The Republic of Bashkortostan is traditionally also known in Russian as Bashkiria.  It is the most populated republic out of all the Russian republics.  Indigenous Bashkirs make up just under a third of the population of the republic and the Bashkir language shares official status with Russian. The republic is located on the foothills of the south Urals and shares a border with the Republics of Tatarstan and Udmurtia, the Perm Territory and the Sverdlovsk, Chelyabinsk and Orenburg Regions.  The capital of the republic is Ufa which has a population of over one million people.  

The predominant religion in Bashkortostan is Sunni Islam and there are many examples of Islamic architecture in the republic.  There are also three natures reserves in the territory, plus the beautiful Bashkiria National Park.  The territory also has many resorts for extreme sports and whitewater rafting.