventh centuries, a significant part of Buryatia fell under the rule of the Khitan Mongols, who imposed tribute to the local population, and later set about conquering neighboring tribes. At that time, Buryatia did not represent a centralized state formation, but rather resembled an ethnocultural region, united by a common history, but under the authority of various rulers. This state of affairs existed until the seventeenth century.
Geography and climate of Buryatia
Located in the very center of Asia, Buryatia stretches along the eastern shore of Lake Baikal, which is located in the south of Eastern Siberia. Such a considerable length from south to north also determines a significant climatic diversity over the entire area of Buryatia, which is 351,300 square kilometers.
In addition to a large extent, the climate of the republic is also influenced by large elevations. The lowest point of the region is the water level in Lake Baikal and its shores, and the highest is the snow-white, glacier-covered peak of Munku-Sardyk, which belongs to the eastern part of the Sayan Mountains.
At the same time, the southern part of the relief of the Republic of Buryatia is formed by the Selenginsky middle mountains, on the territory of which the formation of the water basin of the Selenga river takes place . The minimum elevation is at an altitude of 456 meters above sea level.
The geography of Buryatia also determines the climatic regime on its territory, which is characterized by a noticeable seasonality with pronounced hot summers and long cold winters. Thus, from a climatic point of view, the republic belongs to the continental climate belt. On the other hand, significant elevations create the necessary conditions for altitudinal zonation.
An important distinguishing feature of the Buryat climate is considered to be a significant duration of sunshine, which ranges from 1900 to 2200 hours a year.
Wildlife of Buryatia
The population of Buryatia is 984,495 people, which, combined with a significant territory and a high proportion of the urban population, creates all the necessary conditions for maintaining the virgin purity of nature.
Of course, the most popular natural site of this region is Lake Baikal, which attracts many tourists with its beauty and diverse natural world, the indisputable symbol of which is the Baikal seal.
Wild boars, wolves, musk deer, roe deer, ermine, lynx, roe deer and many other species of animals, including those listed in the Red Book, live in the Buryat taiga. To preserve the local fauna, the diversity of which reaches five hundred species, nature protection zones are created, such as the Baikal and Barguzinsky biosphere reserves.
Water resources of Buryatia
Such a significant natural diversity that a traveler can observe on the territory of the republic could not exist without significant water supplies that nourish the taiga, covering 83% of the area of Buryatia.
Hydrologists in the republic count up to thirty thousand rivers, the total length of which is one hundred fifty thousand kilometers. However, only twenty-five of them belong to the category of large and medium, while the rest are considered small, not exceeding two hundred kilometers in length each.
The vast majority of the water flow of all the rivers of Buryatia belongs to three large basins: the Angara and Lena rivers, as well as the basin of Lake Baikal. Lakes in the republic are also more than thirty-five thousand, but the most significant in terms of the area of the water mirror and the volume of water stored in them are Gusinoe, Bolshoy and Maloye Eravnye, as well as Lake Baunt. As for Lake Baikal, about 60% of its area is located on the territory of Buryatia.
Recent story
Modern borders and the political system of Buryatia took shape as a result of the civil war that followed the October Revolution. From 1917 to 1920 on the territory of the republic, both simultaneously and one after the other, there were several governments acting in the interests of the Buryats and the tsarist government.
In March 1920, after the liberation of Buryatia by the Red Army, the Buryat national autonomy was created. After numerous administrative reforms, mergers and divisions, the borders of the Buryat-Mongol Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic were finally formed by 1922, which existed with minor changes until 1958, when the Buryat Autonomous Republic, which was part of the RSFSR, was created. At that time, the capital of Buryatia was Verkhneudinsk, renamed Ulan-Ude in the wake of the national revival that followed the collapse of the USSR. From this moment begins a new chapter in the national history of the Buryats.
Immediately after the collapse of the USSR, a declaration of state sovereignty was adopted in Buryatia, which the People's Khural of the Republic of Buryatia declared invalid in 2002. In 2011, the republic celebrated the entry of Buryatia into Russia, which took place three hundred and fifty years ago.
Buryatia today
Modern Buryatia is a republic within Russia. She has all the necessary attributes of state power, such as a flag, coat of arms and anthem. In addition, until recently, the Declaration on State Sovereignty was in force.
From the point of view of the law on the administrative structure, Buryatia is divided into twenty-one municipal districts and two cities of republican significance. The official language of Buryatia, simultaneously with Russian, is Buryat. This situation is enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic.
The Republic is one of the most urbanized in the Russian Federation, since the vast majority of the population of Buryatia live in six cities. The largest cities with a population of over twenty thousand include Ulan-Ude, Kyakhta, Gusinozersk and Severobaikalsk. The capital of the republic is the city of Ulan-Ude, whose population exceeds four hundred thirty one thousand people. This is the main industrial and economic center of the republic.
The time in Buryatia is five hours ahead of Moscow, which means that the republic is in the UTC + 8 time zone.
Government
State power in the republic is exercised by the Head of Buryatia, the Government, the courts, as well as the People's Khural of the Republic of Buryatia, which exercises legislative power, being the representative body of the people's power.
The People’s Khural of the Republic of Buryatia consists of 66 deputies who are elected using a mixed system, including both single-member districts and party lists.
In its modern form, the People's Khural has existed since 1994, when it was created on the basis of the executive committee of the Buryat Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. During the twenty-three years of its existence, the Khural convened five times. The competence of this state body includes preparation and discussion, as well as the initiation of legislative acts affecting all spheres of public life, such as safety, health and the economy.
The structure of the economy of Buryatia
Despite the small population, Buryatia is among the subjects of the federation, whose economy developed in accordance with regional and climatic conditions.
In accordance with the level of its economic development, the republic occupies the sixtieth place among other regions of Russia, located between the Novgorod region and the Nenets Autonomous District.
The main enterprises that produce the gross product of the republic are located in the capital of Buryatia - the city of Ulan-Ude. For example, in the capital are the Locomotive Repair Plant, as well as the Aircraft and Instrument Making Plants. In addition, in the city there are numerous enterprises of transport, communications and energy.
The most developed branch of the Buryat economy - the service sector - is best represented in the capital of the republic. Of the total population of Buryatia, more than half live in Ulan-Ude, so it is not surprising that the main enterprises focused on the final consumer are concentrated here.
Culture of the region
Despite the fact that in accordance with the plan for the creation of national autonomies, which was implemented during the first years of the USSR and the pattern of territories for the creation of state entities, the vast majority of the population of the republic are Russians.
In Buryatia, the population is represented by two large ethnic groups, the Buryats themselves, living on these lands for many centuries, and the Russians, who began active colonization of Transbaikalia in the late XVll century.
The development of the south of Eastern Siberia by Russian pioneers began with the construction of the Uda prison, which for one century served as one of the important fortifications in this region. It was regularly rebuilt and modernized, as it was besieged twice by the Mongol tribes controlled by neighboring China. However, for a century and a half, most of the buildings in it were wooden.
The architectural heritage of Ulan-Ude
The first stone building was the Odigitrievsky Cathedral, built in 1741. The same cathedral served as the point from which the new stone city began to rebuild.
For example, modern Lenin Street was the first street connecting Odigitrievsky Cathedral with Nagornaya Square, later renamed into Soviet Square, which today is the main square of Buryatia. Before the establishment of Soviet power in the republic, the street was called Bolshaya Nikolaevskaya.