Mari El Republic (Russian: Респу́блика Мари́й Эл; Mari: Марий Эл Республика) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). The direct romanization of the republic's Russian name is Respublika Mariy El and Mari name is Marii El Respublika. The republic is also sometimes called Mariy El or Marii El in English.

Geography
Mari El is located in the Moscow Time Zone (MSK/MSD). UTC offset is UTC+3 (MSK)/UTC+4 (MSD).

Time zone
There are 476 rivers in Mari El. Most of them are considered to be minor: 10-50 m wide and .5-1.4 m deep. They usually freeze from mid-November till mid-April. Major rivers include:

Bolshaya Kokshaga River
Buy River
Ilet River
Iravka River
Kundysh River
Lazh River
Malaya Kokshaga River
Maly Kundysh River
Nemda River
Rutka River
Urzhumka River
Vetluga River (navigable)
Volga River (navigable)
Yushut River Rivers
There are over 200 lakes in Mari El, most of them with an area less than 1 km² and depth of 1-3 m. Many lakes are located among swamps. Swamps cover large areas (10-70 km², up to 100 km²), and usually freeze in December. Average depth of the swamps is .5-1.5 m (up to 3 m), but they are impassable in fall and spring due to flooding.
Major lakes include:

Karas Lake
Kichiyer Lake
Yalchik Lake
Tair Lake
Cheboksary Reservoir Lakes
There are virtually no natural resources of industrial significance in the republic. Other resources include peat, mineral waters, and limestone.

Natural resources
Climate is moderately continental. Winters are moderately cold and snowy. Summers are warm and often rainy.

Average January temperature: −13°C
Average July temperature: +19°C
Average annual precipitation: 450–500 mm Administrative divisions

Main article: Mari people Demographics

Main article: Crime in Mari El Crime
Ancient Mari tribes were known since the 5th century. Later their area was a tributary of Volga Bulgaria and the Golden Horde. In the 1440s it was incorporated into the Khanate of Kazan and was occupied by Russia after the fall of Kazan in 1552.
Mari Autonomous Oblast was established on November 4, 1920. It was re-organized into Mari ASSR on December 5, 1936.
In its present form the Mari El Republic was formed on December 22, 1990.

History
The head of government in the Mari El Republic is the President. As of 2007, the president is Leonid Igorevich Markelov, who was elected in January of 2001.
The ethnic Mari people are under heavy Russification and Leonid Markelov has ordered many Mari language newspapers to close..

Politics
The most developed industries are machine construction, metal working, timber, woodworking, and food industries. Most of the industrial enterprises are located in the capital Yoshkar-Ola, as well as in the towns of Kozmodemyansk, Volzhsk, and Zvenigovo

Economy
In the republic, there is one airport, fifteen train stations, 53 bus stations, and a river port in Kozmodemyansk (on the Volga River), as well as four other minor river ports.

Transportation
Telephony, Internet service, and cable television are provided by Volga Telecom.

Communication
There are eight museums in Mari El. The largest ones include the National Museum, the Museum of History, and the Republican Museum of Fine Arts in Yoshkar-Ola, and the Museum of Arts and History in Kozmodemyansk.

Culture
The most important facilities of higher education include Mari State Technical University, Mari State University, and Mari State Pedagogical Institute; all located in Yoshkar-Ola.

Education
The most common confessions include Russian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox Old Believers, and Islam(60%). Traditional Mari religion (marla faith—Christianity with elements of Totemism and Shamanism) is also popular.

Tourism