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Voblast (вобласць in
modern Belarusian or
vobłaść in Lacinka) is the major administrative subdivision in Belarus. It used to be
translated as "province" or "region" in English. The latter may
lead to some confusion, because the minor administrative division of Belarus is
called rayon (the word is translated as "district" in the administrative division sense and "region" in other
senses).
Belarus is subdivided into 6 voblasts, named after their centers.
Voblasts are further subdivided into rayons (districts).
History
The current subdivision into voblasts is inherited from the subdivision of Belarus when it was part of the USSR, and the name is the Belarusian word for the Russian oblast.
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