Russian Federation: Map & History

History

The earliest evidence of human settlement in what is now Russia dates to the Oldowan period during the early Lower Paleolithic. About 2 million years ago, representatives of Homo erectus migrated to the Taman Peninsula in southern Russia. Flint tools, some 1.5 million years old, have been discovered in the North Caucasus. Radiocarbon dated specimens from Denisova Cave in the Altai Mountains estimate the oldest Denisovan specimen lived 195–122,700 years ago. Fossils of Denny, an archaic human hybrid that was half Neanderthal and half Denisovan, and lived some 90,000 years ago, was also found within the latter cave. Russia was home to some of the last surviving Neanderthals, from about 45,000 years ago, found in Mezmaiskaya cave.

Government and politics

Legislative: The bicameral Federal Assembly of Russia, made up of the 450-member State Duma and the 170-member Federation Council, adopts federal law, declares war, approves treaties, has the power of the purse and the power of impeachment of the president.

Executive: The president is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, and appoints the Government of Russia (Cabinet) and other officers, who administer and enforce federal laws and policies. The president may issue decrees of unlimited scope, so long as they do not contradict the constitution or federal law.

Economy

Russia has a high-income, industrialised, mixed market-oriented economy following a turbulent transition from the Soviet planned model during the 1990s. According to the International Monetary Fund, it has the ninth-largest economy by nominal GDP and the fourth-largest economy by GDP (PPP). As of 2023, the service sector accounts for roughly 57% of total GDP, followed by the industrial sector (30%), while the agricultural sector is the smallest, at 3% of total GDP. It has a labour force of about 72 million, which is the ninth-largest in the world. Russia's largest trading partner is China.

Russia's human development is ranked as "very high" in the annual Human Development Index.

Culture

Russian culture reflects a long, gradual, and complex amalgamation of various elements that coincided with centuries of development, expansion, and interaction with different peoples, artistic movements, and cultures. Russia has heavily influenced classical music, ballet, theatre, mathematics, sport, painting, and cinema. Russian writers and philosophers have played an important role in the development of European literature and thought. Russia also made pioneering contributions to science, technology, and space exploration.

Russia is home to 32 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, 21 of which are cultural, while 31 lie on the tentative list. The large global Russian diaspora has also played a major role in spreading Russian culture throughout the world.