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Creative Nonfiction: An Overview

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The Creative Nonfiction (CNF) genre can be rather elusive. It is focused on story, meaning it has a narrative plot with an inciting moment, rising action, climax and denoument, just like fiction. However, nonfiction only works if the story is based in truth, an accurate retelling of the author’s life experiences. The pieces can vary greatly in length, just as fiction can; anything from a book-length autobiography to a 500-word food blog post can fall within the genre.

Additionally, the genre borrows some aspects, in terms of voice, from poetry; poets generally look for truth and write about the realities they see. While there are many exceptions to this, such as the persona poem, the nonfiction genre depends on the writer’s ability to render their voice in a realistic fashion, just as poetry so often does. Writer Richard Terrill, in comparing the two forms, writes that the voice in creative nonfiction aims “to engage the empathy” of the reader; that, much like a poet, the writer uses “personal candor” to draw the reader in.

Creative Nonfiction encompasses many different forms of prose. As an emerging form, CNF is closely entwined with fiction. Many fiction writers make the cross-over to nonfiction occasionally, if only to write essays on the craft of fiction. This can be done fairly easily, since the ability to write good prose—beautiful description, realistic characters, musical sentences—is required in both genres.

So what, then, makes the literary nonfiction genre unique?

The first key element of nonfiction—perhaps the most crucial thing— is that the genre relies on the author’s ability to retell events that actually happened. The talented CNF writer will certainly use imagination and craft to relay what has happened and tell a story, but the story must be true. You may have heard the idiom that “truth is stranger than fiction;” this is an essential part of the genre. Events—coincidences, love stories, stories of loss—that may be expected or feel clichéd in fiction can be respected when they occur in real life .

A writer of Creative Nonfiction should always be on the lookout for material that can yield an essay; the world at-large is their subject matter. Additionally, because Creative Nonfiction is focused on reality, it relies on research to render events as accurately as possible. While it’s certainly true that fiction writers also research their subjects (especially in the case of historical fiction), CNF writers must be scrupulous in their attention to detail. Their work is somewhat akin to that of a journalist, and in fact, some journalism can fall under the umbrella of CNF as well. Writer Christopher Cokinos claims, “done correctly, lived well, delivered elegantly, such research uncovers not only facts of the world, but reveals and shapes the world of the writer” (93). In addition to traditional research methods, such as interviewing subjects or conducting database searches, he relays Kate Bernheimer’s claim that “A lifetime of reading is research:” any lived experience, even one that is read, can become material for the writer.

The other key element, the thing present in all successful nonfiction, is reflection. A person could have lived the most interesting life and had experiences completely unique to them, but without context—without reflection on how this life of experiences affected the writer—the reader is left with the feeling that the writer hasn’t learned anything, that the writer hasn’t grown. We need to see how the writer has grown because a large part of nonfiction’s appeal is the lessons it offers us, the models for ways of living: that the writer can survive a difficult or strange experience and learn from it. Sean Ironman writes that while “[r]eflection, or the second ‘I,’ is taught in every nonfiction course” (43), writers often find it incredibly hard to actually include reflection in their work. He expresses his frustration that “Students are stuck on the idea—an idea that’s not entirely wrong—that readers need to think” (43), that reflecting in their work would over-explain the ideas to the reader. Not so. Instead, reflection offers “the crucial scene of the writer writing the memoir” (44), of the present-day writer who is looking back on and retelling the past. In a moment of reflection, the author steps out of the story to show a different kind of scene, in which they are sitting at their computer or with their notebook in some quiet place, looking at where they are now, versus where they were then; thinking critically about what they’ve learned. This should ideally happen in small moments, maybe single sentences, interspersed throughout the piece. Without reflection, you have a collection of scenes open for interpretation—though they might add up to nothing.

What Is Reflective Writing? (Explained W/ 20+ Examples)

I’ll admit, reflecting on my experiences used to seem pointless—now, I can’t imagine my routine without it.

What is reflective writing?

Reflective writing is a personal exploration of experiences, analyzing thoughts, feelings, and learnings to gain insights. It involves critical thinking, deep analysis, and focuses on personal growth through structured reflection on past events.

In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know about reflective writing — with lots of examples.

What Is Reflective Writing (Long Description)?

Table of Contents

Reflective writing is a method used to examine and understand personal experiences more deeply.

This kind of writing goes beyond mere description of events or tasks.

Instead, it involves looking back on these experiences, analyzing them, and learning from them.

It’s a process that encourages you to think critically about your actions, decisions, emotions, and responses.

By reflecting on your experiences, you can identify areas for improvement, make connections between theory and practice, and enhance your personal and professional development. Reflective writing is introspective, but it should also be analytical and critical.

It’s not just about what happened.

It’s about why it happened, how it affected you, and what you can learn from it.

This type of writing is commonly used in education, professional development, and personal growth, offering a way for individuals to gain insights into their personal experiences and behaviors.

Types of Reflective Writing

Reflective writing can take many forms, each serving different purposes and providing various insights into the writer’s experiences.

Here are ten types of reflective writing, each with a unique focus and approach.

Journaling – The Daily Reflection

Journaling is a type of reflective writing that involves keeping a daily or regular record of experiences, thoughts, and feelings.

It’s a private space where you can freely express yourself and reflect on your day-to-day life.

Example: Today, I realized that the more I try to control outcomes, the less control I feel. Letting go isn’t about giving up; it’s about understanding that some things are beyond my grasp.

Example: Reflecting on the quiet moments of the morning, I realized how much I value stillness before the day begins. It’s a reminder to carve out space for peace in my routine.

Learning Logs – The Educational Tracker

Learning logs are used to reflect on educational experiences, track learning progress, and identify areas for improvement.

They often focus on specific learning objectives or outcomes.

Example: This week, I struggled with understanding the concept of reflective writing. However, after reviewing examples and actively engaging in the process, I’m beginning to see how it can deepen my learning.

Example: After studying the impact of historical events on modern society, I see the importance of understanding history to navigate the present. It’s a lesson in the power of context.

Critical Incident Journals – The Turning Point

Critical incident journals focus on a significant event or “critical incident” that had a profound impact on the writer’s understanding or perspective.

These incidents are analyzed in depth to extract learning and insights.

Example: Encountering a homeless person on my way home forced me to confront my biases and assumptions about homelessness. It was a moment of realization that has since altered my perspective on social issues.

Example: Missing a crucial deadline taught me about the consequences of procrastination and the value of time management. It was a wake-up call to prioritize and organize better.

Project Diaries – The Project Chronicle

Project diaries are reflective writings that document the progress, challenges, and learnings of a project over time.

They provide insights into decision-making processes and project management strategies.

Example: Launching the community garden project was more challenging than anticipated. It taught me the importance of community engagement and the value of patience and persistence.

Example: Overcoming unexpected technical issues during our project showed me the importance of adaptability and teamwork. Every obstacle became a stepping stone to innovation.

Portfolios – The Comprehensive Showcase

Portfolios are collections of work that also include reflective commentary.

They showcase the writer’s achievements and learning over time, reflecting on both successes and areas for development.

Example: Reviewing my portfolio, I’m proud of how much I’ve grown as a designer. Each project reflects a step in my journey, highlighting my evolving style and approach.

Example: As I added my latest project to my portfolio, I reflected on the journey of my skills evolving. Each piece is a chapter in my story of growth and learning.

Peer Reviews – The Collaborative Insight

Peer reviews involve writing reflectively about the work of others, offering constructive feedback while also considering one’s own learning and development.

Example: Reviewing Maria’s project, I admired her innovative approach, which inspired me to think more creatively about my own work. It’s a reminder of the value of diverse perspectives.

Example: Seeing the innovative approach my peer took on a similar project inspired me to rethink my own methods. It’s a testament to the power of sharing knowledge and perspectives.

Personal Development Plans – The Future Blueprint

Personal development plans are reflective writings that outline goals, strategies, and actions for personal or professional growth.

They include reflections on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Example: My goal to become a more effective communicator will require me to step out of my comfort zone and seek opportunities to speak publicly. It’s daunting but necessary for my growth.

Example: Identifying my fear of public speaking in my plan pushed me to take a course on it. Acknowledging weaknesses is the first step to turning them into strengths.

Reflective Essays – The Structured Analysis

Reflective essays are more formal pieces of writing that analyze personal experiences in depth.

They require a structured approach to reflection, often including theories or models to frame the reflection.

Example: Reflecting on my leadership role during the group project, I applied Tuckman’s stages of group development to understand the dynamics at play. It helped me appreciate the natural progression of team development.

Example: In my essay, reflecting on a failed project helped me understand the role of resilience in success. Failure isn’t the opposite of success; it’s part of its process.

Reflective Letters – The Personal Correspondence

Reflective letters involve writing to someone (real or imagined) about personal experiences and learnings.

It’s a way to articulate thoughts and feelings in a structured yet personal format.

Example: Dear Future Self, Today, I learned the importance of resilience. Faced with failure, I found the strength to persevere a nd try again. This lesson, I hope, will stay with me as I navigate the challenges ahead.

Example: Writing a letter to my past self, I shared insights on overcoming challenges with patience and persistence. It’s a reminder of how far I’ve come and the hurdles I’ve overcome.

Blogs – The Public Journal

Blogs are a form of reflective writing that allows writers to share their experiences, insights, and learnings with a wider audience.

They often combine personal narrative with broader observations about life, work, or society.

Example: In my latest blog post, I explored the journey of embracing vulnerability. Sharing my own experiences of failure and doubt not only helped me process these feelings but also connected me with readers going through similar struggles. It’s a powerful reminder of the strength found in sharing our stories.

Example: In a blog post about starting a new career path, I shared the fears and excitement of stepping into the unknown. It’s a journey of self-discovery and embracing new challenges.

What Are the Key Features of Reflective Writing?

Reflective writing is characterized by several key features that distinguish it from other types of writing.

These features include personal insight, critical analysis, descriptive narrative, and a focus on personal growth.

• Personal Insight: Reflective writing is deeply personal, focusing on the writer’s internal thoughts, feelings, and reactions. It requires introspection and a willingness to explore one’s own experiences in depth.
• Critical Analysis: Beyond simply describing events, reflective writing involves analyzing these experiences. This means looking at the why and how, not just the what. It involves questioning, evaluating, and interpreting your experiences in relation to yourself, others, and the world.
• Descriptive Narrative: While reflective writing is analytical, it also includes descriptive elements. Vivid descriptions of experiences, thoughts, and feelings help to convey the depth of the reflection.
• Focus on Growth: A central aim of reflective writing is to foster personal or professional growth. It involves identifying lessons learned, recognizing patterns, and considering how to apply insights gained to future situations.

These features combine to make reflective writing a powerful tool for learning and development.

It’s a practice that encourages writers to engage deeply with their experiences, challenge their assumptions, and grow from their reflections.

What Is the Structure of Reflective Writing?

The structure of reflective writing can vary depending on the context and purpose, but it typically follows a general pattern that facilitates deep reflection.

A common structure includes an introduction, a body that outlines the experience and the reflection on it, and a conclusion.

• Introduction: The introduction sets the stage for the reflective piece. It briefly introduces the topic or experience being reflected upon and may include a thesis statement that outlines the main insight or theme of the reflection.
• Body: The body is where the bulk of the reflection takes place. It often follows a chronological order, detailing the experience before moving into the reflection. This section should explore the writer’s thoughts, feelings, reactions, and insights related to the experience. It’s also where critical analysis comes into play, examining causes, effects, and underlying principles.
• Conclusion: The conclusion wraps up the reflection, summarizing the key insights gained and considering how these learnings might apply to future situations. It’s an opportunity to reflect on personal growth and the broader implications of the experience.

This structure is flexible and can be adapted to suit different types of reflective writing.

However, the focus should always be on creating a coherent narrative that allows for deep personal insight and learning.

How Do You Start Reflective Writing?

Starting reflective writing can be challenging, as it requires diving into personal experiences and emotions.

Here are some tips to help initiate the reflective writing process:

• Choose a Focus: Start by selecting an experience or topic to reflect upon. It could be a specific event, a general period in your life, a project you worked on, or even a book that made a significant impact on you.
• Reflect on Your Feelings: Think about how the experience made you feel at the time and how you feel about it now. Understanding your emotional response is a crucial part of reflective writing.
• Ask Yourself Questions: Begin by asking yourself questions related to the experience. What did you learn from it? How did it challenge your assumptions? How has it influenced your thinking or behavior?
• Write a Strong Opening: Your first few sentences should grab the reader’s attention and clearly indicate what you will be reflecting on. You can start with a striking fact, a question, a quote, or a vivid description of a moment from the experience.
• Keep It Personal: Remember that reflective writing is personal. Use “I” statements to express your thoughts, feelings, and insights. This helps to maintain the focus on your personal experience and learning journey.

Here is a video about reflective writing that I think you’ll like:

Reflective Writing Toolkit

Finding the right tools and resources has been key to deepening my reflections and enhancing my self-awareness.

Here’s a curated toolkit that has empowered my own reflective practice:

• Journaling Apps: Apps like Day One or Reflectly provide structured formats for daily reflections, helping to capture thoughts and feelings on the go.
• Digital Notebooks: Tools like Evernote or Microsoft OneNote allow for organized, searchable reflections that can include text, images, and links.
• Writing Prompts: Websites like WritingPrompts.com offer endless ideas to spark reflective writing, making it easier to start when you’re feeling stuck.
• Mind Mapping Software: Platforms like MindMeister help organize thoughts visually, which can be especially helpful for reflective planning or brainstorming.
• Blogging Platforms: Sites like WordPress or Medium offer a space to share reflective writings publicly, fostering community and feedback. You’ll need a hosting platform. I recommend Bluehost or Hostarmada for beginners.
• Guided Meditation Apps: Apps such as Headspace or Calm can support reflective writing by clearing the mind and fostering a reflective state before writing.
• Audio Recording Apps: Tools like Otter.ai not only allow for verbal reflection but also transcribe conversations, which can then be reflected upon in writing.
• Time Management Apps: Resources like Forest or Pomodoro Technique apps help set dedicated time for reflection, making it a regular part of your routine.
• Creative Writing Software: Platforms like Scrivener cater to more in-depth reflective projects, providing extensive organizing and formatting options.
• Research Databases: Access to journals and articles through databases like Google Scholar can enrich reflective writing with theoretical frameworks and insights.

Final Thoughts: What Is Reflective Writing?

Reflective writing, at its core, is a deeply personal practice.

Yet, it also holds the potential to bridge cultural divides. By sharing reflective writings that explore personal experiences through the lens of different cultural backgrounds, we can foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of diverse worldviews.

Read This Next:

• What Is a Prompt in Writing? (Ultimate Guide + 200 Examples)
• What Is A Personal Account In Writing? (47 Examples)
• Why Does Academic Writing Require Strict Formatting?
• What Is A Lens In Writing? (The Ultimate Guide)

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For the most part, novelists and memoirists use the same set of tools to tell their stories. They both create vivid scenes, develop three-dimensional characters, and evoke a strong sense of place. They rely on dialogue, effective pacing, and themes. But there is one tool that is used almost exclusively in creative nonfiction: reflection, sometimes called “the reflective voice” or “the voice of experience.”

Defining Reflection

The purpose of reflection.

The aim of reflection is to make sense of the story, but it is not used to tell the story. (The voice of innocence does that.) Memoirists use the reflective voice to make meaning—to help readers discover the underlying message of a particular scene or moment from the character’s life. The color-coded passage below, from Lucy Grealy’s Autobiography of a Face , illustrates how the voice of innocence (green) and the voice of experience (purple) work together to tell the story in a work of creative nonfiction:

[My mother] borrowed a pair of scissors from the nurse’s desk, and while I sat in a chair she snipped off what remained of my hair, my white, white scalp shining through.  We discovered for the first time that I had a large birthmark above my left ear.

The next morning my mother came in with a hat, a small white sailor’s hat, which I put on and almost never took off for the next two and a half years, even during the periods when my hair was growing back in.  Sometimes it grew several inches and was perfectly presentable as hair, but I knew it was only going to fall out again, and I refused to be seen in public without my hat.  My hat.  It became part of me, an inseparable element of who I thought I was.

My hat was my barrier between me, and what I was vaguely becoming aware of as ugly about me, and the world.  It hid me, hid my secret, though badly, and when [other children] made fun of me or stared at me, I assumed it was only because they could guess what was beneath my hat.  It didn’t occur to me that the whole picture, even with the hat, was ugly; as long as I had it on, I felt safe.  Once, on television, I saw someone lose his hat in the wind and I immediately panicked for him, for his sudden exposure.  It was a visceral reaction.

Here, the voice of innocence communicates the child’s experience—it creates a brief scene that shows the character receiving a haircut and beginning to wear a hat that later becomes central to her identity. Then, the reflective voice takes over to say things the child can’t say because she doesn’t know them yet. The child doesn’t realize her hat acts as a mask or that she is “ugly” even while wearing it. These are the adult’s revelations—things she has learned in the years since she wore a hat to hide from the world.

How to Reflect

Beginning memoirists often fall into the trap of only using the reflective voice or only using the voice of innocence, rather than combining the two. This typically happens because they don’t feel comfortable moving between these distinct voices. However, with a little practice and the use of several effective techniques, it becomes second nature. Below are strategies adapted from memoirist Joyce Dyer’s handout “Techniques to Start Reflection in Creative Nonfiction.” These strategies can be applied in nearly all works of creative nonfiction.

• Ask a question. (Why is to so hard to…?)
• Reject possible explanations. (I don’t believe… It seems unlikely…)
• Imagine or speculate. (I wonder what would have happened if… I like to imagine… I hope my mother knew… Perhaps things would have been different if…)
• Tell an alternative version of events and then reveal the truth. (It didn’t actually happen like that… Unfortunately, that’s a lie…)
• Use timestamps to show distance between the event being described and the present day. (Now, I can see… Today, I understand… Looking back… I didn’t realize it then, but…)
• Use generalizations to explain a key takeaway from a scene. (We don’t often think of justice as…)

The color-coded example below, an excerpt from Richard Hoffman’s memoir Half the House , illustrates the author’s smooth transition from the voice of innocence (green) to the voice of experience (purple) using the “timestamp” technique (underlined).

By the end of football season, I couldn’t bear the shame anymore.  I tried to explain to Coach Tom that as a Catholic I would have to tell the priest about [the sexual abuse] in confession.  I tried to reassure him that he didn’t have to worry, that the priest was bound by “the seal of the confessional.”  Priests had been tortured to death without revealing what was told to them in confession.

“Bullshit,” he said.  “He’d go right to your mother and father.  Think about that, you little moron.  I bet that would go over big, huh?”

After that he avoided me, and only spoke to me when he had to.  It was over.  I remember a boy named Chris was always with him after that.

So when my mother asked about the purple wound on my arm, I told her a dog had bitten me on my afternoon paper route.  She wanted to know whose dog it was.  Did it have a collar on?  There was no telling what kind of germs a stray might be carrying.  As I remember this now , I’m not convinced that she believed me, and thinking of the awful silence that came between us, I sometimes feel as desolate as I did back then, when the winter sky slipped away to dark blue and I hurried to get The Evening Chronicle on a mile and a half of doorsteps before it grew too dark to see.

The word “now” is a signal to the reader, a flashing neon sign showing that the narrative has jumped forward in time from a childhood memory to the adult narrator’s reflection on that memory. This shift from the voice of innocence to the voice of experience doesn’t call attention to itself, but it does allow the memoirist to include knowledge and feelings the child wouldn’t have been able to articulate. It also helps readers to understand the long-term impact of the lie and the feelings it created—again, things the child couldn’t have known in the moment.

Reflection is a key element of most memoirs and personal essays. Therefore, it’s an essential skill for writers of creative nonfiction to develop. When writers move seamlessly between the voice of innocence and the voice of experience, they add depth to their work and help readers connect to the characters’ experiences on a deeper level.

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Creative Writing: Reflective Journaling

by Melissa Donovan | Aug 5, 2021 | Creative Writing | 58 comments

Reflective journaling cultivates personal awareness.

A journal is a chronological log, and you can use a journal to log anything you want. Many professionals keep journals, including scientists and ship captains. Their journals are strictly for tracking their professional progress. Fitness enthusiasts keep diet and exercise journals. Artists use journals to chronicle their artistic expressions.

A writer’s journal can hold many things: thoughts, ideas, stories, poems, and notes. It can hold dreams and doodles, visions and meditations. Anything that pertains to your creative writing ideas and aspirations can find a home inside your journal.

Today let’s explore an intimate style of journaling, one in which we explore our innermost thoughts: reflective journaling.

Creative Writing Gets Personal

A diary is an account of one’s daily activities and experiences, and it’s one of the most popular types of journals.

A reflective journal is similar to a diary in that we document our experiences. However, reflective journaling goes deeper than diary writing; we use it to gain deeper understanding of our experiences rather than simply document them.

Reflective journaling is a form of creative writing that allows us to practice self-reflection, self-exploration, and self-improvement. Through reflective journaling, we gain greater understanding of ourselves through mindful observation, contemplation, and expression. As a result, we become more self-aware.

Reflective Journaling

We all have stories to tell. With reflective journaling, you write about your own life, but you’re not locked into daily chronicles that outline your activities or what you had for dinner. You might write about something that happened when you were a small child. You might even write about something that happened to someone else — something you witnessed or have thoughts about that you’d like to explore. Instead of recounting events, you might write exclusively about your inner experiences (thoughts and feelings). Reflective journaling often reveals tests we have endured and lessons we have learned.

The Art of Recalibration is a perfect example of reflective journaling in which stories about our lives are interwoven with our ideas about life itself.

Reflective journaling has other practical applications, too. Other forms of creative writing, such as poems and stories, can evolve from reflective journaling. And by striving to better understand ourselves, we may gain greater insight to others, which is highly valuable for fiction writers who need to create complex and realistic characters. The more deeply you understand people and the human condition, the more relatable your characters will be.

Do You Keep a Journal?

I guess I’m a journal slob because my journal has a little bit of everything in it: drawings, personal stories, rants, and reflections. It’s mostly full of free-writes and poetry. I realize that a lot of writers don’t bother with journals at all; they want to focus on the work they intend to publish. But I think journaling is healthy and contributes to a writer’s overall, ongoing growth.

I once read a comment on a blog by a writer who said she didn’t keep a journal because she couldn’t be bothered with writing down the events of each day; I found it curious that she had such a limited view of what a journal could hold. A journal doesn’t have to be any one thing. It can be a diary, but it can also be a place where we write down our ideas, plans, and observations. It can hold thoughts and feelings, but it can also be a place where we doodle and sketch stories and poems.

I’m curious about your journal. Do you keep one? What do you write in it? Is your journal private or public? Is it a spiral-bound notebook or a hardcover sketchbook? Does journaling inspire or inform your other creative writing projects? Have you ever tried reflective journaling? Tell us about your experiences by leaving a comment, and keep writing!

58 Comments

Hello. I keep writing refrective journal in Japanese. Now I’m trying to it in English. My dream is publish my book of English someday.Mamo

English takes a lot of practice, even for us native speakers, but with time, patience, and commitment, you can do it! Good luck.

Except for a few short months following an interstate move in December, I’ve faithfully kept a journal for 24 years. It’s reflective, it’s prayer, it’s story starts, character sketches, research and notes, it’s sometimes a rant, and usually how I see the world and my take on life. There’s just no way I function well without the journal. It fills some deep need for reflection and observation, but also the need to physically write, which is soothing and mind-ordering for me.

Twenty-four years is a long time! I’m impressed. Wait… that’s about how long I’ve kept a journal too! However, I haven’t been that faithful about it. There are weeks and months when I’m writing so much in other forms (blogging, fiction, etc.), that my journal gets neglected. I admire anyone who can stick with it over the long haul. No wonder you’re such a good writer!

It is wonderful to know that others in this world feel this way. Journaling does seem to help me fell aggreable about the events and happenings that were wholesomel and settle the ones that were not. I never thought of writing as soothing and wondered about dragon voice recognition to do the writing for me, but it just does not have the right feel. So I have stayed with hand writing to record my experiences in this fleeting life.

I have to confess I’m not a fan of voice recognition software except in cases where it helps people who are disabled and cannot type or write. The act of writing, of putting words down on paper or typing them onto a screen, is how we learn vocabulary, sentence structure, spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Otherwise, we’re just dictating, and that’s not writing.

Yes, I definitely believe that journaling is good for working out problems and celebrating life’s blessings.

Just today I was visiting with my pastor about this very topic. He wants to journal so he could revisit his thinking from time to time but is too impatient with handwriting. He uses Dragon Writing for dictating sermons, etc. and mentioned he might try it for journaling as well. Whatever works! I’m a big fan of handwriting and I occassionally type journal entries, print them and glue them into my journal. My journals include bits of everything – handwritten entries about my life, copies of special emails, images and articles I run across, quotes, creative sign copy I see while traveling, etc. etc. I tend to keep a separate travel journals and include bits of info from local newspapers, promotional brochures, etc. Other than travel, I like to have everything in one journal.

I’m a one-journal person, too, although I have notebooks for various purposes: one for my blog, one for my client work, and another for a fiction project. I don’t consider those journals. My journal is for ideas, personal thoughts, and poetry. Keep writing!

I was just thinking of putting everything in one journal. It drives me buggy to keep track of 20 different journals.(one for this,one for that)The reflective writing sounds helpful for a course I’ve been listening to on Podcast. Thanks!

I write essay and poetry, and I also keep a journal. I write stream of conscious sessions or dive into explanations of what I’m trying to say ina poem or essay. I also write book reviews and thoughts on what I’m reading. Rant too. All kinds of stuff.

I love stream-of-consciousness writing sessions too, although I usually call it freewriting. It’s the ultimate adventure in writing for me, and it generates so much great, raw, creative material. A really good session actually feels magical.

I’ve kept a journal since the early 1970s as a record of the things going on around me in my life, events, good and not so good things. It is a record of my life. I don’t know if anyone will read it after I am gone, but it has been handy for me at times. When I wanted to know when a certain event happened, I look back in my journal. Because people know I keep a regular journal, I have often had others call and ask me when such and such happened and I am able to find it.

I think your journal will be a wonderful record of your life, something you could pass along as an heirloom or donate to an archival library. I know lots of historical writers love to dig through those archives and learn about people’s lives. I think that’s so cool!

Thanks, but I doubt that it will ever make it into an archives. I will just be happy if my children and grandchilren appreciate it. I have read that people put all kinds of things into their journals, but this one is a life journal. That is one reason I started using some of your ideas for different kinds of journals. I have started a reading journal going all the way back to when I can remember reading, recording some of my experiences and favorite books and so on. I am doing in that way as more of a legacy in the hopes that someday my grandchildren who are avid readers (and possibly a few budding writers as well) will enjoy reading about their grandma’s reading adventures. It definitely has to be what works for a person, or they wouldn’t be motivated to write in it.

What a wonderful legacy — such a treasure. Your children and grandchildren are very lucky!

I agree your grandchildren are fortunate. I recently acquired a copy of my great, great aunt’s journal. It is priceless to me and gave me so many new insights into “pioneer days” when she and her family were traveling across the prarie during the land run in Oklahoma.

I have kept a journal for years. It does reflect what is happening in my life but is more conversations with God, my hopes and dreams, my discernments and my frustrations. I know someday my kids will read them but on a whole I am very honest in them. One of the best habits I have is to ‘harvest’ them, rereading what I write and highlighting certain passage. Get double benefits from that.

I have my great Aunt’s 60 plus years of journal and want to do something with them someday. I have a friend who typed out all of his grandfathers journals, gleaned nuggets of thoughts and wisdom and published a book for his family. Isn’t that cool?

Thanks for good thought today!

I love the double benefits of journaling. In my family, there has only been one journal/diary that I know of and I believe they threw it away because it was full of so much smack-talk about other family members. I read it and didn’t think it was all that bad, but someone got offended and our little family heirloom got tossed. Ugh, what a shame. I kind of wish someone had redacted the offending passages and kept the diary. Anyway, yes, one thing about journals is that “one day someone will read them.” People need to keep that in mind. Thanks, Jean.

I’ve been keeping a journal since I’ve been able to write. It was full of angst during my teen years, but since adulthood, it’s been mostly filled with observations and just whatever’s on my mind that day. Some could be called writing exercises, but I think they’re more like Morning Pages purging my mind of whatever ails it, to free it up for fiction writing.

I was a big teen ranter and whiner too (in my journal). I did morning pages for a while and enjoyed them very much, but I’m not a morning person, so eventually I switched. Now, I guess I write night pages, except I call them moonlight pages. Ha!

Hi melissa,

Great post! I do have a journal and I write there everything you have mentioned: ideas, thought, insights, things I observe around, small stories that come out of my mind in the middle of a train ride.

Regards, Fernanda

I love the multipurpose journal best of all. There are so many different types of journals — who needs a hundred different notebooks floating around? I’m right there with you, Fernanda, although I do have special notebooks for fiction and blogging. Everything else goes into my journal though.

Nice post with some great ideas. As to your questions, I guess I’m a journal slob too. My journal has a little bit of everything and I often put in story ideas and story beginnings. So you could say I get a lot of my writing from what began in my journal. As to what type of journal, I have recently started to keep mine at an online private journaling source, makes it really easy and convenient.

Thanks for posting this.

I’m curious about private online journaling. Do you worry about a third party having control over your journal? Do you back it up locally? I can’t journal electronically anyway. For some reason, I write all poetry and journaling (plus some fiction) longhand. I would love a tablet with a stylus!

I just started using the online journaling a couple of months ago. I use penzu.com, supposedly they use the same encryption that the military uses plus you can lock your journals with two pass codes and no one is suppose to be able to access it but you, not even their staff. You can also download it or print it out at anytime. I use to journal on my computer, because I can type faster than I can write longhand. But constantly downloading to cd and having to upload it each type I wanted to use a different computer was a real pain. I’ve lost journals due to viruses or corrupted cd’s. This way it’s all backedup automatically so I don’t have to worry about losing anything, and I can access it from anywhere. It’s really nice.

Thanks, Tiffiny. I certainly see the benefits of storing a journal online. I guess everything will eventually move to the cloud. Normally, I’m all in favor of technological advances, but storing my stuff (journals, photos, music) somewhere other than my own hard drives is one advance I’m not crazy about. I like the idea, but I am fixed on having my own backup. Anyway, I’ll definitely look into penzu.com. That sounds pretty cool!

I don’t go anywhere without my spiral notebook. I don’t really call it a journal, though. I write everything in it. From grocery lists to affirmations. I tend to think of a journal as being more personal. I cannot underatand a writer who does not keep some form of journal with them at all times. I guess they figure the good ideas will rise to the top.

I kind of understand the good-ideas-rise-to-the-top concept now. A while back, I started conceptualizing a novel and I would just think about my ideas throughout the day — for several months — and didn’t write anything down. And it worked. The best ideas stuck, so then I moved on to brainstorming and note taking. But generally, I write everything down and keep little notebooks stashed in places where I might need them in a pinch (my car, purse, nightstand).

I journaled frequently during our Peace Corps experiences in Ukraine and posted them on my website so they were availableto the public. I was amazed how many people followed them. I received many e-mails from total strangers who were living vicariously through my journals. When we returned to th euSA, we decided to do a stint in AmeriCorps*VISTA and because of my journals, someone contacted me and offered us wonderful housing (a housesitting arrangement) for the duration of our tenure. My journaling is generally reflective. I also do “morning pages” (a la “The Artist’s Way”)…these tend to be rants or details of my day or dreams and schemes and plans…these are private, unedited, quickly tapped out and I do not share them since they may be too intimate or revealing. (I use 750words.com and write as fast as I can for 20 minutes every day – no editing and no thinking just hit it sister!) It is amazing to look back at my journals and relive my thoughts and obeservations. I recommend doing this kind of daily writing. It is cathartic, healing and helps one know themselves. Life is good. “Ginn” In Steamy SC http://www.pulverpages.com (look for my Ukrainian journals there and my Malawi journals and find a link to my blog on my Camino from Roncesvalles to Santiago de Compostela)

I will definitely go check out your journals and 750words.com (I’ve never heard of that site). I love a fast, intense writing session with no editing. That’s where all my best material comes from.

I used to keep diaries when I was a kid and teenager. The ones from my teens were mainly public blogs and I wrote on them nearly everyday. In my twenties I’ve kept a private hardback journal where I write about experiences I don’t want to forget, feelings, stories, lyrics, doodles, rants, etc. I write pretty much anything I want to write about. Sometimes it helps me sort things out and other times it inspires me to write about something.

It is so weird to me that kids these days are keeping public diaries on their blogs. Blogs didn’t exist when I was a teenager (and I’m grateful for that!). When I was a teen and in my twenties, I always wrote down my favorite song lyrics (and made up plenty of my own too). What I love best about journaling is that anything goes. It’s my writing space, so I can write whatever I want there, and so can you!

Hi Melissa, I’ve kept some form of journal writing for years, but in a more deliberately conscious manner for about 8 years, in which I include, as you say, ‘free writes,’ which are so great for personal growth and awareness, as well as sudden insights about family and relationships and story ideas. I love my journal and, as I say, in recent years, keep it handy with me wherever I go.

That’s so interesting because I never get personal insights from my freewrites — just a lot of raw material that I can shape into something like a poem or song. I guess when I do focused freewrites, I solve problems, but in those cases, the freewrite has an intent (as opposed to just writing anything that comes to mind). That’s what I love about freewriting — there are so many different ways to use it.

This is the first time I’ve responded to one of your posts. Yet, you can rest assured that I read them faithfully. Why? Because, um, well, uh, because they are just so darn good!

I learn from you and enjoy the process.

Before I say how I use my journals, I must disclose that I am part owner of a business which sells guided journals as well as a home study course about how to get the most out of using a journal.

My first introduction to journal keeping came while I was in college. I treated the process poorly. I was a very bad date for my poor journal. You can say that while he was always faithful to me I certainly was not that to him.

Later, peer pressure from some very wonderful friends had me reaching for another blank book.

Now, well let’s just say my journals and I have become dearest of friends.

There is one journal which is different from all my others. I began it four years ago and there are only a few pages used. Yet, this journal is used faithfully as it was intended to be used. Once a year my granddaughter and I have a Christmas Tea. After our tea I record things about the tea and ask for her input. She will be six years old when we have our tea this year. This will be the first year her own pen will touch the page.

My desire is that she continue the Christmas Tea Celebration as well as the recording of the event after my death. Perhaps her mom or a friend will join her. Some day her own daughter may be her guest.

At any rate, the treasure she and I are creating together is worth more than any gold I might think of leaving her.

Thank you for your kind words, Yvonne. Your Christmas Tea Celebration and its accompanying journal is a beautiful idea. What a wonderful thing to share with the little ones. I think it’s a lovely tradition.

Yes, I always keep a journal. My thing is to not put any rules on it or it stresses me out. So, it is chaotic, unorganized, pages ripped out, stuff written here and there, scribbles, magazine clippings stuffed inside, pictures stuffed in. Messy.

Rules are stressful, aren’t they? I find that sometimes rules promote creativity but other times (like in my own journal), they hinder it, so I’m with you Kristy — I like a messy journal.

Your post is wondeful!! I do have a journal about which i had forgotten for almost a month :/ Reading your post just reminded of the fact that it was only because of constant reflective writing in my journal that i realised that this (writing) was what i want to do for my entire life! Thank you 🙂

I think a lot of writers start out by keeping a journal. There’s something about journal writing that comes naturally to certain people, and it makes sense that they would go on to become writers.

I started to keep an everyday journal when I was going through a tough time (about 4yrs now), it was suggested to me and ever since I’ve been keeping one. It’s great to get things out,sometimes though it’s hard to put everything down because I’m afraid someone will read it (because they would if they found it).lol but I use my journal for writing thoughts, feelings about things and people,memories,dreams/nightmares, I write about events that have happened too good and bad, I do drawings,sketches,poems,favorite quotes, stick in fav pics etc. Basically a bit of everything!! I prefer leather bound journals with plain paper but at the mo I’m trying out an art blanc journal because the design caught my eye,not to fond of being restricted to lines though! 🙂 I hope I keep one on into my life,sometimes I forget how helpful it is.

Great post! 😀

Your journal sounds a lot like mine! I do have a suggestion for you. If you’re uncomfortable writing your private thoughts in your journal because you’re worried someone will invade your privacy, you might develop a code system or use images instead of text to express certain ideas. I used to use code names for people, and I would sometimes write certain words in another language or using icons. It also makes journaling a little more interesting.

I call my journals Daily Milestones, because that’s what life feels like to me. Even in the most mundane days where I don’t engage in many activities, I can still have an epiphany in some way or another. If I’ve had an activity packed day or week, then I can go off even more!

I also like titling each entry with something witty like Planting Seeds in the Sandbox because it sometimes keeps the focus and intent of a certain entry. That one in particular is about how life is like a giant sandbox and how we, like children, like to play different roles. We plant “seeds” of our imagination to sprout into our reality.

When I first started keeping a journal in 2009, my entries would just be positive messages and revelations about life, but as time went on, they became more personal. I began writing about actual events in my day rather than just abstract inspirations. It felt odd to write about what happened in my day and even more weird to write how I felt about different aspects of the day and my life. I realized if I’m not gonna be honest with myself, especially where I have all the space and time to do so; what chance would I have with being honest with other people or in my creative writing?

It’s really helpful as a fiction writer to keep a journal because I notice a lot of recurring themes to write about: Reminders of how to remain on the path of truth and virtue amongst the many others that would take too much space in my post. One thing I find is how I judge/commend other people. When I write about other people they feel like they become fictional characters because of how I pick apart their faults and qualities. It helps me see them multidimensionally and transfer that realism in the characters I create in my stories.

And of course all this leads to a massive insight to self discovery as I find myself revisitting old entries just in case I’ve strayed from the path.

Thank you, Marlon, for sharing your experience with reflective journaling and explaining how it has benefited you as a writer, storyteller, and human being. What a wonderful testimonial!

Hi Melissa, sounds like your reflective journal is much like mine, with ideas, lists, doodles and plenty of free writing and first drafts of poem. I also note down story ideas and scraps of conversation or a phrase from someone else’s poem or story – so I suppose mine is a journal cum writer;s notebook. I also have a pad specifically for things to do and also my diary and when I look through they also seem to be combination of things, sometimes including pitching ideas and client requests.

Thanks, Sue. I love learning about how other writers use their journals, notebooks, and other writing tools. I’m glad you shared yours!

Hi Melissa,

I have been filling sketchbooks for years as a way of developing my watercolor painting skills, but I am a writer too, so inevitably I worte abd write a lot too, sometimes more than I sketched. Currrently, my main journal is a sewn-binding refill from Renaissance-Art. I have about 14 of them filled. I use mostly the 5.5 x 8.5 size and put my own hardbound covers on them when done, usualy with a sketch or writing on it and imitation leather trip. I use them for sketches on the spot or from photos, like a scrapbook at times, pasting in photos and this and that. An yes, resflections, insights, acconts of evens and trips, just about anything.

Good post, as usual. Thanks.

Hi Bill! Even though I can’t see your journals, they sound beautiful! I love when words and art come together.

I honestly don’t keep a journal,but I periodicaly write in a tablet ideas for new story development. ps.I have a book out the title is THE SIR DAVID THOMAS SERIES.Perhaps it may be something you would like to read.

A tablet or notebook could be considered a journal.

Honestly, i also don’t keep a journal, but I’d write my story ideas, probable developments of them , brainy quotes by others in every-day life and any interesting observation in my phone, laptop, or on a variety of papers (which do not form a notebook in whole!). But I have a separate notebook to jot down ideas for my thesis research report. I guess I’ll keep on writing my creative notes also in future in the same manner.

Yes, now with all these electronic devices, I think a lot of writers’ notes are becoming spread out. I use Evernote, which syncs to all my devices, including my computer. It has tons of great features — for example, you can clip stuff from the web. You can also create multiple notebooks.

Hi Melissa, Personally, I love keeping journals. I have multiple journals for different things. My private journal is just a regular composition notebook where I write down basically all my thoughts and things that happen to me. Occasionally, I paste pictures and articles. Another journal I keep is a spiral-bound notebook where I write down ideas, poems, short stories, etc. I have a couple of those, and I tend to read through them from time to time. I find it helpful to keep journals, that way, I can see the progress I’ve made over the years.

I love flipping through my old idea journals. I often find little treasures that I’ve forgotten about! Sometimes I even find an old idea that I’m now ready to use.

As silly as it might sound to some, I have MANY journals I keep at once. Of course, I have many to begin with and have been journaling since 1983…I have a journal of daily quotes filled with awe inspiring quotes from famous or important to me people. I journal of family history stories for when the thoughts and memories arise, I record them. My everyday (but not always every day) journal filled with intimate and inspiring yet sometimes dark and dreary moments in life. I have two journals (one for each of my children) loaded with photos and stories of important and important to me events to record in each of their lives. I have a Christmas and Thanksgiving journal so I can record each and every holiday and gathering with family and friends and including the preparing and gift giving. A travel journal that I use to prep for journeys and attach receipts and pics and business cards. I must not forget to mention the Bibliophile Reader’s Journal to record books I am reading so that I remember the most important details from each. An honorable mention is the Homes I Have Lived In Journal where I sketch out each home’s floor plan and add pics from our old albums to depict a room that just happened to be in old photos we took. One might ask, why so many as opposed to combining all in one? My simplest answer is; each journal represents a complex chapter in the Life of Me.

That’s awesome, Marcy! What a wonderful collection you’re creating.

I have already been trying to experiment on different types of journaling method since I was a child. My family knew how attached I have always been to notebooks.However, I would always find it too tedious to keep different notebooks for different aspects of my life. Finally, at 2018, I discovered the bullet journaling method. That was when I realized that I could actually keep an all-in-one journal. Currently, my bullet journal houses my ideas, my Bible reading and book reading reflections, and my thoughts. It also serves as my diary. But probably the most treasured part of my journal is Dream Notes section where I keep my most memorable dreams. That is because I would usually have weird and vivid dreams that sometimes serve as reflections of my current mental or emotional state. Other times, those dreams could be excellent sources for stories and poems. I’m always amazed of what my mind could conceive while I’m asleep. So I keep them recorded in my journal.

I use a variation of bullet journaling too. I’ve been doing it for a couple of years now (just ordered my third one) and it’s been pretty awesome. I use mine strictly as a planner, calendar, and tracker. I’m not sure I’ll keep all those journals; they’re mostly full of work-related stuff. So I like to keep my creative journals separate. I love notebooks too. Can’t have too many!

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What Is Reflective Writing?

Written by Scott Wilson

What is a reflection in writing? Reflection in writing is the act of including analysis or perspective on the text within the text itself. It’s a technique that is used to examine and interpret a passage or event described in a written work, and can be either a literary device or a tool for self-analysis.

Commonly found in academia, reflective writing is a genre of essay that prompts the writer to tell about a meaningful personal experience and reflect on the lesson learned or how it changed their perspective. 

Though you will likely be tasked with exercises in reflection in academic setting, you will still be expected to take a creative approach in order to engage your readers.

Telling an engaging story is important here because your essay will be most effective when your readers find themselves leaning into the page, a physical posture of their interest. 

Like a mirror, reflective writing allows the writer and readers to look back at the text and themselves to uncover deeper meaning. This allows perspectives or unexamined aspects of the text that might otherwise be hidden to be discovered and unpacked.

For the author, reflection is an exercise in self-analysis. While writing reflectively, the writer is expected to examine their own reactions and to document them as they are writing. In works of fiction, the reflection may be undertaken on behalf of a narrator and used to weave additional drama or meaning into a work.

Reflective writing describes the internal reactions of the writer and uses them to interpret the events described in the text.

Although reflection is a subjective exercise, it is often used to inject more objectivity into writing. When the writer engages in reflective writing, they can take a step back and deliver more context in the piece. This offers them a path not only to greater understanding of their own instincts and ideas, but also for the reader to better understand the work.

Creative Writing Degrees Use Reflection as a Tool for Study and Storytelling

Reflective writing is a popular academic tool in general. Students asked to summarize assignments, or keep journals, or describe their experiences are all engaging in reflective writing assignments. The use of reflection creates an academic focus and draws more learning from a given experience by giving students time to think about both the lessons and their connections.

You can expect to be assigned quite a few reflective writing assignments in the average creative writing degree program. Just as in other academic fields, reflection is of the tools that professors use to help students understand their own process and how to deconstruct their own work to improve it. But it’s also training for using reflection creatively, as a device to create new and deeper experiences for their readers.

Self-reflective narrators like Holden Caulfield and Mr. Stevens makes works like The Catcher in the Rye , and The Remains of the Day the classic works of literature they are. While reflection offers the individual writer a tool for investigating their process and methods, it can also become a tool for injecting life and drama into characters and plots.

Where would Samuel Beckett be without the use of reflection in writing? Likely waiting on a break that never comes.

In other cases, such as the works of Milan Kundera, feature entire reflective philosophical essays, both shaping the characters and offering more universal truths that are an essential aspect of the story.

Creative writing students explore both those uses of reflective writing in other literary works and ways to use reflection in their own work and study. Assignments may ask for self-reflective essays exploring your ideas and works, or for you to incorporate reflective writing into those pieces themselves. Either way, expert professors help shape your sense of reflection and its uses through the study of creative writing.

The Components of Reflective Writing

Formulaic writing is never encouraged in creative writing, especially at the college level, but there are some key parts to reflective writing that cannot be ignored. Think of these elements as ingredients for a recipe. Key components of a reflective essay are:

• Description: Give a detailed account of the experience you had. Remember to treat your reader as though they are beside you during the experience, relying on the five senses to make the retelling of the event as real as possible. Be mindful of inundating your reader with details, instead choosing to focus on the ones that would leave holes in your story if you kept them out. 
• Interpretation: What’s your take on the episode? What did you learn? What does it mean? Is there something bigger than yourself that chose to teach you this lesson? Why you, why then, would you have learned the same lesson if it had happened at a different time in your life? All of these questions are starting points for reflection. The interpretation of the experience should be personal, almost to the point of feeling uncomfortable to write (respect your boundaries, but push them where you are able). 
• Evaluation: This is almost an extension of interpretation. Here, you will focus on the value of the lesson learned. You’re not here to only tell a good story about a personal experience, you’re here to explain what you learned from it and to tell your reader why it was so valuable. Maybe you don’t know the answer yet and will arrive at the conclusion as you’re planning it out. Reflective writing will be entertaining and empowering for your reader, but it offers the opportunity to be cathartic for you. Don’t be afraid to dig deep. 
• Planning: This is your opportunity to share what you are currently doing with the lesson learned or what you plan to do with it. Life lessons are inevitable, the meaning of them left to our own interpretation. Their power lies in how we reflect on them, how we use the experiences to change us in one way or another. There is potential here to let this part of the essay feel like a call to action for your reader, or to turn a little too sweet. If that’s your thing, go for it. But don’t feel pressured to turn this reflective essay into an after school special if what you experienced and what you learned ended on a sad or upsetting note. Be authentic in what you say and how you say it, whether it be happy, sad, or somewhere in between. The most important thing you can do in any of your writing is remain true to yourself. 

Module: Reflection

Introduction to reflective writing.

The following video, produced by the Hull University Skills Team, provides a great overview of reflective writing.  Watch the video and then complete the exercise below.

About Reflective Writing

What you’ll learn to do:.

In this section, you’ll learn about different frameworks and methods for writing reflective essays. You’ll also think about the characteristics of good reflective writing and develop specific skills for succeeding with reflective writing assignment prompts.

• Reflective Writing. Authored by : Karen Forgette. Provided by : University of Mississippi. License : CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike

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Omsk Oblast

Omsk Oblast ( Russian : О́мская о́бласть , romanized :   Omskaya oblast' ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast ), located in southwestern Siberia . The oblast has an area of 139,700 square kilometers (53,900   sq   mi) . Its population is 1,977,665 ( 2010 Census ) [9] with the majority, 1.12 million, living in Omsk , the administrative center .

Prehistory and the Middle Ages

Exploration of siberia, russian empire, soviet years, post-soviet era, administrative divisions, demographics, notable people, sister relationships.

The oblast borders Tyumen Oblast in the north and west, Novosibirsk Oblast and Tomsk Oblast in the east, and Kazakhstan in the south.

Omsk Oblast shares borders with Kazakhstan ( North Kazakhstan Region and Pavlodar Region ) to the south, Tyumen Oblast in the west and Novosibirsk Oblast and Tomsk Oblast in the east. It is included in the Siberian Federal District .

The territory stretches for 600   km (370   mi) from north to south and 300   km (190   mi) from west to east. The main water artery is the Irtysh River and its tributaries the Ishim , Om , Osha , and Tara Rivers. The region is located in the West Siberian Plain , consisting of mostly flat terrain. In the south is the Ishim Plain , gradually turning into steppe, forest and swampy taiga to the north. The soil is sandy and silty. [10] Along the Irtysh River, in t. N. Irtysh region, there is an "oasis" microclimate, with a wooded landscape and gullies. There, the most fertile land in the region can be found. The Omsk region contains many lakes, the largest of which are Tenis -Saltaim, Ik, Ebeyty , Ulzhay and Tobol-Kushly.

The highest elevation in the Omsk region - about 150   m (490   ft) Upland village, the lowest elevation is the water's edge on the Irtysh - 41 metres (135   ft) , near the village of Little Beach. [ clarification needed ]

The property is located in Omsk region 28 specially protected natural territories of regional destinations. Including parks in Bolshereche and Omsk ("Bird's harbor"). [ clarification needed ]

The oblast has a classic continental climate, with cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers. Average January temperatures range from −42 to −30   °C (−44 to −22   °F) . Average July temperatures range from 25 to 28   °C (77 to 82   °F) and can reach up to 35   °C (95   °F) and even 40   °C (104   °F) . Annual rainfall averages 300–400   mm (12–16   in) . Sunny days predominate.

The southern plains have notably longer and warmer summers and a delayed onset of freezing temperatures. They are also significantly drier than the northern forests, receiving only 250–300   mm (9.8–11.8   in) precipitation annually. Winters, however, are as severe on the plains as they are further north. Spring rains are rare, but late spring freezes are not. The early part of the summer is frequently dominated by hot, dry southern winds.

As of 1   February   2016 , [ update ] on the territory of the Omsk region, there are 35 areas that have the status of protected areas (PAs), regional and local importance.

Archeological findings indicate that the present day territory of the oblast has been inhabited for the last 14,000 years. Neolithic societies in the area lived by fishing and hunting. About three thousand years ago, pastoralism began to take hold. Ust'-Ishim man , the remains of a man that lived 45,000 years ago, was discovered in Omsk Oblast.

Various Turkic states dominated the area throughout the Medieval era. The most notable of these were the Western Turkic Khaganate and the Siberian Khanate . Siberian Tatars , Mongols , Khanty and Mansi tribes, along with others, inhabited the territory.

The Russian history of Omsk began with the 1584 arrival of a Cossack force under the command of ataman Yermak Timofeyevich , who defeated local rulers and established nominal Russian control of the area. To support further expansion tsars Feodor I and Boris Godunov initiated the construction of fortified settlements and military outposts in the south of Siberia in order to defend their subjects from raiding nomadic tribesmen and to exert authority over local populations, specifically over the tribute-paying Siberian Tatars of The Baraba Lands. The first permanent Russian settlement in the region, the city of Tara , was founded in 1594, soon it began to play an important part in fur trade that connected Russia with Central Asia and China.

In 1716 a fortress was constructed at the confluence of the Om and Irtysh rivers on the orders of sublieutenant Ivan Bugholtz. The fortress would form the nucleus for the development of the future city of Omsk. By the second half of the 18th century, Omsk fortress was the largest building of any kind in the eastern part of Russia.

As Russian settlements continued to spread through the Yenisei , Tobol and Irtysh watersheds in the course of the 18th century, so did the development of the Omsk and the surrounding region. In 1753 a customs post was established to tax goods brought into the city by the ever-increasing trade with Kazakh tribesmen. In 1764, when the Siberian provinces of Russia were organized into two governorates with centers in Irkutsk and Tobolsk , the city of Tara and the fortress of Omsk were assigned to the latter. In 1780, on the orders of Catherine the Great the fortress was transferred to Kolyvan Oblast . By this time Omsk had grown to the size of a small city, however, from 1797 to 1804 it did not possess its own uyezd .

In 1804, the territories surrounding Omsk were organized into the Omsk Okrug . The city rose to prominence when Siberia was once again reorganized in 1822, Omsk became the administrative center of the General Governorate of Eastern Siberia rising above the old center of Siberia, Tobolsk. The new governorate was divided into oblasts around the cities of Omsk, Petropavlovsk, Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogrsk populated by Russian colonists and okrugs populated by Kazakh nomads. In subsequent reforms the name of the Oblast was changed repeatedly to The Oblast of The Siberian Kyrgyz (1854), Akmolinsk Oblast (1868), and Omsk Oblast (1917) before finally reverting to the Omsk Governorate in 1918. The authority of the oblast followed further expansion of the empire to Central Asia and included significant parts of modern-day Kazakhstan .

In the 19th century, Omsk, given its strong system of frontier fortresses, became notorious as a premier destination for political exiles and prisoners from the European part of the Russian Empire. Decembrists , Polish rebels , French prisoners of war and political activists of every stripe found their way to Siberia. Among them was Fyodor Dostoyevsky , who spent four years (1850–1854) at the Omsk prison. [11]

The early nineteenth century also saw the growth of industry in the city and in the rest of the Irtysh basin. The Siberian Cossack Army was headquartered in Omsk after 1808 and contributed to the development of the city, by the beginning of the 20th century the Cossacks were a dominant component in the society of both the city of Omsk and the surrounding lands, having reached a population of 174 thousand and holding title to five million hectares of agricultural land. The 18th and 19th centuries also saw the influx of a significant number of German immigrants both from Russia's Volga Regions and from abroad.

In 1925 the Omsk governorate was dissolved into the newly formed Siberian Krai and again reorganized, this time as an Oblast by order of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee on 7 December 1934. Parts of the Ob-Irtysh Oblast and the West Siberian Krai as well as the southern part of Chelyabinsk Oblast were given over to Omsk. In 1943, Kurgan Oblast created from the western portion of the Chelyabinsk Oblast also got a number of Omsk territories. In 1944, the northern part of the Omsk Oblast along with the districts previously transferred to Kurgan became newly established Tyumen Oblast that included Khanty-Mansi and Yamalo-Nenets autonomous okrugs.

The 1950s saw the creation of the petroleum processing industry, as well as the development of various high-technology facilities that came to define the economy of the Oblast for the remainder of the century.

With the dissolution of the Soviet Union the oblast became part of the newly independent Russian Federation. The independence of Kazakhstan gave Omsk an international border to the south, while continued federal policy aiming to rectify the effects of Stalin era population transfers led to the creation of a national German district in an area with a significant, although not a majority, German population around the town of Azovo . On 19 May 1996 Omsk Oblast signed a power-sharing agreement with the federal government, granting it autonomy. [12] This agreement would be abolished on 21 December 2001. [13]

During the Soviet period, the high authority in the oblast was shared between three persons: The first secretary of the Omsk CPSU Committee (who in reality had the biggest authority), the chairman of the oblast Soviet (legislative power), and the Chairman of the oblast Executive Committee (executive power). Since 1991, CPSU lost all the power, and the head of the Oblast administration, and eventually the governor was appointed/elected alongside elected regional parliament .

The politics in the oblast is governed by the Charter of Omsk Oblast. The laws within the authority of the oblast are passed by the Legislative Assembly of Omsk Oblast which is the legislative (representative) body. The highest executive body is the Omsk Oblast Administration. It also includes the executive bodies of the subdivisions such as districts, and is responsible for the daily administration. The Oblast administration supports the activities of the Governor who is the head of the oblast and acts as guarantor of the observance of the Charter in accordance with the Constitution of Russia .

As of 18 January 2019, the departmental register of registered non-profit organizations of the Office of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation for the Omsk Oblast contains information on 2537 non-profit organizations, including 1332 public associations (national associations - 60, regional branches of political parties - 46, trade unions - 328, children's and youth public associations - 55), 308 religious organizations, 30 Cossack societies, and 20 public associations of Cossacks. For example, in the Omsk Oblast there are regional branches of the political parties United Russia , A Just Russia , the Communist Party of the Russian Federation , and others. [14]

As of 2008 , [ update ] Omsk Oblast is the 23rd largest economy in Russia, with a gross regional product of 10.2 billion dollars.

The economy of Omsk Oblast is heavily industrial, with well developed, and growing, service and financial sectors. Agriculture represents a smaller, but still significant, portion of the economy.

Economic activity is concentrated in Omsk, with over sixty-six thousand private enterprises registered, ranging from small-scale retailers to billion-dollar manufacturing. [15]

Omsk was ranked by Forbes as the 6th-best city in Russia for business in 2008, an improvement over its 20th-place ranking the previous year. [16]

The oblast and city governments have made efforts to improve the business climate and foster small enterprise through various incentives and government programs designed to ease the bureaucratic red-tape, a notorious feature of Russian business life, and to generate cooperation within the business community. [17]

The bulk of industrial output, as of 2009, is concentrated in food and tobacco processing ($900 million), hydrocarbon processing ($6.7 billion), chemical manufacturing ($500 m), plastics manufacturing ($200 m) and the manufacture of electrical components ($280 m). The remainder of the economy is dominated by the retail sector and agriculture.

The largest industrial enterprises include the aerospace manufacturer Polyot , the Omsk Aggregate Plant, the agricultural manufacturer Sibzavod, Omsk Baranov Motorworks, and Omsktransmash , which manufactures the T-80 main battle tank. Additionally, Omsk Rubber, the Technical Hydrocarbon Plant, Omsk-Polymer and Omsk Hydrocarbon Processing Plant, represent the petroleum and hydrocarbon industry. Omsk Hydrocarbon is one of the most important oil refineries in Russia. [18]

The oblast operates four thermal power plants, which makes it largely self-sufficient from the standpoint of energy generation.

Agricultural production is concentrated in the Isil'rul'skii District and produces wheat, barley, flax, sunflower, potato, various fruits and vegetables as well as meat, poultry and dairy products.

The food processing sector includes several breweries, a distillery and numerous food packaging enterprises.

Population : 1,858,798   ( 2021 Census ) ; [19] 1,977,665   ( 2010 Russian census ) ; [9] 2,079,220   ( 2002 Census ) ; [20] 2,140,336   ( 1989 Soviet census ) . [21]

Vital statistics for 2022: [22] [23]

• Births: 16,092 (8.6 per 1,000)
• Deaths: 25,900 (13.8 per 1,000)

Total fertility rate (2022): [24] 1.52 children per woman

Life expectancy (2021): [25] Total — 69.02 years (male   — 64.48, female   — 73.45)

According to the 2010 Census, the ethnic composition was: [9]

• 85.8% Russian
• 4.1% Kazakh
• 2.7% Ukrainian
• 2.6% German
• 0.4% Armenian
• 0.3% Belarusians
• other groups of less than five thousand persons each
• 57,518 people were registered from administrative databases, and could not declare an ethnicity. It is estimated that the proportion of ethnicities in this group is the same as that of the declared group. [26]

According to Russia's 2002 Census , Omsk Oblast has one of the lowest birth rates in Siberia. However, birth rates remain higher than the average in heavily German districts - Azovsky Nemetsky National District (24% German), Moskalensky, Poltavsky (22% Ukrainian & 11% German) and Isilkulsky (8% German), even as significant emigration to Germany acts to reduce the overall birth rate. [27] In 2009, the lowest death rate was recorded for Azovsky German National Raion (9.4 per 1000) and the highest birth rate was recorded for Moskalenskom (17.0 per 1000), Isilkulskom (15.2), Maryanovsky (15.8), Pavlogradski (15.8), Tevrizskom (16.6), Ust-Ishim (15.4) and Sherbakulskom (16.2). Regions with the highest population growth were Moskalensky area (5.5 ppm), Azovsky German National Raion (4.8 ppm), Sherbakulsky (3.8 ppm) and Pavlogradskij (3.2 ppm). [28]

Ethnic Russian birth rate in the province is significantly lower than that of the ethnic Kazakhs (by 50%) and that of ethnic Germans (by 20%), according to the 2002 Census.

According to a 2012 survey [29] 35.7% of the population of Omsk Oblast adheres to the Russian Orthodox Church , 3% are unaffiliated generic Christians , 2% adheres to Islam , 1% to the Slavic native faith (Rodnovery), 0.5% to the Catholic Church . In addition, 39% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious", 13% is atheist , and 5.8% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question. [29]

• John Kornievsky (1910–1984), Russian Greek Catholic priest

• 2007 Siberian orange snow
• List of Chairmen of the Legislative Assembly of Omsk Oblast
• List of rural localities in Omsk Oblast
• Омская область

Related Research Articles

Omsk is the administrative center and largest city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia and has a population of over 1.1 million. Omsk is the third largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk and Krasnoyarsk, and the twelfth-largest city in Russia. It is an important transport node, serving as a train station for the Trans-Siberian Railway and as a staging post for the Irtysh River.

Tyumen Oblast is a federal subject of Russia. It is located in Western Siberia, and is administratively part of the Urals Federal District. The oblast has administrative jurisdiction over two autonomous okrugs: Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug and Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. Tyumen Oblast, including its autonomous okrugs, is the third-largest federal subject by area, and has a population of 3,395,755 (2010).

Tara is a town in Omsk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Tara and Irtysh Rivers at a point where the forested country merges into the steppe, about 300 kilometers (190 mi) north of Omsk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 27,318 (2010 Russian census) ; 26,888 (2002 Census) ; 26,152 (1989 Soviet census) .

Isilkul is a town in Omsk Oblast, Russia, located 120 kilometers (75 mi) west of Omsk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 24,482 (2010 Russian census) ; 26,549 (2002 Census) ; 26,430 (1989 Soviet census) .

Nazyvayevsk is a town in Omsk Oblast, Russia, located 120 kilometers (75 mi) west of Omsk, the administrative center of the oblast. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 11,615.

Kalachinsk is a town in Omsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Om River along the busiest segment of the Trans-Siberian Railway, 100 kilometers (62 mi) east of Omsk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 23,556 (2010 Russian census) ; 24,247 (2002 Census) ; 25,014 (1989 Soviet census) .

Tyukalinsk is a town in Omsk Oblast, Russia, located 60 kilometers (37 mi) northeast of the Nazyvayevsk railway station on the Trans-Siberian Railway and 120 kilometers (75 mi) northwest of Omsk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 11,275 (2010 Russian census) ; 12,007 (2002 Census) ; 12,191 (1989 Soviet census) .

Sherbakulsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southwest of the oblast on the border with Kazakhstan. The area of the district is 2,300 square kilometers (890 sq mi). Its administrative center is the urban locality of Sherbakul. Population: 21,342 ; 25,486 (2002 Census) ; 29,906 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Sherbakul accounts for 32.7% of the district's total population.

Sedelnikovsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the east of the oblast. The area of the district is 5,200 square kilometers (2,000 sq mi). Its administrative center is the rural locality of Sedelnikovo. Population: 10,943 ; 12,211 (2002 Census) ; 12,890 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Sedelnikovo accounts for 48.6% of the district's total population.

Azovsky Nemetsky National District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the south of the oblast. The area of the district is 1,400 square kilometers (540 sq mi). Its administrative center is the rural locality of Azovo. In the Russian Census of 2010, the population was 22,925. The population of Azovo accounts for 26.2% of the district's total population.

Isilkulsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southwest of the oblast. The area of the district is 2,800 square kilometers (1,100 sq mi). Its administrative center is the town of Isilkul. Population: 18,942 ; 22,216 (2002 Census) ; 22,691 (1989 Soviet census) .

Maryanovsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southwest of the oblast. The area of the district is 1,700 square kilometers (660 sq mi). Its administrative center is the urban locality of Maryanovka. Population: 27,595 ; 27,802 (2002 Census) ; 30,173 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Maryanovka accounts for 31.3% of the district's total population.

Omsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the southern central part of the oblast. The area of the district is 3,600 square kilometers (1,400 sq mi). Its administrative center is the rural locality of Rostovka. Population: 94,086 ; 94,251 (2002 Census) ; 90,461 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Rostovka accounts for 5.8% of the district's total population.

Sargatsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the center of the oblast. The area of the district is 3,800 square kilometers (1,500 sq mi). Its administrative center is the urban locality of Sargatskoye. Population: 20,014 ; 22,320 (2002 Census) ; 23,923 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Sargatskoye accounts for 40.8% of the district's total population.

Tevrizsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the north of the oblast. The area of the district is 9,800 square kilometers (3,800 sq mi). Its administrative center is the urban locality of Tevriz. Population: 15,485 ; 18,090 (2002 Census) ; 20,249 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Tevriz accounts for 45.1% of the district's total population.

Ust-Ishimsky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the northwest of the oblast. The area of the district is 7,846 square kilometers (3,029 sq mi).} Its administrative center is the rural locality of Ust-Ishim, which, as its name indicates, is located at the confluence of the Ishim River with the Irtysh.

Znamensky District is an administrative and municipal district (raion), one of the thirty-two in Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is located in the north of the oblast. The area of the district is 3,700 square kilometers (1,400 sq mi). Its administrative center is the rural locality of Znamenskoye. Population: 12,427 ; 13,876 (2002 Census) ; 15,046 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Znamenskoye accounts for 42.6% of the district's total population.

Abatsky District is an administrative district (raion), one of the twenty-two in Tyumen Oblast, Russia. As a municipal division, it is incorporated as Abatsky Municipal District . It is located in the southeast of the oblast. The area of the district is 4,080 square kilometers (1,580 sq mi). Its administrative center is the rural locality of Abatskoye. Population: 19,837 ; 23,566 (2002 Census) ; 26,453 (1989 Soviet census) . The population of Abatskoye accounts for 40.1% of the district's total population.

Azovo is a rural locality and the administrative center of Azovsky Nemetsky National District of Omsk Oblast, Russia. Population: 5,997 (2010 Russian census) ; 5,376 (2002 Census) ;

Ust-Ishim is a rural locality and the administrative center of Ust-Ishimsky District, Omsk Oblast, Russia. Population: 4,802 (2010 Russian census) ; 5,060 (2002 Census) ; 5,795 (1989 Soviet census) .

• ↑ Президент Российской Федерации.   Указ   №849   от   13 мая 2000 г. «О полномочном представителе Президента Российской Федерации в федеральном округе». Вступил в силу   13 мая 2000 г. Опубликован: "Собрание законодательства РФ", No.   20, ст. 2112, 15 мая 2000 г. (President of the Russian Federation.   Decree   # 849   of   May 13, 2000 On the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in a Federal District . Effective as of   May 13, 2000.).
• ↑ Госстандарт Российской Федерации.   №ОК 024-95   27 декабря 1995 г. «Общероссийский классификатор экономических регионов. 2.   Экономические районы», в ред. Изменения №5/2001 ОКЭР. ( Gosstandart of the Russian Federation.   # OK 024-95   December 27, 1995 Russian Classification of Economic Regions. 2.   Economic Regions , as amended by the Amendment   # 5/2001 OKER. ).
• ↑ "Сведения о наличии и распределении земель в Российской Федерации на 01.01.2019 (в разрезе субъектов Российской Федерации)" . Federal Service for State Registration, Cadastre and Cartography . Archived from the original on 9 February 2022 . Retrieved 29 August 2023 .
• ↑ "Оценка численности постоянного населения по субъектам Российской Федерации" . Federal State Statistics Service . Retrieved 1 September 2022 .
• ↑ "26. Численность постоянного населения Российской Федерации по муниципальным образованиям на 1 января 2018 года" . Federal State Statistics Service . Retrieved 23 January 2019 .
• ↑ "Об исчислении времени" . Официальный интернет-портал правовой информации (in Russian). 3 June 2011 . Retrieved 19 January 2019 .
• ↑ Official throughout the Russian Federation according to Article   68.1 of the Constitution of Russia .
• 1 2 3 Russian Federal State Statistics Service (2011). Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том   1 [ 2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol.   1 ] . Всероссийская перепись населения 2010   года [2010 All-Russia Population Census] (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service .
• ↑ Ишимская степь ; Great Soviet Encyclopedia in 30 vols. — Ch. ed. A.M. Prokhorov . - 3rd ed. - M. Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978. (in Russian)
• ↑ "История Омской области" . Omskobl.ru. Archived from the original on 22 November 2012 . Retrieved 13 August 2012 .
• ↑ "Newsline - May 20, 1996 Yeltsin Promises to Maintain Stability, Plays Regional Card" . Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty . 20 May 1996 . Retrieved 2 May 2019 .
• ↑ Chuman, Mizuki. "The Rise and Fall of Power-Sharing Treaties Between Center and Regions in Post-Soviet Russia" (PDF) . Demokratizatsiya : 146. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 October 2022.
• ↑ "Список общественных объединений, имеющих право участвовать в выборах - Управление Министерства юстиции Российской Федерации по Омской области" [ List of public associations eligible to participate in elections - Office of the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation for the Omsk Region ] . to55.minjust.ru . Retrieved 11 March 2019 .
• ↑ Отчёт о работе администрации города Омска в 2005—2009 годах
• ↑ "Журнал "Forbes" - 30 лучших городов для бизнеса — 2010" (in Russian). 27 May 2010 . Retrieved 30 March 2011 .
• ↑ Галина Балашенко «Заниматься бизнесом станет проще» // «Домашняя газета» № 22 (065), 9 июня 2010 года
• ↑ Russian Regional Economic and Business Atlas Volume 2: Strategic Investment and Business Information ISBN   978-1-577-51030-7 p. 131
• ↑ Russian Federal State Statistics Service. Всероссийская перепись населения 2020 года. Том 1 [ 2020 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1 ] (XLS) (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service .
• ↑ Federal State Statistics Service (21 May 2004). Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов   – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3   тысячи и более человек [ Population of Russia, Its Federal Districts, Federal Subjects, Districts, Urban Localities, Rural Localities—Administrative Centers, and Rural Localities with Population of Over 3,000 ] (XLS) . Всероссийская перепись населения 2002   года [All-Russia Population Census of 2002] (in Russian).
• ↑ Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989   г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров [ All Union Population Census of 1989: Present Population of Union and Autonomous Republics, Autonomous Oblasts and Okrugs, Krais, Oblasts, Districts, Urban Settlements, and Villages Serving as District Administrative Centers ] . Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989   года [All-Union Population Census of 1989] (in Russian). Институт демографии Национального исследовательского университета: Высшая школа экономики [Institute of Demography at the National Research University: Higher School of Economics]. 1989 – via Demoscope Weekly .
• ↑ "Information on the number of registered births, deaths, marriages and divorces for January to December 2022" . ROSSTAT . Archived from the original on 2 March 2023 . Retrieved 21 February 2023 .
• ↑ "Birth rate, mortality rate, natural increase, marriage rate, divorce rate for January to December 2022" . ROSSTAT . Archived from the original on 2 March 2023 . Retrieved 21 February 2023 .
• ↑ Суммарный коэффициент рождаемости [ Total fertility rate ] . Russian Federal State Statistics Service (in Russian). Archived from the original (XLSX) on 10 August 2023 . Retrieved 10 August 2023 .
• ↑ "Демографический ежегодник России" [ The Demographic Yearbook of Russia ] (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service of Russia (Rosstat) . Retrieved 1 June 2022 .
• ↑ "Перепись-2010: русских становится больше" . Perepis-2010.ru. 19 December 2011. Archived from the original on 7 January 2019 . Retrieved 13 August 2012 .
• ↑ "Демография Омской области" . Demograf.omskmintrud.ru. Archived from the original on 19 February 2012 . Retrieved 13 August 2012 .
• ↑ "Демография Омской области" . Demograf.omskmintrud.ru. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012 . Retrieved 13 August 2012 .
• 1 2 3 "Arena: Atlas of Religions and Nationalities in Russia" . Sreda, 2012.
• ↑ 2012 Arena Atlas Religion Maps . "Ogonek", № 34 (5243), 27 August 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2017. Archived .
• ↑ Hungary Russia sister city relationships