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Poltava Governorate Полтавская губерния
Governorate
Coat of arms
Location in the Russian Empire
Country	Russian Empire
Established	1802
Abolished	1925
Capital	Poltava
Area
• Total	49,894 km (19,264 sq mi)
Population
• Total	2,778,151
• Density	56/km (140/sq mi)
• Urban	9.87%
• Rural	90.13%

Poltava Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (guberniya) of the Russian Empire. It included the territory of left-bank Ukraine and was officially created in 1802 from the disbanded Little Russia Governorate, which was split between Chernigov and Poltava Governorates with its capital in Poltava.

Administrative division

It was administered by 15 uezds (povits):

• Gadyachsky Uyezd (Gadyach – Гадячъ) (Hadiach)
• Zenkovsky Uyezd (Zenkov – Зеньковъ) (Zinkiv)
• Zolotonoshsky Uyezd (Zolotonosha – Золотоноша)
• Kobelyaksky Uyezd (Kobeliaky – Кобеляки)
• Konstantinogradsky Uyezd (Konstantinograd – Константиноградъ) (modern Krasnohrad)
• Kremenchugsky Uyezd (Kremenchug – Кременчугъ) (Kremenchuk)
• Lokhvitsky Uyezd (Lokhvytsia – Лохвица) (Lokhvytsia)
• Lubensky Uyezd (Lubny – Лубны)
• Mirgorodsky Uyezd (Mirgorod – Миргородъ) (Myrhorod)
• Pereyaslavsky Uyezd (Pereiaslav – Переяславъ)
• Piryatinsky Uyezd (Pyriatyn – Пирятинъ) (Pyriatyn)
• Poltavsky Uyezd (Poltava – Полтава)
• Priluksky Uyezd (Pryluky – Прилуки) (Pryluky)
• Romensky Uyezd (Romny – Ромны)
• Khorolsky Uyezd (Khorol – Хороль)

Most of these ended up in the modern Poltava Oblast of Ukraine, although some: Zolotonosha, Krasnohrad, Pereiaslav and Romny are now part of Cherkasy, Kharkiv, Kyiv and Sumy Oblasts respectively.

The Poltava Governorate covered a total area of 49,365 km, and had a population of 2,778,151 according to the 1897 Russian Empire census. It was bordering the following Russian Governorates: Chernigov Governorate and Kursk Governorate to the north, Kiev Governorate to the west, Kharkov Governorate to the east, Kherson Governorate and Yekaterinoslav Governorate to the south. In 1914, the population was 2,794,727. After the formation of the Ukrainian SSR, the territory was wholly included into the new Soviet Republic. Initially the governorate system was retained although variations included the Kremenchug Governorate [uk] which was temporarily formed on its territory (August 1920 – December 1922), and the passing of the Pereyaslav uezd to the Kiev Governorate. However, on Third of June 1925 the guberniya was liquidated and replaced by five okrugs (which already were the uyezd subdivision as of seventh of March 1923): Kremenchutsky, Lubensky, Poltavsky, Prylutsky and Romensky (the rest two okrugs existed within the guberniya, Zolotonoshsky and Krasnohradsky, were also liquidated).

Principal cities

Russian Census of 1897, the cities of more than 10,000 people. In bold are the cities of over 50,000.

• Kremenchug – 63,007 (Jewish – 29,577, Ukrainian – 18,980, Russian – 12,130)
• Poltava – 53,703 (Ukrainian – 30,086, Russian – 11,035, Jewish – 10,690)
• Romny – 22,510 (Ukrainian – 13,856, Jewish – 6,341, Russian – 1,933)
• Priluki – 18,532 (Ukrainian – 11,850, Jewish – 5,719, Russian – 821)
• Pereyaslav – 14,614 (Ukrainian – 8,348, Jewish – 5,737, Russian – 468)
• Kobeliaki – 10,487 (Ukrainian – 7,708, Jewish – 2,115, Russian – 564)
• Zenkov – 10,443 (Ukrainian – 8,957, Jewish – 1,261, Russian – 187)
• Lubny – 10,097 (Ukrainian – 5,975, Jewish – 3,001, Russian – 960)
• Mirgorod – 10,037 (Ukrainian – 8,290, Jewish – 1,248, Russian – 427)

Language

By the Imperial census of 1897, in bold are languages spoken by more people than the state language.

Religion

By the Imperial census of 1897, the major religion in the region that was virtually the state religion was the Eastern Orthodox with some population following Judaism. Other religions in the governorate were much less common.

Notes

1. • Russian: Полтавская губерния, pre-1918: Полтавская губернія, romanized: Poltavskaya guberniya
   • Ukrainian: Полтавська губернія, romanized: Poltavsʼka huberniia
2. Languages, number of speakers which in all gubernia were less than 1000
3. Religions, number of believers which in all gubernia were less than 10000

References

1. Language Statistics of 1897 (in Russian)
2. Religion Statistics of 1897 (in Russian)

External links

• Poltava Guberniya – Article in Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian)
• Poltava Governorate – Historical coat of arms (in Ukrainian and English)
• Chernihiv gubernia – Article in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine

49°34′28″N 34°34′07″E / 49.5744°N 34.5686°E / 49.5744; 34.5686

• Poltava Governorate
• Governorates of the Russian Empire
• Governorates of Ukraine
• 1802 establishments in the Russian Empire
• 1802 establishments in Ukraine
• 1925 disestablishments in Ukraine
• History of Kyiv Oblast
• History of Chernihiv Oblast
• History of Poltava Oblast
• History of Sumy Oblast
• History of Kharkiv Oblast