Location: Russia (officially called the Russian Federation) is a large country in Asia and Europe. Russia is bordered by China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Black Sea, Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, Estonia, the Baltic Sea, Finland, Norway, the Arctic Ocean, the Bering Sea, the Sea of Okhotsk, and the Sea of Japan. Capital: Moscow is the capital of Russia.
Size: Russia covers about 17,098,242 square kilometers (almost twice as big as the USA). Russia is the largest country in the world.
Population: The people of Russia are called Russians. Russia has the 9th largest population of any country in the world. The population of Russia is about 139,390,205 (as of July, 2010).
Largest Cities: Moscow (the capital), St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Sverdlovsk, Rostov, Vladivostok, Irkutsk, Volgograd, Omsk.
Government: Russia is a republic that is divided into 46 oblasts, 21 republics, 4 autonomous okrugs, 9 krays, 2 federal cities , and 1 autonomous oblast. The National Holiday is Russia Day, which is celebrated on June 12. Russia became independent from the USSR [the Soviet Union] on August 24, 1991.
Language: The official language is Russian.
Education: Girls in Russia go to school for an average of 15 years; boys go for an average of 14 years.
Literacy Rate: About 99.4% (almost all) of the adults in Russia can read and write. About 99.7% of the men and 99.2% of the women are literate.
Official Religion: Russian Orthodox 15-20%, Muslim 10-15%, other Christians 2%.
Russia's Flag: Russia's flag (sometimes called the "Imperial flag") was adopted on August 21, 1991. It consists of three equal horizontal bands of white (on the top), blue and red (on the bottom). The height is two-thirds the width.
The design of the flag is over 300 years old and was first used by Peter the Great (it was adapted from the flag of the Netherlands). It was the official flag of Russia from May 7, 1883, until November 1917, when the communist Bolshevik revolution took place. When the communist regime fell, the old tri-color flag was reinstated.
Since 1994, Russia celebrates national "Day of State Flag" on the 21st of August each year.

Climate: Russia's climate ranges from steppes in the south, humid continental in much of European Russia (west of the Ural Mountains); subarctic in Siberia, tundra in the polar north;. Winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia. Summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast.
Terrain: Broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions.
Major Rivers: The Volga, Don, Kama, Oka, Dniepr, the Western Dvina, and the Northern Dvina.
Mountain Ranges: The Ural Mountains (which divide European and Asias Russia), the Caucasus Mountains (in southwestern Russia), and many mountain ranges in eastern Russia.
Highest Point: The highest point in Russia is Gora El'brus (5,633 m above sea level), located in southwestern Russia.
Lowest Point: The lowest point in Russia is the Caspian Sea bordering