Chapter 20—Russia

• Tundra: a dry, treeless plain where temperatures are always cool or cold and only specialized plants
can grow.
• Taiga: thinly scattered, coniferous forests found in Europe and Asia.
• Steppe: a temperate grassland found in Europe and Asia.
• Chernozem: rich topsoil found in Russian steppes and other mid-latitude grasslands.
• Permafrost: a layer of soil just below the earth’s surface that stays permanently frozen.
• Czar: an emperor of Russia.
• Abdicate: to surrender one’s office, throne, or authority.
• Glasnost: a policy of openness introduced in the Soviet Union in the late 1980s.
• Soviet: in the former Soviet Union, any one of the various governing councils.
• Perestroika: in the former Soviet Union, a policy of economic restructuring.
• Ruble: the currency of Russia.
• Black market: the system of selling goods and services outside of official channels.

1. What are the physical characteristics of Russia?

• World’s largest country
• Highest points along S. + E. borders
• Highest mountain range—Caucasus18000 feet
• Mountains also rise near the Mongolian border in C. Asia = in the far N.E.
• Plains
o Mountains in S. + E.
o Most land fairly flat—gently rolling plains cover nearly all W. of Yenisei River
o E. of Yenisei, higher plateaus
• Ural Mountains
o N. to S. across plains—divide Europe from Asia
o Low and unimposing—only about 2,000 ft
o Low passes have permitted migration
o Erosion has worn down peaks, but Urals still contain many valuable minerals
• Rivers
o Plains and plateaus drained by some of the world’s mightiest rivers
o Water from west passes into Volga River—Europe’s longest river—which drains into the
Caspian Sea—world’s largest + landlocked lake
o E. of Urals rivers flow N. into Arctic Ocean
2. What is the importance of the taiga?
• Great source of paper + other forest products
• Home to many different animals—sable’s luxurious fur, wolves, hares
• Brown bear is found here—national symbol of Russia
3. Why is the steppe region of Russia important?
• Fertile soils here provide nutrients for Russia’s most productive agricultural area
4. How does permafrost affect construction and development in Siberia?
• Remote area with relatively few human residents
• Modern high-rise buildings stand 6 ft off the ground on special pilings, or posts
• Harsh climate + terrain make it difficult + very expensive to reach areas with abundant natural
resources
5. How and to what extent did Russian territory expand under the czars?
• Since no sizeable or powerful groups of people stood up against czars, and few natural barriers limited
the steady expansion of the nation
 • Peter the Great—governed in late 1600s and early 1700s—expanded control to the Pacific in E. and
Baltic in W., where he built the capital of St. Petersburg
• Catherine the Great—1700s—expanded control to W. and Poland, Belarus, + Ukraine
• After Napoleon, czars spread their power across N. Eurasia, taking control of Finland, the Crimean
Peninsula on the Black Sea
• Conquered + annexed homelands of 100+ ethnic groups
• By the beginning of 20th century—Russia controlled nearly all of N. Eurasia
6. What was the social structure like under the czars?
• Serfdom—peasants forced to work on the land on wealthy property owners, controlled virtually as
slaves
• Serfdom abolished in 1861—10s of millions of people were forced to remain on the same estates and
pay high prices for what little land they were given, leaving them poor + dissatisfied just as been they
were freed
7. How did the communists come to power?
• A series of defeats in WW1 + severe food shortages led to riots in St. Petersburg in Feb. 1917—when
gov. troops joined rioters, the czar abdicated the throne
• Russian Revolution in 1917 est. a gov. based on the ideas of Karl Marx—believed the to achieve social
quality, land and businesses should be owned by people in common, hence the word communism
8. Describe the economic and social conditions under the Soviet System.
• Economic
o Command economy
• Social
o Standard of living remained poor, + people had no personal freedom
o People who resisted were sent to prisons/forced-labor camps in Siberia
o Vast #’s of people were executed
o Religious worship and leaders were suppressed
9. How did Soviet policies impact agriculture and industry?
• Farmland—reorganized into state farms + collective farms—farmers forced to work on them
• State farm workers, like factory workers, received wages
• On collective farms, workers shared any surpluses that remained after products were sold + costs paid
• No motivationagricultural production + distribution remained low
• Policies also emphasized development of heavy industry, such as machines or steel
10. What was the Cold War?
• In a struggle where the Soviet Union competed for power with the US—2 nations never fought directly,
but both states spent enormous sums of money on military weapons
11. Under whose rule did Russia extend to the Pacific Ocean? Under whose rule was most of Central Asia, the
Caucasus, and Eastern Europe added? Who owned the most territory, the Czars or the Soviets?
• Pacific Ocean (czars)—1584-1800
• C. Asia, the Caucasus, + E. Europe (soviets)—1800-1855
• Most territory—czars
12. Describe the economic reorganization that took place under Mikhail Gorbachev.
• Glasnost—allowed citizens + news media to say what they wished w/out fear of gov. persecution
• Perestroika—economic restructuring, a changed from a command system to private ownership
• Factory managers rather than central planners ran the factory
• Farmers were granted long-term leases on land
• Independent businesses were established
13. How did economic reorganization lead to political change?
• Given new freedoms, many people called for an end to communism + c. government domination
• Baltic republics declared independence
• 1991—Russians voted in first democratic election
• Newly elected national leaders declared their republics independent of the Soviet Union
• Republics established their own governments
14. What challenges did Russia face after the fall of communism in 1991?
 • no democratic experience—constitution allowed president to rule by decree + ignore elected parliament
• people yearn for prosperity they see in W. nations that have free-market economies—although, miss
security associated w/ secure jobs, benefits, + pensions in the old system
• mixed feelings in national elections—both reformers + former Communists continue to attract significant
support
15. What are urban and rural life like in Russia today?
• Urban
o ¾ of pop. Live in large cities
o Over-crowding in apartments became common
o Sports, movies, + TV are popular
• Rural
o Traditional ways of life continue in villages
o People look forward to spending weekends + vacations in the country
o Russians love beauty of countryside + enjoy hiking/camping in mountains + forests
o Black Sea coast—favorite vacation spot
o Long tradition of artistic creativity, although some writers + composers were persecuted by
government
16. How does ethnic turmoil challenge Russia?
• Caucasus region—most complicated + unsettled collection of ethnic groups
• 6/21 separate republics here
• 1992-2001—armed conflict occurred in 5/6 republics, as different groups fought ethnic Russians and
each other
17. What is the situation in Chechnya? Dagestan?
• Chechnya—tried to declare independence in 1991, Russia refused to accept, invaded twice but was
unsuccessful
• Dagestan—30 ethnic groups, each with own language, some Islamic groups want to establish an
independent state, while others eek good ties with Russia to advance economic development
18. How do the landscape and climate affect transportation in Russia?
• great size + harsh climate—make transportation difficult
• winter frosts buckle concrete, summer thaws turn roads into mushy swamps
• air travel is unsuitable for transporting oil and natural gas
• Rivers
o Important, but frozen for many months
o Drive on ice rivers and gravel roads
• Railroads
o Practical alternative to pipelines for shipping oil, people, and goods
o Inexpensive—Russian rail lines carry almost half of all freight in the world
o Trans-Siberian Railroad
o Baikal-Amur Mainline—crosses 3,700 bodies of water, 7 mountain rangers, and tunnels as
much as 9 miles long
19. How has the move away from communism affected the Russian economy and Russian health?
• Economy
o Commandmarket—some have prospered, others lost secure gov. jobs, benefits, + pensions
o Goods have been scarce, and many can’t afford
o Inflation—financial instability led many to trading goods + services through barter—black market
has grown
o Some argue that informal transfers now exceed formal economic transactions in value
o Conversion of state-run industries to private firms—didn’t work well, farmers seemed to prefer
the familiarity of the Soviet-style arrangements despite their inefficiencies
o Conversion also failed because of corrupted, selfish minds
o Old and inefficient industries—no buyersworkers laid off
o Rising inflation + unemploymentdropped standard of living
• Health
 o Death rate increased
o Increases in alcoholism, drug abuse, divorce, + suicide
o Economic uncertainty + social pressuresdecrease in birthrate
20. What environmental challenges does Russia face?
• Intense industrialization depleted resources + hurt the environment
• Many Siberian cities rank among Russia’s most pollute Durban centers
• Lung cancer levels + respiratory infections among children occur at an alarming rate
• Oil spills and industrial pollution threaten to harm bodies of water beyond repair
• Volga River—polluted and chocked by dams that fish species are now extinct
• Technical expertise lacking to prevent further environmental damage—also shortage of money