Siberia

Lore & Background

Siberia is known for its long, harsh winters, with a January average of −25 °C (−13 °F). Over 85% of its population are of European descent, chiefly Russian, and Eastern Slavic cultural influences predominate. There are sizable ethnic minorities of Asian lineage, including various Turkic communities, the Mongolic Buryats, ethnic Koreans, and smaller groups of Samoyedic and Tungusic peoples. The origin of the name is uncertain; hypotheses include derivation from a Mongolic word sibir meaning 'dense forest', from the Sibe people, or from a hypothetical Paleo-Asiatic ethnic group. The region has paleontological significance, containing bodies of prehistoric animals from the Pleistocene Epoch preserved in ice or permafrost.

In Their Own Story

The wind howled across the frozen tundra, carrying the distant rumble of the dam's turbines. Bond crouched behind a snow-covered rock, his breath misting in the air. Ahead, a guard patrolled the perimeter fence, his silhouette sharp against the floodlights. With a silent shot from his silenced PP7, the guard crumpled into the snow. Bond moved forward, the crunch of his boots muffled by the wind. The dam loomed above, a concrete monolith holding back a frozen lake. Somewhere inside, Trevelyan's men were preparing the chemical weapons. Bond checked his watch—three minutes until the next patrol rotation. Time to move.

Reader's Guide

Siberia is a geographic and historic concept, not a political entity, so there is no single precise definition of its territorial borders. It stretches from the Arctic Circle in the north to the northern borders of Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and China in the south. The Russian government divides the region into three federal districts: the Ural, Siberian, and Far Eastern federal districts.

Did You Know?

• Siberia covers about three-quarters of Russia's total area but is home to roughly a quarter of Russia's population.
• At least three species of humans lived in southern Siberia around 40,000 years ago: H. sapiens, H. neanderthalensis, and the Denisovans.
• The Siberian Traps were formed by one of the largest-known volcanic events of the last 251 million years, possibly causing the 'Great Dying' about 250 million years ago.