Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (, literally "South Sakhalin City") is a city on Sakhalin island. It is also the administrative center of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. It is in the Far East part of Russia. It is north of Japan. Gas and oil extraction and processing are the main industries of the island. It was named Vladimirovka () from 1882 to 1905, then  when Imperial Japan controlled it from 1905 to 1946. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 181,728.

 History 
Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk started as a small Russian settlement called Vladimirovka. It was founded by convicts in 1882. In the Treaty of Portsmouth in 1905, the southern part of Sakhalin was given to Japan. This treaty ended the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905. Because Vladimirovka was in southern Sakhalin, it was given to Japan. Vladimirovka was renamed Toyohara (meaning "bountiful plain" in Japanese).

During the Soviet–Japanese War within World War II, the city was taken by Soviet soldiers. After the war, it was given to the Soviet Union. It was renamed Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and given town status in 1946.

 Demographics 

 Population 
YearPopulation195985,5101970105,8401979139,861Всесоюзная перепись населения 1979 г. Национальный состав населения по регионам России [All Union Population Census of 1979. Ethnic composition of the population by regions of Russia] (XLS). Всесоюзная перепись населения 1979 года [All-Union Population Census of 1979] (in Russian). 1979 – via Demoscope Weekly (website of the Institute of Demographics of the State University—Higher School of Economics.1989159,2992002175,0852010181,728
Most citizens are ethnic Russians, but there is also many Korean Russians. There are also smaller numbers of indigenous minorities, such as Ainu, Nivkhs and Oroks.

 Geography 
The city is on the Susuya River. It is the largest city on Sakhalin. It is the only one with more than 100,000 inhabitants on the island.

 Twin towns and sister cities 

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk is twinned with:

  Asahikawa, Japan
  Hakodate, Japan
  Wakkanai, Japan
  Yanji, China
  Ansan, South Korea

 References 

 Other websites 

 Official website of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk 
 Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk: City's History in Architecture
 Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Blizzard Photos

Category:Capitals of oblasts of Russia
Category:Sakhalin Oblast