The Sakha (Yakutia) Republic (Yakut: Саха Республиката; Russian: Респу́блика Саха (Якутия)) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). The direct transliteration of the republic's name is Sakha Respublikata in Yakut and Respublika Sakha (Yakutiya) in Russian.
Sakha stretches to the Henrietta Islands in the far north and is washed by the Laptev and Eastern Siberian Seas of the Arctic Ocean. These waters, the coldest and iciest of all seas in the northern hemisphere, are covered by ice for 9-10 months of the year. New Siberian Islands are a part of the republic's territory.
Sakha Republic is currently the largest subnational entity in the world in terms of land area. If a map of Yakutia were superimposed upon a map of the continental (lower 48) states of USA, Yakutia would overlap almost a half. However the population of Yakutia is less then one of a single state such as Rhode Island.
Yakutia is also known for its climate extremes, with Verkhoyansk Range being the coldest area in the northern hemisphere. The Northern Hemisphere's ‘Cold Pole’ is at Oymyakon (also spelled as Oimekon), where the temperatures have reached as low as –71.2° C (–96.2° F) in January, 1926.
Sakha is well endowed with raw materials. The soil contains large reserves of oil, gas, coal, diamonds, gold, and silver. 99% of all Russian diamonds are mined in Sakha, accounting for over 23% of the world's diamond production. Industry generates 43% of the gross national product of Sakha, stemming primarily from mineral exploitation. The diamond, gold and tin ore mining industries are the major focus of the economy.