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VOLHYNIA

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Originally appearing in Volume V28, Page 195 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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VOLHYNIA , a See also:

government of See also:south-western See also:Russia, bounded by the See also:Polish governments of See also:Lublin and See also:Siedlce on the W., See also:Grodno and See also:Minsk on the N., See also:Kiev on the E. and See also:Podolia and See also:Galicia (See also:Austria) on the S., with an See also:area of 27,690 sq. m. A broad, See also:flat See also:spur of the Carpathians—the Avratynsk See also:plateau—which enters from the See also:west and stretches out eastward towards the See also:Dnieper occupies its See also:southern portion, reaching a maximum See also:elevation of 1200 ft.; another See also:branch of the Carpathians in the west of the government ranges between 7 00 and 900 ft. at its highest points. Both are deeply grooved in places, and the crags give a hilly aspect to the districts in which they occur. The See also:remainder of the government, which is quite flat, with an imperceptible slope towards the marshes of See also:Pinsk, is known as the Polyesie (see MINSK). The See also:population in 1906 was estimated at 3,547,500. Some three-fourths of the population are Little Russians; the other elements are See also:White and See also:Great Russians, Poles (5.2%), See also:Jews (13.2%) and Germans (5.7 %). The government is divided into twelve districts, the See also:chief towns of which are See also:Zhitomir, the See also:capital, Dubno, Kovel, See also:Kremenets, See also:Lutsk, Novograd Volhynskiy, See also:Ostrog, Ovruch, See also:Vladimir Volhynskiy, Rovno, Staro-Konstantinov and Zaslavl. The conditions of See also:peasant ownership differ from those which prevail in other parts of Russia, and of the See also:total area the peasants hold approximately one-See also:half; 42% of the total is in the hands of private owners, a considerable number of Germans having settled and bought See also:land in the government. Forests See also:cover nearly 5o % of the area in the See also:north (that is, in the Polyesie) and 15% elsewhere. See also:Agriculture is well See also:developed in the south, and in 1900 there were 4,222,400 acres (24%) under cereal crops alone. In the Polyesie the See also:principal occupations are connected with the export of See also:timber and firewood, the preparation of See also:pitch, See also:tar, potash and wooden wares, and See also:boat-See also:building. See also:Lignite and See also:coal, some See also:graphite and See also:kaolin, are See also:mined, as also See also:amber, which is often found in big lumps.

Manufacturing See also:

industries are not very highly developed. The factories are confined to See also:sugar See also:works, distilleries, woollen See also:mills, and See also:candle, See also:tobacco, See also:glass, See also:cloth and agricultural machinery works. Domestic See also:industry in the villages is chiefly limited to the making of wooden goods, including See also:parquetry. The exports of See also:grain and timber, chiefly to See also:Germany and Great See also:Britain, and of See also:wool and See also:cattle, are considerable. Volhynia has been inhabited by Slays from a remote antiquity. In See also:Nestor's See also:Annals its See also:people are mentioned under the name of Dulebs, and later in the 12th See also:century they were known as Velhynians and Buzhans (dwellers on the See also:Bug). From the 9th century the towns of Volhynia-Vladimir, Ovruch, Lutsk and Dubno were ruled by descendants of the Scandinavian or Varangian chief Rurik, and the land of Volhynia remained See also:VOLLMAR 195 See also:independent until the 14th century, when it See also:fell under Lithuania: In 1569 it was annexed to See also:Poland, and so remained until 1795, when it was taken See also:possession of by Russia.

End of Article: VOLHYNIA

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