Siberia

Siberia (Russian: Сиби́рь see-BEER') is a region in Russia. Historically, the term Siberia includes all Russian territory in north Asia, with the Urals and the Russian Far East; this article however only covers the Siberian Federal District.

Regions

Siberia regions - Color-coded map

Western Siberia (Altai Krai, Altai Republic, Khakassia, Kemerovo Oblast, Novosibirsk Oblast, Omsk Oblast, Tomsk Oblast)

Krasnoyarsk Krai (Evenkia, Krasnoyarsk, Taymyria)

Eastern Siberia (Buryatia, Zabaykalsky Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, Tuva)

Cities

Lake Kutserla in the Altai Republic

• 1 Novosibirsk
• 2 Barnaul
• 3 Irkutsk
• 4 Krasnoyarsk
• 5 Kemerovo
• 6 Novokuznetsk
• 7 Omsk
• 8 Tomsk
• 9 Ulan Ude

Other destinations

• 1 Lake Baikal. The pearl of Siberia. It is the deepest and one of the purest lakes in the world.

Understand

See also: Russian Empire, Soviet Union

The name is of Turkic origin, "su" (water) and "bir" (wild land). With an area of nearly 10 million sq km., Siberia is vast. While the popular view of Siberia is of howling Arctic wastes dotted with penal colonies, the truth is more complex. The west of Siberia is covered by a swampy plain, the central plateau is heavily forested, and the east has mountains soaring to above 3,000 m. Only the extreme north is true tundra, with permafrost and temperature means that don't get over 10 °C (50 °F) even in July, but all of Siberia has cold winters.

The indigenous Siberians, like most indigenous Asian Russians, are more closely related to Turkic peoples or to the Inuit than to ethnic Russians. However, during Imperial Russian and Soviet times the government spent money to attract Europeans to Siberia's larger cities. Today the population of Siberia is majority ethnic Russian, though rural areas remain largely populated by the indigenous Siberians.

Talk

As with anywhere else in Russia, Russian is the dominant language in Siberia. However, there are also many indigenous languages that are spoken by their respective ethnic groups, particularly in rural areas. Almost everybody speaks Russian regardless of what their native tongue is, but learning some phrases in the indigenous languages can help ingratiate you to the locals.

English is rarely spoken.

Get in

By train

Krasnoyarsk station, near the midpoint of the Trans-Siberian Railway

The Trans-Siberian Railway, connecting Moscow to Vladivostok, is by far the most famous method of transportation in Siberia. Covering a distance of 9,289 kilometres, making it one of the longest railways in the world, the full trip takes over 6 days and crosses 8 time zones. Its branches the Trans-Manchurian and Trans-Mongolian connect to Beijing in China, the first directly, the second via Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia.

Less famed is the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM), a northern line running parallel to the Trans-Siberian for 4,234 km. Completed only in 1991 and built mostly for military reasons, further away from the border of China, the BAM is less popular with tourists.

By car

The Trans-Siberian Highway, an unofficial grouping of seven Russian federal highways, open the path for a 11000km cross-country journey from St. Petersburg and Moscow to Vladivostok. The last section, the Amur Highway, was paved in 2010.

See

Cold ostriches in Siberia

Primarily natural attractions.

• Mountainous Altai (Gorny Altai) — this region of Siberia is very popular among eco tourists. Mountaineering and mountain rivers' rafting are wide spread here. The area is famous for its stunning scenery. The mountains straddle the border between Altai Krai and the Altai Republic.
• Siberian Traps is a large region of volcanic rock, originating in supervolcano activity 250 million years ago, continuing for 1–2 million years and causing extinction of most species of life. With an area of 7 million km² (3 million sq mi) it covers much of Siberia.

Do

With its vast areas of wilderness, Siberia is a challenging destination for outdoor life.

• Mushroom picking
• Hiking/cycling
• Downhill snowsports
• Whitewater sports
• Cross country skiing
• Dog sledding
• Nature observation

Eat

Despite its reputation, Siberia is not just about cold snow!

See also: Russian cuisine

Drink

• Vodka (водка) and tea (чай)