Kiev Oblast
Kiev Oblast, also written as Kyiv Oblast (Ukrainian: Київська область, translit. Kyivs’ka oblast’; also referred to as Kyivshchyna - Ukrainian: Київщина) is an oblast (province) in central Ukraine.
The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Kiev (Ukrainian: Київ, or Kyiv), also the capital of Ukraine. Despite being located in the center of the Kiev Oblast, and hosting the governing bodies of the oblast, Kiev itself is a self-governing city with cpecial status and not under oblast jurisdiction. The current Head of the Kiev Oblast State Administration is Vira Ulianchenko.
History
The oblast was created as part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on February 27, 1932.
The current borders of the oblast were last set following the Chernobyl accident. Administrative oversight of the new city of Slavutych, which was constructed as part of the Chernihiv Oblast, was then transferred to the Kiev Oblast (see Chornobyl zone below).
Historical administrative units that later became the territory of the Oblast included the Kijow Voivodship under the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Kiev Guberniya under the Russian Empire. The northern part of the oblast belongs to the historical region of Polesia (Ukrainian: Polissia).
Geography
The oblast is equally split between the both banks of Dnieper River north and south of Kiev. Other significant rivers in the oblast are Dnieper's tributaries: Pripyat (Prypiat) (R), Desna (L), Teteriv (R), Irpin' (R), Ros' (R) and Trubizh (L).
The oblast is subdivided into 25 raions (administrative districts). It consists of 25 cities, 30 towns, and more than 1000 villages.
The area of the oblast is 28,100 km² (approximately 35 times the area of Kiev city). The current estimated population (excluding Kiev) is around 1.8 millions (as of 2006).
The municipality of Slavutych is located within the borders of the neighboring Chernihiv Oblast on the eastern bank of the Dnieper river and the municipality has no common border with the Kiev Oblast. Still, Slavutych is administrated by the Kiev Oblast authorities (being a kind of administrative exclave).
Similarly, the town of Kotsiubynske, which is located within the borders of the Kiev city (which is itself surrounded by the Kiev Oblast), officially belongs to the Kiev Oblast.
Chornobyl zone
The north-western end of the oblast is a part of the Zone of alienation due to the radioactive contamination caused by the Chernobyl (Chornobyl) nuclear reactor accident. The largest cities within zone are Chornobyl and Prypyat, which are now abandoned (see ghost towns). The city of Slavutych was built outside of the zone to host evacuated residents of Prypyat and personnel of the zone installations.
The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Kiev (Ukrainian: Київ, or Kyiv), also the capital of Ukraine. Despite being located in the center of the Kiev Oblast, and hosting the governing bodies of the oblast, Kiev itself is a self-governing city with cpecial status and not under oblast jurisdiction. The current Head of the Kiev Oblast State Administration is Vira Ulianchenko.
History
The oblast was created as part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on February 27, 1932.
The current borders of the oblast were last set following the Chernobyl accident. Administrative oversight of the new city of Slavutych, which was constructed as part of the Chernihiv Oblast, was then transferred to the Kiev Oblast (see Chornobyl zone below).
Historical administrative units that later became the territory of the Oblast included the Kijow Voivodship under the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Kiev Guberniya under the Russian Empire. The northern part of the oblast belongs to the historical region of Polesia (Ukrainian: Polissia).
Geography
The oblast is equally split between the both banks of Dnieper River north and south of Kiev. Other significant rivers in the oblast are Dnieper's tributaries: Pripyat (Prypiat) (R), Desna (L), Teteriv (R), Irpin' (R), Ros' (R) and Trubizh (L).
The oblast is subdivided into 25 raions (administrative districts). It consists of 25 cities, 30 towns, and more than 1000 villages.
The area of the oblast is 28,100 km² (approximately 35 times the area of Kiev city). The current estimated population (excluding Kiev) is around 1.8 millions (as of 2006).
The municipality of Slavutych is located within the borders of the neighboring Chernihiv Oblast on the eastern bank of the Dnieper river and the municipality has no common border with the Kiev Oblast. Still, Slavutych is administrated by the Kiev Oblast authorities (being a kind of administrative exclave).
Similarly, the town of Kotsiubynske, which is located within the borders of the Kiev city (which is itself surrounded by the Kiev Oblast), officially belongs to the Kiev Oblast.
Chornobyl zone
The north-western end of the oblast is a part of the Zone of alienation due to the radioactive contamination caused by the Chernobyl (Chornobyl) nuclear reactor accident. The largest cities within zone are Chornobyl and Prypyat, which are now abandoned (see ghost towns). The city of Slavutych was built outside of the zone to host evacuated residents of Prypyat and personnel of the zone installations.
