(Redirected from Ural mountains)
The 'Ural Mountains' (, ''Uralskiye gory'') (also known as the 'Urals', the 'Riphean Mountains' in
Greco-Roman antiquity, and known as the Stone Belt) are a
mountain range that runs roughly north and south through western
Russia. They are sometimes considered as the natural boundary between
Europe and
Asia.
Geography
Map of the Ural Mountains
The Village of Kolchedan in the Ural Mountains in 1912
The Urals extend 2,500 km from the Kazakh
steppes along the northern border of
Kazakhstan to the coast of the
Arctic ocean.
Vaygach Island and the
island of
Novaya Zemlya form a further continuation of the chain. Geographically this range marks the northern part of the border between
Asian and
European sections of the
Eurasian
continent. Its highest peak is
Mount Narodnaya (Poznurr, 1,895 m). Erosion has exposed considerable mineral wealth in the Urals, including gems such as
topaz and
beryl. The
Virgin Komi Forests in the northern Urals are recognized as a
World Heritage site.
Geographers have divided the Urals into five regions: South, Middle, North, Subarctic and Arctic Urals. The
tree line drops from 1,400 metres to sea level as progressing north. Sections of the south and middle regions are completely forested.
Etymology
The Urals were named after the Uralian tribe that was once native to the northern region of Asia. The Uralians were hunter-gatherers; however the lack of plentiful resources in the area forced them to relocate, spreading throughout the Asian region. According to another explanation, the word Ural is of Turkic origin and means a stone belt.
[1]
Geology
thumb
The Urals are among the world's oldest extant
mountain ranges. For its age of 250 to 300 million years, the mountains are yet unusually high. They were formed in the late
Carboniferous period, when western
Siberia collided with eastern
Baltica (~connected to
Laurentia (North America) to form the minor supercontinent of
Euramerica) and
Kazakhstania to form the supercontinent of
Laurasia. Later Laurasia and
Gondwana collided to form the
supercontinent of
Pangaea. Europe and
Siberia have remained joined together ever since.
The Urals have large deposits of
gold,
platinum,
coal,
iron,
nickel,
silver, and other
minerals.
See also
★
Pangaea
★
Ural (region)
★
Idel-Ural State
External links
★
★
Five parts of the Ural Mountains
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