Study Guide: Russia and Central Asia
Name Key
1. What is Siberia? Where is it located?
Russian land to the east of the Ural Mountains; tundra and
subarctic climates; vast resources (fossil fuels and timber);
“sleeping land”
2. How do the per capita GDPs of the former Soviet republics compare to those of
western Europe?
Much lower, due to the former command economies of the former
Soviet republics
3. Which former Soviet republic is the wealthiest?
*SOL states Kazakhstan, Russia, then Turkmenistan
4. Why are the former Soviet republics still developing countries?
Governmental control of all resources and production created a
stagnant economy, the transition to a capitalist economy that
operates for profit has been difficult; and, the mismanagement of
resources
5. Describe the reasons for the violent situation in Chechnya.
Ethnic tension following their persecution by Joseph Stalin; later
asked to become an independent state following the break-up of
the U.S.S.R. but were denied
6. Which religion is most popular in Russia? In central Asia?
Russia – Christian Eastern Orthodox
Central Asia – Islam
7. What happened at Chernobyl in 1986? In which current country can you find
Chernobyl?
Site of a nuclear reactor meltdown and explosion causing massive
radiation contamination; located in present-day Ukraine
8. Why is the Aral Sea shrinking? Between which two countries is it located?
Over irrigation of feeder rivers to grow the cash crop (cotton) in
the semi-arid region of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan
9. The longest river in Europe is found in western Russia. What is it called?
Volga; the “mother Volga”
10.How does Russia’s size compare to the US? Its wealth? Its population?
Russia is about 2X larger than the U.S.
Russia’s GDP per capita is about 1/5 that of the U.S.
Russia’s population is about 1/2 that of the U.S.
11.What climate or vegetation regions can be found in Siberia?
Tundra in the far north areas that hug the Arctic Circle – mostly
treeless, with hearty shrubs, & permafrost
Subarctic in Siberia – taiga (coniferous forest) with cold winters,
short cool summers and abundant precipitation
12.Where are the Caucasus Mountains?
Span from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea; separate Russia from
the countries of Trans-Caucasia (Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan)
13.Where is the Amur River? The Ob River?
The Amur forms the eastern border of Russia and China before
flowing into the East Sea/Sea of Japan
The Ob is east of the Ural Mountains and flows north into the
Arctic Ocean
14.What is significant about Lake Baikal? Where is it located?
Lake Baikal is the deepest fresh water lake in the world (almost a
mile deep); it contains 1/6 of the world’s fresh water; it is located
in southeaster Russia
15.Where is the Bering Strait?
Separates Russia from Alaska at the Kamchatka Peninsula
16.Which bodies of water border Russia?
The Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Bering Strait & the
Bering Sea; the Sea of Japan/East Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Black
Sea
17.St. Petersburg is a Russian port city on which sea? Why was called the “window to
the West”?
The Baltic Sea; Peter the Great
18.Which energy resources are profitable in and around the Caspian Sea?
Oil
19.When did the Soviet Union collapse?
1991
20.Who owned all of the businesses and farms in the communist Soviet Union?
The government
21.Why did communism discourage hard work and new ideas?
The communist government controlled all aspects of the economy,
with no opportunity for advancements there was no incentive for
hard work or innovation.
22.List four examples of the Soviet governments disregard for the environment?
Chernobyl, the Aral Sea, the Caspian Sea; water pollution; air
pollution
23.Why are many of Russia’s resources still undeveloped, especially those in Siberia?
They lack the capital and human resources to extract and develop
them – it is too expensive
24.What is the dominant ethnic group in Russia? In central Asia?
Russia - Slavic
Central Asia – Turk and Mongol
25.What is painted on Russian Icons?
Jesus, Mary the mother of Jesus, and the Patron Saints
26.Which former Soviet areas are still known for producing oriental carpets?
Although they were originally traditional Siberian rugs, today it is
primarily in Central Asian countries & the Caucasus Region
27.What is the Kremlin? Where is it?
Russian governmental fortress, with a palace, museums, Orthodox
Churches, and armory, and administrative offices; it is found on
the edge of Red Square in Moscow, the capital city.
28.What is Red Square? Where is it?
Large open market square within the city of Moscow. It is home
to the Kremlin, St. Basil’s Cathedral, and the Lenin Mausoleum
(tomb).
29.What is a Samovar? Illustrate one.
Russian tea urn/pot
30.What are Matrioshka dolls? Illustrate them.
Russian “nesting dolls”
31.What are yurts? Illustrate one.
Portable tents used by nomadic herders on Central Asia and
Mongolia
32.What is a Faberge egg? Illustrate one.
Jeweled eggs created for the czars as gifts by jeweler Carl Fabergé
33.What is St. Basil’s Cathedral? Where is it? Illustrate it.
Large Eastern Orthodox Church commissioned by Ivan the
Terrible located in Red Square in Moscow, Russia