Minsk Region

Minsk Region or Minsk Voblasć or Minsk Oblast (Belarusian: Мі́нская во́бласць Minskaja voblasć [ˈmʲinskaja ˈvobɫasʲtsʲ]; Russian: Минская о́бласть; Minskaya Oblast) is one of the regions of Belarus. Its administrative center is Minsk, although it is a separate administrative territorial entity of Belarus. As of 2011, the region's population is 1,411,500.

Geography

Minsk Region covers a total area of 39,900 km², about 19.44% of the national total. Lake Narach, the largest lake in the country, is located in the northern part of the region. There are four other large lakes in this region: Svir (8th largest), Myadel (11th largest), Selyava (14th largest) and Myastro (15th largest). It is the only region of Belarus whose border is not part of the international border of Belarus.

History

From the beginning of the 10th century, the territory of the current Minsk Region was part of Kievan Rus'; later, a part of the Principality of Polotsk; then, was absorbed by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania after its formation. With the unification of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland, the territory became part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Minsk

Minsk (Belarusian: Мінск pronounced [mʲinsk]; Russian: Минск, [mʲinsk], Polish: Mińsk) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, situated on the Svislach and Nyamiha rivers. It is the administrative centre of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). As the national capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administrative centre of Minsk Region (voblast) and Minsk raion (district). In 2013, it had a population of 2,002,600.

The earliest historical references to Minsk date to the 11th century (1067), when it was noted as a provincial city within the principality of Polotsk. The settlement developed on the rivers. In 1242, Minsk became a part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It received town privileges in 1499.

From 1569, it was a capital of the Minsk Voivodship in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It was part of a region annexed by the Russian Empire in 1793, as a consequence of the Second Partition of Poland. From 1919 to 1991, after the Russian Revolution, Minsk was the capital of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic within the Soviet Union.

Minsk (disambiguation)

Minsk may refer to:

Places

Technology

Other meanings

See also

Minsk (band)

Minsk is a doom metal/post-metal band from Peoria, Illinois founded in 2002. Self described as "psychedelic metal", their songs tend to start out as slow and simple, and become heavy and complex towards the end. Their sound draws equally from sludge metal, doom metal, hardcore punk, ambient and noise music, with a highly psychedelic attitude achieved through tribal drum patterns, thick layers of synthesizers and keyboards, and echoing vocals. They are named after the capital of Belarus. The idea of survival through suffering is a recurring theme in the lyrics and musical style. In fact, regarding the origin of their name, their official biography states: "Drawing its nominal inspiration from a remote Belarusian city nestled deep amidst the in-betweens of the East and the West, a city that has been burned to the ground on several occasions only to be rebuilt like a Phoenix rising from its ashes." The sounds and atmospheres they evoke in their songs are complex and psychedelic.