Kurgan Oblast, Administrative region in southwestern Siberia, Russia.
Kurgan Oblast is an administrative region in southwestern Siberia that stretches between the Ural Mountains and the West Siberian Plain. The territory blends forest steppe in the north with open grassland in the south, crossed by rivers and dotted with lakes that sit in gentle depressions.
The region was formed in 1943 by merging eastern districts from Chelyabinsk with four districts from Omsk. During World War II, many factories were relocated here, speeding up industrialization across the territory.
The name comes from kurgans, ancient burial mounds from pre-Celtic times scattered across the steppe landscape. These earthen hills recall the nomadic peoples who once moved through the flat terrain and laid their dead to rest here.
The region sits along the Trans-Siberian Railway, which passes through several towns and provides connections to the east and west. The continental climate brings cold, snowy winters and warm, mostly dry summers.
Many villages still preserve wooden houses with carved window frames, a legacy of 19th-century peasant life. In summer, locals sell fresh berries and mushrooms from surrounding forests at small roadside stands.
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