View source for Biography:Sakha

{{short description|First-level administrative division of Russia}}
{{Infobox Russian federal subject
|en_name               = Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)
|ru_name               = Республика Саха (Якутия)
|loc_name1             = Саха Өрөспүүбүлүкэтэ
|loc_lang1             = [[Social:Yakut language|Yakut]]
|loc_name2             = ''Saxa Öröspüübülükete''
|loc_lang2             = Romanization
|image_map             = Map of Russia - Sakha (Yakutia) (Crimea disputed).svg
|coordinates           = {{coord|66|24|N|129|10|E|type:adm1st_region:RU|display=inline,title}}
|image_coa             = Coat of Arms of Sakha (Yakutia).svg
|coa_caption           = Coat of arms
|image_flag            = Flag of Sakha.svg
|flag_caption          = Flag
|anthem                = "State Anthem of the Sakha Republic"<br>{{center|[[File:Anthem of the Sakha Republic.ogg]]}}
|anthem_ref            = 
|holiday               = 
|holiday_ref           = 
|political_status      = Republic
|political_status_link = Republics of Russia
|federal_district      = Far Eastern
|economic_region       = Far Eastern
|adm_ctr_type          = Capital
|adm_ctr_name          = Yakutsk
|adm_ctr_ref           = <ref name=Min2002 />
|official_lang_list    = [[Social:Yakut language|Yakut]]
|official_lang_ref     = <ref name="Languages">[http://sakha.gov.ru/node/17668 Constitution of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic], Article&nbsp;46</ref>
|pop_2021census=995686	
|pop_2021census_rank=50th
|urban_2021pop_census=66.8%
|rural_2021pop_census=33.2%
|pop_2021census_ref=<ref name=2021census>{{cite web|title=Оценка численности постоянного населения по субъектам Российской Федерации|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/tab-5_VPN-2020.xlsx|publisher=Federal State Statistics Service|accessdate=1 September 2022}}</ref>
|pop_density           = 
|pop_density_as_of     = 
|pop_density_ref       = 
|pop_latest            = 
|pop_latest_date       = 
|pop_latest_ref        = 
|area_km2              = 3083523 
|area_km2_rank         = 1st
|area_km2_ref          = <ref name="area" />
|elevation_m = 3003
|elevation_max_point = Pobeda Peak 
|established_date      = April&nbsp;27, 1922
|established_date_ref  = <ref name=Min2002>{{cite book|last=Minahan|first=James|title=Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: S-Z|year=2002|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|pages=1630ff}}</ref>
|license_plates        = 14
|ISO                   = RU-SA
|gov_as_of             = May 2018
|leader_title          = Head
|leader_title_ref      = <ref name="HeadLegis">[http://sakha.gov.ru/node/17668 Constitution of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic]&nbsp;53.1</ref>
|leader_name           = Aysen Nikolayev
|legislature           = State Assembly (''Il Tumen'')
| legislature_ref       = <ref name="HeadLegis" />
| timezone_link                   = Time in Sakha
| timezone1_location              = most <small>(excluding districts in UTC+10:00 and UTC+11:00 time zones)</small>
| timezone1                       = [[Yakutsk Time]]
| utc_offset1                     = +09:00
| timezone2_location              = Oymyakonsky, Ust-Yansky and Verkhoyansky districts
| timezone2                       = [[Vladivostok Time]]
| utc_offset2                     = +10:00
| timezone3_location              = Abyysky, Allaikhovsky, Momsky, Nizhnekolymsky, Srednekolymsky and Verkhnekolymsky districts
| timezone3                       = [[Magadan Time]]
| utc_offset3                     = +11:00
| website               = {{url|http://sakha.gov.ru/}}
|website_ref           = 
|date                  = May 2018
|timezone4             = see Time zones
}}
{{maplink|frame=yes|frame-width= 265|zoom=2|type=line|id=Q6605|text= Interactive map of the Sakha Republic}}

'''Sakha''',{{efn|{{bulleted list|{{lang-rus|Якутия|r= Yakutiya|p= jɪˈkutʲɪjə}}|{{lang-sah|Саха Сирэ|r= Saxa Sire|p= saˈxa sɪrjə}}}}}} officially the '''Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)''',{{efn|{{bulleted list|{{lang-rus|Республика Саха (Якутия)|r= Respublika Sakha (Yakutiya)|p= rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə sɐˈxa jɪˈkutʲɪjə}}|{{lang-sah|Саха Өрөспүүбүлүкэтэ|Saxa Öröspüübülükete}}, {{IPA-all|saˈxa øɾøsˈpyːbylykete}}}}}} is the largest republic of {{wipe|Russia}}, located in the [[Place:Russian Far East|Russian Far East]], along the [[Earth:Arctic Ocean|Arctic Ocean]], with a population of roughly 1 million.<ref name="2010Census2">{{ru-pop-ref| 2010Census}}</ref> Sakha comprises half of the area of its governing Far Eastern Federal District, and is the world's largest country subdivision, covering over 3,083,523 square kilometers (1,190,555 sq mi).<ref name="area">[http://www.gks.ru/bgd/free/b10_107/IssWWW.exe/Stg//%3Cextid%3E/%3Cstoragepath%3E::%7Ctab1-01-09.xls Rosstat (Russian Statistical Service), 2010] {{webarchive|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121018030426/http://www.gks.ru/bgd/free/b10_107/IssWWW.exe/Stg//%3Cextid%3E/%3Cstoragepath%3E::%7Ctab1-01-09.xls|date= October 18, 2012}} (xls). Retrieved June 15, 2012.</ref> Yakutsk, which is the world's coldest major city,<ref>{{cite web|last=Gamble|first=Jessa|url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/28/what-world-coldest-city-yellowknife-ulaanbaatar-yakutsk|title=What's the world's coldest city?|work={{wipe|The Guardian}}|date=January 28, 2015|access-date=14 May 2022}}</ref> is its capital and largest city. The republic has a reputation for an extreme and severe climate, with the lowest temperatures in the [[Earth:Northern Hemisphere|Northern Hemisphere]] being recorded in Verkhoyansk and Oymyakon, and regular winter averages commonly dipping below {{convert|-35|C|F}} in Yakutsk. The hypercontinental tendencies also result in warm summers for much of the republic.

Sakha was first home to hunting-gathering and reindeer herding Tungusic and Paleosiberian peoples such as the Evenks and Yukaghir. Migrating from the area around [[Earth:Lake Baikal|Lake Baikal]], the Turkic Sakha people first settled along the middle Lena river sometime between the 9th and 16th centuries, likely in several waves, bringing the pastoral economic system of [[Place:Central Asia|Central Asia]] with them. 

The Russians colonised and incorporated the area as Yakutsk Oblast into the [[Place:Tsardom of Russia|Tsardom of Russia]] in the early-mid 17th century, obliging the indigenous peoples of the area to pay [[History:Yasak|fur tribute]]. While the initial period following the Russian conquest saw the Sakha population drop by 70%, the [[Place:Russian Empire|Imperial period]] also saw the expansion of the native Yakuts from the middle Lena along the Vilyuy River to the north and the east displacing other indigenous groups. Yakutia saw some of the last battles of the Russian Civil War, and the Bolshevik authorities re-organized Yakutsk Oblast into the autonomous Yakut ASSR in 1922. The Soviet era saw the migration of many Slavs, specifically Russians and Ukrainians, into the area.

On 27 September 1990, the area became the Yakutskaya-Sakha Soviet Socialist Republic, and on 27 December 1991, it became the "Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)" (in Russian, "Республика Саха (Якутия)").

==Etymology==
The exonym ''Yakut'' comes from the Evenk term ''Yako'' (also ''yoqo'', ''ñoqa'', or ''ñoka''), which was the term the Evenks used to describe the Sakha. This was in turn picked up by the Russians.<ref>{{cite book |last=Forsyth |first=James |date=1992 |title=A History of the Peoples of Siberia: Russia's North Asian Colony |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=55 |isbn=978-0521477710}}</ref> The Yukaghirs, another neighboring people in Siberia, use the exonym ''yoqol'' ~ ''yoqod-'' ~ ''yoqon-'' ([[Social:Tundra Yukaghir language|Tundra Yukaghir]]) or ''yaqal ~ yaqad- ~ yaqan-'' ([[Social:Southern Yukaghir language|Kolyma Yukaghir]]). {{Citation needed|reason=Possible conjecture, no citation given|date=June 2021}}

The self-designation ''Sakha'' is probably of the same origin (*''jaqa'' > ''Sakha'' following regular sound changes in the course of development of the Yakut language) as the Evenk and Yukaghir exonyms for the Yakuts.<ref name="Johanson">{{cite book | first=Lars | last=Johanson | title=Turkic | publisher=Cambridge University Press | location=Cambridge | year=2021 | page=89}}</ref> It is pronounced as ''Haka'' by the Dolgans, [[Social:Dolgan language|whose language]] is either a dialect or a close relative of the [[Social:Yakut language|Yakut language]].<ref name = "Krivonogov2013">Victor P. Krivonogov, "The Dolgans’Ethnic Identity and Language Processes." ''Journal of Siberian Federal University'', Humanities & Social Sciences 6 (2013 6) 870–888.</ref><ref name = "RedBook">[https://www.eki.ee/books/redbook/dolgans.shtml "The Dolgans" in The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire]</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:Sakha Republic Fauna.jpg|thumb|Fauna of the Sakha Republic: Ross's gull, the Siberian crane, polar bear, horse and reindeer. Russian post miniature sheet, 2006.]]
* ''Borders'':
** ''internal'': [[Earth:Chukotka Autonomous Okrug|Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]] (660&nbsp;km) (E), Magadan Oblast (1520&nbsp;km) (E/SE), Khabarovsk Krai (2130&nbsp;km) (SE), Amur Oblast (S), Zabaykalsky Krai (S), Irkutsk Oblast (S/SW), [[Place:Krasnoyarsk Krai|Krasnoyarsk Krai]] (W).
** ''water'': [[Earth:Arctic Ocean|Arctic Ocean]] (including Laptev Sea and Eastern Siberian Sea) (N).
* ''Highest point'': Peak Pobeda (3,003&nbsp;m), Mus-Khaya Mountain Peak (2959&nbsp;m or 3,011&nbsp;m)
* ''Maximum N–S distance'': {{convert|2500|km|abbr=on}}
* ''Maximum E–W distance'': {{convert|2000|km|abbr=on}}
<!--*''Average elevation'':-->
Sakha stretches to the Henrietta Island in the far north and is washed by the Laptev and Eastern Siberian Seas of the Arctic Ocean. These waters, the coldest and iciest of all seas in the Northern Hemisphere, are covered by ice for 9–10&nbsp;months of the year. New Siberian Islands are a part of the republic's territory.  After [[Earth:Nunavut|Nunavut]] was separated from Canada's [[Earth:Northwest Territories|Northwest Territories]] in 1999, Sakha became the largest subnational entity (statoid) in the world, with an area of {{convert|3083523|km2|sp=us}},<ref name="area" /> slightly smaller than the territory of {{wipe|India}} (3.3&nbsp;million km<sup>2</sup>).

Sakha can be divided into three great vegetation belts. About 40% of Sakha lies above the Arctic circle and all of it is covered by [[Earth:Permafrost|permafrost]] which greatly influences the region's ecology and limits forests in the southern region. Arctic and subarctic [[Earth:Tundra|tundra]] define the middle region, where [[Biology:Lichen|lichen]] and [[Biology:Moss|moss]] grow as great green carpets and are favorite pastures for [[Biology:Reindeer|reindeer]]. In the southern part of the tundra belt, scattered stands of dwarf Siberian pine and [[Biology:Larch|larch]] grow along the rivers. Below the tundra is the vast taiga forest region. Larch trees dominate in the north and stands of [[Biology:Fir|fir]] and pine begin to appear in the south. Taiga forests cover about 47% of Sakha and almost 90% of the cover is larch.

The Sakha Republic is the site of [[Earth:Pleistocene Park|Pleistocene Park]], a project directed at recreating Pleistocene tundra grasslands by stimulating the growth of grass with the introduction of animals which thrived in the region during the late [[Earth:Pleistocene|Pleistocene]]&nbsp;– early [[Earth:Holocene|Holocene]] period.

===Time zones===
[[File:UTC hue4map RUS-SA 2011-09-01.svg|thumb|right|Time zones in Sakha
{|style=line-height:1
|{{color sample|#0000FF}} [[Yakutsk Time]] || [[UTC+09:00|00]]
|-
|{{color sample|#FF00FF}} [[Vladivostok Time]] || [[UTC+10:00|00]]
|-
|{{color sample|#FF0000}} [[Magadan Time]] || [[UTC+11:00|00]]
|}]]
Sakha is the only federal subject of Russia which uses more than one time zone. Sakha spans three time zones.<ref>[http://pravo.gov.ru/proxy/ips/?docbody=&nd=102148085 Federal law on the calculation of time], Official internet portal of legal information of the Russian Federation {{in lang|ru}}.</ref> Like the rest of Russia, it does not use daylight saving time.
{| class=wikitable
! Map !! Time zone !! Abbr. !! {{nowrap|UTC offset}} !! Areas
|-
| [[File:Map of Russia - Yakutsk time zone.svg|75px]] || [[Yakutsk Time|Yakutsk Time]] || YAKT || [[UTC+09:00|00]] || Most of the republic's territory
|-
| [[File:Map of Russia - Vladivostok time zone.svg|75px]] || {{nowrap|[[Vladivostok Time|Vladivostok Time]]}} || VLAT || [[UTC+10:00|00]] || Districts of Oymyakonsky, Ust-Yansky and Verkhoyansky
|-
| [[File:Map of Russia - Magadan time zone.svg|75px]] || [[Magadan Time|Magadan Time]] || MAGT || [[UTC+11:00|00]] || Districts of Abyysky, Allaikhovsky, Momsky, Nizhnekolymsky, Srednekolymsky and Verkhnekolymsky
|}

===Rivers===
[[File:120 На стоянке в устье реки Ура.jpg|thumb|Ura River]]
[[File:Olyokma river.jpg|thumb|Olyokma River]]
[[File:Ленские столбы 2015 (121).JPG|thumb|Lena Pillars]]
The largest river is the navigable Lena River (4,400&nbsp;km). As it moves northward, it includes hundreds of small [[Earth:Tributary|tributaries]] located in the Verkhoyansk Range.
* Lena River
** Vilyuy River (2,650&nbsp;km) Lena River tributary
*** Markha River (1,181&nbsp;km) Vilyuy River tributary
**** Morkoka River (812&nbsp;km) Markha River tributary
*** Tyung River (1,092&nbsp;km) Vilyuy River tributary
** Aldan River (2,273&nbsp;km) Lena River tributary
*** Amga River (1,462&nbsp;km) Aldan River tributary
*** Maya River (1,053&nbsp;km) Aldan River tributary
*** Uchur River (812&nbsp;km) Aldan River tributary
** Olyokma River (1,320&nbsp;km) Lena River tributary
** Linde River (804&nbsp;km) Lena River tributary
** Nyuya River (798&nbsp;km) Lena River tributary
* Olenyok River (2,292&nbsp;km)
* Kolyma River (2,129&nbsp;km)
* Indigirka River (1,726&nbsp;km)
** Selennyakh River (796&nbsp;km) Indigirka River tributary
* Alazeya River (1,590&nbsp;km)
* Anabar River (939&nbsp;km)
* Yana River (872&nbsp;km)
** Adycha River (715&nbsp;km) Yana River tributary
** Oldzho River (330&nbsp;km) Yana River tributary
** Bytantay River (620&nbsp;km) Yana River tributary

===Lakes===
[[File:Перемена погоды.jpg|thumb|Lake Ozhogino]]
There are over 800,000&nbsp;lakes in the republic.<ref>[http://sakha.gov.ru/main.asp?c=2305] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103011518/http://sakha.gov.ru/main.asp?c=2305|date=January 3, 2007}}</ref> Major lakes and reservoirs include:
* Lake Bolshoye Morskoye
* Lake Bustakh
* Emanda
* Lake Mogotoyevo
* Nedzheli
* Lake Nerpichye
* Lake Ozhogino
* Lake Suturuokha
* Tabanda
* Ulakhan-Kyuel
* Vilyuy Reservoir

===Mountains===
[[File:Yakutia - DSC 6186.jpg|thumb|Verkhoyansk Range.]]
Sakha's greatest mountain range, the Verkhoyansk Range, runs parallel and east of the Lena River, forming a great arc that begins in the Sea of Okhotsk and ends in the Laptev Sea.

The [[Earth:Chersky Range|Chersky Range]] runs east of the Verkhoyansk Range and has the highest peak in Sakha, Peak Pobeda (3,147&nbsp;m).  The second highest peak is Peak Mus-Khaya reaching 3,011&nbsp;m.

The Stanovoy Range borders Sakha in the south.

===Peninsulas===
The Republic's extensive coastline contains a number of peninsulas; from west to east the most prominent are:
* Uryung-Tumus Peninsula
* Nordvik Peninsula
* Terpyay-Tumsa Peninsula
* Bykovsky Peninsula
* Buor-Khaya Peninsula
* Manyko Peninsula
* Shirokostan Peninsula
* Merkushina Strelka Peninsula
* Lopatka Peninsula
* Dogukan Peninsula

===Islands===
From west to east the main islands of Sakha are:
* Preobrazheniya Island
* Bolshoy Begichev Island
* Maliy Begichev Island
* Peschany Island
* Salkay Island
* Orto Ary
* Daldalakh
* Dyangylakh Island
* Dunay Islands
* Leykina Island
* Islands of the Lena Delta
* Brusneva Island
* Muostakh Island
* Ulakhan Ary Island
* Yarok Island
* Shelonsky Islands
* Makar Island
* Stolbovoy Island
* New Siberian Islands (by far the largest group)
* De Long Islands
* Medvezhyi Islands
* Kolesovsky Island
* Kolesovskaya Otmel
* Gabyshevskiy Island
* Kamenka Island
* Markhayanovskiy Island
* Gusmp Island
* Sukhanyy Island

===Natural resources===
[[Image:Udachnaya pipe.JPG|thumb|Udachnaya pipe diamond mine]]

Sakha is well endowed with raw materials. The soil contains large reserves of [[Chemistry:Petroleum|oil]], gas, [[Earth:Coal|coal]], [[Chemistry:Diamond|diamond]]s, [[Chemistry:Gold|gold]], [[Chemistry:Silver|silver]], [[Chemistry:Tin|tin]], [[Chemistry:Tungsten|tungsten]] and many others. Sakha produces 99% of all Russian diamonds and over 25% of the diamonds mined in the world.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Yakovleva|first1=Natalia P.|title=Natural resource use in the Russian North: a case study of diamond mining in the Republic of Sakha|journal=Environmental Management and Health|date=2000|volume=11|issue=4|pages=318–336|doi=10.1108/09566160010372743}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Bohlen|first1=Celestine|title=Poor Region in Russia Lays Claim to Its Diamonds|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/01/world/poor-region-in-russia-lays-claim-to-its-diamonds.html|access-date=18 March 2018|work={{wipe|The New York Times}}|date=1992}}</ref>

===Climate===
Sakha is known for its [[Earth:Climate|climate]] extremes, with the Verkhoyansk Range being the coldest area in the Northern Hemisphere. Some of the lowest natural temperatures ever recorded have been here. The [[Earth:Northern Hemisphere|Northern Hemisphere]]'s [[Physics:Pole of Cold|Pole of Cold]] is at Verkhoyansk, where the temperatures reached as low as {{convert|−67.8|C}} in 1892, and at Oymyakon, where the temperatures reached as low as {{convert|−71.2|C}} in January 1924.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:60%;"
|+Average daily maximum and minimum temperatures for selected locations in Yakutiya<ref>{{cite web|title=Climate Olyokminsk|url=http://www.pogodaiklimat.ru/climate/24944.htm|website=pogodaiklimat.ru|access-date=June 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Climate Oimjakon|url=http://www.pogodaiklimat.ru/climate/24688.htm|website=pogodaikilmat.ru|access-date=June 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Climate Verkhoyansk|url=http://www.pogodaiklimat.ru/climate/24266.htm|website=pogodaiklimat.ru|access-date=June 12, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Clunate Yakutsk|url=http://www.pogodaiklimat.ru/climate/24959.htm|website=pogodaiklimat.ru|access-date=June 12, 2017}}</ref>

|-
!City
!July (°C)
!July (°F)
!January (°C)
!January (°F)
|-
| Aldan || 22.6/10.9 || 72.7/51.6 || −21.9/−30.6 || −7.4/−23.1
|-
| Neryungri || 21.8/10.9 || 71.24/51.62 || −26.8/−33.9 || −16.24/−29.02
|-
| Olyokminsk || 24.9/12 || 76.8/53.6 || −26.2/−34.6 || −15.2/−30.28
|-
| Oymyakon || 22.7/6.1 || 72.9/43 || −42.5/−50 || −44.5/−58
|-
| Verkhoyansk || 23.5/9.7 || 74.3/49.5 || −42.4/−48.3 || −44.3/−54.9
|-
| Yakutsk || 25.5/12.7 || 78/54.9 || −35.1/−41.5 || −31.2/−42.7
|-
| Saskylakh || 16.8/7.7 || 62.2/45.9 || −29.2/−36.7 || −20.6/−34.1
|-
| Tiksi || 12.1/3.9 || 53.8/39 || −26.7/−33.8 || −16.1/−28.8
|}

''Average annual precipitation'': 200&nbsp;mm (central parts) to 700&nbsp;mm (mountains of Eastern Sakha).

==Administrative divisions==

==History==
{{Further|History:History of Siberia}}

===Pre-history===
[[File:Yukaghirs.jpg|thumb|The people of the Ymyyakhtakh culture are regarded to be the ancestors of the modern Yukaghirs.]]
Siberia, and particularly Sakha, is of [[Biology:Paleontology|paleontological]] significance, as it contains bodies of [[History:Prehistory|prehistoric]] animals from the [[Earth:Pleistocene|Pleistocene]] [[Earth:Epoch (geology)|Epoch]], preserved in ice or [[Earth:Permafrost|permafrost]]. In 2015, the frozen bodies of Dina and Uyan the cave lion cubs were found. Bodies of [[Biology:Yuka (mammoth)|Yuka]] and another [[Biology:Woolly mammoth|woolly mammoth]] from Oymyakon, a [[Biology:Woolly rhinoceros|woolly rhinoceros]] from the Kolyma River, and [[Biology:Bison|bison]] and [[Biology:Horse|horse]]s from Yukagir have also been found.<ref name=Thesiberiantimes2015>{{Cite web|title = Meet this extinct cave lion, at least 10,000 years old – world exclusive|url = http://siberiantimes.com/science/others/news/n0464-meet-this-extinct-cave-lion-at-least-10000-years-old/|website = siberiantimes.com|access-date=January 30, 2016}}</ref> In June 2019, the severed yet preserved head of a [[Biology:Evolution of the wolf#Pleistocene wolves|large wolf from the Pleistocene]], dated to over 40,000 years ago, was found close to the Tirekhtyakh River.<ref name="LiveScience 06-2019">{{cite news |last=Saplakoglu |first=Yasemin |title=Severed Head of a Giant 40,000-Year-Old Wolf Discovered in Russia |newspaper=Live Science |url=https://www.livescience.com/65677-severed-head-ancient-wolf-russia.html |date=2019-06-10 |access-date=2020-05-16}}</ref><ref name="SiberianTimes 06-2019">{{cite news |newspaper=The Siberian Times |title=Still snarling after 40,000 years, a giant Pleistocene wolf discovered in Yakutia |url=https://siberiantimes.com/science/casestudy/news/still-snarling-after-40000-years-a-giant-pleistocene-wolf-discovered-in-yakutia/ |date=2019-06-07 |access-date=2020-05-16}}</ref><ref name="TheGuardian 06-2019">{{cite news |agency={{wipe|Reuters}} |title=Frozen wolf's head found in Siberia is 40,000 years old |newspaper={{wipe|The Guardian}} |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/13/frozen-wolfs-head-found-in-siberia-is-40000-years-old |date=2019-06-13 |access-date=2020-05-16}}</ref>

Ymyakhtakh culture (c. 2200–1300 BC) was a Late Neolithic culture of Siberia, with a very large archaeological horizon. Its origins were in Sakha, in the Lena river basin. From there it spread both to the east and to the west.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Kicki Näslund |url=https://www.academia.edu/10336011 |title=Short summary of Siberian pre-history and cultures |website=Academia.edu}}</ref>

===Early history===
The Turkic Sakha people or ''Yakuts'' may have settled the area as early as the 9th century or as late as the 16th century, though most likely there were several migrations. They migrated up north from around [[Earth:Lake Baikal|Lake Baikal]] to the middle Lena due to pressure by the Buryats, a Mongolic group.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jordan |first1=Bella Bychkova |last2=Jordan-Bychkov |first2=Terry G. |date=2000 |title=Siberian Village: Land and Life in the Sakha Republic |publisher=University Of Minnesota Press |page=38 |isbn=978-0816635696}}</ref>

The Sakha displaced earlier, much smaller populations who lived on hunting and reindeer herding, introducing the pastoralist economy of Central Asia. The indigenous populations of Paleosiberian and Tungusic stock
were mostly [[Social:Cultural assimilation|assimilated]] to the Sakha by the 17th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spri.cam.ac.uk/resources/rfn/sakha.html |title=Scott Polar Research Institute — Republic of Sakha|publisher=Spri.cam.ac.uk|access-date=February 25, 2014}}</ref>

===Russian conquest===
{{Main|History:Russian conquest of Siberia}}

The [[Place:Tsardom of Russia|Tsardom of Russia]] began its conquest of the region in the 17th century, moving east after the defeat of the [[History:Khanate of Sibir|Khanate of Sibir]]. Tygyn, a king of the Khangalassky Sakha, granted territory for Russian settlement in return for a military pact that included war against indigenous rebels of all North Eastern Asia (Magadan, [[Earth:Chukotka Autonomous Okrug|Chukotka]], Kamchatka and Sakhalin). Kull, a king of the Megino-Khangalassky Sakha, began a Sakha conspiracy by allowing the first stockade construction.{{citation needed|date=May 2011}}
[[File:Map of Yakut oblast.jpg|thumb|right|1821 map of Yakutsk Oblast.]]

In August 1638, the Moscow Government formed a new administrative unit with the administrative center of Lensky Ostrog (Fort Lensky), the future city of Yakutsk, which had been founded by [[History:Pyotr Beketov|Pyotr Beketov]] in 1632.

The arrival of Russian settlers at the remote Russkoye Ustye in the Indigirka delta is also believed to date from the 17th century.<ref>A. I. Gogolev, "История Якутии: (Обзор исторических событий до начала ХХ в.)" ([http://www.ysu.ru/facultet/kfi/books/HistoryOfYakutiya.htm History of Yakutia: Review of Historical Events to the beginning of the 20th century] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050527010736/http://www.ysu.ru/facultet/kfi/books/HistoryOfYakutiya.htm |date=May 27, 2005 }}) Yakutsk, 1999.</ref> The [[History:Siberian Governorate|Siberian Governorate]] was established as part of the Russian Empire in 1708.

Russian settlers began to form a community in the 18th century, which adopted certain Sakha customs and was often called ''Yakutyane'' (Якутя́не) or Lena Early Settlers (ленские старожилы). However, the influx of later settlers had assimilated themselves into the Russian mainstream by the 20th century.

===Russian Empire===
In an administrative reform of 1782, Irkutsk Governorate was created. In 1805, Yakutsk Oblast was split from Irkutsk Governorate.<ref>{{Cite EB1911|wstitle= Yakutsk (province) | volume= 28 |last1= Kropotkin |first1= Peter Alexeivitch |last2= Bealby |first2=John Thomas|pages = 898&ndash;899 |short= 1}}</ref>
[[File:Kate Marsden leaving Yakutsk.jpg|left|thumb|British explorer and missionary Kate Marsden in Yakutsk, 1891.]]
Yakutsk Oblast in the early 19th century marked the easternmost territory of the Russian Empire, including such [[Place:Russian Far East|Far Eastern]] (Pacific) territories as were acquired, known as Okhotsk Okrug within Yakutsk Oblast. With the formation of Primorskaya Oblast in 1856, the Russian territories of the Pacific were detached from Sakha.

[[File:Члены Сибирской областной Думы 1917.jpeg|thumb|right|Members of the Siberian Regional Duma from Yakutsk, 1917.]]
The Russians established agriculture in the Lena River basin. The members of religious groups who were exiled to Sakha in the second half of the 19th century began to grow [[Biology:Wheat|wheat]], [[Biology:Oat|oat]]s, and [[Biology:Potato|potato]]es. The fur trade established a cash economy. Industry and transport began to develop at the end of the 19th century and in the beginning of the [[Place:Soviet Union|Soviet]] period. This was also the beginning of geological prospecting, mining, and local [[Chemistry:Lead|lead]] production. The first steam-powered ships and barges arrived.

Sakha's remoteness, compared to the rest of Siberia, made it a place of exile of choice for both Tsarist and Communist governments of Russia. Among the famous Tsarist-era exiles were the democratic writer [[Biography:Nikolay Chernyshevsky|Nikolay Chernyshevsky]]; Doukhobors, [[Social:Conscientious objector|conscientious objector]]s whose story was told to [[Biography:Leo Tolstoy|Leo Tolstoy]] by Vasily Pozdnyakov; the [[Social:Socialist Revolutionary Party|Socialist Revolutionary Party]] member and writer Vladimir Zenzinov, who left an account of his Arctic experiences; and Polish socialist activist Wacław Sieroszewski, who pioneered in ethnographic research on the Sakha people.

A Sakha national movement first emerged during the 1905 Revolution. A Yakut Union was formed under the leadership of a Sakha lawyer and city councilor by the name of Vasily Nikiforov, which criticized the policies and effects of Russian colonialism, and demanded representation in the State Duma. The Yakut Union acted to make the city council of Yakutsk stand down and was joined by thousands of Sakha from the countryside, but the leaders were arrested and the movement fizzled out by April 1906. Their demand for a Sakha representative in the Duma, however, was granted.<ref>{{cite book |last=Forsyth |first=James |date=1992 |title=A History of the Peoples of Siberia: Russia's North Asian Colony |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=167–168 |isbn=978-0521477710}}</ref>

===Soviet era===
Sakha was home to the last stage of the Russian Civil War, the Yakut Revolt. On April 27, 1922, former Yakutsk Oblast was proclaimed the Yakut ASSR, although in fact the eastern part of the territory, including the city of Yakutsk, was controlled by the White Russians.
[[File:Platon Oyunsky 1921.jpeg|left|thumb|217x217px|Platon Oyunsky, who wrote the traditionally-oral olonkho epics.]]
The early Soviet period saw a flourishing of Sakha literature as men such as Platon Oyunsky wrote down in writing the traditionally oral and improvised olonkho, in addition to composing their own works. Many early Sakha leaders, including Oyunsky, died in the Great Purge.

Sakha experienced significant collectivization between 1929 and 1934, with the number of households experiencing collectivization rising from 3.6% in 1929 to 41.7% in 1932. Policies by which the Sakha were harshly affected resulted in the population dropping from 240,500 in 1926 down to 236,700 at the 1959 census.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jordan |first1=Bella Bychkova |last2=Jordan-Bychkov |first2=Terry G. |date=2000 |title=Siberian Village: Land and Life in the Sakha Republic |publisher=University Of Minnesota Press |pages=64–65 |isbn=978-0816635696}}</ref>

Sakha's demographics shifted wildly during the Soviet period as ethnic Russians and Ukrainians, among other groups, settled the area en masse, primarily in Yakutsk and the industrial south. Previously, even Yakutsk had been primarily Sakha and Sakha-speaking. With the end of korenizatsiya, usage of the Sakha language was restricted in urban areas such as Yakutsk, which became primarily Russian-speaking.

===Post-Soviet era===
In 1992, after the fall of the Soviet Union, Sakha was recognized in Moscow as the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation. Sakha is historically part of Russian Siberia, but since the formation of the Far Eastern Federal District in 2000, it is administratively part of the [[Place:Russian Far East|Russian Far East]].
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==Tourism==
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==Demographics==
'''Population''': {{ru-census|p2021=995,686|p2010=958,528|p2002=949,280|p1989=1,081,408}} Population density is 0.31 per km<sup>2</sup> (2019), which is one of the lowest among Russian districts. Urban population: 65,45% (2018).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/doc_2018/bul_dr/mun_obr2018.rar|title=Population of Russian Federation on 1 January 2018|website=GKS}}</ref>

===Settlements===
{{Largest cities
| country      = the Sakha Republic
| stat_ref     = 2021 Russian Census
| list_by_pop  =
| div_name     =
| div_link     = Administrative divisions of the Sakha Republic{{!}}Administrative division
| city_1 = Yakutsk
| div_1 = Yakutsk{{!}}City of republic significance of Yakutsk
| pop_1 = 355,443
| img_1 = Якутск. Вид на центральную часть города (2).JPG
| city_2 = Neryungri
| div_2 = Neryungrinsky District
| pop_2 = 53,409
| img_2 = Нерюнгри. Проспект Дружбы народов.JPG
| city_3 = Mirny, Sakha Republic{{!}}Mirny
| div_3 = Mirninsky District
| pop_3 = 34,045
| img_3 = Center square in Mirny (Yakutia, Russia).jpg
| img_4 = Поездка в Северомуйск (150).jpg
| city_4 = Aldan, Russia{{!}}Aldan
| div_4 = Aldansky District
| pop_4 = 21,590
| city_5 = Lensk
| div_5 = Lensky District, Sakha Republic{{!}}Lensky District
| pop_5 = 21,392
| city_6 = Aykhal
| div_6 = Mirninsky District
| pop_6 = 13,370
| city_7 = Udachny
| div_7 = Mirninsky District
| pop_7 = 12,930
| city_8 = Suntar (rural locality){{!}}Suntar
| div_8 = Suntarsky District
| pop_8 = 10,302
| city_9 = Nyurba
| div_9 = Nyurbinsky District
| pop_9 = 10,138
| city_10 = Vilyuysk
| div_10 = Vilyuysky District
| pop_10 = 10,032
}}

===Vital statistics===

[[File:Sakha graph pop.png|thumb|right|Breakdown of population changes, 1939–2002]]
[[File:Ил Күнэ - День государственности Республики Саха 27.jpg|thumb|Statehood Day celebrations in Yakutsk]]
[[File:234 Поселок Витим.jpg|thumb|Vitim, Sakha Republic]]
[[File:078 Деревня Даппарай, Олекминский район.jpg|thumb|Dapparay]]
[[File:Ленские столбы 2015 (025).JPG|thumb|Cruise on the Lena River]]
Source: [https://web.archive.org/web/20150527224330/http://www.gks.ru/dbscripts/cbsd/dbinet.cgi Russian Federal State Statistics Service]

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! style="width:70pt;"|Average population (x 1000)
! style="width:70pt;"|Live births
! style="width:70pt;"|Deaths
! style="width:70pt;"|Natural change
! style="width:70pt;"|Crude birth rate (per 1000)
! style="width:70pt;"|Crude death rate (per 1000)
! style="width:70pt;"|Natural change (per 1000)
! style="width:70pt;"|Fertility rates
|-
| 1970
| style="text-align:right;"| 674
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,899
| style="text-align:right;"| 5,700
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,199
| style="text-align:right;"| 20.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 12.2
| style="text-align:right;"|
|-
| 1975
| style="text-align:right;"| 775
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,636
| style="text-align:right;"| 6,242
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,394
| style="text-align:right;"| 20.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 12.1
| style="text-align:right;"|
|-
| 1980
| style="text-align:right;"| 887
| style="text-align:right;"| 18,132
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,501
| style="text-align:right;"| 10,631
| style="text-align:right;"| 20.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 12.0
| style="text-align:right;"|
|-
| 1985
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,002
| style="text-align:right;"| 22,823
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,266
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,557
| style="text-align:right;"| 22.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 7.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 15.5
| style="text-align:right;"|
|-
| 1990
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,115
| style="text-align:right;"| 21,662
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,470
| style="text-align:right;"| 14,192
| style="text-align:right;"| 19.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 12.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.46
|-
| 1991
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,110
| style="text-align:right;"| 19,805
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,565
| style="text-align:right;"| 12,240
| style="text-align:right;"| 17.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 11.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.32
|-
| 1992
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,090
| style="text-align:right;"| 17,796
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,710
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,086
| style="text-align:right;"| 16.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.17
|-
| 1993
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,072
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,771
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,419
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,352
| style="text-align:right;"| 15.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.08
|-
| 1994
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,051
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,434
| style="text-align:right;"| 10,371
| style="text-align:right;"| 6,063
| style="text-align:right;"| 15.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 5.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.07
|-
| 1995
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,029
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,731
| style="text-align:right;"| 10,079
| style="text-align:right;"| 5,652
| style="text-align:right;"| 15.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 5.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.01
|-
| 1996
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,015
| style="text-align:right;"| 14,584
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,638
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,946
| style="text-align:right;"| 14.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.88
|-
| 1997
| style="text-align:right;"| 1,003
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,909
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,094
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,815
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.81
|-
| 1998
| style="text-align:right;"| 986
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,640
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,856
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,784
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.80
|-
| 1999
| style="text-align:right;"| 970
| style="text-align:right;"| 12,724
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,480
| style="text-align:right;"| 3,244
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 3.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.71
|-
| 2000
| style="text-align:right;"| 960
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,147
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,325
| style="text-align:right;"| 3,822
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.77
|-
| 2001
| style="text-align:right;"| 954
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,262
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,738
| style="text-align:right;"| 3,524
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 10.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 3.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.78
|-
| 2002
| style="text-align:right;"| 950
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,887
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,700
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,187
| style="text-align:right;"| 14.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 10.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.85
|-
| 2003
| style="text-align:right;"| 949
| style="text-align:right;"| 14,224
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,660
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,564
| style="text-align:right;"| 15.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 10.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.86
|-
| 2004
| style="text-align:right;"| 950
| style="text-align:right;"| 14,716
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,692
| style="text-align:right;"| 5,024
| style="text-align:right;"| 15.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 10.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 5.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.91
|-
| 2005
| style="text-align:right;"| 950
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,591
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,696
| style="text-align:right;"| 3,895
| style="text-align:right;"| 14.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 10.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.74
|-
| 2006
| style="text-align:right;"| 950
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,713
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,245
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,468
| style="text-align:right;"| 14.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.73
|-
| 2007
| style="text-align:right;"| 951
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,268
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,179
| style="text-align:right;"| 6,089
| style="text-align:right;"| 16.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.92
|-
| 2008
| style="text-align:right;"| 953
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,363
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,579
| style="text-align:right;"| 5,784
| style="text-align:right;"| 16.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 10.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.92
|-
| 2009
| style="text-align:right;"| 955
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,970
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,353
| style="text-align:right;"| 6,617
| style="text-align:right;"| 16.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.00
|-
| 2010
| style="text-align:right;"| 958
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,109
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,402
| style="text-align:right;"| 6,707
| style="text-align:right;"| 16.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 7.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.02
|-
| 2011
| style="text-align:right;"| 957
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,402
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,992
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,410
| style="text-align:right;"| 17.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 7.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.06
|-
| 2012
| style="text-align:right;"| 956
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,998
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,918
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,080
| style="text-align:right;"| 17.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.17
|-
| 2013
| style="text-align:right;"| 955
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,704
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,351
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,353
| style="text-align:right;"| 17.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.17
|-
| 2014
| style="text-align:right;"| 956
| style="text-align:right;"| 17,010
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,209
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,801
| style="text-align:right;"| 17.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.25
|-
| 2015
| style="text-align:right;"| 958
| style="text-align:right;"| 16,459
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,233
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,226
| style="text-align:right;"| 17.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.19
|-
| 2016
| style="text-align:right;"| 961
| style="text-align:right;"| 15,424
| style="text-align:right;"| 8,052
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,372
| style="text-align:right;"| 16.0
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 7.6
| style="text-align:right;"| 2.09
|-
| 2017
| style="text-align:right;"| 963
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,954
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,817
| style="text-align:right;"| 6,137
| style="text-align:right;"| 14.5
| style="text-align:right;"| 8.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 6.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.93
|-
| 2018
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,234
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,572
| style="text-align:right;"| 5,662
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.7
| style="text-align:right;"| 7.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 5.9
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.85
|-
| 2019
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 12,819
| style="text-align:right;"| 7,611
| style="text-align:right;"| 5,208
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.2
| style="text-align:right;"| 7.8
| style="text-align:right;"| 5.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.82
|-
| 2020
| style="text-align:right;"| 
| style="text-align:right;"| 13,097
| style="text-align:right;"| 9,081
| style="text-align:right;"| 4,016
| style="text-align:right;"| 13.4
| style="text-align:right;"| 9.3
| style="text-align:right;"| 4.1
| style="text-align:right;"| 1.86
|}

===Ethnic groups===
[[File:Yhyakh dancers, Sangar, Yakutia.jpg|thumb|Yakuts celebrating [[Religion:Yhyakh|Yhyakh]]. Yakuts form the easternmost indigenous community of Turkic peoples. ]]
According to the 2021 Census, the ethnic composition was:<ref name=census2021>{{cite web|title=Национальный состав населения|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/Tom5_tab1_VPN-2020.xlsx|publisher=Federal State Statistics Service|accessdate=30 December 2022}}</ref>
* 469,348 Sakha (55.3%)
* 276,986 Russians (32.6%)
* 24,334 Evenks (2.9%)
* 13,233 Evens (1.6%)
* 11,203 Kyrgyz (1.3%)
* 7,169 Ukrainians (0.8%)
* 6,572 Buryats (0.8%)
* 5,620 Tajiks (0.7%)

Historical population figures are shown below:
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: right;"
|-
! rowspan="2" | Ethnic<br />group
! colspan="2" | 1926 Census
! colspan="2" | 1939 Census
! colspan="2" | 1959 Census
! colspan="2" | 1970 Census
! colspan="2" | 1979 Census
! colspan="2" | 1989 Census
! colspan="2" | 2002 Census
! colspan="2" | 2010 Census
! colspan="2" | 2021 Census<sup>1</sup>
|-
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
! Number
! %
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Sakha
|235,926
|81.6%
| rowspan="2"| 233,273
|rowspan="2"| 56.5%
| rowspan="2"| 226,053
|rowspan="2"| 46.4%
| 285,749
|43.0%
| 313,917
|36.9%
| 365,236
|33.4%
| 432,290
|45.5%
| 466,492
|49.9%
| 469,348
|55.3%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Dolgans
| 0
| 0.0%
| 10
|0.0%
| 64
|0.0%
| 408
|0.0%
| 1,272
|0.1%
| 1,906
|0.2%
| 2,147
|0.3%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Evenks
| 13,502
|4.7%
| 10,432
|2.5%
| 9,505
|2.0%
| 9,097
|1.4%
| 11,584
|1.4%
| 14,428
|1.3%
| 18,232
|1.9%
| 21,008
|2.2%
| 24,334
|2.9%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Evens
|738
|0.3%
| 3,133
|0.8%
| 3,537
|0.7%
| 6,471
|1.0%
| 5,763
|0.7%
| 8,668
|0.8%
| 11,657
|1.2%
| 15,071
|1.6%
| 13,233
|1.6%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Yukaghir
|396
|0.1%
| 267
|0.1%
| 285
|0.1%
| 400
|0.1%
| 526
|0.1%
| 697
|0.1%
| 1,097
|0.1%
| 1,281
|0.1%
| 1,510
|0.2%
|-
|align="left"| Chukchis
|1,298
| 0.4%
| 400
|0.1%
| 325
|0.1%
| 387
|0.1%
| 377
|0.0%
| 473
|0.0%
| 602
|0.1%
| 670
|0.1%
| 709
|0.1%
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Russians
|30,156
|10.4%
| 146,741
|35.5%
| 215,328
|44.2%
| 314,308
|47.3%
| 429,588
|50.4%
| 550,263
|50.3%
| 390,671
|41.2%
| 353,649
|37.8%
| 276,986
|32.6%
|-
|align="left"| Ukrainians
|138
|0.0%
| 4,229
|1.0%
| 12,182
|2.5%
| 20,253
|3.0%
| 46,326
|5.4%
| 77,114
|7.0%
| 34,633
|3.6%
| 20,341
|2.2%
| 7,169
|0.8%
|-
|align="left"| Tatars
| 1,671
|0.6%
| 4,420
|1.1%
| 5,172
|1.1%
| 7,678
|1.2%
| 10.976
|1.3%
| 17,478
|1.6%
| 10,768
|1.1%
| 8,122
|0.9%
| 4,262
|0.5%
|-
|align="left"|  Others
|5,260
|1.8%
| 10,303
|2.5%
| 14,956
|3.1%
| 19,770
|3.0%
| 32,719
|3.8%
| 59,300
|5.4%
| 48,058
|5.1%
| 46,124
|4.9%
| 49,070
|5.8%
|-
| style="text-align:left;" colspan="19"| <sup>1</sup> <small>146,918 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.</small><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.perepis-2010.ru/news/detail.php?ID=6936|title = Впн-2010}}</ref>
|}

===Languages===
The official languages are both Russian and Sakha, also known as Yakut, which is spoken by roughly half of the republic's population. In the 2021 census, 95% of Yakuts, 72% of Evenks and 60% of Evens declared Sakha as their native language.<ref name=languages2021>{{cite web|title=Население наиболее многочисленных национальностей по родному языку|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/Tom5_tab1_VPN-2020.xlsx|publisher=Federal State Statistics Service|accessdate=30 December 2022}}</ref> The Sakha language is a member of the [[Social:Turkic languages|Turkic]] language family, belonging to the Siberian branch. It is closely related to the [[Social:Dolgan language|Dolgan]] language of the former Taymyr Dolgano-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.

The Sakha Republic is also home to many of the world's speakers of [[Social:Tungusic languages|Tungusic languages]], primarily of [[Social:Evenki language|Evenki]] and [[Social:Even language|Even]]. Additionally, [[Social:Chukchi language|Chukchi]] and the lects of the [[Social:Yukaghir languages|Yukaghir]] language family are spoken in the northeast.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! colspan="1" rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;" | Ethnicity 
! style="text-align:center;" colspan="3"| Native language
|-
! [[Social:Russian language|Russian]] !! Sakha !! Other
|-
| Russians 
|99.4% || 0.4% || 0.2%
|-
| Yakuts 
|5.0% || 95.0% || 0.0%
|-
| Evenks 
|12.3% || 72.4% || 15.3%
|-
| Evens 
|10.7% || 60.2% || 29.1%
|-
|}

===Religion===
{{Bar box
|title=Religion in Sakha Republic as of 2012 (Sreda Arena Atlas)<ref name="2012ArenaAtlas">[http://sreda.org/en/arena "Arena: Atlas of Religions and Nationalities in Russia"]. Sreda, 2012.</ref><ref name="2012Arena-religion-maps">[http://c2.kommersant.ru/ISSUES.PHOTO/OGONIOK/2012/034/ogcyhjk2.jpg 2012 Arena Atlas Religion Maps]. "Ogonek", № 34 (5243), 27/08/2012. Retrieved 21/04/2017. [https://web.archive.org/web/20170421154615/http://c2.kommersant.ru/ISSUES.PHOTO/OGONIOK/2012/034/ogcyhjk2.jpg Archived].</ref>
|float=right
|bars=
{{Bar percent|[[Religion:Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodoxy]]|DarkOrchid|37.8}}
{{Bar percent|Protestantism|Navy|0.8}}
{{Bar percent|Other Christians|DeepSkyBlue|0.8}}
{{Bar percent|Islam|Green|2}}
{{Bar percent|[[Religion:Tengrism|Tengrism]] and other native faiths|Red|13}}
{{Bar percent|[[Philosophy:Spiritual but not religious|Spiritual but not religious]]|DarkSlateGray|16.6}}
{{Bar percent|[[Philosophy:Atheism|Atheism]] and [[Religion:Irreligion|irreligion]]|Black|25.6}}
{{Bar percent|Other and undeclared|Gray|4}}
}}

Before the arrival of the Russian Empire, the majority of the local population was Tengrist, similar to the other Turkic people of Central Asia, or in Paleoasian indigenous [[Unsolved:Shamanism|shamanism]] with both 'light' (community leading) and 'dark' (healing through spirit journey) shamans. Under the Russians, the local population was converted to the [[Religion:Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodox Church]] and required to take Orthodox Christian names, but in practice generally continued to follow traditional religions. During the Soviet era, most or all of the shamans died without successors.
[[File:Дом Арчы.jpg|thumb|Temple dedicated to the Aiyy neo-Tengrist creed in Yakutsk]]
In the 1990s, a neopagan shamanist movement called ''aiyy yeurekhé'' was founded by the controversial journalist Ivan Ukhkhan and a philologist calling himself Téris.<ref>[http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/rss/28-1_113.pdf Yakutia (Sakha) Faces a Religious Choice: Shamanism or Christianity]</ref> This group and others cooperated to build a shaman temple in downtown Yakutsk in 2002.<ref>[http://www.biblicalstudies.org.uk/pdf/rss/33-1_057.pdf Whose Steeple is Higher? Religious Competition in Siberia]</ref>

Currently,{{when|date=March 2023}} while Orthodox Christianity maintains a following (however, with very few priests willing to be stationed outside of Yakutsk), there is interest and activity toward renewing the traditional religions. As of 2008, Orthodox leaders described the worldview of the republic's indigenous population (or, rather, those among the population who are not completely indifferent to religion) as ''dvoyeverie'' (dual belief system), or a "tendency toward syncretism", as evidenced by the locals sometimes first inviting a shaman, and then an Orthodox priest to carry out their rites in connection with some event in their life.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.taday.ru/text/135461.html
|title =В Якутии господствует двоеверие (Ч. 1) (Yakutia is dominated by a dual belief system)|author=Елена Дятлова (Yelena Dyatlova)
|date=October 1, 2008
|quote=Во многих случаях нам говорили, что при совершении тех или иных обрядов или просто действий приглашают сначала шамана, потом священника. Правда, именно в таком порядке, признавая христианство чем-то высшим по отношению к местной магической языческой традиции, но это соединяя. Даже среди тех представителей якутской интеллигенции, с которыми мы общались, это стремление к синкретизму было отчетливо приметно.
}} (An interview with Maxim Kozlov, a Moscow priest who had recently returned from a missionary trip down the Lena along with the Bishop of Yakutsk).</ref>
[[File:Преображенская церковь ночью - panoramio.jpg|left|thumb|Transfiguration of Jesus Christ Cathedral in Yakutsk]]
According to the Information Center under the President of Sakha Republic (Информационный центр при Президенте РС(Я)), the religious demography of the republic was as follows:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.religare.ru/2_43720.html |title=РЕЛИГАРЕ – Современная религиозная ситуация в Республике Саха (Якутия): проблемы и перспективы |publisher=Religare.ru |access-date=February 25, 2014}}</ref> Orthodoxy: 44.9%, Shamanism: 26.2%, Non-religious: 23.0%, New religious movements: 2.4%, Islam: 1.2%, Buddhism: 1.0%, Protestantism: 0.9%, Catholicism: 0.4%.

According to a 2012 survey,<ref name="2012ArenaAtlas"/> 37.8% of the population of Sakha adheres to the [[Religion:Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodox Church]], 13% to [[Religion:Tengrism|Tengrism]] or Sakha shamanism, 2% to [[Religion:Islam|Islam]], 1% are unaffiliated [[Religion:Christians|Christians]], 1% to forms of [[Religion:Protestantism|Protestantism]], and 0.4% to Tibetan Buddhism. In addition, 26% of the population deems itself [[Philosophy:Atheism|atheist]], 17% is "spiritual but not religious", and 1.8% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question.<ref name="2012ArenaAtlas"/>
{{clear}}

===Education===
The most important facilities of higher education include [[Organization:North-Eastern Federal University|North-Eastern Federal University]] (previously Yakutsk State University) and Yakutsk State Agricultural Academy.

==Politics==
[[File:Russia Day in Mirny, Sakha Republic 20.JPG|thumb|Russia Day celebrations in Mirny, June 12, 2014.]]

The head of government in Sakha is the Head (previously President). The first Head of the Sakha Republic was Mikhail Yefimovich Nikolayev.<ref>{{Cite book|chapter-url=http://sakha.gov.ru/main.asp?c=4115|title=Члены Совета Федерации Федерального Собрания РФ |chapter=Михаил Ефимович НИКОЛАЕВ |publisher=Government of the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) |access-date=February 18, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071111050353/http://sakha.gov.ru/main.asp?c=4115|archive-date=November 11, 2007}}</ref> As of 2021, the head is Aysen Nikolayev, who took office on May&nbsp;28, 2018.

The supreme legislative body of state authority in Sakha is a unicameral State Assembly known as the ''Il Tumen''.  The government of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic is the executive body of state authority.

The republic fosters close cultural, political, economic, and industrial relations with the independent Turkic states through membership in organizations such as the [[Organization:Turkic Council|Turkic Council]] and the Joint Administration of Turkic Arts and Culture.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?load=detay&newsId=259275&link=259275|title=Turkey seeks to institutionalize relations with Turkic republics – Today's Zaman, your gateway to Turkish daily news|publisher=Todayszaman.com|date=October 9, 2011|access-date=February 25, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131014233821/http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action?load=detay&newsId=259275&link=259275|archive-date=October 14, 2013|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.turkishweekly.net/columnist/3540/turkey-and-the-turkic-republics-is-there-a-new-vision-.html |title=Turkey and the Turkic Republics: Is There a New Vision? |access-date=May 10, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120103034927/http://www.turkishweekly.net/columnist/3540/turkey-and-the-turkic-republics-is-there-a-new-vision-.html |archive-date=January 3, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yakutiatoday.com/region/foreign.shtml |title=Foreign Relations of the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) |publisher=YakutiaToday.Com |date=January 1, 2008|access-date=February 25, 2014}}</ref>

==Economy==
[[File:Gold-tuc1009a.jpg|thumb|upright|Unusual gold specimen from Bulun District, Lena River basin. Weight is about 6 grams.]]

Industry generates slightly above 50%{{Citation needed|date=February 2007}} of the gross national product of Sakha, stemming primarily from mineral exploitation. Industrial enterprises are concentrated in the capital Yakutsk, as well as in Aldan, Mirny, Neryungri, Pokrovsk, and Udachny. The diamond, gold, and tin ore mining industries are the major focus of the economy. Uranium ore is beginning to be mined. The Turkic-speaking Sakha people are engaged in politics, government, finance, economy, and cattle-breeding (horses and cows for milk and meat). The Paleoasian indigenous peoples are hunters, fishermen, and [[Biology:Reindeer|reindeer]] herders. As of 2008, Sakha Republic is the 19th most developed federal subject in Russia.

The largest companies in the region include Alrosa, Yakutugol, Yakutskenergo, and Yakutia Airlines.<ref name="regioncompanies">{{cite web |script-title=ru:Выписки ЕГРЮЛ и ЕГРИП, проверка контрагентов, ИНН и КПП организаций, реквизиты ИП и ООО |url=https://sbis.ru/contragents?p=companies |website=СБИС |access-date=20 October 2018 |language=ru}}</ref>

===Transportation===
Water transport ranks first for cargo turnover. There are six river ports, two seaports (Tiksi and Zelyony Mys). Four shipping companies, including the Arctic Sea Shipping Company, operate in the republic. The republic's main waterway is the Lena River, which links Yakutsk with the rail station of Ust-Kut in Irkutsk Oblast.
[[File:Aeroport Yakutsk 01.jpg|thumb|Yakutsk Aeroport, the main air-traffic hub of the republic.]]
Air transport is the most important for transporting people. Airlines connect the republic with most regions of Russia. Yakutsk Airport has an international terminal.

Two federal roads pass the republic. They are Yakutsk–Skovorodino (A360 Lena highway) and Yakutsk–Magadan (M56 Kolyma Highway).
However, due to the presence of permafrost, use of asphalt is not practical, and therefore the roads are made of clay.  When heavy rains blow over the region, the roads often turn to mud, sometimes stranding hundreds of travelers in the process.<ref>EnglishRussia.com – [http://englishrussia.com/?p=315 ''Russian Roads'']</ref>

The Berkakit–Tommot railroad is currently in operation. It links the Baikal Amur Mainline with the industrial centers in South Sakha. Construction of the Amur Yakutsk Mainline continues northward; the railway was completed to Nizhny Bestyakh, across the river from Yakutsk, in 2013. Though this one-track railroad from Tommot to Nizhny Bestyakh is under temporary operation (30% of its full capacity), the federal agency for railways declared that this railroad would be in full operation in fall 2015.{{update inline|date=February 2016}} Also the private company is now{{when|date=February 2016}} constructing the transport and logistics center in Nizhny Bestyakh.

==Media==

NVK Sakha (national broadcaster company Sakha, Национальная вещательная компания Саха, "Саха" көрдөрөр иһитиннэрэр тэрилтэтэ), the largest media company in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The company owns dozens of TV channels in Yakutia, Russia, and other countries. The main broadcasting languages are Yakut, English, Russian and Evenk. It was founded in 1992 after the collapse of the USSR. 70% of the shares are owned by the Russian VGTRK, 25% are owned by Yakutia, and 5% are in free float. NVK Sakha owns its own animation and film production studios, and some music studios. Since 2018, it has also been streaming 24/7 on YouTube.

==Culture==
[[File:Ohuokhai.jpeg|thumb|Sakha dance with traditional clothing]]

Points of interest in the city of Yakutsk include:
* the State Russian drama theatre named after Alexander Pushkin 
* the Sakha Theater named after Platon Oyunsky
* the State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre named after D. K. Sivtsev
* Suorun Omoloon, the Young Spectator's Theatre

There are a number of museums as well. These include the National Fine Arts Museum of Sakha, the Museum of Local Lore and History named after E. Yaroslavsky, and the Khomus Museum and Museum of Permafrost. In September 2020, the Gagarin Center for Culture and Contemporary Art was opened in the Gagarin District of Yakutsk.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-08-31 |script-title=ru:Доев Дмитрий: «За пять лет в Якутии появилось почти три тысячи новых мест в учебных заведениях» |url=https://sakhalife.ru/doev-dmitrij-za-pyat-let-v-yakutii-poyavilos-pochti-tri-tysyachi-novyh-mest-v-uchebnyh-zavedeniyah/ |access-date=2023-03-22 |website=SakhaLife}}</ref>

In the 2010s, a movie boom began in Yakutia. The local film industry was labelled "Sakhawood".<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://time.com/longform/film-industry-russia-yakutia/ |title=Why the Film Industry Is Booming in the Russian Wilderness |magazine=Time |first1=Suyin |last1=Haynes |first2=Madeline |last2=Roache |date=January 31, 2020 |access-date=19 April 2023}}</ref>

==National days==
* April&nbsp;27: Republic Day
* June&nbsp;21: [[Religion:Yhyakh|Yhyakh festival]] (also known as Sakha New Year)

==See also==
* Cuisine of Sakha
* Lena Pillars
* List of rural localities in the Sakha Republic
* Music in the Sakha Republic
* Tuymaada
* [[Engineering:Yakutian knife|Yakutian knife]]
* [[Social:Yakut language|Yakut language]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==

===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite Russian law
|ru_entity=Верховный Совет Республики Саха (Якутия)
|ru_date=4 апреля 1992 г.
|ru_title=Конституция (основной закон) Республики Саха (Якутия)
|ru_amendment_type=Конституционного закона
|ru_amendment_number=581-З 53-IV
|ru_amendment_date=22 июля 2008 г
|en_entity=Supreme Council of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic
|en_date=April&nbsp;4, 1992
|en_title=Constitution (Basic Law) of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic
|en_amendment_type=Constitutional Law
|en_amendment_number=581-Z 53-IV
|en_amendment_date=July&nbsp;22 2008
}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage}}
* {{in lang|ru}} [http://sakha.gov.ru/ Official website of the government of Sakha Republic]


[[Category:East Siberian Sea]]

{{Sourceattribution|Sakha|1}}