Zabaykalsky Krai is a federal subject

Federal subjects of Russia

Russia is a federation which, since March 1, 2008, consists of 83 federal subjects . In 1993, when the Constitution was adopted, there were 89 federal subjects listed...

 of 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...

 (a krai

Krai

Krai or kray was a type of an administrative division in the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR, and is one of the types of the federal subjects of modern Russia ....

) that was created on March 1, 2008 as a result of a merger of Chita Oblast

Chita Oblast

Chita Oblast was a federal subject of Russia in southeast Siberia, Russia. Its administrative center was the city of Chita. It had extensive international borders with China and Mongolia and internal borders with Irkutsk and Amur Oblasts, as well as with the Buryat and the Sakha Republics. Its...

 and Agin-Buryat Autonomous Okrug

Agin-Buryat Autonomous Okrug

Agin-Buryat Okrug , or Aga Buryatia, is an administrative division of Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia. It was a federal subject of Russia until it merged with Chita Oblast to form Zabaykalsky Krai on March 1, 2008. Prior to merger, it was called Agin-Buryat Autonomous Okrug...

, after a referendum held on the issue on March 11, 2007. Population:

Ravil Geniatulin, the Governor of Chita Oblast, was elected Governor of Zabaykalsky Krai on February 5, 2008 by the majority of the deputies of both Chita Oblast Duma and Agin-Buryat Autonomous Okrug Duma. He assumed the post on March 1, 2008.

Borders

The krai has extensive international borders with China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 (998 km) and Mongolia

Mongolia

Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...

 (868 km) and internal borders with Irkutsk

Irkutsk Oblast

Irkutsk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , located in southeastern Siberia in the basins of Angara River, Lena, and Nizhnyaya Tunguska Rivers. The administrative center is the city of Irkutsk. Population: -History:...

 and Amur Oblast

Amur Oblast

Amur Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , situated about east of Moscow on the banks of the Amur and Zeya Rivers. It shares its border with the Sakha Republic in the north, Khabarovsk Krai and the Jewish Autonomous Oblast in the east, People's Republic of China in the south, and Zabaykalsky...

s, as well as with the Republic of Buryatia and the Sakha Republic.

Demographics

The population was mostly Russians

Russians

The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....

 and Buryats

Buryats

The Buryats or Buriyads , numbering approximately 436,000, are the largest ethnic minority group in Siberia and are mainly concentrated in their homeland, the Buryat Republic, a federal subject of Russia...

, along with some Ukrainians

Ukrainians

Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...

 and a few Evenks

Evenks

The Evenks are a Tungusic people of Northern Asia. In Russia, the Evenks are recognized as one of the Indigenous peoples of the Russian North, with a population of 35,527...

. There were 1,000 Jews

Jews

The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...

 in the regional capital. According to the 2002 census, Russians made up 89.8% of the population while Buryats were 6.1%. Other significant groups were Ukrainian (1.03%), Tatars (0.71%), Armenians (0.31%), Belorussian (0.26%), Azeri (0.18%), Evenks (0.13%), Nemts

Volga German

The Volga Germans were ethnic Germans living along the River Volga in the region of southern European Russia around Saratov and to the south. Recruited as immigrants to Russia in the 18th century, they were allowed to maintain German culture, language, traditions and churches: Lutherans, Reformed,...

(0.11%), Chuvash (0.11%), Bashkirs (0.11%), Moldovan (0.07%), Mordvin (0.06%), Uzbek (0.06%) and Dargwa (0.05%). Around 92% of the population belonged to Slavic or Germanic ethnic groups, while the remaining were mostly Mongolic.

Demographics for 2007

• Births: 16,652 (14.84 per 1000, 14.87 in Urban areas & 14.79 in Rural areas).
• Deaths: 16,186 (14.42 per 1000, 14.42 in Urban areas & 14.44 in Rural areas).
• Natural Growth Rate: 0.04% per year (0.05% for Urban areas & 0.04% for Rural areas).

Demographics for 2008

Source:

• Births: 17,809 (15.9 per 1000)
• Deaths: 16,053 (14.3 per 1000)
• NGR: 0.16%
• Net Immigration: -3,621