CIS Member State Parliamentary elections At the top level of administration, Belarus is divided into six regions and one capital city.

The six regions are oblasts (also known as voblastsi), while the city of Minsk has a special status as the capital of Belarus.

[3] At the start of the 20th century, the boundaries of the Belarusian lands within the Russian Empire were still being defined.

During World War II, Belarus gained territory to the west, with the Baranavichy, Belastok (Białystok), Brest, Pinsk, and Vileyka oblasts.

In 1944, Belastok was eliminated and the new oblasts of Babruysk, Grodno, and Polotsk were created.