Karelians (Karelian: karjalaižet, karjalazet, karjalaiset; Finnish: karjalaiset; Swedish: kareler, karelare; Russian: карелы, romanized: karely) are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group who are indigenous to the historical region of Karelia, which is today split between Finland and Russia. Karelians living in Russian Karelia are considered a distinct ethnic group closely related to Finnish Karelians, who are considered a subset of Finns. This distinction historically arose from Karelia having been fought over and eventually split between Sweden and Novgorod, resulting in Karelians being under different cultural spheres.
The Valdai Hills are a popular tourist destination, particularly for fishing. The towns of Ostashkov and Valday are also known for their historical associations.
Tver Oblast in the context of Principality of Tver
The Principality of Tver (Russian: Тверское княжество, romanized: Tverskoye knyazhestvo) was a Russian principality which existed between the 13th and the 15th centuries with its capital in Tver. The principality was located approximately in the area currently occupied by Tver Oblast and the eastern part of Smolensk Oblast.
It was one of the states established after the fall of Kievan Rus'. Originally part of the Pereyaslavl-Zalessky principality, Tver became an independent principality when Yaroslav Yaroslavich was given the western slice of his father's patrimony. During the 14th century, Tver rivaled the Principality of Moscow with the aim to become the center of the unified Russian state. Eventually it lost, decayed, and in 1485, it was annexed by Moscow.
The source of the Kunya is in Lake Vsteselovo in the central part of Kunyinsky District, in the southeast of Pskov Oblast. It flows out of the lake in the southern direction and gradually makes a U-turn and turns north. Some stretches of the Kunya make the border between Kunyinsky and Velikoluksky Districts, and, more to the north, between Velikoluksky District and Tver Oblast. North of the village of Chaltsevo, the border between the oblasts turns west, and the Kunya continues north and enters Toropetsky District of Tver Oblast. The Kunya accepts the Serezha from the right and a short stretch of it forms the border between Pskov and Tver Oblasts again. North of this stretch, at the triple point, the Kunya enters Novgorod Oblast and turns northeast. The mouth of the Kunya is located in the town of Kholm.
Moscow Oblast (Russian: Московская область, romanized: Moskovskaya oblastʹ, IPA:[mɐˈskofskəjəˈobləsʲtʲ], informally known as Подмосковье, Podmoskovye, IPA:[pədmɐˈskovʲjə]) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). With a population of 8,524,665 (2021 Census) living in an area of 44,300 square kilometers (17,100 sq mi), it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and is the second most populous federal subject. The oblast has no official administrative center; its public authorities are located in Moscow and Krasnogorsk (the Moscow Oblast Duma and the local government), and also across other locations in the oblast.
Tver Oblast in the context of Tver Karelian dialect
The Tver Karelian dialect is a dialect of the Karelian language spoken in the Tver Oblast. It is descended from 17th century South Karelian speakers who migrated to the Tver region.
Although Tver Karelian descents from Karelian Proper, it often contains many differences from other Karelian Proper dialects. The Tver Karelian dialect contains very strong influences from the Russian language, especially in the phonetics of the dialect.