1. When was the okrug established? 2. What was the main purpose of establishing Khanty-Mansiysk Okrug? 3. In your opinion, why was “Ugra” officially appended to the okrug’s name? 4. What is the total area of the okrug? 5. How can you describe the geographical location of the region (mountains, lakes, rivers, etc.)? 6. What can you say about the climate of the okrug? 7. How can you describe the economy of the region? 8. Is the okrug multinational region? Why? 9. What large cities of the okrug do you know? 10. What main types of sport are developing in Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug – Ugra? 11. What can attract tourists in our region?

Exercise 11. Insert missing words.

1. The greatest part of the population of the Khanty-Mansiysk Okrug is_______, followed by Ukrainians, Tatars, Armenians and other citizens from the republics of the ex-Soviet Union, attracted by the jobs in the ___ and ____ industry of the Okrug. 2. The population of native peoples, _____ and _____, who speak Finno-Ugric languages, scarcely reaches the 2% put together. 3. _____ is the largest population center in the oil-rich Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug. 4. The capital of Ugra, _____ is situated on seven hills, and those who live here believe that this fact brings fortune to the residents and visitors of the city. 5. ____ is a historical name for lands and peoples between the Pechora River and Urals.

Exercise 12. Read the message published in one of the forums and try to help Andreas.

Hi, my name is Andreas. I am from Norway and I will be visiting Ugra in May. I have some business in Surgut but then I will have a week for sightseeing. I am not very familiar with this region but I’d like to know more about your okrug. Can you advise me what places I should visit and why?

Exercise 13. Choose one of the themes and prepare a presentation: the Sovetsky, the Nefteyugansk, the Beloyarski, the Nizhnevartovski, the Berezovski, the Kondinski, Oktyabrsky districts and Historical and Cultural Research and Production Center «Barsova Gora.

See information from https://admhmao.ru/en/about/general/administrative_territorial_system/ and tell the earliest names of the Nizhnevartovski and the Oktyabrsky districts.

Exercise 14. Read the words, translate them, write a transcription and find their definitions below.

1) outline; 2) heir; 3) mammoths; 4) sparse; 5) settlement; 6) extract; 7) miracle; 8) pearl; 9) necklace; 10) precious

a) a small, round object, usually white; it is valuable

b) a place where people come to live or the process of settling in such a place

c) of great value because of being rare, expensive, or important

d) the main shape or edge of something, without any details

e) a type of large elephant, now extinct, that was covered in hair and had tusks

f) an unusual and mysterious event that is thought to have been caused by a god because it does not follow the usual laws of nature

g) small in numbers or amount, often spread over a large area

h) a piece of jewellery worn around the neck

i) a person who will legally receive money, property, or a title from another person

j) to remove or take out something

Exercise 15. What do you know about the Tyumen oblast? Have you ever been to Tyumen? Tobolsk? Read the text, translate and give it a title.

Text III

The Tyumen Oblast (Region) is located in the southwestern part of the West Siberian lowland plain and divides Russia into two large parts: to the west – the Urals and the European part of the country, to the east – the Asian part.

The Tyumen Oblast is the third largest federal subject by area. More than 80 percent of its’ territory is occupied by the Khanty-Mansiysk and Yamalo-Nenets autonomous okrugs. This land has unique natural resources potential and can be called “energy heart” of the country. Tyumen is the largest city and administrative centre of the region.

Until the 1960s economic activity was confined to timber working, fur trapping, and reindeer herding, and communications were extremely sparse; only in the forest-steppe south agriculture was important. Nowadays the Tyumen Oblast is the largest producer of oil and natural gas in the country. The rapid growth of the fuel industry has made the oblast by far the richest federal subject of Russia. Major oil deposits were opened in the 1960s along the Ob, with Surgut and Nadym as the main centres.

The population of the region exceeds 3 million people (3,395,755 according to 2010 Census). More than a hundred nationalities live in the region. It is the region of sustained economic growth and social protection, active housing construction and increased income of the population. According to the sociologists’ poll, it is Tyumen people who feel the happiest all over Russia. The Tyumen region is rightly the "land of happy people".

Tyumen and Tobolsk, the oldest cities founded during the beginning of the development of Siberia, have a number of architectural monuments of the times of the Russian Empire. Tyumen is sometimes called the mother of the Siberian cities. Being an administrative and business center of the largest oil- and natural gas-extracting region of the country, Tyumen is informally called the oil and gas capital of Russia. It is full of new and old buildings and so much history.

The region around Tyumen is the heart of historic Siberia, with Tobolsk being the former capital of "Western Siberia”. Tobolsk is one of the Russian miracles. It is sometimes called as a “pearl in the necklace of ancient Siberian cities”. Tobolsk was founded in 1587 at place of junction of two big Siberian rivers the Tobol and the Irtysh. Tobolsk is actually an open-air museum where almost every building possesses a true historical value. The Tobolsk Kremlin is a unique ensemble of historical architectural monuments, which was constructed during the 17-20th centuries. It is the sole stone Kremlin in Siberia. There are over 200 architectural monuments, precious museum collections and exhibitions. Tobolsk is rightly called the father of the Siberian cities.

Text Vocabulary:

timber working – деревообработка

fur trapping – пушной промысел

reindeer herding – оленеводство

sustained – устойчивый

open-air museum – музей под открытым небом

sole – единственный

Exercise 16. Bob is a foreign student from Australia. He came to Tyumen to study the Russian language and culture for six months. Sveta is asking him about his impressions about Russia and Tyumen. Read the dialogue between them and act it:

Sveta: Bob, why did you decide to visit Russia?

Bob: I wanted to know more about Russia, its culture and people.

S: What did you know about the Tyumen region?

B: Not much, I know that it’s situated in the Western Siberia and produces the majority of Russia’s oil and gas. And it has very cold winters.

S: So why did you choose this region?

B: Well, I’m going to get the profession of engineer in oil industry. That’s why I decided to know more about this region and its educational institutions.

S: Did you like Russia?

B: Oh, yes, I did. Russia is very beautiful. I fell in love with your country, its nature and people. I really liked the original rich culture of Russia. I think that the Russian culture is one of the most interesting in the world. People are open, kind, hospitable and cheerful.

S: What impressed you most of all?

B: I arrived in Tyumen in March and there was a lot of snow. It’s something incredible. You know I saw snow for the first time.

S: What do you think about the Tyumen region?

B: Most of the time I spent in Tyumen studying the Russian language and culture. This is a beautiful, interesting, and quiet city. I really liked it. I liked to visit museums, cinemas and cafes. I liked its old wooden houses and modern beautiful buildings.

S: Did you visit other places in the region?

B: Yes, I visited a lot of places. First of all I went to Tobolsk, which is known for its old architectural monuments and stone Kremlin. Then I visited Abalak which is a village located about 20 km from Tobolsk. It is a wooden fortress built in the style of the times of the conquest of Siberia.

S: Have you been to Yalutorovsk?

B: No, unfortunately, I haven’t been there. Can you tell me about this place?

S: Sure, it is an old town with a unique wooden fort, where you can feel the atmosphere of the 17th-18th centuries (watchtowers, craft workshops, recreational zones). It seems that the time slowed down its pace in this place letting us feel the connection with the history of Siberia. Yalutorovsk is located in 75 km away from Tyumen. It was established as a burg in 1659 in the place of the Tatarian town Yavlu-Tura. In the 19th century, the town became the exile place of the Decembrists. Yalutorovsk is the native town of the famous philanthropist S.I. Mamontov.

B: How interesting! I haven’t been in Yalutorovsk but I visited village Pokrovskoye in summer. It is the birthplace of Grigory Rasputin, the favourite of the last Russian royal family. Then we went to the Uvat region which is the northernmost municipality of the Tyumen region. It’s far away from Tyumen, 400 kilometers, and I was impressed by beautiful lakes and tributaries of the Irtysh river where I could try fishing – whitefish and starlet. I saw taiga for the first time. So I spent three admirable days in Uvat hunting, fishing and just enjoying the beauty of the nature.

S: That’s great. You saw a lot of places of interest, but there are many more. Would you like to visit our region again?

B: Yes, sure. As I said I fell in love with your country and I’m going to continue my education there. So I think that I can see and visit more places.

S: Thank you very much for your answers, Bob.

Exercise 17. Write down a short essay about your favourite place in the Tyumen region. First write some facts about it: where is it? What does it have? What can you do there? Then write some personal opinions: Why do you like it? Write 150 – 200 words. Tell about your favourite place for your groupmates. Show photos if you have some.

CAPITALS

The people make the town

Greek Proverb