Mogocha
Encyclopedia
Mogocha is a town and the administrative center of Mogochinsky District
of Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia
, located at the confluence
of the Mogocha and Amazar Rivers 709 kilometres (440.6 mi) northeast of Chita. Population:
. The name Mogocha is derived from the river on which it stands, whose name comes from the Evenk
word Mongochi. This meaning of the word is ambiguous; it can be translated as "golden valley", but also as belonging to the Mongo tribe.
Rail traffic began in 1914. In addition to its status as a supply point for the railway, from the 1920s and 1930s it became the base for gold mining in the surrounding area.
Town status was granted to it in 1950.
From 1947 until 1953, the town was site for the Klyuchevlag prison labor camp of the gulag
system. The camp held up to 3,000 prisoners at any one time, mainly used as forced labor for molybdenum
and gold mining in the villages to the southwest of the town. This, combined with the harsh climactic conditions, gave rise to the local expression God created Sochi
, and Satan
Mogocha.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union
and subsequent economic crisis, Mogocha lost around one third of its population, a common occurrence for cities in the Russian Far East
. At the same time, a significant number of Chinese
citizens and companies have moved to the region.
. Other than railway-related industries, there is logging and timber milling conducted in the surrounding area.
Its small airport, which had opened in 1937, was closed during the 1990s.
Mogochinsky District
Mogochinsky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the 31 in Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia. The area of the district is . Its administrative center is the town of Mogocha. Population: 27,225 ; Population of Mogocha accounts for 52.0% of the district's population.The district...
of Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, located at the confluence
Confluence
Confluence, in geography, describes the meeting of two or more bodies of water.Confluence may also refer to:* Confluence , a property of term rewriting systems...
of the Mogocha and Amazar Rivers 709 kilometres (440.6 mi) northeast of Chita. Population:
History
It was founded in 1910, with the construction of the local section of the Trans-Siberian RailwayTrans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
. The name Mogocha is derived from the river on which it stands, whose name comes from the Evenk
Evenk language
Evenki is the largest member of the northern group of Tungusic languages, a group which also includes Even, Negidal, and Oroqen language...
word Mongochi. This meaning of the word is ambiguous; it can be translated as "golden valley", but also as belonging to the Mongo tribe.
Rail traffic began in 1914. In addition to its status as a supply point for the railway, from the 1920s and 1930s it became the base for gold mining in the surrounding area.
Town status was granted to it in 1950.
From 1947 until 1953, the town was site for the Klyuchevlag prison labor camp of the gulag
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
system. The camp held up to 3,000 prisoners at any one time, mainly used as forced labor for molybdenum
Molybdenum
Molybdenum , is a Group 6 chemical element with the symbol Mo and atomic number 42. The name is from Neo-Latin Molybdaenum, from Ancient Greek , meaning lead, itself proposed as a loanword from Anatolian Luvian and Lydian languages, since its ores were confused with lead ores...
and gold mining in the villages to the southwest of the town. This, combined with the harsh climactic conditions, gave rise to the local expression God created Sochi
Sochi
Sochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains...
, and Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
Mogocha.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
and subsequent economic crisis, Mogocha lost around one third of its population, a common occurrence for cities in the Russian Far East
Russian Far East
Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...
. At the same time, a significant number of Chinese
Han Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
citizens and companies have moved to the region.
Economy and infrastructure
Mogocha possesses a station on the Trans-Siberian railwayTrans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
. Other than railway-related industries, there is logging and timber milling conducted in the surrounding area.
Its small airport, which had opened in 1937, was closed during the 1990s.