Oblast

An oblast (Slavonian verbalism or term, Czech: oblast, Slovak: oblas?, Russian, Ukrainian: ????????, Bulgarian: ???????) English equivalent area, province or zone.

Oblasts in Soviet Union and its successor countries

In the mentioned post-Soviet republics, oblasts are one step below the national level and further subdivided into districts called raiony (Russian: ???????; Ukrainian: ??????). A big city may also be a constituent part of oblast (Russian official: ????? ?????????? ??????????; Ukrainian official: ????? ????????? ???????????????) - being at the same level as raion.

Related Topics:
District - Raion - Russian - Ukrainian - City

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In the now-extinct Soviet Union, oblasts were two steps below the national level (the higher step being the Soviet Republics). Some oblasts of the Russian SFSR have had a complicated structure including not only raions and cities, but also autonomous entities.

Related Topics:
Soviet Union - Soviet Republics - Russian SFSR - Autonomous

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The oblasts in other post-Soviet countries are officially called:

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• Voblast in Belarus (see: Provinces of Belarus)
• in Lacinka vob?a??
• Oblys in Kazakhstan (see: Provinces of Kazakhstan)
• Oblast in Kyrgyzstan (see: Provinces of Kyrgyzstan)
• Viloyat in Tajikistan (see: Provinces of Tajikistan)
• Welayat in Turkmenistan (see: Provinces of Turkmenistan)
• Viloyat in Uzbekistan (see: Provinces of Uzbekistan)

Viloyat and welayat are derived from the Arabic language term wilayah.

Related Topics:
Arabic language - Wilayah

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Names of particular oblasts

One should note that a name of an oblast does not usually correspond with the name of the respective historical region. Oblasts are purely administrative units without any significant history: all of them have been formed in the middle of the 20th century. Typically, the Soviet/post-Soviet oblasts are named after their capital cities, officially called "oblast centers". The name of each oblast' is usually a relative adjective, formed by adding a feminine suffix to the name of respective center city. E.g. Poltava is the center of the Poltavs'ka oblast'.

Related Topics:
Region - 20th century - Capital cities - Adjective - Suffix - Poltava - Poltavs'ka oblast'

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Exceptions to this rule include:

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• Leningradskaya oblast of Russia keeps its Soviet-time name while the respective capital has readopted its historical name Saint-Petersburg.
• Volyns'ka and Zakarpats'ka oblasts of Ukraine retain the names of the respective historical regions (see Volyn and Transcarpathia), while their capital cities are Luts'k and Uzhhorod, respectively.

Political aspects of oblast subdivision

Generally, oblast is the typical subnational entity of a highly-centralized unitary state.

Related Topics:
Subnational entity - Unitary state

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Experts believe that Soviet government was applying not only the objective (socio-economic and geographic), but also particular political criteria in forming the oblasts. The administrative borders of several oblasts have sometimes been changed in order to reshuffle the local Communist Party organization, secure "the right" local administration for an industrial company, limit an ethnic activism etc. Such decisions were a Soviet version of the gerrymandering method of affecting a vote.

Related Topics:
Soviet - Communist Party - Gerrymandering

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Recent trends in oblast policy

President Putin of Russia has dramatically reformed the actual status of the country's oblasts. Formally remaining the second level of subdivision, they de facto became included into the large .

Related Topics:
Putin - Russia - De facto

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In attempts to meet new regional socio-economic and political issues, numerous projects are suggested to reform the oblast system in both Russia and Ukraine (mostly aimed to merge particular oblasts or change their borders).

Related Topics:
Russia - Ukraine

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