50 Interesting Facts About Russia

  1. Russia is the world’s largest country by area. Its Asian portion makes it the largest country in Asia, while its European part is larger than any other European country.
  2. Russia was one of the last Christian countries to convert from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar. Due to this reason, the Russian Olympic team arrived 12 days late to participate in the 1908 London Olympics.
  3. Russia has the world’s largest population of Orthodox Christians. There are more than 100 million Orthodox Christians in this Eurasian country. (Source)
  4. The world’s longest bicycle race is held in Russia. This 9,200 km long bicycle race passes through 5 climate zones and seven time zones. It is also considered one of the toughest bicycle races in the world. (Source)
  5. The longest railway line in the world is the Trans-Siberian railway. This 10, 214 km (6,346 m) long railway track connects Moscow (Russia) to Pyongyang (North Korea). (Source)
  6. Several giant holes appeared in Siberia, Russia, in 2014. The largest one in the Yamal Peninsula was 100 feet wide. These craters were most likely formed by underground methane explosions. It happened due to warmer temperatures in the Arctic. (Source)
  7. Oymyakon in Russia is the coldest inhabited place on earth. The lowest temperature recorded here is -67.7oC, the minimum outside Antarctica. (Source)
    Pole of cold in Verkhoyansk, Russia
    World's three coldest inhabited places are in Russia

  8. Oymyakon and Verkhoyansk (both located in the Sakha Republic of Russia) are the only two inhabited places on earth that recorded temperatures below -60 Celsius every day in January. These two cities and Yakutsk (also in Russia) are the three coldest inhabited places on earth. (Source)
  9. Along with the Asian part, the European part of Russia is also chilly. The top 7 coldest cities in Europe during the winter season are present in Russia. (Source)
  10. The Gulf of Ob in Russia is the longest estuary in the world. Its length is around 800 km (500 mi).
  11. The population density in Russia is one of the lowest in the world. It is less than nine people per km2.
  12. Russia has the highest reserves of natural gas and the second-highest reserves of coal (after the USA) in the world.
  13. Russia has the largest forested area in the world. More than 45% area of this country is comprised of forests. Russia’s forested area is equal to the size of the continent of Australia.
  14. More than 75% area of Russia is in Asia, but 77% of its population resides in its European part due to extreme weather in Asian Russia.
  15. Russia produces the highest number of engineering graduates in the world. More than 450,000 engineering graduates appear in Russia yearly, almost twice the number of graduates in the USA, the country at the 2nd spot.
  16. Russia Metro in Moscow is the world’s 2nd busiest subway system. Around 6.6 million people use this metro system daily. (Source)
  17. The US state of Alaska was once part of the Russian Empire. Russia sold Alaska to the USA in 1867 for $7.2 million. (Source)
  18. Russia has the 4th highest alcohol consumption per capita in the world. The average annual consumption of alcohol in this country is14.5 liters. (Source)
  19. Russia declared beer an alcoholic drink in 2011. Before that, any drink with less than 10% alcohol was considered a foodstuff. (Source)
  20. Russians adopted Christianity instead of Islam in the 10th Century mainly due to the prohibition of alcohol in Islam. (Source)
  21. Lake Baikal in Russia is the deepest lake in the world. It is 5,387 ft. (1,642 m) deep, while its bottom is around 3,900 feet below sea level. This lake in the Asian part of Russia is also the world’s largest freshwater lake by volume. (Source)
    A lake
    Russia has several extremely large and deep lakes

  22. Lake Ladoga, in the European part of Russia, is the largest lake in Europe having a surface area of 17,700 sq. km. Russia contains several large European lakes. (Source)
  23. Mount Elbrus in southwestern Russia is the highest mountain in Europe. Its summit is 18,510 feet (5,642 m) high.
  24. Volga River in Russia is the longest and largest river in Europe regarding its discharge and drainage basin. The drainage basin of this river, with a length of 3,530 km, encompasses 11 of the 20 largest Russian cities.
  25. Russia has the lowest life expectancy in Europe. It equals Moldova and Ukraine with 71 years for both genders combined. Russia also has the largest gap between male and female life expectancies, which is 64.3 and 76.1 years, respectively. (Source)
  26. Russia is the most corrupt country in Europe. It ranked 137 out of 180 countries globally in the Corruption Perception Index 2019 after scoring 28 points. (Source)
  27. Russia is the world’s 3rd most unfriendly country for tourists after Bolivia and Venezuela. It is also the most unwelcoming country in Europe (and also in Asia). (Source)
  28. The Sakha Republic is the largest federal district in Russia. With an area of more than 3 million km2, it is also the largest subdivision of any country in the world. 
  29. Krasnoyarsk Krai is the 2nd largest federal subject in Russia, with a total area of 2,339,700 km2. It is the world’s 3rd largest subnational division (after the Sakha Republic in Russia and Western Australia in Australia).
  30. A Russian engineer built the world’s first hyperboloid structure in Nizhny Novgorod (western Russia) in 1896. This water tower is 120 feet high. (Source)
  31. Russia has the biggest stockpile of nuclear weapons in the world. The country currently possesses 6,500 nuclear warheads. (Source)
  32. A Russian Mafia gang, Solntsevskaya Bratva, is the world’s biggest organized crime group by revenue. There are more than 9,000 members of this group worldwide, and its estimated annual earnings are $8.5 billion. This gang is involved in the drug trade and human trafficking. (Source
  33. Russia has the highest natural industrial diamond mine production in the world. It produced 17 million carats of diamonds in 2022. (Source)
  34. The Motherland Calls in Volgograd (Russia) is the world’s tallest statue representing a woman. Its height is 52 meters (172 feet). 
  35. There are around 11 million more women than men in Russia. Females constitute 53.65% of the total population in Russia, which is the 9th highest in the world and the 4th highest in Europe. (Source)
    Russian females receives the US naval officers
    There are 11 million more women than men in Russia

  36. A Russian woman is credited with most births. According to the official record, she gave birth to 69 children during the 18th Century. (Source)
  37. The world’s largest reindeer herd is in the Taymyr Peninsular of Russia. There were nearly a million reindeer present here two decades ago. However, their numbers have declined to less than 400,000 due to illegal poaching. (Source)
  38. Moscow has 3rd most billionaires in the world. The city is behind only New York and Hong Kong on this list. (Source)
  39. Russia is the world’s largest gold buyer. Total gold reserves make up 19% of Russia’s foreign reserves.
  40. State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg is the 2nd largest art museum in the world. It contains the world’s most extensive painting collection as well. (Source)
  41. Hermitage Museum and Kunstkamera (both in St. Petersburg) are on the list of oldest museums in the world.
  42. Authorities in Hermitage Museum have kept dozens of cats in its basements to combat mice. These cats have been doing their duty since the 18th Century. (Source)
  43. The first person in outer space, Yuri Gagarin, was a Russian. He achieved this milestone on 12th April 1961.
  44. In the late 1980s, Russia sold 17 submarines, a frigate, a cruiser, and a destroyer to Pepsico for $3 billion worth of Pepsi. It made Pepsico the 6th most powerful naval force in the world for some time. (Source)
  45. Moscow is the most populous city in Europe with a population of over 10 million. St. Petersburg is the 3rd most populous city in the continent. (Source)
  46. Russia is the world’s largest producer of several agricultural products. These include barley, buckwheat, oats, and safflower.
  47. Russian Empire and Soviet Russia played the most significant role in the defeat of Napoleon and Nazi Germany, respectively. Russians used the bitterly cold weather and a vast area for their benefit during these conflicts.
  48. Russia built circular warships during the 19th Century. However, the experiment proved a complete failure. (Source)
  49. There are “ambulance taxis” available in Moscow for the wealthy. They charge more than $200 per hour to transport VIP persons during traffic jams. (Source)
  50. Russian women have the highest abortion rate in the world. It is 53.7 per 1,000 women, which is far more than the country at the second spot Vietnam (35.2/1,000 women). (Source)

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