AnAutonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (ASSR,Russian:автономная советская социалистическая республика, АССР,romanized: avtonomnaya sovetskaya sotsialisticheskaya respublika) was a type ofadministrative unit in theSoviet Union (USSR), created for certainethnic groups to be thetitular nations of. The ASSRs had a status lower than the constituentunion republics of the USSR, but higher than theautonomous oblasts and theautonomous okrugs.
In theRussian SFSR, for example, Chairmen of the Government of the ASSRs were officially members of theGovernment of the Russian SFSR. Unlike the union republics, the autonomous republics only had the right to disaffiliate themselves from the Union when the union republic containing them did so, as well as to choose to stay with the Union separately from them. The level of political, administrative and cultural autonomy they enjoyed varied with time—it was most substantial in the 1920s (Korenizatsiya), the 1950s after the death ofJoseph Stalin, and in theBrezhnev Era.[1]
According to theconstitution of the USSR, in case of a union republic voting on leaving the Soviet Union, autonomous republics,autonomous oblasts andautonomous okrugs had the right, by means of areferendum, to independently resolve whether they will stay in the USSR or leave with theseceding union republic, as well as to raise the issue of their state-legal status.[2]
| Emblem | Name | Flag | Years of membership | Capital | Official languages | Area (km2) | Post-Soviet subjects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic | .svg) | 1921–1990 | Nakhichevan | Azerbaijani, Russian | 5,500 |  Nakhchivan |
| Emblem | Name | Flag | Years of membership | Capital | Official languages | Area (km2) | Post-Soviet subjects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.svg) | Abkhaz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic |  | 1931–1992[a] | Sukhumi | Abkhazian,Georgian, Russian | 8,600 |  Abkhazia |
 | Adjarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic |  | 1921–1991 | Batumi | Georgian, Russian | 2,880 |  Adjara |
The1978 Constitution of the RSFSR recognized sixteen autonomous republics within the RSFSR:
Gorno-Altai Autonomous Oblast (nowAltai Republic),Adyghe Autonomous Oblast (nowRepublic of Adygea),Karachay–Cherkess Autonomous Oblast (nowKarachay–Cherkess Republic) andKhakassian Autonomous Oblast (nowRepublic of Khakassia) were all promoted in status to that of an ASSR in 1991, in the last year of the Soviet Union. Only theJewish Autonomous Oblast retained its autonomous oblast status in Russia.
Other autonomous republics also existed within RSFSR at earlier points of the Soviet history:
| Emblem | Name | Flag | Capital | Titular nationality | Years of membership | Population | Area (km2) | Soviet successors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic | .svg) | Simferopol | Crimean Tatars | 1921–1945 | 1,126,000 (1939) | 26,860 | Crimean Oblast |
| Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic | .svg) | Vladikavkaz | Balkars,Chechens,Ingush,Kabardians,Karachays,Ossetians,Terek Cossacks | 1921–1924 | 1,286,000 (1921) | 74,000 | Karachay-Cherkess AO Kabardino-Balkarian AO Chechen AO North Ossetian AO Ingush AO | |
 | Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic |  | Tashkent | Uzbeks,Kazakhs,Kyrgyz,Tajiks,Turkmens | 1918–1924 | 5,221,963 (1920) |  Uzbek SSR Turkmen SSRTajik ASSR Kara-Kirghiz AO Karakalpak AO | |
 | Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic |  | Engels | Soviet Germans | 1923–1941 | 606,532 (1939) | 27,400 | Saratov Oblast Stalingrad Oblast |
Crimea Oblast wastransferred to the Ukrainian SSR jurisdiction on 19 February 1954 and promoted to the ASSR status following areferendum held on January 20, 1991 (now theAutonomous Republic of Crimea /Republic of Crimea, territorydisputed betweenUkraine and theRussian Federation).
| Emblem | Name | Flag | Years of membership | Capital | Titular nationality | Area (km2) | Post-Soviet successors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic | .svg) | 1991 | Simferopol | Crimean Tatars | 26,860 |  Autonomous Republic of Crimea |
The Crimean Oblast was granted ASSR status on 12 February 1991 following areferendum held in January 1991.
| Emblem | Name | Flag | Years of membership | Capital | Official languages | Area (km2) | Post-Soviet subjects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Karakalpak Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic |  | 1932–1992[c] | Nukus | Karakalpak(1956-1980s), Russian | 165,000 |  Karakalpakstan |
Some ASSRs existed at earlier points of the Soviet history were promoted into fullunion republics of the Soviet Union.
| Emblem | Name | Flag | Capital | Titular nationality | Years of membership | Population | Area (km2) | Soviet Socialist Republic | Soviet successor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.svg) | Kazakh Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic | .svg) | Alma-Ata | Kazakhs | 1920–1936[d] | 6,503,000 (1926) | 2,960,000 |  Russian SFSR |  Kazakh SSR |
| Kirghiz Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic | .svg) | Frunze | Kyrgyz | 1926–1936 | 993,000 (1926) | 196,129 |  Kirghiz SSR | ||
.png) | Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic | .svg) | Tiraspol | Moldovans | 1924–1940 | 599,150 (1939) | 8,288 |  Ukrainian SSR |  Moldavian SSR |
 | Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic | .svg) | Dushanbe | Tajiks | 1924–1929 | 740,000 (1924) | Uzbek SSR |  Tajik SSR |
Karelian ASSR was promoted toKarelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic in 1940 but demoted back in 1956.
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