Orsk

For other places with the same name, see Orsk (disambiguation).
Orsk (English)
Орск (Russian)
-  City  -

Orsk railway station

Location of Orenburg Oblast in Russia
Orsk
Location of Orsk in Orenburg Oblast
Coordinates: 51°12′N 58°34′E / 51.200°N 58.567°E / 51.200; 58.567Coordinates: 51°12′N 58°34′E / 51.200°N 58.567°E / 51.200; 58.567
Coat of arms
Flag
Administrative status (as of November 2011)
Country Russia
Federal subject Orenburg Oblast[1]
Administratively subordinated to City of Orsk[1]
Administrative center of City of Orsk[1]
Municipal status (as of December 2011)
Urban okrug Orsk Urban Okrug[2]
Administrative center of Orsk Urban Okrug[2]
Mayor Viktor Frants[3]
Representative body City Duma
Statistics
Population (2010 Census) 239,800 inhabitants[4]
- Rank in 2010 80th
Time zone YEKT (UTC+05:00)[5]
Founded 1735
City status since 1865
Postal code(s)[6] 4624xx
Dialing code(s) +7 3537
Official website
Orsk on Wikimedia Commons

Orsk (Russian: Орск) is the second largest city in Orenburg Oblast, Russia, located on the steppe about 100 kilometers (62 mi) southeast of the southern tip of the Ural Mountains. The city straddles the Ural River. Since this river is considered a boundary between Europe and Asia, Orsk can be said to lie in two continents. Population: 239,800 (2010 Census);[4] 250,963 (2002 Census);[7] 270,711 (1989 Census).[8]

Geography

The city is located where the Ural River turns from south to west and where the Or River comes in from the southeast (whence the name). It was part of the Orenburg Line of forts.

History

Orsk was founded in 1735 in the process of the Russian colonization of Bashkiria and the Southern Ural region. The first settlement was founded by an expedition headed by Ivan Kirilov as a military fortification at the Mount Preobrazhenskaya on the left bank of the Yaik River (presently Ural River). Originally called Orenburg, its name was changed to Orsk in 1739. In 1743, the name of Orenburg was transferred to the town which is now known under this name; it is located 250 kilometers (160 mi) west of Orsk. At its foundation it marked a southeastern projection of European Russia toward the steppes of Central Asia. It housed an exchange post and Russian customs that dealt with traders from Kazakhstan and Asia.

From June 22, 1847 to May 11, 1848, the fortress of Orsk was home of the exiled Ukrainian poet and painter Taras Shevchenko. In 1861, the fortress was decommissioned and became a station of the Orenburg Cossack army. In 1865, Orsk was granted the city status and became the uyezd center in Orenburg Governorate.

The city grew dramatically starting from the 1870s. The population was mainly occupied with trade in cattle and grain, reprocessing of agricultural products, and various arts and crafts. Many women were involved in the business of weaving famous Orenburg shawls. By 1913, the population of Orsk was over 21,000, and by 1917 there were eleven churches and minarets, and sixteen educational facilities of various types and levels. During the Russian Civil War, from 1918 to 1919, Orsk withstood a three-month-long blockade and then four times changed hands between warring sides.

In the 1930s, the construction of large industrial enterprises, which drew their resources from the mineral rich soils of the region, started. One of the most notable stones excavated within the Orsk city line in the Mount Polkovnik is jasper. Orsk jasper is revered for its variety of natural designs and colors. All colors except for blue are represented in this stone.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is, together with eight rural localities, incorporated as the City of Orsk—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts.[1] As a municipal division, the City of Orsk is incorporated as Orsk Urban Okrug.[2]

Economy

Orsk is the most important industrial center of Orenburg Oblast. The main industries are metallurgy, machine building, petroleum chemistry, food and light industries. Most important enterprises are Yuzhuralnikel, Orskneftetorgsintez, and Yuzhuralmashzavod.

Transportation

The city is served by the Orsk Airport.

Education and culture

A branch of Orenburg State Institute of Management (OSIM) operates in the city. Other than that, there is one major institute in Orsk: Orsk' humanitary-technological institute. There are also a number of different schools and colleges, State Drama Theater, Museum of Local History, Laboratory of Archeological Studies, Children's Art Gallery, Children's Folk Theater "Blue Bird", and a municipal brass band.

Some of the peculiar landmarks of industrial Orsk are forty archeological monuments including ancient settlements, mass and single grave sites. Those that have been excavated became famous in the scientific world. For instance, grave sites in Kumak, that date back to the Bronze Age provide convincing evidence to the hypothesis of Eastern European roots of Indo-European peoples.

In the grave sites that date back to the early Iron Age (7th-6th centuries BCE) left by "savromatian" or "sormatian" tribes scientists found many ancient items including a clay vessel bearing the name of the Persian ruler Artaxerxes I, the sixth such vessel found in the world.

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 Law #1370/276-IV-OZ
  2. 1 2 3 Law #2367/495-IV-OZ
  3. ↑ Official website of the Orsk Electoral Commission. Election results (Russian)
  4. 1 2 Russian Federal State Statistics Service (2011). "Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том 1" [2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года (2010 All-Russia Population Census) (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
  5. ↑ Правительство Российской Федерации. Федеральный закон №107-ФЗ от 3 июня 2011 г. «Об исчислении времени», в ред. Федерального закона №248-ФЗ от 21 июля 2014 г. «О внесении изменений в Федеральный закон "Об исчислении времени"». Вступил в силу по истечении шестидесяти дней после дня официального опубликования (6 августа 2011 г.). Опубликован: "Российская газета", №120, 6 июня 2011 г. (Government of the Russian Federation. Federal Law #107-FZ of June 31, 2011 On Calculating Time, as amended by the Federal Law #248-FZ of July 21, 2014 On Amending Federal Law "On Calculating Time". Effective as of after sixty days following the day of the official publication.).
  6. ↑ Почта России. Информационно-вычислительный центр ОАСУ РПО. (Russian Post). Поиск объектов почтовой связи (Postal Objects Search) (Russian)
  7. ↑ Russian Federal State Statistics Service (May 21, 2004). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек" [Population of Russia, Its Federal Districts, Federal Subjects, Districts, Urban Localities, Rural Localities—Administrative Centers, and Rural Localities with Population of Over 3,000] (XLS). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года [All-Russia Population Census of 2002] (in Russian). Retrieved August 9, 2014.
  8. ↑ Demoscope Weekly (1989). "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров" [All Union Population Census of 1989: Present Population of Union and Autonomous Republics, Autonomous Oblasts and Okrugs, Krais, Oblasts, Districts, Urban Settlements, and Villages Serving as District Administrative Centers]. Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года [All-Union Population Census of 1989] (in Russian). Институт демографии Национального исследовательского университета: Высшая школа экономики [Institute of Demography at the National Research University: Higher School of Economics]. Retrieved August 9, 2014.

Sources

External links

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