A Brief History of the Cyrillic Alphabet

The Cyrillic Alphabet is actually one of the newer alphabets in the world today. It was developed in the 9th century during the First Bulgarian Empire. In contrast, we first saw the Latin Alphabet in the 7th Century BC, about 1,500 years earlier. While the Cyrillic Alphabet is named after Saint Cyril, historians continue to hotly debate whether Cyril himself or one of his students actually invented it.

Today, the Cyrillic Alphabet remains prevalent across the Slavic world. From central Europe to central Asia, you’ll find the Cyrillic states stretching from the Balkan states in Europe all the way to Mongolia. Not surprisingly, most Asian nations that use the Cyrillic Alphabet are former Soviet Union members.

Look to the Cyrillic Alphabet to Explain the Pull Between Russia and the West

Long before the war between Russia and Ukraine broke out, you could clearly see the tug between Russia and the west in eastern Europe. Just look at the languages of the Slavic nations in eastern Europe. Poland is the perfect example. Mieszko I, who ruled the Polans tribe during the 10th Century, created the Polish language specifically for the Cyrillic Alphabet. Unfortunately for him, most Poles were converting to Catholicism, while the Orthodox Church was responsible for spreading the Cyrillic Alphabet. As a result, the Polish Language adopted the Latin alphabet used in the Catholic Church instead.

In 1772, the Russian Empire seized about 80% of Poland-Lithuania, which encompassed much of what is today the Baltic States, Belarus, Poland, and Ukraine. Over the next 40-plus years, the Russians introduced a Polish Cyrillic, and relentlessly tried to “Cyrillify” Poland. The Catholics fiercely resisted because they did not want to convert to the Orthodox Church. As a result, the only way the Russians succeeded in introducing the Cyrillic Alphabet to Poland was to introduce the Russian language. In the 1970’s, the Soviet Union tried once more to get Poland to adopt the Cyrillic alphabet, but was again unsuccessful.

To this day, Polish remains one of the few Slavic Languages that never adopted the Cyrillic Alphabet. And geography continues to play a major role in that. On one hand, as a member of both NATO and the European Union, Poland’s strong ties to the west are undeniable. But on the other hand, it’s hard to not look east from a linguistics perspective. Would Polish be any easier or any better off using the Cyrillic Alphabet? The two are a seemingly perfect match, after all. But that’s for the historians and language scholars to debate.

The Cyrillic Alphabet’s Roots Lie in Greece

While Greece has never used it, that’s where you’ll find the Cyrillic Alphabet’s deep roots. The Cyrillic Alphabet solved numerous linguistics issues for the Slavic people living in central and eastern Europe between the 5th and 9th Centuries. At the time, they used the Greek alphabet, which presented one major problem. There were numerous phonetics – both written and oral – in Slavic languages that don’t exist in the Greek Alphabet. As a result, the Cyrillic Alphabet is essentially just the Greek Alphabet with a few added letters to cover those missing Slavic phonetics. Can you spot the similarities?

When I first learned the Cyrillic Alphabet, I had a deep knowledge of the Greek Alphabet, from both my background in mathematics and taking a year of Ancient Greek. If you already know the Greek Alphabet, learning Cyrillic is very easy. If you want to learn the Cyrillic Alphabet, I highly recommend learning the Greek Alphabet first. However, I must note that while I know the Cyrillic alphabet, I claim no knowledge of anything more than just the basics of any language that actually uses it.

Cyrillic Letters Derived Directly from the Greek Alphabet

A Strategy for Learning the Cyrillic Alphabet

If you’re interested in learning the Cyrillic Alphabet, you should break it down into four steps. The first two are easy, but the second two are more of a challenge. Don’t fret, though. The Cyrillic Alphabet itself is very easy to learn. The languages that use it? Well, that’s a whole. different story.

First, start with the Cyrillic letters that both look and sound the same as their counterparts in the Latin Alphabet and in English. Then, learn the Cyrillic letters that are directly imported from the Greek Alphabet.

Now that you have a base established, then you can jump into the trickier letters. We’ll start with the letters that look like Latin letters, bur are not. When I first learned the Cyrillic Alphabet, I kept wanting to pronounce these like their Latin counterparts. Once you can break through that barrier, you’re pretty much there.

The Trickier Letters of the Cyrillic Alphabet

Finally, finish up with the Cyrillic letters that were added for Slavic phonetics. Hopefully these letters won’t be too hard to learn, as they bear little to no resemblance to anything in either the Greek or Latin alphabets.

Most Slavic Languages Add Their Own Letters to the Cyrillic Alphabet

One of the most fascinating aspects of the Cyrillic Alphabet is that it leaves room for each language to add its own letters. There is really no equivalent to that in any languages that use the Latin Alphabet. The closest thing any western language has to that is the Spanish enye (ñ) or the French cédille (ç). But the Slavic languages take it so much further with the Cyrillic alphabet. Believe it or not, some languages have added 10 or more letters to the Cyrillic alphabet.

The geography of the Slavic languages is absolutely fascinating. The Central Asian nations, all of whom are former Soviet Union states, have added the most letters to the Cyrillic alphabet. Even the more traditionally Cyrillic languages, including Russian and Ukrainian, have added their own letters. This not only adapts the Cyrillic alphabet to better fit their own native languages, it also helps each nation distance itself from Russia and its Soviet past.

Some nations have even gone as far as converting their language from the Cyrillic alphabet to the Latin alphabet. Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Azerbaijan all reverted back to the Latin alphabet as soon as the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan also announced recently that they would begin transitioning from Cyrillic to the Latin alphabet starting in 2023.

It’s Incredibly Difficult for Former USSR States to Completely Abandon the Cyrillic Alphabet

This is where it gets complicated. Unfortunately, many former Soviet states have found that they can’t sever those ties completely. Why is that? Nearly every nation that made up the former Soviet Union has retained Russian (the official language of the USSR) as either an official or unofficial language. And that includes Ukraine.

Part of what is driving the war between Russia and Ukraine is Russia’s insistence that Ukraine adopt the Russian language. And while it’s easy to say, oh, Ukraine is its own sovereign nation, they should just tell Russia to piss off, it’s far more complicated than that. And it all ties back to the former Soviet Union. Because Russian was the official language of the USSR, nearly one third of Ukraine’s population speaks Russian as their native language. You can’t just alientate 1/3 of your own citizens.

So why is Russia so mad at Ukraine they decided to induce such a horrific war? Part of it is because other than the three Baltic States and Azerbaijan, Ukraine is the only former Soviet Union member that does not use Russian as one of their official languages. Have a look at these language statistics from Ukraine, broken down by oblast (their equivalent of states and provinces). Can you see a correlation between use of the Russian language and where the heaviest of the fighting is taking place?

Kyiv or Kiev: Why There is So Much Debate About the Spelling of the Ukrainian Capital

If you’ve watched the news recently, you’ve probably heard the debates over how the name of Ukraine’s capital is both spelled and pronounced. Is it spelled Kyiv or Kiev? As for which one is correct, well, it depends who you ask. Kyiv is the transliteration of the Ukrainian language spelling, while Kiev is the transliteration of the Russian language spelling. While Kiev was the official spelling during the Soviet Union, the United States adopted Kyiv as the official and preferred spelling in 2006. They actually retired Kiev as an alternate spelling in 2019 in an effort to persuade western media to use the Ukrainian spelling.

Interestingly, from a strictly nuts and bolts perspective, the spelling difference is no different than comparing the spellings of any location in any two languages. It gets complicated and becomes a hot-button issue once you take into account the history, politics, and culture of Russia and Ukraine. Without those aspects, it would be no different than doing this.

What About the Ukrainian President’s Name? How Do You Correctly Spell It?

Is it Zelenskyy, Zelensky, or Zelenskiy? You’ve probably seen it spelled all three ways on the news. To understand the correct spelling, we must look again to the Cyrillic alphabet and the long history between Ukraine and Russia. In Ukrainian, he spells his name Володомир Зеленський.

It turns out that when you use the Cyrillic alphabet, his name is spelled nearly identically in Russian (Володомир Зеленский) as it is in Ukrainian. So how does that help us in the Latin alphabet? You have to look at how the Cyrillic alphabet is transliterated in Russian vs Ukrainian. More specifically, the last two letters of his name. In Ukrainian, while и and й are pronounced differently, they both transliterate to the letter “y”. On the other hand, in Russian, и transliterates to the letter “i” and й transliterates to the letter “y”. So just like Kyiv, this once again boils down to the Russian vs Ukrainian spellings.

So what’s the verdict? According to the man himself, the Ukrainian spelling (Zelenskyy) is the correct one. And the third spelling? Zelensky is simply an anglicized version of the Ukrainian spelling, as the double-y does not exist in English.

Zelenskyy’s History Doesn’t End There

Because Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union during Zelenskyy’s childhood, he actually grew up speaking Russian, not Ukrainian. In fact, he used the Russian spelling of his own name (Zelenskiy) up until 2018. And why is that timing relevant? Because he became president of Ukraine in 2019. That’s just more proof that the long, intertwined history between Russia and Ukraine runs deeper than we can imagine. It took becoming president of Ukraine for Zelenskyy to finally distance himself from Russia.

Learn to Read the Cyrillic Alphabet with Geographic Names

Once you get a basic grasp of the Cyrillic alphabet, it’s time to build on that knowledge and get comfortable reading the Cyrillic alphabet. I find the best way to do that is to remove any aspect of having to bounce back and forth between languages and focus only on the transliteration. For that, we’ll look at the names of places, which we’ll transliterate directly from English.

We’ll start with the easy ones, where all letters except for one or two match the Latin alphabet. Cover up the right hand column and see if you can correctly identify each location. These are all major cities and states in the US and Canada.

The Easy Ones

The Medium Ones

Now that you’ve mastered the easy ones, let’s up the difficulty. These will be a little more complex, but you should still be able to figure them out from looking at them.

The Hard Ones

Now, it’s time for a challenge. The places have short names, but don’t look anything like their Latin counterparts. Remember, these are all names of states and major cities in the United States. If you’re struggling, start by focusing on letters you know.

The Extreme Ones

The ultimate challenge. These are places with long names whose Cyrillic transliterations look nothing like their English names. However, I’ll give you a hint. The last one is a major city in western Canada. The rest are all states and major cities in the United States.

Conclusion

The Cyrillic alphabet offers a fascinating, but powerful glance into the history of Ukraine, Russia, and the rest of the Slavic world. For Russia and Ukraine, it is the thread that ties their long, storied, and even twisted histories together. Yet paradoxically, it causes rifts and divisions that run deep enough to kick off the most brutal and horrific war Europe has seen since World War II.

I’ve always said that the more we understand about each other, the more accepting we’ll be of opposing viewpoints. Hopefully, this introduction to the Cyrillic alphabet has given at least enough of a glance into the history and culture of not just Russia and Ukraine, but the entire Slavic world. Because the history and culture of this region is fascinating. It would be such a shame to ruin it with disinformation. Слава Україні.

The post The Cyrillic Alphabet: A Fascinating Glimpse into the Russia-Ukraine War appeared first on Matthew Gove Blog.

Countries are constantly reshaping international borders around the world using everything from treaties to natural forces. Over the years, odd quirks, mystical clauses, and even human error have resulted in some, well, let’s just say, creative international borders.

The border between Baarle-Nassau, Netherlands and Baarle-Hertog, Belgium just boggles the mind. And what about Dahala Khagrabari? Until the signing of a 2015 treaty, it was a piece of India inside of a piece of Bangladesh inside a piece of India inside a piece of Bangladesh. If that gives you an ice cream headache, let me put it another way. Dahala Khagrabari is the only third-level enclave in world history.

Today, we’re going to take it a step further. Instead of looking at strange borders, let’s instead look at some countries that pop up in some rather unusual and unexpected places. You’ll learn about their history and explore some new places. Who knows, maybe you’ll even get some inspiration for your next adventure.

1. Ceuta and Melilla: Visit Spain and Africa at the Same Time

Spain is best-known for its rich culture, beautiful beaches, and temperate climate. In the 1500’s and 1600’s, it spread its influence around the world. Spanish conquistadors colonized everywhere from what is modern-day Latin America to the Philippines. In fact, did you know that in the 1800’s, Spain designated Mexico City as the administrative capital of the Philippines?

While Spain no longer holds any overseas colonies or territories, it still holds 2 exclaves outside of Europe. You’ll find both Spanish cities on the northern coast of Africa, embedded in Morocco. Ceuta has been part of Spain since 1668. A treaty with Morocco fixed the current city limits of Melilla in 1859.

Despite being part of Spain, you won’t find the traditional Spanish culture like you’d experience in the main body of Spain. Both cities are also rich in Arab culture with Jewish and Portuguese influences. Many of these influences stem from when Portugal occupied parts of Morocco from the middle ages to the 19th century.

Fun Fact

During his 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump frequently cited fencing around both Ceuta and Melilla as arguments for building a wall along the US-Mexico Border.

Interestingly, this is not the only time you’ll find Spain in an unexpected place. However, you will have to get very close to Spain to do so.

2. Llívia: Visit Spain Without Actually Going to Spain

Thanks to a bizarre history and the European Union’s laws that allow you to freely move between countries, you can visit Spain without actually going to Spain.

The town of Llívia sits about 2 km north of the border crossing between Bourg-Madame, France and Puigcerdà, Spain. Over the years, both countries have laid claim to it, while at other times, neither country has claimed it.

Llívia’s long and strange history began in 1659, when the Treaty of the Pyrenees ceded the enclave to France. However, due to a quirk in the wording of the treaty that stipulated that all villages would become part of France, Llívia was considered a town instead of a village, despite France’s claim to it. Over the years, both countries have laid claim to Llívia numerous times before finally ending their squabbling upon the formation of the European Union.

Today, Llívia remains steeped in history and rich in Spanish architecture, culture, and cuisine. Because both France and Spain are in the European Union’s Schengen Area, you can easily pass through town and not realize you are in another country. Despite France’s numerous claims to the territory, Llívia retains Spanish dialing codes, postal codes, and emergency services. Ironically, French is not spoken at all in Llívia. Its two primary languages are Spanish and Catalan.

Which is a perfect segue into our next oddity.

3. Campione d’Italia: The Italian Village That’s Part of Switzerland

Up until 1 January, 2020, the village of Campione d’Italia was one-of-a-kind. You needed to clear Swiss customs to access the village. Taxes that funded public services were paid to Switzerland. Campione had Swiss police, fire, and ambulance services. The town had Swiss postal and dialing codes. Its residents registered and insured their vehicles in Switzerland. Salaries were paid in Swiss Francs. So what’s the problem with this quaint Swiss village? It’s actually part of Italy, not Switzerland.

Campione d’Italia is another town with a long twisted history that starts with a geographical anomaly. As the crow flies, Campione is only 600 meters, or about half a mile, from the border between Switzerland and Italy. However, because of the steep and rugged mountainous terrain in the Alps, one must drive more than 20 km from town to reach the main body of Italy. This is just part of the reason that the town relied on Swiss infrastructure.

The Ancient Romans founded the village during the first century BC, which officially became part of Italy in the year 777. Between 1512 and 1900, Campione had numerous opportunities to become part of Switzerland, but it rejected them each time. Ironically, in 1848, the town petitioned Switzerland for annexation. The Swiss government denied the request over their desire to remain neutral.

Integration into Switzerland

Shortly after Benito Mussolini rose to power in Italy in the 1930s, his regime lost control of the Campione enclave. During that time, residents of Campione rejected Mussolini’s fascism and integrated with Switzerland. Campione remained essentially part of Switzerland until 1 January, 2020, when it formally became part of the EU Customs Territory.

Since its integration into the European Union, its Swiss postal codes have been invalidated and residents are now required to register their vehicles in the Italian Province of Como. Interestingly, calls to everywhere in town except for city hall still use the international dialing code for Switzerland.

4. A 2-for-1 Special: Two American Towns Stranded in Canada

In 1846, the US and Great Britain signed the Oregon Treaty. The treaty established the 49th parallel as the northern border of the United States through the Rocky Mountains. Today, the 49th parallel forms the international border between the US and Canada.

Before signing the treaty, ambassadors from both Britain and the US agreed to survey the coastal area south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Both countries wanted to make sure the 49th parallel did not split any islands off the coast between the two countries.

After the survey, the US agreed to cede the southern end of Vancouver Island to the British. Both countries established the border through the Salish sea between Port Angeles, Washington, and Victoria, British Columbia.

Unfortunately, the surveyors were so focused on the islands that they missed part of the Tsawassan Peninsula that extended south of the 49th parallel near Vancouver.

Point Roberts, Washington

By the time the surveyors realized their mistake, it was too late. The treaty had already been signed. The border had cut off the southern tip of the Tsawassan Peninsula from the rest of the United States. The British government requested that the entire Tsawassan Peninsula should be part of Britain, but the US ultimately rejected the offer. The southern tip of the peninsula remained part of the US.

During the 1858 gold rush, Canadian prospectors established Robert’s Town on the US part of the Tsawassan Peninsula in an effort to avoid paying taxes. The town lasted less than a year, but was ultimately settled by Americans and named Point Roberts. It remained part of the Oregon Territory until the US Government granted Washington State statehood in 1889.

Much like Campione d’Italia, Point Roberts relies on Canadian services and infrastructure. The town’s water comes from Vancouver, and the municipality of Delta, British Columbia provides assistance to the Point Roberts police and fire services when requested. Up until 1988, Point Roberts used British Columbia’s 604 area code, meaning you had to make an international call to reach the rest of the United States.

Elm Point and Northwest Angle, Minnesota

It turns out that Point Roberts wasn’t the only “whoopsie” the treaty negotiators made in 1846. Much like Point Roberts, Elm Point is a tiny strip of land in Manitoba that dips south of the 49th parallel, making it technically part of Minnesota. Thankfully, Elm Point is uninhabited and thus does not have the logistical headaches of Point Roberts.

The US-Canada Border’s Biggest Anomaly

Not far from Elm Point is the largest anomaly on the entire US-Canada border. Minnesota’s Northwest Angle sits north of the 49th parallel and logically should be part of Canada. Due to an inaccurate map of the area, the Americans and the British had agreed to a geographical impossibility when they signed the Oregon Treaty in 1846.

The original treaty established the US-Canada border as running from Lake Superior west through the Rainy River to the northwest corner of Lake of The Woods. From there, it would run due west until it intersected the Mississippi River. It didn’t take long for surveyors to find a couple major problems.

1. The northwest corner of Lake of the Woods is north of the 49th parallel
2. If you go due west from there, you do not intersect the Mississippi River

Due to poor 19th century technology, it took decades to reach an agreement on where the border should be established. Once both Canada and the US were able to make accurate maps of Lake of the Woods, they agreed to run the border from the lake’s originally agreed upon northwest corner due south to the 49th parallel.

In doing so, they sliced off the Northwest Angle from Manitoba and made it part of Minnesota. Both Canada and Great Britain tried several times to buy the land back from the US in the late 1800’s. The US Government rejected every offer, and the Northwest Angle has stood as-is to this day.

5. Visit France on a Short Day Trip from Canada

When you ask about experiencing European or French culture in North America, most people would tell you to head to either Montréal or Québec City. While I have zero qualms against either Montréal or Québec City, why not take it a step further and just take a short day trip to France instead?

Wait, what? A short day trip to France from Canada? Yes, you heard that right. You can get on a ferry in Canada and be in France less than 2 hours later. Only 25 km from Point May, Newfoundland, Canada, you will find the French territory of St. Pierre et Miquelon.

Consider the following excerpt from our exploration of France in the Weird Geography series last summer.

St. Pierre and Miquelon may be small islands, but they carry a stark cultural distinction not just from Newfoundland and Labrador, but to Canada as a whole. When you visit the islands, you’ll experience French food, wine, and music. You’ll pay with Euros, charge your devices with 220 volt plugs, and of course will be speaking French, not English. Finally, St. Pierre and Miquelon are part of France, so don’t forget your passport.

Matt Gove, in Weird Geography: 10 Bizarre and Unusual Facts About France
5 July, 2020

6. Fancy Warmer Weather? Head to South America to Visit France

Nope, we’re not yanking your chain here, either. If the cold, damp, and grey in the Canadian Maritimes don’t suit your fancy, head south. In addition to the Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe, French Guiana is rich in both French and Creole culture. It’s wedged between Brazil and Suriname, and it’s part of France, to boot.

French Guiana’s tropical climate is much more attractive, too. Average high temperatures are between 28 and 30°C (82 and 86°F) for 10 months of the year. The territory has never recorded a temperature below 18°C (64°F) either. Most of its population lives on the coast. Interior French Guiana is largely dense, uninhabitable jungle.

Read more about French Guiana in our Weird Geography visit to France.

7. Brits, Want a Holiday on the Mediterranean without Leaving the UK? You Can Do That, Too.

The United Kingdom has a reputation for being grey, chilly, and rainy. However, you can enjoy the spectacular climate and beaches of the Mediterranean Sea without having to leave the UK.

Gibraltar

Gibraltar sits on the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, just south of La Línea de la Concepción, Spain. Its name is actually derived from the Arabic term Jabal Tāriq, which means “Mountain of Tariq”. While it doesn’t feel like the rest of United Kingdom, Gibraltar is a melting pot of cultures. You’ll find cultural influences from Spain, the Arab part of northern Africa, Judaism, and even Hinduism. English and Spanish are Gibraltar’s primary spoken languages, but you’ll hear languages from all over the world.

The British captured Gibraltar in 1704. Spain officially ceded the territory in 1713. Unlike places like Llívia or Campione d’Italia, there have been very few squabbles over Gibraltar. It’s been a bit awkward since the UK left the European Union. Thankfully, the EU and the UK are currently negotiating an agreement that would allow Gibraltar to participate in the Schengen Area and prevent a hard border with Spain.

Cyprus

The United Kingdom also has two Sovereign Base Areas on the Island of Cyprus. Both Sovereign Base Areas are heavily restricted and cannot be used for anything other than military purposes. The laws of both Sovereign Base Areas are similar, and in some cases identical to the corresponding Cypriot laws. However, British agencies handle law enforcement and the legal system.

Cyprus has an interesting history since its independence from Britain in 1960. Greece and Turkey immediately began posturing for control of the island. In 1974, the Greek Military executed a coup d’état to unite the island with Greece. Five days later, Turkey invaded Cyprus, setting off months of conflict on the island. By the time order was restored, the island had split in two. Turkey occupied the northeastern half of Cyprus, while Greece occupied the southwestern half.

In response, the United Nations declared a buffer zone between the two sides. After being completely sealed off from each other for 30 years, both sides began to ease border restrictions in 2003. Today, you can cross between the two sides, but you do need a passport. Greece and Turkey have discussed reunification, but those negotiations have all collapsed. You can still see the UN Buffer Zone denoted on Google Maps today.

8. Less than 500 km (300 mi) From Berlin, Germany, You’ll Find…Russia

A seemingly harmless cession of a portion of Germany at the end of World War II landed Russia a port that remains critical to its military and economic success to this day. The city of Kaliningrad is the only Russian port on the Baltic Sea that is ice-free year-round. Without Kaliningrad, the only available Russian ports in the winter would be on the Black Sea, which is less than ideal both militarily and economically.

Here’s the excerpt about Kaliningrad from our Weird Geography exploration of Russia last August.

Formerly part of East Prussia and Germany, the Kaliningrad Oblast (Калининградская область) is an isolated exclave of the Russian Federation sitting between Poland and Lithuania. In January 1945, the Soviet Union invaded and annexed all of East Prussia except for the city of Königsberg. After the Nazis were defeated in 1945, the Germans agreed to cede the city to the Soviets.

In 1946, the Soviets changed the name of Königsberg to Kaliningrad. By 1950, the remaining German population had been forcibly expelled, and Russian replaced German as the oblast’s official language. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the Kaliningrad oblast was designated part of Russia. Kaliningrad has become even more isolated since Poland and Lithuania joined the European Union and significantly tightened their border security.

Matt Gove, in Weird Geography: 10 Bizarre and Unusual Facts About Russia
30 August, 2020

9. Go Island Hopping in Indonesia and Run into…Australia

Australia is not a country you would typically associate with overseas territories. However, it does have two. You’ll find both Christmas Island and the Cocos Islands just off the coast of Indonesia.

Christmas Island has a particularly fascinating history. Europeans first reached the island in 1643, but the British did not formally annex the island until 1888. During World War II, the Japanese became particularly interested in the island’s rich phosphate deposits. Japan took the island by force in 1942. When the Axis powers surrendered at the end of the war, Christmas Island became part of Singapore.

So how did Australia wind up with it? From the end of World War II until 1961, both Singapore and what is currently Malaysia were part of the United Kingdom. The Australian Government requested that the UK transfer sovereignty of Christmas Island from Singapore to Australia. On 1 October, 1958, Christmas Island officially became part of Australia, where it remains to this day.

10. Go Way Off the Grid in Bir Tawil. You Won’t Be in Any Country.

Bir Tawil sits along the border between Egypt and Sudan. It’s the result of a spectacular bungling of language in a treaty the United Kingdom drew up with Egypt and native tribes that inhabit the area in 1902.

At the time of the treaty, the British controlled what is now Sudan. In the intial treaty, Egypt and the UK agreed that the 22nd parallel would form the border between Egypt and Sudan. However, native tribe activity in two triangular areas along the border disrupted those plans.

The primary area in dispute, known as the Hala’ib Traingle is north of the 22nd parallel on the Red Sea. A much smaller area, Bir Tawil, sits south of the 22nd parallel and southwest of the Hala’ib Triangle. You can see both areas marked by the dashed lines in the map below.

An Attempt to Account for Native Tribes Backfires

In an attempt to better reflect the native tribes’ land use, the British redrew the border in November, 1902. They argued that Bir Tawil was grazing land used by a native tribe in Egypt and should become part of Egypt. Additionally, the native inhabitants of the Hala’ib Triangle were much culturally closer to Sudan, so the Hala’ib Triangle should be part of Sudan.

Egypt immediately fired back that the original border that they agreed to (the 22nd parallel) was the actual border. Using the 22nd parallel as the border would place the Hala’ib Triangle in Egypt and Bir Tawil in Sudan.

So what’s the result? You can probably guess.

• Both Egypt and Sudan claim the Hala’ib Triangle
• Neither country claims Bir Tawil

To this day, Bir Tawil remains the only terra nullius, or habitable place on earth not claimed by any recognized government.

So why hasn’t anyone claimed it for 120 years? Mainly because of Bir Tawil’s remoteness and extreme desert climate. Average high temperatures exceed 40°C (104°F) for seven months out of the year. Bir Tawil has measured temperatures above 100°F in every month of the year except December and January.

Conclusion

Whether it’s due to a poor choice of words, outdated technology, or just a bit of luck, countries often pop up where you least expect to see them. Making these discoveries Since many countries still restrict travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I hope this at least somewhat satisfies your drive to get out and explore. We’ll be back out adventuring in person soon.

Until then, in the list above, I’m most interested in a day trip to France from Canada and exploring the two Spanish cities on the coast of North Africa. Which countries intrigue you the most?

Top Photo: Welcome Sign at a Mexican Port of Entry
Los Algodones, Baja California, Mexico – December, 2017

The post Weird Geography: 10 Countries You’ll Find in Unexpected Places appeared first on Matthew Gove Blog.

1. Russia spans 11 time zones and is permanently on Daylight Saving Time

Did I mention Russia is a big country? When Vladivostok is heading to work in the morning, Moscow is just sitting down to dinner. To put the time zones into perspective, Boston and Bangkok are 11 hours apart. When it’s 7 PM in Boston, it’s 6 AM in Bangkok.

2. Russia shares a land border with 14 other countries.

Amazingly, it does not stand alone in bordering the most number of countries. China also shares a land border with 14 other countries. Russia’s longest land border is with Kazakhstan, which checks in at 6,847 km (4,254 mi), while Russia’s shortest international border is its 17 km (10.5 mi) border with North Korea.

And speaking of international borders…

3. You can travel over land from Finland to North Korea and only pass through a single country.

Despite Helsinki and Pyongyang sitting nearly 7,000 km (4,300 mi) apart as the crow flies and having a six-hour time difference, Russia is the only country that separates the two. However, this journey is impossible in reality since there are no legal border crossings between Russia and North Korea. Maybe I should have used China as the example instead.

4. At their closest points, Russia and the United States are only 4 km (2.5 mi) apart.

The Diomede Islands sit in the middle of the Bering Strait between Wales, Alaska and Naukan, Russia (Наукан). Big Diomede is a Russian island, while Little Diomede is part of Alaska. In a true geographical oddity, the two islands sit just under 4 km (2.5 mi) from each other, and due to the International Date Line running between them, there is a 21-hour time difference between Big and Little Diomede.

Bonus Fact: The mainland-to-mainland distance between Wales, Alaska and Naukan, Russia is 80 km (50 mi). For perspective, the width of the Phoenix metro (measured from Goodyear to Apache Junction) is about 90 km (55 mi).

All right, enough about borders, let’s move on.

5. Russia is home to the coldest town on Earth

The Siberian town of Oymyakon (Оймякон) lays claim to being the coldest inhabited place on Earth. The town has very unique terrian and topography, as it sits in a river valley surrounded by mountains. The valley traps frigid air year-round, creating the extremely cold climate in town.

Not surprisingly, winters in Oymyakon are brutal, with average winter high temperatures hovering around -43°C (-45°F). Low temperatures between November and March routinely drop below -50°C (-58°F).

The second coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth was recorded at Oymyakon on 6 February, 1933, when the mercury dipped to -67.7°C (-89.9°F). Oymyakon’s weather station has been in operation since the 1920’s and has never recorded a temperature above freezing between 25 October and 17 March. Only Antarctica has recorded colder temperatures than Oymyakon.

Bonus Fact: On 28 July, 2010, Oymyakon measured its all-time record high of 34.6°C (94°F). When coupled with its all-time record low mentioned above, it has a temperature range of 102°C (184°F). The Russian towns of Verhoyansk, Yakutsk, and Delyankir, along with Fort Vermillion, Alberta, Canada are the only other places on earth that have observed a temperature range greater than 100°C.

6. Russia is home to the world’s largest and deepest lake, which contains over 20% of the Earth’s fresh water.

Lake Baikal (озеро Байкал) sits on the border between the Irkutsk Oblast and the Buryat Republic in southern Siberia. At 636 km (395 mi) long with a maximum depth of 1.64 km (5,387 ft), it contains more water than the Great Lakes combined, with a volume of 23,615 cubic km (5,670 cubic mi). Baikal is also considered to be the world’s oldest, cleanest, and clearest lake, and is home to thousands of species of plants and animals. You can often see the bottom in depths up to 30 to 40 meters (100 to 130 ft), especially in the wintertime.

The lake was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, and is a top Russian tourist destination year-round.

7. There is a part of Russia wedged between Poland and Lithuania

Formerly part of East Prussia and Germany, the Kaliningrad Oblast (Калининградская область) is an isolated exclave of the Russian Federation sitting between Poland and Lithuania. In January 1945, the Soviet Union invaded and annexed all of East Prussia except for the city of Königsberg. After the Nazis were defeated in 1945, the Germans agreed to cede the city to the Soviets.

In 1946, the Soviets changed the name of Königsberg to Kaliningrad. By 1950, the remaining German population had been forcibly expelled, and Russian replaced German as the oblast’s official language. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the Kaliningrad oblast was designated part of Russia. Kaliningrad has become even more isolated since Poland and Lithuania joined the European Union and significantly tightened their border security.

Today, Kaliningrad is the only Russian port on the Baltic Sea that is ice-free year round, and plays a strategic role in the Russian economy and military.

8. Moscow is closer to both Churchill, Manitoba and Libreville, Gabon than Ozernovskiy, Russia.

The expansive geography of Russia has been known to yield some facts so absurd it seems there’s no possible way they can be true. Libreville, Gabon sits just 43 km (27 mi) north of the equator in central Africa, while Churchill, Manitoba is on the Hudson Bay in Canada about 140 km (87 mi) south of the provincial border with the Northwest Territories.

What’s even harder to believe? The distance from Churchill to Libreville is 10,750 km (6,680 mi). Ozernovskiy (Озерновский) is located on the southern tip of the Kamchatka Krai, about 1,100 km (700 mi) northeast of Japan.

Here’s how the distances from Moscow break down:

9. The US State of Alaska was once part of Russia

Have you ever heard someone say that Alaska stretches so far west it actually goes into the Eastern Hemisphere? Well, Russia once stretched so far east it went into the Western Hemisphere. Russia tried unsuccessfully to colonize Alaska, which was known as Russian America, before ultimately deciding keeping the territory was not profitable.

In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia for $7 million, in a deal known as Seward’s Folly. Ironically, Russia sold Alaska to the US because they saw Canada as a much bigger threat at the time. Some Russian town names, churches, and sayings remain preserved in Alaska to this day.

10. Russia is larger than the surface area of Pluto.

I can’t think of a scenario where this fact would be anywhere remotely close to useful, but it’s a cool statistic nonetheless, and would make for a really good trivia question. Pluto’s surface area is 16.7 million square kilometers, while Russia checks in at a whopping 17.1 million square kilometers.

Bonus Fact #1: The letters И and Я in the Cyrillic alphabet are actually vowels.

I’ve never quite understood why so many Americans think these are the Cyrillic letters for “N” and “R”. They’re just not. Both letters are actually vowels in all languages that use the Cyrillic Alphabet. The letter “И” is used basically the same way the letter “i” is used in English, while the letter “Я” makes a “ya” sound, which is common ending in many Russian words, including the Russian word for “Russia” – Россия – which is pronounced “Russ-ee-ya”.

Extra Bonus Fact: The Cyrillic alphabet is just the Greek alphabet with several extra letters to represent sounds in Slavic languages that are not used in Greek.

Bonus Fact #2: Bangladesh, which has 0.86% the land area of Russia, has a larger population.

Bangladesh, which covers roughly the same land area as the US State of Illinois, is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, while Russia, which has about twice the land area of Canada, is simply not.

Well, that wraps up our geography adventure through Russia. Stay tuned for our next weird geography adventure, which will be a special spin-off of this rendition. Thanks for joining me, and I’ll see you next time. Спасибо. Увидимся в следующий раз.

Top Photo: An icy Vineyard Sound and Woods Hole Passage following a major blizzard
Woods Hole, Massachusetts – February, 2015

The post Weird Geography: 10 Bizarre and Unusual Facts About Russia appeared first on Matthew Gove Blog.