Alaska

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Alaska

1. the largest state of the US, in the extreme northwest of North America: the aboriginal inhabitants are Inuit and Yupik; the earliest White settlements were made by the Russians; it was purchased by the US from Russia in 1867. It is mostly mountainous and volcanic, rising over 6000 m (20 000 ft.), with the Yukon basin in the central region; large areas are covered by tundra; it has important mineral resources (chiefly coal, oil, and natural gas). Capital: Juneau. Pop.: 648 818 (2003 est.). Area: 1 530 694 sq. km (591 004 sq. miles)

2. Gulf of. the N part of the Pacific, between the Alaska Peninsula and the Alexander Archipelago

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

Alaska State Information

Phone: (907) 465-2111
www.state.ak.us

Area (sq mi):: 663267.26 (land 571951.26; water 91316.00) Population per square mile: 1.20
Population 2005: 663,661 State rank: 0 Population change: 2000-20005 5.90%; 1990-2000 14.00% Population 2000: 626,932 (White 67.60%; Black or African American 3.50%; Hispanic or Latino 4.10%; Asian 4.00%; Other 23.10%). Foreign born: 5.90%. Median age: 32.40
Income 2000: per capita 22,660ドル; median household 51,571ドル; Population below poverty level: 9.40% Personal per capita income (2000-2003): 29,867ドル-33,213ドル
Unemployment (2004): 7.40% Unemployment change (from 2000): 1.20% Median travel time to work: 19.60 minutes Working outside county of residence: 6.00%

List of Alaska counties:

Alaska Parks

Alaska

Forty-ninth state; admitted on January 3, 1959

State capital: Juneau

Nickname: The Last Frontier

State motto: North to the Future

State bird: Willow ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus)

State fish: Chinook (king) salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)

State flower: Forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica or M. scorpioides)

State fossil: Woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius)

State gem: Jade

State insect: Four spot skimmer dragonfly

State land mammal: Moose

State marine mammal: Bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus)

State mineral: Gold

State song: “Alaska’s Flag”

State sport: Dogteam racing (mushing)

State tree: Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis)

More about state symbols at:

www.commerce.state.ak.us/oed/student_info/student.htm

SOURCES:

AmerBkDays-2000, p. 16 AnnivHol-2000, p. 3

STATE OFFICES:

State web site: www.state.ak.us

Office of the Governor PO Box 110011 Juneau, AK 99811 907-465-3500 fax: 907-465-3532 www.gov.state.ak.us

Alaska State Library PO Box 110571 Juneau, AK 99811 907-465-2910 fax: 907-465-2151 www.library.state.ak.us

Legal Holidays:

Alaska Day Oct 18

Seward's Day Mar 28, 2011; Mar 26, 2012; Mar 25, 2013; Mar 31, 2014; Mar 30, 2015; Mar 28, 2016; Mar 27, 2017; Mar 26, 2018; Mar 25, 2019; Mar 30, 2020; Mar 29, 2021; Mar 28, 2022; Mar 27, 2023

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Alaska

a state in northwestern North America, separated from the United States mainland by Canadian territory. Alaska has an area of 1,519,000 sq km and a population of 277,900 (1967), approximately 44,000 of whom are native Indians, Aleuts, and Eskimos (1960). Its capital is Juneau.

Alaska’s population is concentrated mostly in the south and southeast. Its major cities are Anchorage, Ketchikan, Juneau, and Sitka; in the inner, sparsely populated part of the state, Fairbanks is the major city.

Topography and climate The northern and central regions are primarily plains and plateaus, up to 1,200 m high, that are covered with tundra vegetation and sparse forests. The climate is cold and continental—in Fairbanks the average temperature in January is -24.8°C and in June, +15.7°C. The annual precipitation is 300 mm. Winter lasts from six to eight months; permafrost is found everywhere. There are small areas of farmland along the valleys of the major rivers, the Yukon and the Colville. The south, southwest, and southeast are coastal regions with many islands and convenient warm-water bays. The topography is mostly mountainous (Mount McKinley, 6,193 m), and the climate is moist and temperate. In Juneau the average temperature in January is -1.6°C and in June, + 13.3°C. The annual precipitation is 1,500–4,000 mm. Thick evergreen forests grow on the mountain slopes in the south and southeast; meadows predominate in the southwest.

History According to many scholars, the ancestors of the modern native inhabitants of Alaska—the Indians, Eskimos, and Aleuts—migrated from northeast Asia. Until the discovery of Alaska by Russian explorers in the 17th century, the Eskimos lived primarily in the coastal regions and engaged mostly in marine animal hunting, fishing, and reindeer hunting. The Aleuts lived on the Alaskan peninsula and hunted marine animals. The Indians—the Tlingits and Haidas on the southeastern coast and the Athapascans in the interior—relied on fishing and hunting. During the 1730’s, as a result of the expeditions of P. Nagibin, V. Bering, A. Mel’nikov, I. Fedorov, and M. Gvozdev, the first explorations of Alaska were undertaken. However, it is customary to associate the discovery of Alaska only with A. Chirikov’s expedition in 1741. From the 1740’s until the end of the century, more than 80 exploratory and trade expeditions were sent to the northern shores of America. In 1784 the first Russian settlement was established on Kodiak Island by the merchant G. I. Shelikhov. In 1798 the merchants Shelikhov, Myl’nikov, and Golikov created the United American Company; in 1799 it was named the Russian-American Company, which acquired a monopoly on all trade and minerals located on the northwestern coast of America from 55° N lat. to the Bering Strait and on the Aleutians, Kurils, and other islands. The company was also given the right to claim lands not occupied by other powers. Novo-Arkhangel’sk (now Sitka) became the center of Alaska. The first ruler of the Russian settlement in America (1790–1818) was A. Baranov.

Round-the-world expeditions, undertaken by the Russian-American Company (13 expeditions between 1804 and 1840), maintained regular connections between Alaska and Russia. Russian explorers made a significant contribution to the study of Alaska. Especially important were the scientific expeditions of A. Kashevarov (1838) and L. Zagoskin (1842–44). Possession of Alaska brought Russia into conflict with England and the United States. In 1821, by the decree of Alexander I, foreign ships were forbidden to sail along the shores of the Russian possessions in Alaska. However, Russia was soon forced to grant the USA (1824) and England (1825) favorable terms for navigation and trade in this region. In 1834 the Hudson Bay Company, supported by the English government, attempted to secure a hold on the Russian possessions at the mouth of the Stikine (Stakhin) River. In 1839 the conflict was resolved in favor of this company, which received a favorable lease on the coastal strip of the Russian possessions from 54° 40’ N lat. to 58° 20’ N lat. In addition, the military position of Russian Alaska was precarious. During the Crimean War of 1853–56, the tsarist government lacked the necessary force in the Pacific Ocean area to defend the Russian settlements in North America. Under these conditions, the tsarist government decided to sell Alaska. Of the two competitors—the USA and England—Russia preferred the former, hoping for American support in the fight to liquidate the conditions of the Paris treaty of 1856. According to the agreement of March 18 (30), 1867, Alaska was sold to the USA for 7ドル.2 million—that is, for less than 11 million rubles.

After the purchase of Alaska, American capitalists embarked upon rapacious exploitation of its natural wealth. The native population of Eskimos, Indians, and Aleuts was subjected to cruel oppression and doomed to gradual extinction. At the end of the 19th century, huge deposits of gold were discovered in the nearest region of Canada (Klondike) and then on Alaskan territory. This produced the so-called gold fever. The key economic positions were seized by the monopolistic groups of Morgan, E. H. Harriman, and others. Between 1867 and 1884, Alaska was controlled by the US Department of War. From 1884 to 1912 it was a possession headed by a governor, and in 1912 it became a US territory. Since 1958 it has been a state of the USA. There are many airfields and air force and naval bases in Alaska.

Economy The economic base of Alaska—fishing, fish processing, fur trapping, and mining—was formed during the 1920’s. In connection with major military construction begun during World War II, the significance of the older branches of the economy is constantly decreasing. In 1965, out of a total work force of 70,000 men, approximately 30,000 worked in government institutions primarily connected with the maintenance of the army in Alaska.

Agriculture, in spite of the availability of huge tracts of land suitable for cultivation, is highly undeveloped. There are several hundred farms, for the most part small. The major agricultural regions are in the valley of the Matanuska River and on the Kenai Peninsula. Most of the food is imported. The major local products are fresh vegetables, potatoes, milk, and milk products. Fishing and fish canning account for approximately half of Alaska’s gross output. However, catches are decreasing as a result of depleted resources of valuable species of fish. Reindeer breeding, which was once widespread, has declined. Mining has provided an insignificant output of coal (the Matanuska Valley), oil (the Kenai Peninsula), tin, and chromite. Gold mining near Fairbanks and on the Seward Peninsula is decreasing. In 1968–69 rich oil deposits were discovered in northern Alaska. The manufacturing industry is represented largely by fish canneries and sawmills. In Ketchikan and Sitka there are two large pulp and paper mills.

Ships are the prime means of transportation to points outside the state. The Alaskan Highway, a major part of which passes through Canada, connects Alaska with the US mainland. Major air routes between the USA and the countries of the East pass over Alaska. Fairbanks and especially Anchorage have major airports. There are approximately 930 km of railroad and 6,260 km of paved roads (1964). Internal transportation is provided by highways and by the railroad going from the Pacific Ocean to the Yukon River basin. Local aircraft is used to transport freight and passengers. During the winter, some freight is transported by tractor sleds and dog sleds.

REFERENCES

Efimov, A. V. Iz istorii russkikh ekspeditsii na Tikhom okeane. Moscow, 1948.
Efimov, A. V. Iz istorii velikikh russkikh geograficheskikh otkrytii. Moscow, 1949.
Puteshestviia i issledovaniia leitenanta Lavrentiia Zagoskina ν russkoi Amerike v 1824–1844 gg. Moscow, 1956.
Okun’, S. B. Rossiisko-amerikanskaia kompaniia. Moscow-Leningrad, 1939.
Kovalevskii, V. P. Alaska. Moscow, 1952.
Hulley, C. C. Alaska: 1741–1953. Portland, 1953.

A. V. ANTIPOVA, V. P. KOVALEVSKII, and C. B. OKUN’

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