Gomel Region

Gomel Region or Homieĺ Region,[3] also known as Gomel Oblast or Homyel Voblasts (Belarusian: Гомельская вобласць, romanizedHomieĺskaja voblasć; Russian: Гомельская область, romanizedGomelskaya oblast), is one of the regions of Belarus. Its administrative center is Gomel.

Gomel Region
Гомельская вобласць (Belarusian)
Гомельская область (Russian)
From the top to bottom-right: Turovsky Meadow, Žlobin Holy Trinity Church, Kozieł-Pakleŭski Manor, Three Sisters Monument, Paskevich Burial Vault
Flag of Gomel Region
Coat of arms of Gomel Region
Location of Gomel Region
CountryBelarus
Administrative centerGomel
Largest citiesGomel – 481,200
Mazyr – 111,800
Zhlobin – 72,800
Districts21
Cities – 17
Urban localities – 278
Villages – 2,608
City districts4
Area
 • Total40,361.66 km2 (15,583.72 sq mi)
Population
 (2013)
 • Total1,426,674
 • Density35/km2 (92/sq mi)
GDP
 • TotalBr 25.6 billion
(€7.2 billion)
 • Per capitaBr 18,500
(€5,200)
ISO 3166 codeBY-HO
HDI (2017)0.803[2]
very high · 4th
Websitewww.gomel-region.by
Map

The total area of the region is 40,400 square kilometres (15,600 sq mi), the population in 2011 stood at 1,435,000 with the number of inhabitants per km2 at 36.[4]

Its largest settlements include: Gomel, Mazyr, Zhlobin, Svyetlahorsk, Rechytsa, Kalinkavichy, Rahachow and Dobrush.

Both the Gomel Region and the Mogilev Region suffered severely from the Chernobyl disaster.[5] The Gomel Province borders the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone in places, and parts of it have been designated as mandatory or voluntary resettlement areas as a result of the radioactive contamination.[6]

Administrative territorial entities

Gomel Region comprises 21 districts and 2 city municipalities. The districts have 278 selsovets, and 17 cities and towns.

Districts of Gomel Region

Cities and towns

EnglishBelarusianPop. (2023)[7]
GomelГомель501,802
MazyrМазыр105,321
ZhlobinЖлобін77,049
RechytsaРэчыца65,423
SvyetlahorskСветлагорск63,202
KalinkavichyКалінкавічы37,050
RahachowРагачоў32,029
DobrushДобруш18,137
ZhytkavichyЖыткавічы15,961
KhoynikiХойнікі13,248
PyetrykawПетрыкаў10,303
ChacherskЧачэрск8,885
Yel’skЕльск8,864
VyetkaВетка8,625
Buda-KashalyovaБуда-Кашалёва8,618
NarowlyaНароўля8,352
BrahinБрагін4,546
VasilyevichyВасілевічы3,285
TurovТураў2,766

Geography

The frozen Biarezina River in Svyetlahorsk

Pripyatsky National Park covers 2% of the territory of the region. Eleven wildlife preserves of national importance cover 2.1% of the region.[8]

The extreme southern point of Belarus is located in Gomel Region, on the Dnieper River to the south of the urban-type settlement of Kamaryn, Brahin District.[9]

The 3rd largest lake in Belarus, Lake Chervonoye, is located in Gomel Region, Zhytkavichy District.[10]

Gomel Region borders Mogilev Region on the north, Brest Region on the west, Russia (Bryansk Oblast) on the east and Ukraine (Chernihiv Oblast, Kyiv Oblast and Zhytomyr Oblast) on the south and southeast.

Demography

Economy

The processing industry is represented by alcohol, alcoholic beverage, wine, beer and soft drinks, vegetable-drying and canning industries. Mazyr is home to one of Belarus' major oil refineries.

Transport

Gomel Region is a major transport hub. Major railway junctions include Gomel, Zhlobin, and Kalinkavichy. Gomel is located at the intersection of the highways 95E OdesaKyivSt. Petersburg, BakhmachVilnius, and M10 BryanskBrest. River transport is also common in the region with regular navigation on the Pripyat, Dnieper and Berezina rivers.

Tourism

The number of travel agencies in Gomel Region has grown from 21 in 2000 to 54 in 2010.[11][12] Main tourist destinations of the region are Pripyatsky National Park and Gomel.

References

External links

52°20′N 29°40′E / 52.333°N 29.667°E / 52.333; 29.667