Republic of Khakassia, Russia

The Republic of Khakassia is located in Central Siberia. It borders on the Altai Republic in the southwest, the Kemerovo region in the west, the Krasnoyarsk Territory in the north and east, and the Tuva Republic in the southeast.

 

Cities

Abakan
Abaza
Chernogorsk
Khakassky Nature Reserve

Sunduki
Sayanogorsk
Shira
Sorsk

 

Language

In Khakassia, the official languages are Russian and Khakass. The Khakass language belongs to the Khakass-Altaic group of Eastern Turkic languages. Writing based on the Cyrillic alphabet was created in 1924; before the Mongol invasion, the ancient Turkic runic script (Orkhon-Yenisei script) was used.

 

How to get there

By plane
Daily flights Moscow-Abakan are operated by two airlines: Sibir (S7) and Aeroflot. Departure from Moscow closer to night, arrival in Abakan at 6-7 am.

By train
From Moscow from the Yaroslavl station on the Trans-Siberian Railway, then in Achinsk there is a branch to Abakan. On the branded train No. 066Y Sayany or No. 068Y Moscow-Abakan. The travel time is just over three days, the distance is less than 4,400 kilometers.

By car
Along the M53 “Baikal” highway from the Kemerovo region, then from Krasnoyarsk along the M54 “Yenisei” highway.

 

Eat

Khakass national cuisine is typical of Siberian semi-nomadic peoples. Basic food products of animal origin, such as lamb and horse meat dishes, dairy products (white food), plant foods are represented mainly by cereals (rye, millet) from which the famous Khakass dish Talgan is made. Popular drinks include herbal teas using thyme and oregano and the fermented milk drink ayran.

For a traveler, there will be no problems with food; in the cities and regions of Khakassia there is a developed network of cafes and eateries with European and Caucasian cuisine; Khakassian dishes can only be found in specialized restaurants or in tourist centers in the warm season, for example, in open-air museums. For guests of the capital of Khakassia, a list of Abakan catering establishments has been compiled, which makes it easier to find a place for dinner

 

History

The historical development of the peoples of Khakassia took place in relatively favorable climatic conditions; in its course, a unique cultural heritage was created, which represents an invaluable resource for the development of the region. The basis of the cultural heritage of Khakassia is natural archaeological landscapes made up of tens of thousands of archaeological objects.

The settlement of the territory of Khakassia began in the Paleolithic era. The Mousterian layers of the multilayer site Dvuglazka (Glyadeny) date back to the beginning of the Kargin interglacial 40 - 50 thousand years ago. The earliest settlement of Homo sapiens on the territory of Khakassia is the Paleolithic site “Malaya Syya” (30 - 35 thousand years ago), where drilled decorations processed with chisels were found, is located in the Shirinsky district in the vicinity of the village of Malaya Syya, on the banks of the Bely Iyus River.

 

The first state on the territory of Southern Siberia

The first state on the territory of Southern Siberia arose in the 4th - 3rd centuries BC. Ancient Chinese chronicles called its creators the people of Dingling (Chinese: 丁零), and the state of Dingling-Guo (丁零国).

Around 201 BC the state of Dinglin-Guo was defeated by Xiongnu troops.

After this event, the Turkic-speaking Kyrgyz tribe moved to the Khakass-Minusinsk basin.

In the 6th - 7th centuries, the Kyrgyz and their subordinate taiga peoples formed a peripheral inheritance of the Central Asian states, headed by a governor, Elteber.

In the 8th century it was a separatist region led by its own beks and inals, claiming the dignity of khan (see Barsbek Kagan).

In the 9th century it became a rapidly expanding aggressive steppe empire with the deified Kagan family.

In 840, this state destroyed the Uyghur Khaganate and extended its power to Tuva. Pursuing the remnants of the Uyghurs, the Kyrgyz fought their way to the Irtysh and Amur, and invaded the oases of Eastern Turkestan.

The Kyrgyz provided the state with senior military and administrative leaders. They were considered connected dynastically and through marriage with the ruling houses of China and other neighboring countries.

In a harsh struggle with aggressive neighbors (Turkic and Uyghur Khaganates), the Kyrgyz state defended its independence until the 13th century, which became a turning point in the independent development of Southern Siberia.

The Kyrgyz retain two main areas of their settlement: 1) Upper and Middle Yenisei; 2) Altai and Irtysh. Subsequently, the ethnic paths of the Yenisei Kyrgyz and the future Kyrgyz of the Tien Shan diverged.

The territory of Khakassia was captured during the conquests of the Great Mongol Ulus led by Genghis Khan and his descendants, but gradually the power of the Mongols weakened and the complete subordination of the territory of Khakassia to the Yuan Empire ended in 1399 with the formation of the state of Hongorai.

The Khongorai state waged constant wars with the Mongolian Khotogoyts under the control of the Altyn Khans and Russians. The main ally of the state was the Dzungar Khanate, which later diplomatically achieved the vassalization of Khongorai.

 

Khakassia within the Russian Empire

In the 17th century, the Russians found Khongorai in the form of a confederation consisting of four uluses: Altyrsky, Altysarsky, Isarsky (Ezersky) and Tubinsky, inhabited by the ancestors of modern Khakassians, Shors, Teleuts, Altaians and Tuvinians. Another part of the Kyrgyz migrated to the Tien Shan in several waves starting from the middle of the 9th century, from the era of the Kyrgyz Great Power, until the middle of the 13th century.

The first contacts between the Kyrgyz and Russians began with the construction of the Tomsk fort in 1604 on the land of the Eushta Tatars, tributaries of the Kyrgyz beks.

For more than a hundred years, the complex and painful process of Khakassia’s entry into the jurisdiction of the Russian Empire and then the Russian Empire took place.

The date of official assignment of Khakassia to the Russian Empire can be considered August 20, 1727, when a border treaty was concluded between Russia and China. All the lands located on the northern side of the Sayan Mountains went to Russia, and on the southern side - to the Chinese Empire.

The actual entry of the territory of the current republic occurred later. In 1758, Chinese troops invaded Altai and defeated Dzungaria. There was a threat of violation of the officially recognized borders of the Russian Empire.

The tsarist government hastily placed Cossack garrisons in this area. From the moment when the Cossacks began to carry out border service, Khakassia actually entered the Russian Empire.

The administration of the territory was carried out first by officials of the Siberian and Tomsk provinces. In 1822, the Kyrgyz land became part of the Yenisei province.

 

Khakass Autonomous Region of the Krasnoyarsk Territory of the RSFSR and the Republic of Khakassia of the Russian Federation

Khakasssky district was formed on November 14, 1923. It became a national district, then on October 20, 1930, the Khakass Autonomous Region appeared on the map. It was part of the West Siberian Territory, and after its disaggregation in 1934 it became part of the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

On July 3, 1991, the autonomous region was transformed into a republic and received the name Khakass Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic; on January 29, 1992, it became known as the Republic of Khakassia[16]. On June 6, 1992, the republic received its own flag, and on December 20, 2006, a coat of arms.

In 2007, the Central Bank of Russia issued a commemorative coin dedicated to the Republic of Khakassia.

In 2015, the Anthem of the Republic of Khakassia was approved.

 

Physical and geographical characteristics

Geographical position

The Republic of Khakassia is located in Southern Siberia, on the left bank of the Yenisei River basin, in the Sayan-Altai Highlands and the Khakass-Minusinsk Basin.

The length of the territory from north to south is 460 km, from west to east in the widest part is 200 km. In the north, east and southeast, Khakassia borders with Krasnoyarsk Krai, in the south - with the Republic of Tyva, in the southwest - with the Altai Republic, in the west - with the Kemerovo Region.

In total, there are 271 populated areas on the territory of the republic.

The territory of Khakassia is distinguished by a pronounced nature of biosphere processes, due to which almost all landscape-natural zones of the earth are represented here: semi-deserts, steppes, forest-steppes, taiga, high-mountain alpine meadows, high-mountain tundra and glaciers.

The republic has significant resources of fresh underground and surface water. There are almost all types of water bodies: mountain rivers, tarn lakes, foothill rivers, water bodies with a flat type of regime. The main waterway is the Yenisei River.

The total area of ​​the forest fund is 65 percent of the entire territory of the republic, which is 36.47 thousand km². The total timber reserve is 444.3 million m3, including coniferous species 363.9 million m3. Cedar forests are of particular value.

Specially protected natural areas occupy 7.6 percent of the republic's area.

 

Terrain

The predominant terrain: steppes, mountains and taiga. The Sayan Mountains, whose height sometimes exceeds 2000 m, occupy two-thirds of the republic's territory.

The largest rivers of Khakassia are: Yenisei, Abakan, Tom, Bely Iyus, Cherny Iyus, Chulym, the last four belong to the Ob River basin. There are more than 500 lakes, rivers and small streams in the republic. The total length of rivers is 8 thousand km.

 

Climate

The climate is generally sharply continental, with dry hot summers and cold winters with little snow. The average air temperature in July: +15 ... +22 ° C, in January: -14 ... -19 ° C. The number of sunny days in the republic is significantly higher than in neighboring regions. The period with positive temperatures is 200 days. There are 311 clear and sunny days. The vegetation period is up to 150 days in the valleys. Autumn, winter and spring are mostly dry, rain falls in the summer months.

Khakassia has a diverse climate, which is due to the peculiarities of its geographical location and relief. The climate features are formed under the influence of solar energy, relief, vegetation, atmospheric circulation, etc.

The total amount of solar radiation in the steppe part of Khakassia is significantly greater than at the same latitudes in the more western regions of Russia. Clear, cloudless weather prevails here. It is no coincidence that the name "sunny Khakassia" is used. Indeed, there are more sunny days in Khakassia than in Sochi. The main reason for the aridity of the climate is the influence of mountain ranges, which create a rain shadow.

Southwest winds prevail in Khakassia. Strong winds are typical for the spring period, they often lead to dust storms. The openness of the territory from the north contributes to the penetration of arctic air.

 

Natural healing resources

The Republic of Khakassia is rich in natural healing resources: underground mineral waters, lake waters, and healing mineral muds contained in lakes.

The most famous for their balneological properties are the lakes Shira, Bele, Tus, Dzhirim, Vlasyevo, Gorkoye, Utichye, Altayskoye, Shunet, Khankul and a number of smaller lakes.

There are 24 reservoirs with a mineralization of more than 10 g/dm3 in the territory, which can be used for baths and swimming for medicinal purposes. The most mineralized (up to 92-149 g/dm3) are the lakes Tus, Altayskoye-1, Kamyshovoye.

Open mineral springs:
Altai deposit (mineral waters);
Bograd deposit (mineral waters, bottled water is produced);
Dikoozerskoe deposit (radon mineral waters);
Tashtypskoe deposit (Goryachiy Klyuch in the upper reaches of the Abakan River, nitrogen siliceous thermal waters).

 

Flora and fauna

The vegetation of the republic includes more than one and a half thousand species of various plants. Most of the territory of Khakassia, about two thirds of its total area, is occupied by forests, most of them are mountainous. Coniferous trees predominate in the forests of Khakassia: spruce, cedar, fir, pine. Deciduous trees are also found here: aspen, larch, birch. Vegetation covers 13.4 thousand km² of forest fund.

The steppe occupies about 20% of Khakassia. A huge number, about 300 species of medicinal plants (yarrow, St. John's wort, burnet, etc.) grow in the steppes. Plants listed in the Red Book also grow: common heather, Altai bellflower, lady's slipper, spring adonis and many others.

There are 337 species of birds in Khakassia, belonging to 19 orders. According to the nature of their stay, birds can be divided into several groups. The largest group consists of nesting species: 257, of which 56 are sedentary and semi-sedentary, 201 are migratory. 22 species are migratory, 17 are flying, 16 are vagrant, and 5 are wintering. A separate group can include 20 species with very rare summer stays, the nature of whose stay is unclear. Among the birds here, there are the wren, pelican, osprey, flamingo, which are rare bird species in Khakassia.

There are 75 species of mammals in Khakassia, which are often hunted and traded.

 

Hydrology

The republic has almost all types of water bodies: mountain rivers, karst lakes, foothill rivers, water bodies with a flat type of regime (small steppe rivers and lakes of closed basins). Most of the territory belongs to the middle reaches of the Yenisei River basin, which is currently regulated by the hydraulic structures of the Krasnoyarsk, Sayano-Shushenskaya and Mainskaya hydroelectric power stations. Its water resources are used primarily to generate electricity.

Surface water bodies are represented by a number of reservoirs, the largest of which are Krasnoyarsk, Sayano-Shushenskoye, Mainskoye, as well as more than 500 lakes: Bele, Shira, Chernoye, Itkul, Ulug-Kol and others. Khakassia is rich in natural healing resources: underground mineral waters, lake waters, therapeutic mineral mud contained in lakes.

 

Ecology

The formation of atmospheric air quality in the Republic of Khakassia is influenced by various factors, including the degree of industrialization, the presence of highway networks with intensive traffic, as well as the geographical location and climatic features.

The share of atmospheric air samples exceeding the maximum permissible concentrations in the republic was not detected in 2014 (in 2013 9.9%, in 2012 4.9%, in 2011 10.4%). Such positive dynamics are due to the general trend towards a decrease in the amount of emissions from stationary sources. Analysis of atmospheric air samples for the content of harmful substances in them, both common to the air basin of all cities and specific to each particular city, indicates a trend towards improving the environmental situation.

 

Geology

Khakassia produces iron (reserves of 2 billion tons, large deposits: Teiskoe, Abakanskoe), molybdenum (Sorsky production complex), gold, coal (Askizskoe, Beiskoe, Izykhskoe, Chernogorskoe, Kuten-Bulukskoe), non-metallic minerals: barite, bentonite, facing marbles and granites, building materials. Copper, polymetallic, phosphorite, asbestos, gypsum, nephrite, jadeite deposits have been explored. The explored deposits of Khakassia contain (as a percentage of Russia's reserves): 3% coal, 1% iron ore, 11% molybdenum, 27% barite, 6.5% bentonite, 13% facing stones.

 

Authorities and politics

The highest normative legal act of the region is the Constitution of the Republic of Khakassia. It was adopted on May 25, 1995 by the Supreme Council of the republic.

The highest official of the republic, heading the executive power in the region: the head of the Republic of Khakassia - the chairman of the government of the Republic of Khakassia. The term of office is 5 years. Since November 15, 2018, this post has been held by Valentin Konovalov (CPRF). On September 10, 2023, he was re-elected for a second term.

Legislative power in Khakassia is exercised by the unicameral Supreme Council of the Republic of Khakassia, consisting of 50 deputies elected by a mixed electoral system: 25 by party lists and 25 by single-mandate constituencies. The United Russia faction makes up an absolute majority in the regional parliament (34 deputies). The Chairman of the Supreme Council of the current VIII convocation, elected in 2023, is Sergei Mikhailovich Sokol.

In the Federation Council, the region is represented by a member of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Senator Oleg Zemtsov from the executive branch (since September 19, 2023) and a member of United Russia, Senator Alexander Arkadyevich Zhukov from the legislative branch (since March 8, 2019).

Sergei Mikhailovich Sokol (United Russia) was a deputy of the State Duma of the VIII convocation from Khakassia in 2021-2023.

 

Authorities in the field of tourism in municipalities

In the urban districts and municipal districts of the Republic of Khakassia, the following have powers in the field of tourism: the departments of culture, youth, sports and tourism; departments of sports, tourism and youth of the administrations of municipalities.

In the city of Abakan, the municipal economy committee of the city administration is the authorized body for the development of tourism in the territory of the urban district.

 

Economy

Major industries

The basis of the region's economy: hydropower and aluminum production.

The energy system of Khakassia includes the Sayano-Shushenskaya hydroelectric power station (part of the Yenisei cascade of hydroelectric power stations, the most powerful in Russia, 6400 MW), the Mainskaya hydroelectric power station (capacity 321 MW) and three thermal power plants with a total capacity of 300 MW.

The Sayanogorsk and Khakass aluminum plants, as well as PAO Sayanskaya Folga, are located on the territory of the republic, all of which belong to the Rusal company.

Coal mining is also carried out in the region (OOO Coal Company Razrez Stepnoy and the Chernogorsk branch of PAO Siberian Coal Energy Company).

Coal is mined by two mines (Yeniseiskaya, Khakasskaya) and five open-pit mines with a total annual production volume of more than 6 million tons.

Other non-ferrous metallurgy enterprises include Sorsky GOK LLC (ferromolybdenum and copper concentrate), Tuimsky Plant for Non-Ferrous Metals Processing LLC (copper rolled products).

Electricity per capita production ratio: 7.3, the highest coal ratio in Russia: 5.3.

 

Energy

As of the end of 2018, Khakassia operated power plants with a total capacity of 7,155.7 MW, including 3 thermal power plants, two hydroelectric power plants (including the largest power plant in Russia, the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP), and one solar power plant. In 2018, they produced 29,789 million kWh of electricity.

 

Agriculture

As of January 1, 2021, the rural population was 159,833 people, 30% of the population of Khakassia.

Khakassia belongs to the East Siberian region in terms of natural and climatic conditions.

Khakassia is a developed agricultural region of Southern Siberia. Livestock farming predominates in agriculture (70% of agricultural production) with a high proportion of sheep, cattle, and poultry. Due to the combination of mild climate and fertile soils (chernozems predominate in the steppe and forest-steppe), the region has favorable conditions for the development of crop production; the sown area of ​​the Republic of Khakassia is 257.5 thousand hectares.

Vast areas occupied by pastures and hayfields are the basis for the development of livestock farming (fine-wool sheep breeding, dairy farming). Horse breeding plays an important role. The main crops in crop production are: wheat, barley, oats, millet. Sunflower and sugar beet are cultivated as industrial crops. The per capita production coefficient for livestock farming is 1.2. Agricultural lands make up less than 20% of the region's area.

 

Livestock

Over 3.5 thousand heads of farm animals were exported from Khakassia outside the Russian Federation in the first 9 months of 2021, an increase of 8.6 times. Agricultural enterprises sold 1,739 heads of cattle to Kazakhstan, a third of which were breeding animals, as well as 1,083 horses for use and slaughter purposes. 569 heads of cattle were exported to Kyrgyzstan, 187 heads to Uzbekistan for slaughter.

As of January 1, 2021, the number of cattle in farms of all categories was 162.4 thousand heads (-4.1%), of which 69.2 thousand heads were cows (-4.2%), 313.4 thousand heads were sheep and goats (-0.5%), the number of pigs was 32.6 thousand heads (-2.2%), and 602.3 thousand heads were poultry (+0.1%). In the structure of the livestock population, 50.2% of cattle, 76.9% of pigs, 36.3% of sheep and goats (as of January 1, 2020, 53.5%, 81.8%, 34.8%, respectively). In 2020, 32.5 thousand tons of meat were produced in live weight (-3.8%), 140.5 thousand tons of milk (-3.9%), and egg production was 89.7 million pieces (-3.6%).

Milk yield per cow in agricultural organizations in 2020 amounted to 4365 kilograms (+469 kg), egg production of laying hens was 155 eggs (296 eggs in 2019).

The average daily milk yield in 2020 from a dairy cow was 10.2 liters (in the neighboring Krasnoyarsk Territory 16.4 liters, the Russian average is 16.9 liters). The number of dairy cows is 10137 heads.

 

Crop production

In 2021, the harvest of grain and leguminous crops was 173 thousand tons in initial weight, including 163 thousand tons of grain, with a yield of 21 c/ha. About 91 thousand tons of wheat, 65 thousand tons of oats, 8.3 thousand tons of barley, 7.2 thousand tons of buckwheat, 10.2 thousand tons of rapeseed, 2 thousand tons of flax were harvested. In addition, 6.4 thousand tons of carrots, beets, cabbage and 3.2 thousand tons of potatoes were harvested from the fields.

In 2020, the harvest of grain and leguminous crops was 177 thousand tons with a yield of 23.2 c/ha in bunker weight (in 2019, 20.4 c/ha). After drying and taking into account losses, 160.8 thousand tons of grain were removed to the bins (an increase of 20 thousand tons compared to 2019). As a result, 80 thousand tons of wheat, 56.3 thousand tons of oats, 16 thousand tons of barley, and 6.7 thousand tons of buckwheat were obtained. The total gross yield of oilseeds, including sunflower, soybeans, and flax, amounted to 7.2 thousand tons. The total sown area amounted to 213 thousand hectares, with 76.5 thousand hectares allocated for grain and leguminous crops. Of these, 34.6 thousand hectares are under wheat, 7.8 thousand hectares under barley, 27.9 thousand hectares under oats, and 4.3 thousand hectares under buckwheat.

If you choose the right variety of any agricultural crop, the yield increase can be up to 200%. Therefore, selection is of great importance. New varieties are recommended for cultivation in the Republic of Khakassia. The average yield of spring soft wheat "Union" in the Republic of Khakassia is 40.2 c/ha. The yield of buckwheat "Zhdanka" in the Republic of Khakassia is 26.7 c/ha.

Internal differences, specialization of individual cities
Abakan hub specializing in processing agricultural raw materials (meat-packing plant, brewery).

Chernogorsk hub is the center of the Minusinsk coal basin (mines "Khakasskaya", "Yeniseiskaya", Chernogorsk coal open-pit mine), open-pit mine "Stepnoy". The basis of the city's economy: Chernogorsk branch of the Siberian Coal Energy Company (coal mining).

Sayanogorsk hub, one of the four largest aluminum plants in Russia - Sayan Aluminum Plant. A group of construction industry enterprises (Sayanmramor plants) has been created in Sayanogorsk. The Sayano-Shushenskaya and Mainskaya hydroelectric power plants are located higher up the Yenisei.

 

Transport

The republic's transport network is represented by automobile, rail and air transport.

 

Automobile transport

The republic's road network is most developed in its center, west and southwest, which is directly related to the location of the region's major cities.

The federal highway R-257 "Yenisei" runs through Khakassia, to which the regional highway 95K-002 Abakan - Ak-Dovurak adjoins near the capital. The most developed sections of Khakassia's roads are: Abakan - Sayanogorsk, Abakan - Beya, Abakan - Abaza, Abakan - Sorsk, Bograd - Shira - Kopyevo, Kopyevo - Priiskovy.

The total length of the Republic's roads Khakassia is 7011.57 km, including: regional and inter-municipal roads 2749.6 km, including 138.9 km of roads under the operational management of the State Institution "Tyvaavtodor", federal roads 186.1 km, local roads 4062.54 km. The density of the network of public roads with hard surfaces is 1.11 km per 1 km2.

Roads to other, smaller settlements are mainly dirt roads, although they are currently being replaced with hard surfaces.

Intercity bus service is available to all neighboring regions: Krasnoyarsk Krai (Krasnoyarsk, Achinsk, Artemovsk), Tuva (Kyzyl, Ak-Dovurak), Kemerovo Region (Mezhdurechensk, Novokuznetsk), Altai Krai and the Altai Republic (Biysk, Barnaul, Gorno-Altaysk). There are longer distance routes: to Novosibirsk, Tomsk.

Intercity service is provided by buses, route taxis, private taxis. With the opening of the summer season, the load increases on the Abakan-Shira, Abakan-Sorsk (to the Tumanny sanatorium) road sections.

 

Rail transport

Due to the significant territorial remoteness of the Republic of Khakassia from the central regions of the Russian Federation, one of the leading roles in the transport services market is given to railway transport in both freight and passenger transportation. It accounts for 99% of freight turnover and 79% of passenger turnover in the Republic of Khakassia.

The capital of Khakassia, Abakan, is home to the Abakan railway station, the main transport hub for rail transportation.

The railway network of Khakassia belongs to the Abakan region of the Krasnoyarsk Railway.

The operational length of railway tracks is 666.6 km, of which 288.4 km are electrified, equipped with centralized dispatching devices and automatic blocking. The density of railways in the Republic of Khakassia is 108 km per 1000 km2 of territory.

Direct railway service from Abakan is provided in the following directions: Abakan - Novokuznetsk - Barnaul, Abakan - Moscow, Abakan - Krasnoyarsk.

There are both electrified sections (Abakan - Kaltas) and non-electrified sections, which make up the bulk of the republic's railway network: Tigey - Kopyevo, Askiz - Abaza, Biskamzha - Teya.

Local trains No. 659/660 Abakan - Krasnoyarsk (via Achinsk), No. 675/676 Abakan - Barnaul (via Biskamzha), long-distance trains No. 67/68 Abakan - Moscow (via Achinsk, Omsk, Yekaterinburg) run across the republic;

In addition, depending on the season, from Abakan, trailer cars and seasonal trains can be used to get to Irkutsk, Taishet, Adler.

The Tigey-Kopyevo railway section and further to Uzhur, Achinsk is a link between two railway arteries: the Trans-Siberian Railway and the Yuzh-Siberian Railway (Taishet-Abakan-Novokuznetsk-Artyshta-Barnaul-Kulunda-Pavlodar-Astana-Tobol-Kartaly-Magnitogorsk). In addition to Abakan, the Biskamzha station is a junction. The city of Sayanogorsk is connected to the railway network through the Kamyshta station.

 

Air transport

There is an international airport in Khakassia. It is located in the suburb of Abakan, in the village of Kalinino.

Abakan Airport was commissioned in 1938, the last reconstruction was carried out in 2016.

Passenger and cargo transportation is carried out by Royal Flight and PJSC Krasnoyarsk-Avia. Flights are operated to Moscow, Norilsk, Novosibirsk, Tomsk, Krasnoyarsk, Kazan, Irkutsk and St. Petersburg.

Passenger traffic for the period from 01.01.2016 to 01.01.2017 on international routes was 4,344 people, on Russian routes 175,462 people, and in total, taking into account transit, about 300 thousand people. The airport has one runway (runway class: B), measuring 3250 x 45 meters with asphalt concrete pavement.

 

Water transport

Due to geographical and climatic features, water transport in the Republic of Khakassia has not been widely developed.

This is explained by the presence of shallows and other navigational hazards (insufficient depth, width of the waterway, low maneuverability).

In Khakassia, there are only inland waterways: rivers, lakes, the Krasnoyarsk Reservoir (on the border with Krasnoyarsk Krai).

 

Science and education in Khakassia

In Abakan, there are the Khakass Research Institute of Language, Literature and History, the Khakass State University named after N. F. Katanov with agricultural, medical, pedagogical and music colleges, the Khakass Technical Institute - a branch of the Siberian Federal University, the Abakan branch of the Modern Humanitarian Academy, the Khakass Institute for the Development of Education and Advanced Training, the Khakass Polytechnic College, the Khakass College of Professional Technologies, Economics and Service and others.

In Chernogorsk, there is the Mining College. The training center of the Corporate University of Hydropower operates in Sayanogorsk.

 

Culture

Abakan is the cultural center of Khakassia. It houses the Khakassian National Museum of Local History named after L. R. Kyzlasov, the National Library named after N. G. Domozhakov, the Khakassian Republican Philharmonic named after V. G. Chaptykov, the Center for Culture and Folk Art named after S. P. Kadyshev, the Abakan Art Gallery, the Abakan Youth Palace, the city cultural center "Pobeda", the house of culture of railway workers, the DK "Zarechye" and the DK "Yuzhny".

Among the theaters operating in Abakan, there are two drama theaters: the Russian Republican Drama Theater named after M. Yu. Lermontov and the Khakassian National Drama Theater named after A. M. Topanov. There are also the Khakassian National Puppet Theater "Skazka", the Traveling Puppet Theater "Podorozhnik", and the Khakassian State Theater of Small Forms "Chitigen".

In addition to the bright local holidays held according to the ancient calendar, the national color is emphasized by the beauty contest "Miss Abahai".

Every two years, the summer festival of puppet theaters "Chir Chayaan" ("Spirit of the Earth") is held on the territory of the republic.

 

Archeology

Afanasyevskaya culture | Okunevskaya culture | Andronovo culture | Karasuk culture | Tagar culture | Tashtyk culture | Salbyk mound | Boyarskaya petroglyphs | Sulekskaya petroglyphs | Chebaki fortress (Sve-Takh).

 

Sports

Since 2018, the base of the Russian Olympic ski team has been operating in the village of Vershina Tei in Khakassia.

Freestyle wrestling is also developing in the republic (Karamchakov Sergey, bronze medalist of the Seoul Olympics, Chuchunov Leonid, silver medalist of the European Championship, Serbigeshev Alexey, bronze medalist of the World Championship, Karamchakova Inga, silver medalist of the World Championship, Karamchakova Natalya, silver medalist of the World Championship, Kaskarakova Liliya, European Champion, silver medalist of the World Championship). Dmitry Popov, master of sports of international class in bobsleigh, 5-time winner of the Russian championship, in 2017 became the only winner of the European Cup in bobsleigh in Russia.

The youth team of the Sports School of Olympic Reserve in volleyball "CSKA-Khakassia" (the village of Bely Yar) is a multiple champion of Russia among girls.

Abakan is a popular destination for athletics, volleyball, basketball, and table tennis. The city is home to the professional bandy club Sayany-Khakassia and the amateur ice hockey club Kristall. The men's volleyball club Sibirtelecom-Khakassia and the women's volleyball team of Khakassia State University compete in various Russian leagues. There is an aikido-aikikai club called Samurai, and there are kickboxing and freestyle wrestling teams. There are boxing sections. Equestrian sports (dressage, show jumping, eventing) are also practiced.

The capital of Khakassia has a city sports complex named after N. G. Bulakin with a swimming pool and athletics arena. It is rightfully considered the best multifunctional sports complex in Russia. Here, interregional competitions in dance sport for the prizes of the head of Abakan, the so-called "mayor's cup", are often held, as well as various tournaments in table tennis and cheer-leadership ("Khakassia cup").

 

Mass media of Khakassia

Republican television network (TV channel "RTS");
Republican newspaper "Khakassia";
Republican newspaper "Khakas chiri" (in the Khakass language);
TV studio GTRK "Khakassia";
Information agency "New Khakassia";
Media holding "Abakan" (newspaper, radio, TV channel "Abakan 24");
Weekly newspaper "Pravda Khakasii" (organ of the Khakass RO CPRF);
News agency "Khakassia Inform";
Business information agency;
Media group "Yug Sibiri" (You-Tube news channel Nota Bene);
Weekly newspaper "Chance";
Weekly newspaper "Pyatnitsa";
Newspaper "Advertising Courier";
Online magazine "Novyi Fokus";
Magazine "Stroyka v Khakasii";
Media holding "Chernogorsk-Inform" (newspaper, radio, TV channel)