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The Russian Republic of Karelia today consists of Eastkarelia and
Ladoga-Karelia. Karelia is also the name of a country on the other side of the Finnish/Russian
frontier - the country of North Karelia (since 1997 a part of East Finland Country).
The Karelians belong to the Finno-Ugric peoples, but they never
organized themselves into a nation of their own. They lived originally near Lake Ladoga, but
sooner spread over a wide area and were well-known throughout the North as a farming and
trading people. The ethnic composition in the area was heterogeneous: Karelians, Vepsians
and also Saami (Lapps) in the north. Since the 9th century today's Karelia was a part of old
Russia - Kiev Rus. In the 12th century, Karelia became part of the Feudal Republic of
Novgorod and in 1227 Grand Duke Yaroslav of Novgorod Christianised the population of
Karelia as Orthodox.
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