Belarus
Belarus Population and cities
Population
According to
Countryaah website, Belarus has around 9.5 million residents.
Ethnic composition
About 84% of the country's residents are Belarusians, another 8% are
Russians. The roughly 3% Poles and 2% Ukrainians mostly live near the respective
national borders. The remaining minorities include Latvians, Gypsies (mainly
Jerli), Lithuanians and Slovaks.
Religious affiliation
About 50% of the country's residents are Russian Orthodox Christians, another
10% are Roman Catholic. A large proportion of the people - around 40% - are
non-denominational. In addition, there are minorities of Protestants, Jews and
Muslims (mostly Tatars).
National languages
Russian and Belarusian are the country's official languages. Russian is the
predominant language spoken in the cities.
Capital and other cities
The capital of Belarus is Minsk with around 1.9 million residents.
Other larger cities are:
- Homel with around 480,000 residents
- Vitebsk with around 345,000 residents
- Mahiljou with around 365,000 residents
- Hrodna with around 315,000 residents
- Brest with around 300,000 residents
Belarus: geography
Brief overview
The following sections provide interesting data on the geography of Belarus,
including an overview map and data on the country's borders and cities. A
representation of the Memel as well as the Prypiat and Bjaresina can be found
here.
National borders
Belarus borders the following five states:
- Latvia with a length of 141 km
- Lithuania with a length of 502 km
- Poland with a length of 407 km
- Russia with a length of 959 km
- Ukraine with a length of 891 km.
Area and land use
Defined by DigoPaul, Belarus is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. The landscape of Belarus is the result of Ice Age glaciers, which retreated into
this flat, gently undulating terrain with its numerous rivers and lakes.
The country covers an area of 207,595 km².
Forest
Around 35% of the country is forested. About half of the tree population are
pines, about 20% birch, each about 10% fir and alder, and above all oak and
other hardwoods as well as aspens. The country's forest stands are increasing.
Meadow and pasture land
Around 15% of the land is used as meadow or pasture land.
Arable land and fields
Around 25% of the land is used as arable land or fields, especially for growing
potatoes as well as grain, fodder crops and flax.
Swamp
There are numerous swamp areas in Belarus. The Palessje swamps in the south of
the country, once the largest swamp area in Europe, have now largely been
drained. A large part of the forests is also swampy or muddy. Around 13% of the
land is moorland.
Longitude and latitude
Belarus extends over the following geographical latitude (abbrev.) And
geographical longitude (abbrev.):
| Δ φ = from 51 ° 19 'to 56 ° 09' north latitude
Δ λ = from 23 ° 12 'to 33 ° 44' east longitude |
You can find detailed information on this subject under: Geographical
longitude and latitude.
Time
For Belarus, the following value applies to Central European Time (CET), i.e.
the time without summer time. A minus sign means that it is earlier there and a
plus sign that it is later than after CET:
More detailed explanations of the time can be found under: Time zones, time.
The highest point of the sun in Minsk
Minsk lies at a north latitude of around φ = 54 °.
When the sun or its image point is at the northern tropic, i.e. at φ = 23.5
°, summer begins in Minsk, this is June 21. Then there is the highest position
of the sun at noon according to Eq. 1 (see position of the sun)
54 ° = (90 ° - h) + 23.5 °
so:
This is the highest level above the horizon (exactly: above the chimney) that
the sun has within the year in Minsk.
Mountains, Dzerzinskaya
Dzerzinskaja
The highest mountain or the highest elevation in Belarus is the
Dzerzinskaja with a height of 346 m.
Lysaya
Another elevation is the Lysaya with a height of 342 m.
Rivers, Dnepr, Memel
Dnepr
The longest river in the country is the Dnepr with a length of 2,285 km. It is
the third largest river in Europe, flows further into the Ukraine and there
flows into the Black Sea.
Memel
The Memel has a total length of 937 km. It rises southwest of Minsk on the
Belarusian ridge, which reaches heights of up to 346 m. The Memel divides west
of Tilsit (Kalinigrad Oblast) into its delta arms Ruß (north) and Gilge
(south). The lower reaches of the Memel and the northern part of the Memel Delta
form the border between Lithuania and the Russian "Oblast Kaliningrad".
Other rivers are:
- Pripyat with a length of 775 km
- Bjaresina with a length of 613 km (tributary of the
Dnepr)
Lakes
There are over 10,000 lakes in Belarus. Most of them are in the north and
form the so-called Belarusian Lake District.
Naratsch
There is also the largest lake in the country, the Naratsch, with an
area of 79.2 km².
Vilejka reservoir
In addition, 145 reservoirs were built. The largest of these is the Vilejka
reservoir with an area of 75 km².
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