The Novogrudok region was founded on January 15, 1940 as part of Baranovichi oblast with the regional center in the town of Novogrudok.
According to archeological excavations, Novogrudok is about 1000 years old. It was first mentioned in chronicles in 1044. Over it centuries-old history the town had its ups and downs. In the mid 13th century the political and cultural center shifts from Polotsk to Novogrudok, which becomes a cradle of the Belarusian statehood. In 1252, Count Mindaugas settles in Novogrudok were he is crowned in 1253. His son Voishalk continued the policy of unification of the lands around Novogrudok and laid a strong foundation for the new state – the Great Principality of Lithuania. Within several centuries Novogrudok remained one of the most powerful and largest towns of the Great Principality of Lithuania. After the third partition of the Rzecz Pospolita Novogrudok was annexed to the Russian Empire. In September 1915 it was occupied by German troops and in December 1918 was liberated by the Red Army. In 1919-1939 Novogrudok was part of Poland. From 1940 to 1954 it was the regional center of Baranovichi oblast. In 1954 it became regional center of Grodno oblast.
The Novogrudok region is located in the east of Grodno oblast. It borders on the Korelichi, Diatlovo, Lida and Ivie regions of Grodno oblast, the Baranovichi region of Brest oblast and the Stolbtsy region of Minsk oblast. There are 13 rural councils and 216 settlements in the region. The largest settlements are the towns of Novogrudok (30,700 people), Liubcha (1,400 people), Negnevichi (1,100 people), Vseliub (700 people), Schorsy (600 people) and villages of Vereskovo, Gorodechno, Petrevichi, Otminovo (500 people each). The biggest part of the region lies within Novogrudok Upland. The lands along the Neman River occupy the lowland of the Upper Neman. Minerals: ten deposits of raw materials for brick production (2 million cubic meters in total), three deposits of chalk (0.9 million tons), building sand, gravel and peat. There are 47 rivers and 20 streams in the region. Their total length is 527km including the Neman river – 78km. Forests occupy 41.5% of the region. The total forests’ area – 69.4 thousand hectares. The automobile roads Nesvizh-Novogrudok-Lida, Baranovichi-Novogrudok-Ivie, Novogrudok-Novoelnya, Novogrudok-Liubcha run through the territory of the region.
There are 10 agricultural producer’s cooperatives, 1 regional agricultural unitary company, 1 private joint-stock company, 2 public joint-stock companies and 1 agricultural republican associated unitary company, 6 agricultural farms in the region. The region specializes in producing meat and dairy products, grain crops and flax.
The town and the region have 20 secondary schools, 1 gymnasium, 9 basic schools, 6 school-kindergartens, 1 primary school, a residential school, a residential specialized school, 19 kindergartens, 2 training-production centers, a social-educational center with an orphanage, a center of correction-development education and rehabilitation, a center of out-of-school activities, a children’s art center, a center of ecology and biology.
The regional network of educational establishments features Novogrudok State Technical College #193 (150 students), Novogrudok State Agrarian College (290 students), Novogrudok State Trade-Economic College (450 students).
The list of cultural institutions includes 37 libraries, 2 children’s art schools, 1 children’s music school, 1 cinema, 21 cinema units, a video shop, 5 museums:
- House-Museum of Adam Mitskevich - The Museum of Local Lore - The Chereshlyany Club-Museum - The Liubcha Museum of Local Lore - The Valevka Museum of Local Lore
There are 162 sports facilities in the region, including 6 sports sections, 21 clubs.
