Sakha, officially the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), is the largest republic of Russia, located in the Russian Far East, along the Arctic Ocean, with a population of one million. Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far Eastern Federal District, and is the world's largest country subdivision, covering over 3,083,523 square kilometers (1,190,555 sq mi). Yakutsk, which is the world's coldest major city, is its capital and largest city.
Fauna of the Sakha Republic: Ross's gull, the Siberian crane, polar bear, horse and reindeer. Russian post miniature sheet, 2006.
Ura River
Olyokma River
Lena Pillars
The republics are one type of federal subject of the Russian Federation.
21 republics are internationally recognized as part of Russia; another is under its de facto control. The original republics were created as nation states for ethnic minorities. The indigenous ethnicity that gives its name to the republic is called the titular nationality. However, due to centuries of Russian migration, a titular nationality may not be a majority of its republic's population.
Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet on the incorporation of Tuva into the Soviet Union as an autonomous oblast, 11 October 1944. Tuva would not become an ASSR until 1961.
Republics of the Soviet Union in 1954–1991
A Chechen fighter near the burned-out presidential palace during the battle of Grozny, January 1995. The building became a symbol of resistance for the supporters of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.
Vladimir Putin with local people in the Siberian republic of Tuva, 2007