Oblast is a type ofadministrative division in mostSlavic countries and some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is used in English as well,[1] but it is often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region". The last translation may lead to confusion, because the subdivision of "oblast" is called "raion" which can be translated as "region" or "district" as well.
Oblasts are a type of administrative division of Belarus,Bulgaria,Kazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan,Russia,Ukraine, it was also used by theSoviet Union which does not exist anymore. Official terms in successor states of the Soviet Union differ, the majority (exceptTurkmenistan,Tajikistan and the Baltics) still use acognate of the Russian term, e.g.voblast (voblasts,voblasts',IPA: [ˈvobɫasʲtsʲ]) is used for provinces of Belarus, andoblys (plural: oblystar) for provinces of Kazakhstan.
Since 1997, Bulgaria has been divided into 28oblasti, usually translated asprovinces. Before, the country was divided into nine bigger units, also calledoblast.
Ukraine is divided into 24 oblasts.
Byelorussia is divided into 6 oblasts.
In theRussian Empire, oblasts were considered to be administrative units and were included as parts of Governorates General orkrais. The majority of then-existing oblasts were on theperiphery of the country or covered the areas whereCossacks lived.
In the formerSoviet Union, oblasts were one of the types of administrative divisions of the union republics. As any administrative units of this level, oblasts were composed of districts (raions) and cities/towns directly under oblasts' jurisdiction.
The names of oblasts did not usually correspond to the names of the historical regions, as they were created as purely administrative units. With a few exceptions, Soviet oblasts were named after their administrative centers.
The oblasts in other post-Soviet countries are officially called:
Viloyat andwelayat come from theArabic language termwilāya (ولاية)
According to theConstitution of Russia, oblasts are considered to be subjects of the Federation, which is a higher status than that of administrative units they had within the Soviet Union. The federal subject status gives the oblasts some degree ofautonomy and gives them representation in the Federation Council.
Oblasts were administrative units of theKingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes between 1922 and 1929. During that period, the country was divided into 33 oblasts. In 1929, oblasts were replaced with larger administrative units known asbanovinas.
During the Wars] that splitYugoslavia several Serbian Autonomous Oblasts were formed inCroatia andBosnia and Herzegovina. These oblasts were later merged into theRepublic of Serbian Krajina and theRepublika Srpska.
- ↑Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2008.Entry on "oblast"
