Sakha Republic is the biggest of republics which are in Russian Federation. Situated in the northeast of Asia, it has an area of 3100000 sq. km which is 20 % of the Russian territory and about 66 % of Western Europe. Yakutia stretches for 2500 km from the South to the North, and it is occupied 3 time zones (2000 km) from the West to the East. Almost half of it (40 %) is in the Polar Circle. From the South to the North the territory is cut through by the scores of rivers. There are the Lena, the Anabar, the Yana, the Indigirka, the Kolyma, the Olenek and other rivers flowing into the Arctic Ocean. Yakutia is quite often named the land of rivers and lakes. Answering to questions about how many of lakes in the land the residents reply - " It's as much as stars in the sky". Yakutia is not only the biggest but also the coldest land. The Northern Hemisphere's Cold Pole is to be found here in Oimyakon, with freezing temperatures down to 70 degrees Centigrade in winter. The whole of Sakha Republic lies in the permafrost zone with the permafrost depth reaching up to 500 meters and more. Yakutia's climate is sharply continental. For all that Yakutia's summer is quite hot, with temperature sometimes reaching up to 40 degrees Centigrade. Yakutia's population is about 1 million, more than 120 nationalities live in the republic. The Yakuts are the area's indigenous population, and their number is about 382000. According to the scientists the Yakuts were about 28,2 thousand in the end of XVII century. That is to say, during 300 years population of the Yakuts increased more than 13 times. 10 towns, 34 administrative centers is in Yakutia, Yakutsk is a capital.

Some words about riches. In the past the riches of the Yakuts were cattle and its meat, milk, butter. The northern people had reindeers. And, of course, the Yakuts, the Evens, the Evenks, the Yukagirs, the Russians used the nature and its gifts to support their life in our extremely conditions.

The D.I.Mendeleev's periodical system of chemical elements presents fully in Yakutia's land. It is no wonder our forefathers said - "Nobody can completely exhaust the chest of nature". The modern Sakha Republic is the mining industries - mines, quarries, and pits. They extracted gold, diamond, coal, and metals. The Yakutia's riches of bowels of the earth, original culture attracts the attention in the world today. The gold, diamond, and silver goods, the furs, the mammoth tusks, the woods and others are all that republic may offer exacting foreign buyer.

Now Sakha Republic is exporter and importer of goods, it is establishing world economical, trade, and cultural links with many foreign countries.

[source: Yakutsk State University ]