Belarus

nds:Wittrussland

The Republic of Belarus is a landlocked nation of Eastern Europe with the capital Minsk. "Belarus" is also spelled "Belorussia", "Byelorussia", and in other ways, in English language but the present government prefers "Belarus". Historically, in English, Belarus was sometimes referred to as "White Russia", a literal translation of its name. Some Belarusians find the name "Byelorussia" derogatory, as a vestige of Russian and Soviet imperialism and policies of russification. In English, Belarus and Belarusian are the common terms: they refer to the historical connection with the people known as Rus' that predated Russians, Ukrainians or Belarusianss.

Беларусь

coat of arms (In Detail) (Full size)
National motto: None
Official languages	Belarusian, Russian
Capital	Minsk
President	Aleksandr Lukashenko
Prime Minister	Henadz Navitski
President (in Exile)	Ivonka Survilla
Area  - Total  - % water	Ranked 84th 207,600 km² Negligible
Population  - Total (2002)  - Density	Ranked 74th 10,350,194 50/km²
Independence  - Declared  - Recognised	(Event Xxxx) 1990 (Year)
Currency	Belarusian Rouble
Time zone	UTC +2
National anthem	My Bielarusy
Internet TLD	.BY
Calling Code	375

Table of contents

1 History 2 Politics 3 Voblastsi 4 Geography 5 Economy 6 Demographics 7 Culture 8 Miscellaneous topics 9 External Links

History

Main article: History of Belarus

Politics

Main article: Politics of Belarus

Voblastsi

Main article: Voblastsi of Belarus

Belarus is divided into 6 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one municipality (harady, singular - horad):

• Brestskaya (Brest)
• Homyel'skaya (Homyel')
• Minsk, the horad
• Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna)
• Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow)
• Minskaya
• Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk)

Note: voblasti have the administrative center name following in parentheses.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Belarus

Belarus is in Eastern Europe. It borders Poland and Lithuania on the west, Russia on the east, Ukraine on the south and Latvia on the north. Belarus has an area of 207,600 sq km, making it slightly smaller than the state of Kansas. Although landlocked, it has 11,000 lakes. Three major rivers run through it: the Nyoman river, the Prypyats' river, and the Dineper river. Belarus is relatively flat and marsh-rich, with its highest point at Dzyarzhynskaya Hara, 346 m, and its lowest point on the Nyoman river, 90 m. Belarus has several natural resources including forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay.

List of cities in Belarus

Economy

Main article: Economy of Belarus

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Belarus

Culture

Main article: Culture of Belarus

Belarusian language, Music of Belarus

Holidays

Date	English Name	Local Name	Remarks
January 1	New Year	Novy Hod
January 7	Orthodox Christmas
January 14	Orthodox New Year
March 8	International Women's Day
March 15	Constitution Day		Adopted in 1994
May 1	International Labor Day
May 9	Victory Day		Denotes the victory against Germany in World War II
July 3	Independence Day
December 25	Catholic Christmas
Movable	Catholic Easter
Movable	Orthodox Easter
9 days after Orthodox Easter	Commemoration Day	Radunitsa

Miscellaneous topics

• Communications in Belarus
• Transportation in Belarus
• Military of Belarus
• Foreign relations of Belarus
• Belarusian media

External Links

• http://www.president.gov.by/eng/
• http://www.belarus-misc.org/

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