Here are some Belarus facts for you:
In Belarus, most of us don’t actually speak much Belarusian. We actually speak Russian more there.
Minsk, the capital of Belarus was completely destroyed during the Second World War. Of course, they rebuilt it, though originally the plan was to rebuilt it 30 km away from the original spot which they decided against and built it in the same place. Speaking on being destroyed..it has been destroyed many many times in history but has been rebuilt each time. Because of this, it’s earned a nickname, hero city since it comes back every time.
Again about Minsk, it’s one of the safest cities in Belarus.
Minsk is older than Moscow (Russian capital)
A lot of people tend to mistake Belarus to be a region of Russia. (I guess because of the ‘Rus’ in its name? I don’t know…)
The highest mountain is Mount Dzyarzhynskaya at 346 m in height.
Belarus is the only European country where death penalty is legal.
Us Belarusians love potatoes - we even make pancakes out of them. Belarusians have at least 300 recipes that include potatoes.
The green stripe on Belarus’s flag represents our forests. 40% of it is covered in forest.
Belarus has a lot of Nobel Prize winners.
In cities in Belarus, you’ll find there’s at least one street named after Lenin.
Belarus’s oldest city is Polotsk, which has been around since 862 AD.
About a quarter of Belarus is uninhabitable. Like seriously. Don’t go to the uninhabitable parts.
The first settlements date back to 100,000-35,000 years ago.
Belarus is also known as White Russia. That’s what it means, actually.
Alexander Lukashenko is the first and only president of Belarus. There is also a Prime Minister, appointed by the president but the president has a lot of power.
The average annual rainfall is more than 700 mm. For comparison, in London it is 584 mm.
WW2 took 25% of the lives away in Belarus.
Some of our biggest problems in Belarus are chemical and nuclear pollution. Around 2 million are effected by it.
There are about 6,000,000 internet users in Belarus.
After WW1, we briefly declared ourselves as a republic but were invaded by the red army.
The government often views rock music as politically inappropriate.
Belarus has been described as Europe’s last dictatorship.
Dziady is a festival celebrated that honours ancestors.
There is a 99% literacy rate in Belarus (or around there)
As of 2018 Belarus has a population of 8 million.