The oldest known population of the Tambov region, the Mordovians-Moksha, formed as a nation of local ethnic groups from the 6th century BC.

To protect the southern borders of Russia from the raids of the Tatars, and to further develop the Black Soil region, the Russian government built the walled cities of Kozlov (1635) and Tambov (1636).

The cities protected the main path of nomad raids on Russian land and paved the way for a quick settlement of the region.

An attempt to establish Soviet control over the Tambov area led to the defeat and execution of "Red Sonya" (Sofia Nukhimovna Gel'berg) in the spring of 1918.

In addition, 1% are unaffiliated generic Christians, 7% of the population declares to be "spiritual but not religious", 10% is atheist, and 3.6% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question.