Donetsk Oblast
The Donetsk Oblast (, ), also referred to as Donechchyna (), is an oblast of eastern Ukraine. It is the most populated oblast, with around 4.1 million residents. Its administrative centre is Donetsk; however, its Regional State Administration has been temporarily relocated to Kramatorsk because of the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war. Historically, the region has been an important part of the Donbas region. Until November 1961, it bore the name "Stalino Oblast" as Donetsk was then named "Stalino", in honour of Joseph Stalin. As part of the de-Stalinization process, it was renamed as its administrative centre after Siversky Donets, the  main artery of Eastern Ukraine. Its population is estimated as The oblast is known for its urban sprawl of Donetsk–Makiivka and Horlivka–Yenakiieve and it is often associated with the coal mining industry. The war in Donbas and the subsequent 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine has seen parts of the oblast come under the control of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Russia, with the administrative center relocated to Mariupol then to Kramatorsk. History. Before the establishment of the Donetsian Oblast, three districts (okruhas) existed on its territory from 1923 to 1930. The Donets Governorate was terminated  in 1925. As part of Soviet Ukraine, the Donetsian Oblast was established on 2 July 1932 out of the Kharkiv Oblast, the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and a number of raions that were under the direct administration of Kharkiv (then-capital of Soviet Ukraine). Artemivsk (today Bakhmut) served as the Oblast's administrative center for two weeks until 16 July 1932, when the city of Stalino (today Donetsk) took on the role. Until 1938, the Donetsian Oblast included the territories of the modern Donetsk Oblast and the Luhansk Oblast. In June 1938 it was split into the Stalino Oblast (modern Donetsk Oblast ) and the Voroshylovhrad Oblast (modern Luhansk Oblast). During the Nazi German occupation from fall 1941 to fall 1943, Donetsk Oblast was known as Yuzivka Oblast (after the original name of Donetsk). As part of de-Stalinization in the Soviet Union, in 1961 Stalino along with Stalino Oblast were renamed into Donetsk and Donetsk Oblast, respectively. During the dissolution of the Soviet Union, 83.9% of voters in Donetsk Oblast approved Ukraine's declaration of independence in the 1991 referendum. In the mid-1990s, the region became known for its heightened criminal activity, including the killings of high-profile business people such as  Akhat Bragin and Yevhen Shcherban. Donetsk Oblast was also a base for Ukraine's main pro-Russian political faction, Party of Regions, which became part of the Ukrainian government in 2002 and paved a way into Ukrainian politics for the powerful "Donetsk political clan". In 1994, a referendum took place in Donetsk Oblast and Luhansk Oblast, with around 90% supporting the Russian language gaining the status of an official language alongside Ukrainian, and for Russian to be an official language on a regional level; however, the referendum was annulled by the Kyiv government. In late 2004, the Party of Regions  was involved in the creation of a political project, South-East Ukrainian Autonomous Republic, which intended to include Donetsk Oblast. Having close ties with the Russian government, the Party of Regions along with local communists and pro-Russian activists instigated the pro-Russian unrest which escalated into the war in Donbas. In May 2014 Ukraine lost control over its border with Russia in Donetsk Oblast. Currently, portions of the region are controlled by the Novorossiya Armed Forces and claimed by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. Geography. Donetsk Oblast is located in southeastern Ukraine. The area of the oblast  (26,517 km), comprises about 4.4% of the total area of the country. The oblast borders the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia Oblasts on the southwest, the Kharkiv Oblast on the north, the Luhansk Oblast on the northeast, the Rostov Oblast in Russia on the east, and with the Sea of Azov on the south. Its longitude from north to south is 270 km, from east to west – 190 km. The extreme points of the oblast's borders are: "Bilosarayska Kosa" (spit) on the south, Shevchenko of Velykonovosilkivskyi Raion on the west, "Verkhnyi Kut" of Shakhtarskyi Raion on the east, and "Lozove" of  Lyman Raion on the north. The state historic-architectural preserve near the city of Sviatohirsk with the Sviatohirsk Lavra was nominated for the Seven Wonders of Ukraine. Administrative divisions. The province is primarily divided into 18 "raions" (districts) and 28 municipalities of equal status (22 "miskradas" and 6 "mistos" – cities of regional significance), including the provincial administrative center Donetsk. These are listed below with their areas and populations. The province's secondary division consists of various municipalities that are governed by their councils. Those municipalities may consist of one or more populated places. All are administratively subordinate to the raion  in which they are located. The following data incorporates the number of each type of second-level administrative divisions of Donetsk Oblast: The local administration of the oblast' is controlled by the Donetsk Oblast Rada. The governor of the oblast' is the Head of Donetsk Oblast administration, appointed by the President of Ukraine. Cities. regional municipalities Demographics. In 2013, the population of Donetsk Oblast was 4.43 million, which constituted 10% of the overall Ukrainian population, making it the most populous and most densely populated region of the country. Its large population is due to the presence of several big industrial  cities and numerous villages agglomerated around them. During the 2004 presidential election, political supporters of Viktor Yanukovych threatened to demand autonomy for Donetsk and neighboring oblasts if the election of their candidate was not recognised. However, no official moves were ever made. At the 2001 Ukrainian National Census, the ethnic groups within the Donetsk Oblast were: Ukrainians – 2,744,100 (56.9%), Russians – 1,844,400 (38.2%), Pontic Greeks – 77,500 (1.6%), Belarusians – 44,500 (0.9%), others (2.3%). At the 2001 census, the languages spoken within the oblast were: Russian — 74.9%, Ukrainian – 24.1%. The oblast also contains 21% of the country's Muslims. Economy. Industry. The Donetsk  Oblast covers more than one half coal, finished steel, coke, cast iron and steel production in Ukraine. Ferrous metallurgy, fuel industry and power industry are in demand in the structure of industry production. There are about 882 industry enterprises that are on independent balance, and 2,095 small industry enterprises in the oblast. The oblast' has a developed transport infrastructure which includes the Donetsk railway (covers 40% of national transportation), the Mariupol Port, the Donetsk International Airport, passenger airports in Mariupol and Kramatorsk, and dense road systems. In the Donetsk Oblast two special economic zones have been created, "Donetsk" and "Azov