Kostroma Oblast (Russian: Костромска́я о́бласть, Kostromskaya oblast) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Kostroma and its population as of the 2010 Census is 667,562. It was formed in 1944 on the territory detached from neighbouring Yaroslavl Oblast.

Textile industries have been developed there since the early 18th century. Its major historic towns include Kostroma, Sharya, Nerekhta, Galich, Soligalich, and Makaryev.

Viktor Shershunov was Governor from 1997 until his death in a car crash on September 20, 2007, at which point Igor Slyunyayev became the new Governor until, as of 2012, Sergey Sitnikov become the current incumbent.

From c. 300 CE the current area of Kostroma, with the exception the area east of the Unzha River, was part of the Finno-Ugric peoples' lands, such as the Merya people and their loose tribal confederation. During the Neolithic era, comb-ceramics replaced prafinno-Ugric Volosovo. At the turn of 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE, the Fatyanovo culture arrived in the area, later to be assimilated into the tribes of the Late Bronze Age (the Abashevo culture and the Pozdnyakovskaya culture). The Finno-Ugric component as a result of migration and assimilation and grew even stronger since the culture of the early Iron Age. The people developed the art of smelting of bog ore are already clearly Finno-Ugric in character. As a result of the mixing of the Finno-Ugric and pyanoborskoy Anan'ino local cultures with the Finno-Ugric Dyakovo culture came the Mari people, which began to take shape in Kostroma. Historically, the Kostroma region is a territory of Mari residence. In the currently existing settlements and the Old-Kazhirovo Shangskoe where the capitals of the Mari principalities of Yaksha and Sanga. Possession of these kingdoms in the north to reach the Great in earlier times. The village area was Odoevskoye SHARINSKY Mari fortress Bulaksy.

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