Central Black Earth Region

51°54′00″N 37°54′00″E / 51.9000°N 37.9000°E / 51.9000; 37.9000

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The Central Black Earth Region, Central-Chernozem Region or Chernozemye (Russian: Центрально-Чернозёмная полоса, romanized: Tsentral'no-Chernozyomnaya polosa, lit. 'Central-Black Soil Strip')^[1] is a segment of the Eurasian Black Earth belt that lies within Central Russia and comprises Voronezh Oblast, Lipetsk Oblast, Belgorod Oblast, Tambov Oblast, Oryol Oblast and Kursk Oblast. Between 1928 and 1934, these regions were briefly united into Central Black Earth Oblast, with the centre in Voronezh.

The Black Earth Region is famous for its high quality chernozem (Russian for 'black earth') soil. Although its importance has been primarily agricultural, the Chernozem Region was developed by the Soviets as an industrial region based on iron ores of the Kursk Magnetic Anomaly.

The area contains a biosphere nature reserve called Central Black Earth Nature Reserve (42 km² (16 sq mi)), which was created in 1935 within the Kursk and Belgorod oblasts. A prime specimen of forest steppe in Europe, the nature reserve consists of typical virgin land (tselina) steppes and deciduous forests.

Juozas Vareikis [ru] was the First Secretary of Communist Party's Regional Committee for the Central Black Earth Region (1928–1934).