Geography of the European Mountains

The Russian landmass west of the Ural Mountains is commonly referred to as European Russia in most educational atlases, and by the vast majority of geography experts. It is not a separate country, but rather called that because of its longterm political, cultural and geographical blending with the bordering European countries. For reference purposes it is shown above, however, the entire country (as a whole) is still considered part of the continent of Asia. European Russia comprising roughly 3,960,000 sq. km (1,528,560 sq. miles) and spans across approximately 40% of Europe. Its Eastern border is defined by the Ural Mountains and in the South it is defined by the border with Kazakhstan. Note that nearly 77% of the entire Russian population (about 110,000,000 people out of an approximate total Russian population of 141,000,000) lives in European Russia. Key features of the physical environment of mountain areas - altitude, slope, and climate were used to develop the delineation presented in all chapters. These are also key factors affecting land cover / uses, economic activities, settlement patterns, and infrastructure development.