43 Facts About Belarus

Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, formerly known by its Russian name Byelorussia or Belorussia, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. 

Belarus has an area of 207,600 square km. 

Minsk is capital and largest city of Belarus. 

Belarusian and Russian are the official languages of Belarus. 

Belarusian ruble (BYN) is its official currency. 

Its five land bordering countries are Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine. 

The inhabitants or natives of this region are called Belarusian. People from the country are known for being good-humored, friendly and kind.

The term Belarus means ‘White Russia.’

The earliest signs of settlement in ancient Belarus date back 100,000-35,000 years.

Belarus gained its independence on December 26, 1991. It celebrates its independence day on July 3rd.

The Belarusian economy is primarily based on agriculture and manufacturing.

Belarus has an unemployment rate of 0.8%. (2016 est.)

Dzyarzhynskaya Hara is Belarus's highest point, rising 345 meters (1,130 feet) above sea level.

Belarus has little protection for property rights and a high level of corruption.

Alexander Lukashenko has been the country's president since his election in 1994. As a result, he remains Belarus's first and only president to this day.

Belarus has a 13% personal income tax rate.

Simon Kuznets was the first Belarussian to receive the Nobel Prize. In 1971, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics.

The country has five Nobel Prize winners: Simon Kuznets, Svetlana Alexievich, Zhores Ivanovich Alferov, Shimon Peres, and Menachem Begin.

800 European bisons, Europe's heaviest land animal, live in Belarus' Biaowiea Forest.

Belarus is the world's 93rd most populous country.

Belarus's most important political and economic partner is Russia.

Ice hockey is one of the most popular sports in the country.

Minsk, Belarus' capital city, is the most economically developed city in the country.

Minsk is a green city with over 844,000 trees covering 72,766 square meters.

Because it has burned down 18 times in its history, the country's capital has had to rebuild itself several times. The city's architecture was severely damaged by extensive bombing during World War II.

Minsk has also been designated as a "hero city" for its ability to rebuild after being devastated.

Belarus is the birthplace of the video game "World of Tanks" and the popular Viber app.

'Independence Avenue' in Minsk is Belarus's longest street (15 kilometers). This street's name has been changed 14 times so far.

Chemical and nuclear pollution are two of the country's major environmental issues.

Almost a quarter of Belarus's population was killed in World War II.

Belarus is also known for producing one of the first bibles. This was done in Prague in 1517.

Forest land covers approximately 45% of the country.

Pripyatski National Park in Belarus is the only place where you can find primaeval lowland oak woods.

The Belarusian National Library houses 8 million items of various media. Every day, the library serves over 2,200 people and delivers 12,000 documents. It was established on September 15, 1922.

During World War II, the Germans executed over 800,000 Jewish people in Belarus.

Minsk's botanical garden is Europe's third largest.

Belarus has approximately 6,805,786 internet users.

The country has 86,392 kilometers of road and 5,528 kilometers of railway.

In the last 50 years, Belarus has produced at least 68 Olympic champions.

Belarusians can make at least 300 different potato recipes. They can even make pancakes using potatoes.

Except for Belarus, all European countries have abolished the death penalty.

Between the ages of 25 and 54, 40-45% of the population in the country.

The country spends about 6% of its GDP on health care and has a literacy rate of 99.7%.