Kohtla-Järve
Encyclopedia
Kohtla-Järve is a city
and municipality
in north-eastern Estonia
, founded in 1924 and incorporated as a town in 1946. The city is highly industrial
, and is both a processor of oil shale
s and is a large producer of various petroleum
products. The city is also very diverse ethnically: it contains people of over 40 ethnic group
s and only 21% of the population are Estonians
. Many ethnic Estonians in the city have adopted Russian
as their primary language, although this changed in the late 1990s, as Estonian
once again became the primary language used in everyday life. Kohtla-Järve is the 4th largest city in Estonia.
- the main mineral
of Estonia.
There is evidence that a number of settlement
s existed on the territory of modern Kohtla-Järve since the High Middle Ages
. In the Danish Land Book, Järve and Kukruse villages were first mentioned in 1241 by the names Jeruius and Kukarus respectively, and Sompa village in 1420 by the name Soenpe.
Local residents were aware of oil shale's flammable capability in ancient times, but its industrial extraction in Estonia began only in 20th century. In 1916, researches showed that oil shale could be used both as fuel
and as a raw material
for chemical industry
, and mining
started near Järve village. In 1919 the State Oil Shale Industrial Corporation was formed and extraction by shaft
and open-pit mining
was extended. Settlements for workers began to appear adjacent to the mine
s. In 1924 the oil shale processing factory was built near Kohtla railway station, and the nearby settlement, named Kohtla-Järve, started to grow.
During World War II
the value of the Estonian oil shale deposit grew. The Germans
, who occupied Estonia, considered it as an important source of fuel. However, they failed to begin full-scale extraction.
After the war, the next occupant of Estonia, the Soviet Union
, required constantly increasing quantities of oil shale for its industries and extraction greatly expanded. Kohtla-Järve, as the main settlement in the mining area, received city status on 15 June 1946. Since that time, during the next twenty years, there was a process of administrative amalgamation of neighboring settlements within the limits of Kohtla-Järve. Kohtla and Kukruse were added to the city in 1949; Jõhvi, Ahtme and Sompa in 1960; Kiviõli, Oru, Püssi and Viivikonna in 1964. Thus, Kohtla-Järve greatly expanded, becoming a city with a unique layout, as its parts remained scattered among woods, agricultural areas and oil shale mines. Total population of the city increased mainly by workers sent from different parts of Soviet Union, reaching 90,000 in 1980.
After Soviet Union collapsed and Estonia again regained independence in 1991 the number of city districts decreased, as Jõhvi
, Kiviõli
and Püssi
became separate towns. Volumes of oil shale extraction and processing decreased dramatically during the 1990s and a lot of Kohtla-Järve citizens moved to Tallinn
or Russia
, due to high unemployment
in Ida-Viru County
.
Kohtla-Järve has a unique layout. The districts of the city are scattered across the northern part of Ida-Viru County in a considerably large area. The distance between Järve and Sirgala districts is about 30 km.
The city is subdivided into 6 administrative districts :
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
and municipality
Municipalities of Estonia
A Municipality is the smallest administrative subdivision of Estonia. Each municipality is a unit of self-government with its representative and executive bodies. The municipalities in Estonia cover the entire territory of the country....
in north-eastern Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, founded in 1924 and incorporated as a town in 1946. The city is highly industrial
Industrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
, and is both a processor of oil shale
Oil shale
Oil shale, an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock, contains significant amounts of kerogen from which liquid hydrocarbons called shale oil can be produced...
s and is a large producer of various petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
products. The city is also very diverse ethnically: it contains people of over 40 ethnic group
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
s and only 21% of the population are Estonians
Estonians
Estonians are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns and inhabiting, primarily, the country of Estonia. They speak a Finnic language known as Estonian...
. Many ethnic Estonians in the city have adopted Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
as their primary language, although this changed in the late 1990s, as Estonian
Estonian language
Estonian is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1.1 million people in Estonia and tens of thousands in various émigré communities...
once again became the primary language used in everyday life. Kohtla-Järve is the 4th largest city in Estonia.
History
The history of Kohtla-Järve is closely tied to the history of extraction of oil shaleOil shale
Oil shale, an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock, contains significant amounts of kerogen from which liquid hydrocarbons called shale oil can be produced...
- the main mineral
Mineral
A mineral is a naturally occurring solid chemical substance formed through biogeochemical processes, having characteristic chemical composition, highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties. By comparison, a rock is an aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids and does not...
of Estonia.
There is evidence that a number of settlement
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
s existed on the territory of modern Kohtla-Järve since the High Middle Ages
High Middle Ages
The High Middle Ages was the period of European history around the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries . The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which by convention end around 1500....
. In the Danish Land Book, Järve and Kukruse villages were first mentioned in 1241 by the names Jeruius and Kukarus respectively, and Sompa village in 1420 by the name Soenpe.
Local residents were aware of oil shale's flammable capability in ancient times, but its industrial extraction in Estonia began only in 20th century. In 1916, researches showed that oil shale could be used both as fuel
Fuel
Fuel is any material that stores energy that can later be extracted to perform mechanical work in a controlled manner. Most fuels used by humans undergo combustion, a redox reaction in which a combustible substance releases energy after it ignites and reacts with the oxygen in the air...
and as a raw material
Raw material
A raw material or feedstock is the basic material from which a product is manufactured or made, frequently used with an extended meaning. For example, the term is used to denote material that came from nature and is in an unprocessed or minimally processed state. Latex, iron ore, logs, and crude...
for chemical industry
Chemical industry
The chemical industry comprises the companies that produce industrial chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials into more than 70,000 different products.-Products:...
, and mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
started near Järve village. In 1919 the State Oil Shale Industrial Corporation was formed and extraction by shaft
Shaft mining
Shaft mining or shaft sinking refers to the method of excavating a vertical or near-vertical tunnel from the top down, where there is initially no access to the bottom....
and open-pit mining
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
was extended. Settlements for workers began to appear adjacent to the mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
s. In 1924 the oil shale processing factory was built near Kohtla railway station, and the nearby settlement, named Kohtla-Järve, started to grow.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the value of the Estonian oil shale deposit grew. The Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
, who occupied Estonia, considered it as an important source of fuel. However, they failed to begin full-scale extraction.
After the war, the next occupant of Estonia, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, required constantly increasing quantities of oil shale for its industries and extraction greatly expanded. Kohtla-Järve, as the main settlement in the mining area, received city status on 15 June 1946. Since that time, during the next twenty years, there was a process of administrative amalgamation of neighboring settlements within the limits of Kohtla-Järve. Kohtla and Kukruse were added to the city in 1949; Jõhvi, Ahtme and Sompa in 1960; Kiviõli, Oru, Püssi and Viivikonna in 1964. Thus, Kohtla-Järve greatly expanded, becoming a city with a unique layout, as its parts remained scattered among woods, agricultural areas and oil shale mines. Total population of the city increased mainly by workers sent from different parts of Soviet Union, reaching 90,000 in 1980.
After Soviet Union collapsed and Estonia again regained independence in 1991 the number of city districts decreased, as Jõhvi
Jõhvi
Jõhvi is a town in north-eastern Estonia, and the capital of Ida-Viru County. The town is also an administrative centre of Jõhvi Parish. It is situated 50 km from the Russian border....
, Kiviõli
Kiviõli
Kiviõli is an industrial town in Ida-Viru County, Estonia with a population of 7000 . The main industry is oil shale mining, which gives the town its name...
and Püssi
Püssi
Püssi is an urban municipality in Ida-Viru County, Estonia, with a population of 1,838. A large brown heathland is located just to the south of the town, and the Tallinn-Narva railway runs right through the centre of the municipality, before disappearing into the dense forest typical of the...
became separate towns. Volumes of oil shale extraction and processing decreased dramatically during the 1990s and a lot of Kohtla-Järve citizens moved to Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
or Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, due to high unemployment
Unemployment
Unemployment , as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work within the past four weeks...
in Ida-Viru County
Ida-Viru County
Ida-Viru County , or Ida-Virumaa, is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is the most north-eastern part of the country. The county contains large deposits of oil shale - the main mineral mined in Estonia. As oil shale is used in thermal power plants, the earth in Ida-Viru literally holds the largest...
.
Geography
The city is subdivided into 6 administrative districts :
- Ahtme (about 20,000 inhabitants)
- Järve (21,000)
- KukruseKukruseKukruse is a village in Kohtla Parish, Ida-Viru County in northeastern Estonia.Kukersite, a marine type oil shale of Ordovician age, is named after Kukruse.Eduard von Toll lived in Kuckers manor....
(600) - OruÕruÕru is a small borough in Valga County, southern Estonia. It's the administrative centre of Õru Parish. Õru has a population of 171 .The Tartu–Valga road passes through Õru....
(1,500) - Sompa (2,000)
- Viivikonna (with Sirgala) (700)