Belarus Map

Belarus is an Eastern European country, landlocked and bordered by Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. The capital and largest city of Belarus is Minsk. Belarus covers an area of 207,595 square kilometers (80,155 square miles), about 40 percent of which is covered in forests.

The population of Belarus is estimated at just under 10 million people, of which more than 80 percent are ethnic Belarusians. Other major ethnic groups in Belarus include Russians, Poles, and Ukranians. The main language spoken in Belarus is Russian, with over 70 percent of the population using it as their primary language. The next largest language spoken in Belarus is Belarusian, at about 12 percent of the population. Both Russian and Belarusian are official languages of Belarus. Eastern Orthodox Christians are the largest religious group, followed by Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.

The region that is now Belarus has been part of various countries including the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and eventually the Russian Empire. Belarus became part of the Soviet Union, from which it declared independence on July 27, 1990.

Belarus is made up of six regions: Brest, Homel, Hrodna, Magileu, Minsk, and Vitebsk. Each of these regions are governed at the local level in cities by the same name. Minsk City is a special administrative district of Belarus.

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Last Updated On : April 11, 2013