ground. Another type happens when the
player is stopped and held motionless.
The scrum, or scrummage, is a unique
feature of rugby. It is a way to put the
ball in play. Six or eight players from
each team link their arms and bend forward
to form a tightly packed group.
The ball is dropped between the two
teams. The players use their feet to try to
get control of the ball.
History
According to legend, rugby began at
Rugby School in England in 1823. During
a soccer game, a student named WilliamWebb
Ellis picked up the ball with
his hands and ran with it. This went
against the rules of soccer, which ban the
use of the hands. But it led to the creation
of rugby.
A group of English teams formed the
Rugby Football Union (RFU) in 1871.
The RFU wrote rules for the game. In
1895 more than 20 teams left the RFU.
They set their own rules. The league
they created is now known as the Rugby
Football League. The different versions
of the game came to be known as Rugby
Union and Rugby League.
#More to explore
Football • Soccer • Sports
Players in a scrum struggle for the ball.
The ancient
game called
harpastum is
like rugby.
Romans introduced
it to
Great Britain
in about AD
400.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Rugby 103
Russia
Russia has been a powerful country
throughout its history. In the 1900s it
was the center of the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics. Today Russia is the
largest country in the world. The capital
of Russia is Moscow.
Geography
Russia stretches from eastern Europe to
the Pacific Ocean. On the west Russia
borders the Baltic Sea, Norway, Finland,
Estonia, Latvia, Belarus, and Ukraine.
The small Russian province of Kaliningrad
lies apart from the rest of Russia,
between Lithuania and Poland. To the
southwest of Russia are the Black and
Caspian seas, Georgia, and Azerbaijan.
South of Russia are Kazakhstan, Mongolia,
China, and North Korea. The Arctic
Ocean lies to the north. Several large
islands in the Arctic and Pacific oceans
also belong to Russia.
Russia lies partly in Europe and partly in
Asia. The low Ural Mountains are the
dividing line. European Russia is a broad
plain with scattered hills. South of the
plain are the Caucasus Mountains. Asian
Russia contains the large region called
Siberia. Siberia includes a plain and a
plateau, or area of flat, raised land.
Northeastern Russia has mountain
chains and volcanoes.
The most important river in European
Russia is the Volga. Many other rivers
run through Siberia. In general, Russia
has warm summers and very cold, snowy
winters.
Plants and Animals
A treeless region called tundra lies along
Russia’s northern coast. Only mosses,
lichens, and grasses grow in the tundra.
South of the tundra is the taiga, an area
104 Russia BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
of evergreen forests. The taiga stretches
across most of Siberia. In European Russia
there are forests of ash, spruce, hazel,
oak, and other trees. An area of grassland,
called the steppe, covers southern
Russia.
Animals in the tundra include reindeer,
Arctic foxes, and musk oxen. The taiga is
home to sables, squirrels, foxes, elk, and
bears. Marmots, skunks, and wolves are
common on the steppe.
People
About 80 percent of the people are Russians.
The largest minority groups are
the Tatars and the Ukrainians. Most of
the population speaks Russian. Most
people live in cities. Moscow is the largest
city by far.
About one third of the people follow no
religion. About half of the people are
Eastern Orthodox Christians. There are
smaller groups of Muslims, Protestants,
and Jews.
Economy
Most Russian workers work in services,
including banking, science and technology,
education, and transportation.
International trade is also a large part of
the economy.
Russia’s factories produce metals,
machinery, cement, chemicals, motor
vehicles, military equipment, and other
goods. Russia is also a top producer of
coal, oil, and natural gas. Its mines provide
iron ore, copper, nickel, zinc, and
other minerals. The large forests supply
wood.
Farmers in Russia grow mainly grains,
including wheat, barley, rye, and oats.
Other crops include potatoes, sugar
beets, corn, and sunflower seeds. Cattle,
pigs, and sheep are the main livestock.
Fishing is another important source of
food.
History
People have lived in what is now Russia
for thousands of years. The East Slavs
Winter weather is severe in
many parts of Russia.
Most of Russia’s people live in cities. But
small towns and farms can be found
throughout the country.
Facts About
RUSSIA
Population
(2008 estimate)
141,841,000
Area
6,592,800 sq mi
(17,075,400 sq
km)
Capital
Moscow
Form of
government
Republic
Major cities
Moscow, Saint
Petersburg,
Novosibirsk,
Nizhny
Novgorod
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Russia 105
settled in the southwest by the AD 300s.
They came from eastern Europe.
By the 800s people from Scandinavia
(Denmark, Sweden, and Norway) had
entered the territory of the East Slavs.
These Scandinavians are known as
Varangians. The Varangians mixed with
the Slavs and gave them the name Rus.
The name Russia came from that name.
The town of Kiev was the capital of the
territory, which became known as
Kievan Rus. Kievan Rus grew to be the
