Mari El Republic

The Mari El Republic (Russian: Респу́блика Мари́й Эл, Respublika Mariy El; Meadow Mari: Марий Эл Республик; Hill Mari: Мары Эл Республик) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). It is geographically located in the European Russia region of the country, along the northern bank of the Volga River, and is administratively part of the Volga Federal District. The Mari El Republic has a population of 696,459 (2010 Census).Yoshkar-Ola is the capital and the largest city of the Republic. Mari El is one of Russia's ethnic republics, primarily representing the indigenous Mari people, a Finno-Ugric ethnic group who have traditionally lived along the Volga River and Kama River. The majority of the Republic's population are ethnic Russians (47.4%) and Mari (43.9%), with minority populations of Tatars and Chuvash. The official languages of Mari El are Russian and the Mari language. Mari El is bordered by Nizhny Novgorod Oblast to the west, Kirov Oblast to the north, Tatarstan Republic to the east, and Chuvashia Republic to the south. Wikipedia ->