Ethnic Belarusians make up about four-fifths of the country’s population. Russians, many of whom migrated to the Belorussian S.S.R. in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s, form the second … See more

Both Belarusian and Russian are official languages of Belarus. Belarusian, which is central to the concept of national identity, is an East Slavic language that is related to both Russi… See more

About half of Belarusians consider themselves nonreligious or atheist. Roughly two-fifths of the population adheres to Eastern Orthodoxy, which, while not the official religi… See more

The greatest population concentrations in the country are in the central uplands and in the southwest. During Soviet rule, industrial growth contributed to a steady increase of … See more

After World War II, Belarus exhibited a fairly high birth rate, largely as the result of a postwar baby boom. A steep decline followed in the 1960s, and thereafter a more gradu… See more