Taymyr Autonomous Okrug

Coordinates: 69°24′N 86°11′E / 69.4°N 86.183°E / 69.4; 86.183

Flag of Taymyr Autonomous Okrug

Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (Russian: Таймы́рский Долга́но-Не́нецкий автоно́мный о́круг, Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky avtonomny okrug), or Taymyria, was a federal subject of Russia (an autonomous okrug of Krasnoyarsk Krai), the northernmost in mainland Russia (and thus Asia). It is named after the Taymyr Peninsula. It is also called Dolgan-Nenets Autonomous Okrug (Долгано-Ненецкий автономный округ), by the name of the indigenous people, Dolgans and Nenetses.

With an area of 862,100 km² (ranked 4th) and a population of 39,786 (2002 Census), Taymyria was one of the least densely populated areas of Russia as of 2006. Dudinka, with more than half of Taymyria's inhabitants, is the administrative center.

Following a referendum on the issue held on April 17, 2005, Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets and Evenk Autonomous Okrugs were merged into Krasnoyarsk Krai effective January 1, 2007. Taymyria was given a special status within Krasnoyarsk Krai and incorporated as Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District.

Time zone

Taymyria is located in the Krasnoyarsk Time Zone (KRAT/KRAST). UTC offset is +0700 (KRAT)/+0800 (KRAST).

Administrative divisions

Main article: Administrative divisions of Taymyr Autonomous Okrug

Landscape of Taymyr

Indigenous people of Taymyr

The city of Norilsk, even though it is geographically located within Taymyr Autonomous Okrug, was administratively subordinated directly to Krasnoyarsk Krai prior to the merger. This also applied to the urban-type settlement of Snezhnogorsk, which was administratively subrodinated to Norilsk. Therefore, the okrug's population reported by the Census authorities does not include the populations of Norilsk and Snezhnogorsk.

See also: Administrative divisions of Krasnoyarsk Krai

Taymyr In Popular Culture

Although not actually having been filmed in Taymyr, it is depicted in the 1985 film White Nights, starring Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines. During the opening moments of the film, Baryshnikov's character Nikolai Rodchenko-a Soviet defector-is on a passenger plane that crash lands at "Norilsk Air Base." He inevitably is taken into the home of Hines' character-a US defector-and his wife (played by Isabella Rossellini), where they advise him that he is in Taymyr upon regaining consciousness.

Demographics

• Population (2002): 39,786.

• Ethnic groups:

Of the 39,786 residents (as of the 2002 census) 1,018 (2.6%) chose not to specify their ethnic background. A quarter of the population identified themselves as indigenous Siberians (Dolgans, Nenets, Nganasans, Evenks, Enets). 58.6% of the population were ethnic Russians. Other nationalities included 2,423 Ukrainians (6.1%), 587 Volga Germans (1.5%), 425 Tatars (1.1%), 294 Belarusians (0.7%) and 239 Azeris (0.6%)

	census 1939	census 1959	census 1970	census 1979	census 1989	census 2002
Dolgans1	3,971 (13.8%)	3,934 (11.8%)	4,344 (11.4%)	4,338 (9.7%)	4,939 (8.9%)	5,517 (13.9%)
Nenets	2,523 (8.8%)	1,878 (5.6%)	2,247 (5.9%)	2,345 (5.2%)	2,446 (4.4%)	3,054 (7.7%)
Enets2					103 (0.2%)	197 (0.5%)
Nganasans3		682 (2.0%)	765 (2.0%)	746 (1.7%)	849 (1.5%)	766 (1.9%)
Evenks	563 (2.0%)	412 (1.2%)	413 (1.1%)	338 (0.8%)	311 (0.6%)	305 (0.8%)
Russians	16,931 (59.0%)	21,799 (65.3%)	25,465 (66.9%)	30,640 (68.2%)	37,438 (67.1%)	23,348 (58.6%)
Others	4,723 (16.5%)	4,677 (14.0%)	4,826 (12.7%)	6,546 (14.6%)	9,717 (17.4%)	6,629 (16.7%)
Notes: In the 1939 and 1959 census Dolgans were counted as Yakuts. In the 1939, 1959, 1970 and 1979 census Enets were counted as Nenets. In the 1939 census Nganasans were counted as Nenets.

• Vital statistics

Source: Russian Federal State Statistics Service

	Births	Deaths	Birth rate	Death rate
1970	761	299	20.0	7.9
1975	857	317	20.4	7.5
1980	996	333	21.7	7.2
1985	1,104	370	21.6	7.3
1990	842	360	16.4	7.0
1991	789	335	15.8	6.7
1992	692	401	14.4	8.3
1993	617	448	13.4	9.7
1994	585	518	13.3	11.8
1995	537	501	12.6	11.8
1996	486	441	11.7	10.6
1997	483	374	11.9	9.2
1998	498	368	12.6	9.3
1999	448	376	11.6	9.7
2000	460	438	12.0	11.4
2001	562	438	14.5	11.3
2002	608	397	15.4	10.1
2003	625	386	15.8	9.8
2004	637	345	16.2	8.8
2005	548	369	14.0	9.4
2006	540	347	14.0	9.0
2007	592	335	15.6	8.8
2008	586	360	15.7	9.6