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Kharkov Oblast

Kharkiv Oblast
Харківська область
Kharkivs’ka oblast’
Oblast
Flag of Kharkiv Oblast
Flag
Coat of arms of Kharkiv Oblast
Coat of arms
Nickname(s): Харківщина (Kharkivshchyna)
Kharkiv in Ukraine.svg
Coordinates: 49°35′N 36°26′E / 49.59°N 36.43°E / 49.59; 36.43Coordinates: 49°35′N 36°26′E / 49.59°N 36.43°E / 49.59; 36.43
Country  Ukraine
Administrative center Kharkiv
Government
 • Governor Yuliya Svitlychna (Petro Poroshenko Bloc)
 • Oblast council ? seats
 • Chairperson Serhij Chernov (Independent)
Area
 • Total 31,415 km2 (12,129 sq mi)
Area rank Ranked 4th
Population (November 1, 2015)
 • Total Decrease 2,720,342
 • Rank Ranked 3rd
Demographics
 • Official language(s) Ukrainian, Russian
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code ?
Area code +380-57
ISO 3166 code UA-63
Vehicle registration AX
Raions 27
Cities (total) 17
• Regional cities 7
Urban-type settlements 61
Villages 1683
FIPS 10-4 UP07
Website www.kharkivoda.gov.ua

Kharkiv Oblast (Ukrainian: Харківська область, translit. Charkivśka oblastj; also referred to as KharkivshchynaUkrainian: Харківщина, Charkivščyna, Russian: Харьковская область, translit. Charjkovskaja oblastj) is an oblast (province) in eastern Ukraine. The oblast borders Russia to the north, Luhansk Oblast to the east, Donetsk Oblast to the south-east, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast to the south-west, Poltava Oblast to the west and Sumy Oblast to the north-west. The area of the oblast is 31,400 km², corresponding to 5.2% of the total territory of Ukraine.

The oblast is the third most populous province of Ukraine, with a population of 2,857,751 in 2004, more than half (1.5 million) of whom live in the city of Kharkiv, the oblast's administrative center. While the Russian language is primarily spoken in the cities of Kharkiv oblast, elsewhere in the oblast most inhabitants speak Ukrainian.

During the Soviet administrative reform of 1923–1929, in 1925, the Kharkov Governorate was abolished leaving its five okruhas: Okhtyrka (originally Bohodukhiv), Izyum, Kupyansk, Sumy, and Kharkiv. Introduced in the Soviet Union in 1923, a similar subdivisions existed in Ukraine back in 1918. In 1930 all okruhas were also abolished with raions becoming the first level of subdivision of Ukraine until 1932.


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