What is a federation?
A federation is a country made of several parts. Each part has its own local government and laws for local matters. The centre (federal government) looks after matters for the whole country: defence, money, foreign relations and common laws.
This is different from a unitary state, where one central government makes almost all decisions and the regions only carry them out. A very large and varied country often chooses a federation, because local people know their local needs best.
The types of units in Russia
Russia is called the Russian Federation. By the 1993 Constitution all its units are equal in their relations with the centre, but they come in six types:
- Republics: often homes of a named people with its own language and traditions. They may have their own constitution.
- Krais (territories): older border or frontier lands, now equal to other units.
- Oblasts (regions): the most common type, usually named after a main city.
- Cities of federal importance: Moscow and Saint Petersburg, big cities with the status of a unit.
- Autonomous okrugs: areas with a small local people, such as the Nenets, Chukotka and Yamalo-Nenets okrugs.
- Autonomous oblast: the Jewish Autonomous Oblast.
There are more than 80 units in all. The exact number is different in different sources and years, so check the latest official list.
Regionalisation: grouping units
More than 80 units are too many to study or plan one by one. Regionalisation means grouping units into bigger regions that share something. Three common ways:
- Federal districts (about 8): groups made in 2000 so the centre can work with neighbouring units together. Examples: Central, North-West, Volga, Urals, Siberian, Far Eastern.
- Economic regions: groups of units with a similar economy and links, used for planning (for example the Volga region, the Urals, West Siberia, the Far East).
- Macro-regions: the biggest groups. The European (west) part has the largest share of people, cities and industry. The Asian (east) part has the largest share of land, minerals, forests and energy.
Why does it matter?
The structure decides who handles what: a village school is managed by the region, a national army by the centre. It also shows the big picture: people live in the west, resources are in the east, and roads, railways and pipelines must join them.
Key formulas and definitions
- Federation = parts + centre + shared power
- Six types of units: republic, krai, oblast, federal city, autonomous okrug, autonomous oblast
- Levels (top to bottom): country โ macro-region โ district / economic region โ unit
Worked examples
1. In the 3D model, 4 blocks are republics, 4 are krais and 10 are oblasts. How many are in the other types?
24 โ (4 + 4 + 10) = 24 โ 18 = 6 blocks in the other types (2 federal cities and 4 autonomous units).
2. In the model there are 13 blocks in the west and 11 in the east. What fraction is in the west?
13 รท 24 is about 0.54, or about 54%.
3. Which is a better reason to have a federation: a small country with one language, or a huge country with many peoples?
A huge country with many peoples. Local governments can understand local needs, while the centre keeps the country together.
4. Why group more than 80 units into districts?
It makes planning and talking to the centre easier: the centre deals with a few district groups, not 80 separate units.
Common mistakes
- Thinking a federation has no central government. It does, and it shares power with the parts.
- Mixing up a federal district (a grouping for convenience) with a federal unit (a republic, oblast and so on).
- Believing all units are the same type. There are six types.
- Quoting one fixed number of units. The number differs in different years and sources.