View source for Sakhalin Oblast

{{Short description|First-level administrative division of Russia}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2016}}
{{Infobox Russian federal subject
|en_name=Sakhalin Oblast
|ru_name=Сахалинская область
|image_map=Map of Russia (2014–2022) - Sakhalin Oblast.svg
|coordinates = {{coord|50|33|N|142|36|E|type:adm1st_region:RU|display=inline,title}}
|image_coa=Sakhalin Oblast Coat of Arms.svg
|image_flag=Flag of Sakhalin Oblast.svg
|political_status=Oblast
|political_status_link=Oblasts of Russia
|federal_district=[[Far Eastern Federal District|Far Eastern]]
|economic_region=[[Far Eastern economic region|Far Eastern]]
|adm_ctr_type=Administrative center
|adm_ctr_name=[[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]]
|pop_2021census=466609
|pop_2021census_rank=75th
|urban_pop_2021census=82.4%
|rural_pop_2021census=17.6%
|pop_2021census_ref=<ref name="2021census">{{Cite web |title=Оценка численности постоянного населения по субъектам Российской Федерации |url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/tab-5_VPN-2020.xlsx |access-date=1 September 2022 |publisher=[[Federal State Statistics Service (Russia)|Federal State Statistics Service]]}}</ref>
|area_km2=87101
|area_km2_rank=37th
|established_date=October&nbsp;20, 1932
|established_date_ref=<ref>[http://lawru.info/dok/1932/10/20/n1197404.htm Постановление ВЦИК от 20.10.1932 "О реорганизации системы административно-территориального деления Дальневосточного края"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910174022/http://lawru.info/dok/1932/10/20/n1197404.htm |date=September 10, 2017 }} {{in lang|ru}}</ref>
|license_plates=65
|ISO=RU-SAK
|leader_title=[[Governor of Sakhalin Oblast|Governor]]
|leader_name=[[Valery Limarenko]]
|leader_name_ref=<ref>[https://ria.ru/politics/20180927/1529429378.html Щербина стала исполняющим обязанности врио главы Сахалинской области]</ref>
|legislature=[[Sakhalin Oblast Duma|Oblast Duma]]
|website={{URL|http://www.adm.sakhalin.ru}}
}}
[[File:RR5514-0035R 10 рублей биметалл 2006 Российская Федерация Сахалинская область реверс.png|210px|thumb|Commemorative coin of the Bank of Russia with a face value of 10 rubles (2006)]]

'''Sakhalin Oblast''' ({{lang-rus|Сахали́нская о́бласть|r=Sakhalinskaya oblastʹ|p=səxɐˈlʲinskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ}}) is a [[federal subjects of Russia|federal subject]] of [[Russia]] (an [[oblast]]) comprising the island of [[Sakhalin]] and the [[Kuril Islands]] in the [[Russian Far East]]. The oblast has an area of {{convert|87100|km2|sp=us}}. Its [[administrative center]] and largest [[types of inhabited localities in Russia|city]] is [[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]]. As of the [[Russian Census (2021)|2021 Census]], the oblast has a population of 466,609.<ref name="2020Census">{{ru-pop-ref|2021Census}}</ref>

The vast majority of the oblast's residents are ethnic [[Russians]], with a small minority of [[Sakhalin Koreans]]. Sakhalin Oblast is rich in [[natural gas]] and [[oil]], and is [[List of federal subjects of Russia by GDP per capita|Russia's second wealthiest federal subject]] after the [[Tyumen Oblast]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Валовой региональный продукт |url=https://mrd.gks.ru/folder/27963 |access-date=January 23, 2021 |archive-date=November 12, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191112160258/https://mrd.gks.ru/folder/27963 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It borders by sea [[Khabarovsk Krai]] to the west and [[Kamchatka Krai]] to the north, along with [[Hokkaido]], [[Japan]] to the south.

==History==
{{See also|Sakhalin#History}}
{{Contains special characters|Manchu}}
The etymology of Sakhalin can be traced back to the Manchu hydronym ''Sahaliyan Ula'' ([[Manchu script|Manchu]]: {{MongolUnicode|ᠰᠠᡥᠠᠯᡳᠶᠠᠨ<br>ᡠᠯᠠ}}) for "Black River" (i.e. the [[Amur River]]). Sakhalin shares this etymology with the Chinese province of [[Heilongjiang]] ({{zh|t=黑龍江|p= Hēilóngjiāng|l=black [[Chinese dragon|dragon]] river}}).

The [[Indigenous peoples of Siberia|indigenous people]] of Sakhalin are the [[Nivkh people|Nivkh]], [[Orok people|Orok]], and [[Ainu in Russia|Ainu]] minorities.

The first Europeans to explore the waters around Sakhalin Island were [[Ivan Moskvitin]] and [[Martin Gerritz de Vries]] in the mid-1600s, [[Jean-François de La Pérouse]] in 1787 and [[Adam Johann von Krusenstern]] in 1805. Early maps of Sakhalin reflect the uncertainty of the age as to whether or not the land mass was attached to the [[Asia|Asian continent]]. The fact that it is not connected was conclusively established by [[Mamiya Rinzō]], who explored and mapped Sakhalin in 1809 and definitively recorded by Russian navigator [[Gennady Nevelskoy]] in 1849.

[[Japanese people|Japanese]] settlement on Sakhalin dates to at least the [[Edo period]]. [[Korsakov (town)|Ōtomari]] was supposedly established in 1679, and cartographers of the [[Matsumae domain]] mapped the island, and named it "Kita-[[Ezo]]". During the [[Ming Dynasty|Ming]] and [[Qing Dynasty|Qing]] dynasties [[Late Imperial China|China]] considered the island part of its empire, and included the Sakhalin peoples in its "system for subjugated peoples". At no time though was any attempt ever made to establish an Imperial military presence on the island. Japan, concerned about [[Russian Empire|Russian]] expansion in northeast Asia, unilaterally proclaimed [[sovereignty]] over the whole island in 1845. Russian [[settlers]] ignored the claim (and the similar claim of China), however, and, beginning in the 1850s, established coal mines, administration facilities, schools, prisons and churches on the island.
[[File:V.M. Doroshevich-Sakhalin. Part I. Aleksandrovskaya Prison.png|thumb|Aleksandrovskaya Prison in [[Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky (town)|Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky]] in 1903]]
In 1855, Russia and Japan signed the [[Treaty of Shimoda]], which declared that both nationals could inhabit the island: Russians in the north, and Japanese in the south, without a clear boundary between. Russia also agreed to dismantle its military base at Ōtomari. Following the [[Second Opium War]], Russia forced the Qing to sign the [[Treaty of Aigun]] and [[Convention of Peking]], under which China lost all territories north of [[Heilongjiang]] ([[Amur River|Amur]]) and east of [[Ussuri]], including Sakhalin, to Russia. A [[Czar]]ist [[penal colony]] was established in 1857, but the southern part of the island was held by the Japanese until the 1875 [[Treaty of Saint Petersburg (1875)|Treaty of Saint Petersburg]], when they ceded it to Russia in exchange for the [[Kuril]] islands. After the [[Russo-Japanese War]], Russia and Japan signed the [[Treaty of Portsmouth]] of 1905, which resulted in the southern part of the island below 50° N passing to Japan; the Russians retained the other three-fifths of the area. South Sakhalin was administered by Japan as [[Karafuto Prefecture|Karafuto-chō]] (樺太庁), with the capital Toyohara, now known as [[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]].
[[File:Anton Chekhov museum Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky file 3.jpg|thumb|Anton Chekhov museum in [[Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky (town)|Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky]]. It is the house where he stayed in Sakhalin during 1890.]]
After the [[Russian Revolution]] and subsequent [[Russian Civil War|civil war]] northern Sakhalin ultimately became governed by the [[Russian SFSR]] as a part of [[Far Eastern Krai#History|Far Eastern Oblast]] (1922–1926), [[Far Eastern Krai]] (1926–1938) and [[Khabarovsk Krai]] (included Russian-administered territories of Sakhalin in 1938–1947). Sakhalin Oblast was established on 20 October 1932 as a part of Far Eastern Krai, and became part of [[Khabarovsk Krai]] upon the latter foundation in 1938.

===World War II===

In August 1945, the [[Soviet Union]] took over the control of the entire Sakhalin [[Invasion of the Kuril Islands|and Kuril Islands]]. The Soviet attack on South Sakhalin started on August 11, 1945, about a month before the [[Surrender of Japan]] in World War II. The [[56th Rifle Corps]] consisting of the [[79th Rifle Division]], the 2nd Rifle Brigade, the 5th Rifle Brigade and the [[214th Tank Brigade]] attacked the Japanese 88th Division. Although the Red Army outnumbered the Japanese by three times, they could not advance due to strong Japanese resistance. It was not until the 113th Rifle Brigade and the 365th Independent Naval Infantry Rifle Battalion from Sovietskaya Gavan (Советская Гавань) landed on Tōrō (塔路), a seashore village of western Sakhalin on August 16 that the Soviets broke the Japanese defense line. Japanese resistance grew weaker after this landing. Actual fighting continued until August 21. However, this was relatively limited in scope. From August 22 to August 23, most of the remaining Japanese units set truce agreements with the Soviet Army. The Soviets completed the conquest of Sakhalin on August 25, 1945, by occupying the capital of Sakhalin, then known as Toyohara. Japanese sources claim that 20,000 civilians were killed during the invasion.
[[File:Schachtjorsk-ZOF.jpg|thumb|Shakhtyorsk narrow gauge railway {{RailGauge|750mm}}, Central Processing Plant in [[Shakhtyorsk]]]]
[[File:Japanese SL D51-22.jpg|thumb|right|This Japanese [[D51 steam locomotive]] stands outside present day Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Railway Station Sakhalin Island, Russia.]]

===Post-war===
Soviet-conquered areas of South Sakhalin and Kuril Islands were declared a South Sakhalin Oblast by the Soviet authorities in a decree issued on 2 February 1946.<ref>[[s:ru:Указ Президиума ВС СССР от 2.02.1946 об образовании Южно-Сахалинской области в составе Хабаровского края РСФСР|Указ Президиума ВС СССР от 02.02.1946 "Об образовании Южно-Сахалинской области в составе Хабаровского края РСФСР"]] {{in lang|ru}}</ref> Almost a year later, on January 2, 1947, the South Sakhalin Oblast was disbanded and included into Sakhalin Oblast, forming present-day boundary of the latter. On the same day Sakhalin Oblast was excluded from [[Khabarovsk Krai]].<ref>[[s:ru:Указ Президиума ВС СССР от 2.01.1947 о ликвидации Южно-Сахалинской области и включении её территории в состав Сахалинской области|Указ Президиума Верховного Совета СССР от 2 января 1947 года "О ликвидации Южно-Сахалинской области и включении ее территории в состав Сахалинской области"]] {{in lang|ru}}</ref> The Japanese who had been living there before mostly repatriated to Japan, but at least one-third of Koreans were refused repatriation; stuck on the island, they and their descendants became known as the [[Sakhalin Koreans]]. The Karafuto Prefecture was abolished by Japan as a legal entity on June 1, 1949.

The [[Treaty of San Francisco]] (1952) provides, that Japan renounces "all right, title and claim to the Kurile Islands, and to that portion of Sakhalin and the islands adjacent to it over which Japan acquired sovereignty as a consequence of the Treaty of Portsmouth of September 5, 1905". However, the status of the [[Kuril Islands#South Kurils (Minami-chishima / 南千島)|southern Kuril Islands]] remains [[Kuril Islands dispute|disputed]], as Japan does not consider them to be a part of the Kuril Islands (calling them "Northern Territories" instead) and, thus, claims sovereignty over them as "unaffected" by the 1952 renunciation. The issue remains a major strain on [[Japanese-Russian relations]]. Even now, no official peace treaty has been signed between the two nations.<ref name="BBC">{{Cite news |last=Hindell |first=Juliet |date=April 18, 1998 |title=Russia and Japan's island row |publisher=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/despatches/79497.stm |access-date=2009-01-18}}</ref>

In addition, because the treaty did not explicitly specify cession of the renounced areas to the Soviet Union, Japan officially considers South Sakhalin and northern Kuril Islands to be a territories of undetermined ownership and these areas are marked as No Man's Land with white color on Japanese maps, although Japan currently has a Consulate-General in Sakhalin's capital city of [[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]], located on the renounced territory.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mine |first=Yoshiki |date=2015-08-23 |title=北方領土問題は｢千島20島｣の帰属問題である 択捉･国後･歯舞･色丹だけの問題ではない |url=https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/81453 |access-date=2015-02-09 |website=Toyo Keizai Online}}</ref>

On September&nbsp;1, 1983, the Soviets downed [[Korean Air Lines Flight 007]], carrying 269 occupants, including U.S. Congressman [[Larry McDonald]], west of Sakhalin Island near the smaller [[Moneron Island]].

In 1995 the 7.0 {{M|w}} [[1995 Neftegorsk earthquake|Neftegorsk earthquake]] shook the former settlement of [[Neftegorsk, Sakhalin Oblast|Neftegorsk]] with a maximum [[Mercalli intensity scale|Mercalli intensity]] of IX (''Violent''). Total damage was [[United States dollar|$]]64.1–300 million, with 1,989 deaths and 750 injured. The settlement was not rebuilt. On 24 April 1996 Sakhalin Oblast, alongside [[Rostov Oblast]], signed a power-sharing agreement with the federal government, granting it autonomy.<ref name="newsline3">{{Cite web |date=1996-05-30 |title=Newsline – May 30, 1996 Rostov, Sakhalin Oblasts Sign Power-Sharing Agreements |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/1141182.html |access-date=2019-05-02 |website=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |language=en}}</ref> This agreement would be abolished on 4 March 2002.<ref name="demokratiztsiya">{{Cite journal |last=Chuman |first=Mizuki |title=The Rise and Fall of Power-Sharing Treaties Between Center and Regions in Post-Soviet Russia |url=http://demokratizatsiya.pub/archives/19_2_L7H017206G216817.pdf |journal=Demokratizatsiya |pages=146 |archive-date=March 8, 2019 |access-date=May 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190308002915/http://demokratizatsiya.pub/archives/19_2_L7H017206G216817.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Post-war population===
According to the first post World War II Soviet Census in 1959, the population of the oblast numbered 649,405. That figure dropped slightly to 615,652 in 1970 before rising to 661,778 in 1979 and peaking at 710,242 in 1989. Throughout this time period, the Russian population increased slightly in percentage from 77.7% in 1959 to 81.6% in 1989. Following the collapse of the [[Soviet Union]] in 1991, the population of the oblast has declined sharply. Compared with the Soviet 1989 Census, the population of the Oblast according to the Russian 2002 Census had declined by 163,547 or 23.0%, to 546,695. The 2010 population of 497,973 recorded in 2010 is the lowest on record since the oblast was created, although the decline was less (8.9%) than during the 1990s.

====Ainu====
{{Main|Ainu in Russia}}

As of the 2002 census, 333 residents of the oblast still identified themselves as ethnic Japanese.{{citation needed|date=July 2012}}

Most of the 888 Japanese people living in Russia (2010 Census) are also of mixed Japanese-Ainu ancestry, although they do not acknowledge it (full Japanese ancestry gives them the right of visa-free entry to Japan).<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 22, 2011 |title=В России снова появились айны – самый загадочный народ Дальнего востока |url=http://www.5-tv.ru/news/37800/ |access-date=2012-08-13 |publisher=5-tv.ru}}</ref>

===Oil, gas, and coal===
Several Russian, French, South Korean, British, Canadian and American [[oil]] and [[Natural gas|gas]] companies have been either drilling or prospecting for oil and gas on the island since the mid-1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2007-04-25 |title=ExxonMobil Announces Drilling of World-Record Well on Sakhalin Island, Eastern Russia |url=http://www.oilvoice.com/n/ExxonMobil_Announces_Drilling_of_WorldRecord_Well_on_Sakhalin_Island_Eastern_Russia/811fe948.aspx |access-date=2012-08-13 |publisher=OilVoice}}</ref> [[Coal]] and some [[manganese]] had been mined there by the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] authorities since the 1920s.

==Politics==
[[File:The building of the Sakhalin Oblast Government House, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia.jpg|thumb|The building of the Sakhalin Oblast Government House, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia]]
The governor [[Alexander Khoroshavin]] was appointed on August 9, 2007.{{cn|date=February 2023}} He was succeeded by [[Oleg Kozhemyako]] on March 25, 2015, in 2018 he was replaced by [[Valery Limarenko]].

==Administrative divisions==
{{Main|Administrative divisions of Sakhalin Oblast}}
{| class="wikitable" style="padding: 24em 0; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 90%;"
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |Division
! colspan="2" |Structure
! rowspan="2" |[[OKATO]]
! rowspan="2" |[[OKTMO]]
! rowspan="2" |Urban-type settlement/
district-level town*
! rowspan="2" |Rural
|-
!Administrative
!Municipal
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]] (Южно-Сахалинск)
|city
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 401
| align="center" |64 701
|
|2 ''selsovets''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky District|Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky]] (Александровск-Сахалинский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 204
| align="center" |64 704
|
* [[Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky (town)|Alexandrovsk-Sakhalinsky]] (Александровск-Сахалинский) town*
|5 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Anivsky District|Anivsky]] (Анивский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 208
| align="center" |64 708
|
* [[Aniva]] (Анива) town*
|4 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Dolinsky District|Dolinsky]] (Долинский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 212
| align="center" |64 712
|
* [[Dolinsk, Sakhalin Oblast|Dolinsk]] (Долинск) town*
|7 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Korsakovsky District, Sakhalin Oblast|Korsakovsky]] (Корсаковский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 216
| align="center" |64 716
|
* [[Korsakov (town)|Korsakov]] (Корсаков) town*
|5 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Kurilsky District|Kurilsky]] (Курильский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 220
| align="center" |64 720
|
* [[Kurilsk]] (Курильск) town*
|2 ''selsovets''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Makarovsky District|Makarovsky]] (Макаровский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 224
| align="center" |64 724
|
* [[Makarov, Russia|Makarov]] (Макаров) town*
|2 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Nevelsky District, Sakhalin Oblast|Nevelsky]] (Невельский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 228
| align="center" |64 728
|
* [[Nevelsk]] (Невельск) town*
|4 ''rural territorial formations''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Nogliksky District|Nogliksky]] (Ногликский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 232
| align="center" |64 732
|
* [[Nogliki]] (Ноглики)
|
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Okhinsky District|Okhinsky]] (Охинский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 236
| align="center" |64 736
|
* [[Okha, Russia|Okha]] (Оха) town*
|4 ''selsovets''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Poronaysky District|Poronaysky]] (Поронайский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 240
| align="center" |64 740
|
* [[Poronaysk]] (Поронайск) town*
* [[Vakhrushev (urban-type settlement)|Vakhrushev]] (Вахрушев)
|3 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Severo-Kurilsky District|Severo-Kurilsky]] (Северо-Курильский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 243
| align="center" |64 743
|
* [[Severo-Kurilsk]] (Северо-Курильск)
|
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Smirnykhovsky District|Smirnykhovsky]] (Смирныховский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 246
| align="center" |64 746
|
* [[Smirnykh]] (Смирных)
|6 ''rural administrations''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Tomarinsky District|Tomarinsky]] (Томаринский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 248
| align="center" |64 748
|
* [[Tomari, Russia|Tomari]] (Томари)
|3 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Tymovsky District|Tymovsky]] (Тымовский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 250
| align="center" |64 750
|
* [[Tymovskoye]] (Тымовское)
|9 ''rural okrugs''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Uglegorsky District|Uglegorsky]] (Углегорский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 252
| align="center" |64 752
|
* [[Uglegorsk, Sakhalin Oblast|Uglegorsk]] (Углегорск) town*
* [[Shakhtyorsk]] (Шахтёрск)
|1 ''rural okrug''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Kholmsky District, Sakhalin Oblast|Kholmsky]] (Холмский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 254
| align="center" |64 754
|
* [[Kholmsk]] (Холмск) town*
|3 ''rural administrations''
|-
| colspan="2" |[[Yuzhno-Kurilsky District|Yuzhno-Kurilsky]] (Южно-Курильский)
|district
|urban okrug
| align="center" |64 256
| align="center" |64 756
|
* [[Yuzhno-Kurilsk]] (Южно-Курильск)
|3 ''rural okrugs''
|}

==Tourism==
Due to restrictions, the entire Sakhalin Oblast and its internal and territorial waters except for [[Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk]] are considered to be a [[Border Security Zone of Russia|border zone]], which means that the freedom of movement for foreigners is dramatically restricted and any movement outside of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk requires registration to the [[Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation|Federal Security Service]] (FSB) and the [[Border Guard Service of Russia|Border Guard]]. Scuba diving and recreation on the seacoast is permitted only in places defined by the Border Guard.<ref>{{Cite web |title=sakhalinindependent.com |url=http://sakhalinindependent.com/ |access-date=March 18, 2018 |website=sakhalinindependent.com |archive-date=June 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130616185059/http://sakhalinindependent.com/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Demographics==
'''Population:''' According to the [[2021 Russian census|2021 census]], there were 466,609 people residing in Sakhalin oblast. The population density was 5.4 inhabitants per square kilometre (14/sq mi). 82.4% lived in urban areas. The annual population growth stood at −0.6% (2010-21).
{{Historical populations|percentages=pagr|1897|28113|1926|11859|1939|99925|1959|649405|1970|615652|1979|654915|1989|709629|2002|546695|2010|497973|2021|466609|type=|footnote=Source: Census data}}'''Vital statistics for 2024:<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 February 2025 |title=Естественное движение населения в разрезе субъектов российской федерации за декабрь 2024 года |url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/EDN_12-2024.htm |access-date=25 February 2025 |website=Rosstat}}</ref>'''
*Births: 4,472 (9.8 per 1,000)
*Deaths: 6,477 (14.2 per 1,000)

'''Total fertility rate (2024):<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-25 |title=Рейтинг рождаемости в регионах: кто в лидерах, а кто в аутсайдерах {{!}} Москва |url=https://fedpress.ru/article/3365231 |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=ФедералПресс |language=ru-RU}}</ref>''' <br />
1.73 children per woman

'''Life expectancy (2021):'''<ref name="rosstat">{{cite web|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/folder/210/document/13207 |title=Демографический ежегодник России |publisher=[[Federal State Statistics Service (Russia)|Federal State Statistics Service of Russia]] (Rosstat) |access-date=2022-06-01 |language=ru |trans-title=The Demographic Yearbook of Russia}}</ref>  <br />
Total — 68.42 years (male&nbsp;— 63.72, female&nbsp;— 73.41)

'''Ethnic groups:'''
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: right;"
|-bgcolor="#e0e0e0"
! rowspan="2" | Ethnicity
! colspan="2" | 2010 census<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей. |url=https://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_etn_10.php?reg=88 |access-date=2024-08-11 |website=www.demoscope.ru}}</ref>
! colspan="2" | 2021 census<ref>{{Cite web |title=Всероссийская перепись населения |url=https://65.rosstat.gov.ru/folder/56834 |access-date=11 August 2024 |website=Rosstat}}</ref>
|-bgcolor="#e0e0e0"
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
|-
| align="left"| [[Russians]]
|409,786|| 86.5%
|394,794|| 91.2%
|-
| align="left"| [[Sakhalin Koreans]]
|24,993|| 5.3%
|16,060|| 3.7%
|-
| align="left"| [[Ukrainians]] 
|12,136|| 2.6%
|3,634|| 0.8%
|-
| align="left"| [[Tatars]] 
|4,880|| 1.0%
|2,295|| 0.5%
|-
| align="left"| [[Kyrgyz people|Kyrgyz]] 
|1,763|| 0.4%
|1,954|| 0.5%
|-
| align="left"| [[Nivkh people|Nivkh]]
|2,290|| 0.5%
|1,848|| 0.4%
|-
| align="left"| [[Japanese People|Japanese]] or [[Ainu people|Ainu]]
|219|| 0.05%
|93|| 0.02%
|-
| align="left"| Others 
| 17,871|| 3.6%
| 12,198|| 2.8%
|-
|Ethnicity not stated
|24,035
|–
|33,733
|–
|}
Most inhabitants are descendants of Russian and other Slavic settlers. The indigenous [[Ainu people|Ainu]] people have historically inhabited the southern part of Sakhalin Island, with only a small number remaining today. The Ainu are not recognized as a separate ethnic group in the Russian census, making it difficult to estimate their total population. Another indigenous group, the [[Nivkh people|Nivkh]] people, live mainly in the north of the island and amount for roughly 2,000 people. There exists a notable minority of [[Sakhalin Koreans]], who can trace their roots to the immigrants from the [[Gyeongsang Province|Gyeongsang]] and [[Jeolla Province|Jeolla]] provinces of Korea during the late 1930s and early 1940s, the latter half of the [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese ruling era]]. After the Red Army had seized control over southern Sakhalin at the end of WW2, all but a few Japanese there [[Repatriate|repatriated]] successfully, while most Koreans could not secure permission to depart either to Japan or their home towns in South Korea. In 2021, there were roughly 16,000 Sakhalin Koreans, down from 25,000 in the [[2010 Russian census|2010 census]] and 42,000 in the [[1959 Soviet census|1959 census]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей. |url=https://www.demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_nac_59.php?reg=60 |access-date=2024-08-11 |website=www.demoscope.ru}}</ref> 

=== Religion ===
{{Bar box
|title=Religion in Sakhalin Oblast as of 2012 (Sreda Arena Atlas)<ref name="2012ArenaAtlas">[http://sreda.org/en/arena "Arena: Atlas of Religions and Nationalities in Russia"]. Sreda, 2012.</ref><ref name="2012Arena-religion-maps">[http://c2.kommersant.ru/ISSUES.PHOTO/OGONIOK/2012/034/ogcyhjk2.jpg 2012 Arena Atlas Religion Maps]. "Ogonek", № 34 (5243), 27/08/2012. Retrieved 21/04/2017. [https://web.archive.org/web/20170421154615/http://c2.kommersant.ru/ISSUES.PHOTO/OGONIOK/2012/034/ogcyhjk2.jpg Archived].</ref>
|float=right
|bars=
{{Bar percent|[[Russian Orthodoxy]]|DarkOrchid|21.6}}
{{Bar percent|Other [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]]|MediumOrchid|1.8}}
{{Bar percent|[[Protestantism in Russia|Protestantism]]|Navy|0.6}}
{{Bar percent|Other [[Christianity in Russia|Christians]]|DeepSkyBlue|4.4}}
{{Bar percent|[[Rodnovery]] and other native faiths|Red|1.4}}
{{Bar percent|[[Spiritual but not religious]]|DarkSlateGray|37}}
{{Bar percent|[[Atheism]] and [[irreligion]]|Black|15.4}}
{{Bar percent|Other and undeclared|Gray|17.8}}
}}

According to a 2012 survey<ref name="2012ArenaAtlas" /> 21.6% of the population of Sakhalin Oblast adheres to the [[Russian Orthodox Church]], 4% are unaffiliated generic [[Christians]], 2% adheres to other [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox church]]es or is an Orthodox believer without belonging to any church, 1% of the population adheres to the [[Slavic native faith]] (Rodnovery) or to [[Shamanism in Siberia|local Siberian native faiths]], 1% adheres to forms of [[Protestantism]]. In addition, 37% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious", 15% is [[atheism|atheist]], and 18.4% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question.<ref name="2012ArenaAtlas" />

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Sakhalin Oblast}}
{{Wikivoyage}}

*{{in lang|ru}} [http://www.admsakhalin.ru/ Official website of Sakhalin Oblast]
*{{in lang|en}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20131223082538/http://en.admsakhalin.ru/ Official website of Sakhalin Oblast]
*[http://www.internationalsteam.co.uk/trains/russia02.htm Steam and the Railways of Sakhalin]

{{Sakhalin Oblast}}
{{Subdivisions of Russia}}
{{Russian Far East}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sakhalin Oblast| ]]
[[Category:Sakhalin|*]]
[[Category:Far Eastern Federal District]]
[[Category:Russian Far East]]
[[Category:Pacific Coast of Russia]]
[[Category:Countries and territories where Russian is an official language]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1947]]
[[Category:1947 establishments in the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:1947 establishments in Russia]]