View source for Regions of Belarus

{{Short description|First-level administrative divisions of Belarus}}
{{Infobox subdivision type
| name = Regions of Belarus
| alt_name = 
| map = [[File:Belarus, administrative divisions - en - colored.png|300px]]
| category = First-level subdivision of a [[unitary state]]
| territory = [[Belarus]]
| start_date = 1960
| current_number = 6 regions<br/>1 capital city
| number_date = 
| population_range = (Regions only): 981,174 ([[Mogilev Region|Mogilev]]) – 1,992,862 ([[Minsk]])
| area_range = (Provinces only): {{Convert|9698.14|sqmi|km2|order=flip|abbr=on}} ([[Grodno Region|Grodno]]) – {{Convert|15583.72|sqmi|km2|order=flip|abbr=on}} ([[Gomel Region|Gomel]])
| government = Province government
| subdivision = [[Districts of Belarus|Raion]]
}}

{{Politics of Belarus}}

At the top level of administration, [[Belarus]] is divided into six regions and one capital city. The six regions are [[oblast]]s (also known as ''voblastsi''), while the city of [[Minsk]] has a special status as the capital of Belarus.<ref>[http://www.statoids.com/uby.html Belarus Regions<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Minsk also serves as the administrative center of [[Minsk Region]].<ref>[http://www.embassybel.ru/belarus/minsk/ Minsk summary], at the website of the Belarus embassy in [[Russia]].</ref>

At the second level, the regions are divided into [[Districts of Belarus|districts]] ([[raion]]s).

The layout and extent of the regions were set in 1960 when Belarus (then the [[Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic]]) was a [[Republics of the Soviet Union|constituent republic]] of the [[Soviet Union]].<ref name="kge">
{{Cite web
|title=Regions of Belarus
|url=http://www.statoids.com/uby.html
|publisher=Statoids
}}
</ref>

== History ==
At the start of the 20th century, the boundaries of the Belarusian lands within the [[Russian Empire]] were still being defined. In 1900 it was contained within all of the [[Minsk Governorate|Minsk]] and [[Mogilev Governorate|Mogilev]] governorates, most of [[Grodno Governorate]], parts of [[Vitebsk Governorate]], and parts of [[Vilna Governorate]].<ref name="kge"/> World War I, the independence of Poland, as well as the 1920–1921 [[Polish–Soviet War]] affected the boundaries. In 1921, Belarus had what is now all of Minsk Governorate except for the western fringe, the western part of Gomel Region, a western slice of Mogilev, and a small part of Vitebsk Region. In 1926, the eastern part of Gomel region was added.  
<ref name="kge"/>

In the [[Byelorussian SSR]], new administrative units, called ''oblasts'' or ''voblastsi''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Belarus: Government and society |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Belarus/Government-and-society#ref409404 |access-date=6 August 2023 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]}}</ref> (cognate of [[Russian language|Russian]] word ''[[oblast]]'' with [[Prothesis (linguistics)|prothetic]] v-) were introduced in 1938. During World War II, Belarus gained territory to the west, with the Baranavichy, Belastok (Białystok), Brest, Pinsk, and Vileyka oblasts. In 1944, Belastok was eliminated and the new oblasts of Babruysk, Grodno, and Polotsk were created. At that same time, Vileika oblast was renamed Molodechno Oblast.<ref name="kge"/>

At different times between 1938 and 1960, the following ''oblasts'' existed:

* [[Babruysk Voblast|Babruysk Oblast]], created 1944, eliminated 1954
* [[Baranavichy Voblast|Baranavichy Oblast]], created 1939, eliminated 1954
* [[Belastok Region|Belastok Oblast]], created 1939, eliminated 1944 (now Białystok in Poland)
* [[Brest Region]], created 1939
* [[Gomel Region|Gomel Oblast]], created 1938
* [[Grodno Region|Grodno Oblast]], created 1944
* [[Maladzyechna Voblast|Maladzyechna Oblast]] renamed from Vileyka Oblast 1944, eliminated 1960
* [[Mogilev Region|Mogilev Oblast]], created 1938
* [[Minsk Region|Minsk Oblast]], created 1938
* [[Navahrudak Voblast|Navahrudak Oblast]], created 1939, renamed Baranavichy Oblast December 1939
* [[Pinsk Region|Pinsk Oblast]], created 1939, eliminated 1954
* [[Polatsk Voblast|Polatsk Oblast]], created 1944, eliminated 1954
* [[Polesia Region|Polesia Oblast]], created 1938, eliminated 1954
* [[Vitebsk Region|Vitebsk Oblast]], created 1938
* [[Vileyka Voblast|Vileyka Oblast]], created 1939, renamed to Maladzyechna Oblast 1944

== Regions ==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Regions of Belarus
|-
! scope="col" | 
! scope="col" class=unsortable | Flag
! scope="col" | Region
! scope="col" | Capital
! scope="col" | Russian
! scope="col" | Belarusian
! scope="col" | Population<br/>(2024)<ref>[https://www.belstat.gov.by/ofitsialnaya-statistika/ssrd-mvf_2/natsionalnaya-stranitsa-svodnyh-dannyh/naselenie_6/dinamika-chislennosti-naseleniya/]</ref>
! scope="col" | Area<br/>(km<sup>2</sup>)
! scope="col" | Density
! scope="col" | % of<br/>population
! scope="col" | GDP <ref>{{Cite web|title= Gross domestic product and gross regional product by regions and Minsk city in 2023|url= https://www.belstat.gov.by/upload-belstat/upload-belstat-excel/Oficial_statistika/2023/GDP_GRP-2312.xlsx|website=www.belstat.gov.by}}</ref>
! scope="col" | Average monthly gross wage<ref name="myfin.by">{{cite web|url=https://www.belstat.gov.by/upload-belstat/upload-belstat-excel/Oficial_statistika/2024/nach_sr_zarplata_obl-2411-en.xlsx |title= Nominal gross average earnings in the Republic of Belarus|website= www.belstat.gov.by}}</ref>
|-
| 1 || {{ListFlag|Flag_of_Minsk,_Belarus.svg|45x45px}} ||colspan="2"|{{center|[[Minsk|City of Minsk]]}} || Минск || Мінск || 1,992,862 || 305.50 || 6,606.48 || 21.44% || US$ 22.6 billion || US$ 953
|-
| 2 || [[File:Flag_of_Brest_Voblast,_Belarus.svg|border|45x45px]] || [[Brest region|Brest]] || [[Brest, Belarus|Brest]] || Брестская || Брэсцкая || 1,308,569 || 32,790.68 || 41.11 || 14.32% || US$ 8.4 billion || US$ 639
|-
| 3 || [[File:Flag_of_Homyel_Voblast.svg|border|45x45px]] || [[Gomel region|Gomel]] || [[Gomel]] || Гомельская || Гомельская || 1,338,617 || 40,361.66 || 34.40 || 14.75% || US$ 8.8 billion || US$ 643
|-
| 4 || [[File:Flag_of_Hrodna_Voblasts.svg|border|45x45px]] || [[Grodno region|Grodno]] || [[Grodno]] || Гродненская || Гродзенская || 992,556 || 25,118.07 || 40.88 || 10.91% || US$ 8.1 billion || US$ 643
|-
| 5 || [[File:Flag_of_Mahilyow_Voblast.svg|border|45x45px]] || [[Mogilev region|Mogilev]] || [[Mogilev]] || Могилёвская || Магілёўская || 981,174 || 29,079.01 || 35.24 || 10.89% || US$ 5.7 billion || US$ 600
|-
| 6 || [[File:Flag_of_Minsk_Voblast.svg|border|45x45px]] || [[Minsk region|Minsk]] || [[Minsk]] || Минская || Мінская || 1,460,289 || 39,912.35 || 36.86 || 15.63% || US$ 14.1 billion || US$ 720
|-
| 7 || [[File:Flag_of_Vitsebsk_Voblasts.svg|border|45x45px]] || [[Vitebsk region|Vitebsk]] || [[Vitebsk]] || Витебская || Вiцебская || 1,081,911 || 40,049.99 || 28.36 || 12.06% || US$ 6.8 billion || US$ 602
|-
|  ||  || '''[[Belarus]]''' || '''[[Minsk]]''' ||colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''Беларусь'''  ||  '''9,155,978''' || '''207,617.26''' || '''45.34''' || '''100.00%''' || '''US$ 74.5 billion''' ||  '''US$ 714'''
|}

==Historical division==
{{Multiple image
|header= Administrative division of Byelorussian SSR by year
|align =center
|total_height = 300
|total_width = 1000
| image1 = Округа Белорусской ССР.png
| caption1 = 1926
| image2 = Приграничные_округа_Белорусской_ССР_(1927).svg
| caption2 = 1927
| image3 = Адміністрацыйна-тэрытарыяльны_падзел_БССР._1940.svg
| caption3 = 1940
| image4 = Административное_деление_БССР_(1945).svg
| caption4 = 1945
| image5 = Административное_деление_БССР_(1955).svg
| caption5 = 1955
}}
{{clear}}

==See also==
*[[ISO 3166-2:BY]], the ISO codes of the regions of Belarus.
*[[List of regions of Belarus by Human Development Index]]
*[[Districts of Belarus]], 2nd  level subdivision
*[[Rural councils of Belarus]], 3rd level subdivision

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.belarus.by/en/about-belarus/map Interactive map of Belarus]
* [http://president.gov.by/en/regions_en/ Regions (oblasts) of Belarus, The official President's website]
* [https://www.belarus.by/en/about-belarus/geography/ Geography of Belarus, The official website of Belarus]
* [https://vedaj.by/index.php/en/towns Belarusian regions, towns and villages]
* [http://www.eki.ee/wgrs/rom2_be.htm Current Status of United Nations Romanization Systems for Geographical Names of Belarus]

{{First-level administrative divisions of Belarus}}
{{Belarus topics}}
{{Articles on first-level administrative divisions of European countries}}


[[Category:Regions of Belarus| ]]
[[Category:Lists of administrative divisions|Belarus]]
[[Category:Administrative divisions in Europe|Belarus]]
[[Category:First-level administrative divisions by country|Regions, Belarus]]
[[Category:Belarus geography-related lists]]