Krasnodar Krai (Краснода́рский край) is a regional subdivision of Russia (Southern Federal District). While a modest 76,000 km² (Russia's 45th largest), it is the most populous krai (and the third most populous subdivision) of the nation (5,125,221 inhabitants as of 2002). Its administrative center is the city of Krasnodar (pop. 644,800), major cities include Sochi (pop. 328,800), Novorossiysk (pop. 231,900) and Armavir (pop. 193,900). Krasnodar Krai borders, clockwise from the west, Ukraine - from which it is separated by the Strait of Kerch and the Sea of Azov - Russia's Rostov Oblast, Stavropol Krai and Karachay-Cherkessia, and Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia. The krai territory encompasses the republic of Adygeya. Krasnodar Krai's southern border is formed by what is left of Russia's Black Sea coast, with the most important port (Novorossiysk) and resort (Sochi) in this part of the country.

Geographically, the area falls into two distinct parts. The southern, seaward third is the western extremity of the Caucasus range, lying within the European-Mediterranean Montane Mixed Forests ecoregion; the climate is Mediterranean or, in the south-east, subtropical. The northern two-thirds is a steppe and shares continental climate patterns. Most of the population is concentrated in the Kuban River drainage basin which used to be traditional Cossack land (see History of Cossacks). Kuban Cossacks are generally considered to be ethnic Russians now; notable ethnic groups in the area include Armenians who have been settling here since at least the 18th century.

Administrative Division

Districts

Krasnodar Krai consists of the following districts (районов):

• Abinsky (Абинский)
• Anapsky (Анапский)
• Apsheronsky (Апшеронский)
• Beloglinsky (Белоглинский)
• Belorechensky (Белореченский)
• Bryukhovetsky (Брюховецкий)
• Dinskoy (Динской)
• Gulkevichsky (Гулькевичский)
• Kalininsky (Калининский)
• Kanevsky (Каневский)
• Kavkazsky (Кавказский)
• Korenovsky (Кореновский)
• Krasnoarmeysky (Красноармейский)
• Krylovsky (Крыловский)
• Krymsky (Крымский)
• Kurganinsky (Курганинский)
• Kushchevsky (Кущевский)
• Labinsky (Лабинский)
• Leningradsky (Ленинградский)
• Mostovsky (Мостовский)
• Novokubansky (Новокубанский)
• Novopokrovsky (Новопокровский)
• Otradnensky (Отрадненский)
• Pavlovsky (Павловский)
• Primorsko-Akhtarsky (Приморско-Ахтарский)
• Seversky (Северский)
• Shcherbinovsky (Щербиновский)
• Slavyansky (Славянский)
• Starominsky (Староминский)
• Tbilissky (Тбилисский)
• Temryuksky (Темрюкский)
• Tikhoretsky (Тихорецкий)
• Timashevsky (Тимашевский)
• Tuapsinsky (Туапсинский)
• Uspensky (Успенский)
• Ust-Labinsky (Усть-Лабинский)
• Vyselkovsky (Выселковский)
• Yeysky (Ейский)

Demographics

Population (2002): 5,125,221

Ethnic groups: Of the 5,125,221 residents (as of the 2002 census) 13,190 (0.03%) chose not to specify their ethnic background. Of the rest, residents identified themselves as belonging to 140 ethnic groups, including 4,436,272 ethnic Russians (86.6%), 274,566 Armenians (5.36%), 131,774 Ukrainians (2.57%), 26,540 Greeks (0.52%), 26,260 Belarusians (0.51%), 25,589 Tatars (0.5%) and so on.

Languages: to be written once the 2002 census data is released