OLONETZ, fi-ln'nyAts. A northern govern ment of Russia, bounded by the Government of Archangel on the north, by Vologda on the east. by Novgorod on the south, and by Finland on the west (Map: Russia, D 2). Area, about 57, 500 square miles. The northwestern part be longs orographically and geologically to Finland. It is traversed in different directions by rocky ridges not exceeding 1000 feet in altitude, and separated from each other by lakes and marshes. The southeast part is flat, with the exception of the northern portion, which is somewhat ele vated.
Many of the lakes and marshes contain iron ore, and the Devonian formations near Lake Onega yield marble and sandstone. There are also found some copper, clays, and mineral springs. Olonetz belongs to the basins of the Baltic and the White seas. Its chief rivers are the Svir: the Vytegra. which communicates. with the Sfariinsk Canal system; the Sunna. belonging
to the basin of the Baltic: the °neon; and the Vyga, flowing into the White Bea. The number of lakes is estimated at over 2000, the largest of them being the Onega (q.v.), Sego, Vigo, and Vadlo.
The climate is harsh and moist. The mean annual temperature varies from 34° to 37 F. The natural conditions are unfavorable for agriculture, and the local crops only partially suffice for domestic demands. Fishing is carried on extensively. Many of the inhabitants are en gaged in lumbering. The manufacturing indus tries are insignificant. and mining is in a state of decline. Population, in 1897, 366.175, or less than seven inhabitants to a square mile. The population is composed chiefly of Great Russians, but there is also a perceptible admixture of Karelian,: (a race allied to the Finns) and Tchuds. Capital. Petrozavodsk.