The Irkutsk region is the fifth largest region in the Russian Federation and twenty-first in terms of population, which, of course, makes it one of the most significant territorial elements of the country. In this article you will find information about the cities of the Irkutsk region. The list that is presented is incomplete and contains information only about the largest or most significant cities. The list is rather short, therefore only a short informational summary is presented.
Major Cities of Irkutsk Region: List
The head of the list, of course, is the regional center - the city of Irkutsk. Its population is (according to official data for 2017) about 623 thousand people and continues to grow. By the way, this is one of the few cities in the region where the population is increasing. This is one of the oldest cities in Eastern Siberia, it was founded in 1661. The basis of the economy is energy, trade, manufacturing and food industry.
The next city in the Irkutsk region in the list of population is Bratsk, where today about 230 thousand people live. Bratsk was founded in 1955 and since then has the status of a city. It is a large industrial and transport center. But despite this, the outflow of the population continues to be observed in the city.
The third most populated city in the region is Angarsk (226 thousand inhabitants). This city was founded in 1948 and has become a symbol of the revival of both the region itself and the whole country after the Second World War. The basis of the city’s economy is the chemical and oil refining industries. As in Bratsk, the population of Angarsk continues to decline.
Other cities of Irkutsk region: list
Most of the region’s population lives in cities, although there are few large ones. There are several fairly significant cities in the Irkutsk region. They were not included in the list by population due to their small size.
These cities include:
- Ust-Ilimsk (82 thousand inhabitants);
- Usolye-Sibirsky (77,000);
- Cheremkhovo (51,000);
- Shelekhov (47,000).
Of course, these are far from all the cities of the region, but they are of great importance for its economy and culture. Shelekhov is also one of the few cities in the Irkutsk region, where population growth is observed (with a general tendency to decrease). This is due to its territorial proximity to Irkutsk.
Small cities
Among small cities where the number of inhabitants is less than 50 thousand, we can distinguish:
- Sayansk (38,000). A young, modern city whose economy is based on the chemical and food industries.
- Slyudyanka (18,000). A small city, which, however, is a major railway junction. The basis of the economy is mining, transport and fishing.
- Tulun (41,000). This city of the Irkutsk region was included in the list, since it is one of the largest centers of the forest industry.
- Tayshet (33,000). Aluminum is produced in this city, and it is also one of the largest railway junctions in the region.
- Bodaibo (13,000). This small city is located far from the regional center and is a major center of gold mining, energy and food industry.
Conclusion
It is not without reason that the Irkutsk Region is considered a storehouse of minerals, and Irkutsk itself for a long time rightfully had the status of the center of all of Eastern Siberia. Today, the city has ceded this position to Krasnoyarsk, but is still a significant cultural, economic, commercial, transport and educational center of the region.
The city is growing rapidly and developing, so the population here has increased quite rapidly in recent years. This is mainly due to visitors from other regions of the region. Within the agglomeration of Irkutsk today there are more than 1.1 million inhabitants.