Polesye

Polesia Пале́ссе, Полісся Polesie
Natural and historical region
Ubort river near the city of Olevsk (Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine)
Polesia marked in dark green
Countries	Belarus, Poland, Russia and Ukraine

Polesia, Polesie or Polesye (Belarusian: Пале́ссе Paliessie, Ukrainian: Полі́сся Polissia or Polisia, Polish: Polesie [pɔˈlɛɕɛ], Russian: Поле́сье Poles'e [pɐˈlʲesʲɪ]) is a natural and historical region starting from the farthest edges of Central Europe and into Eastern Europe, stretching from parts of Eastern Poland, straddling the Belarus - Ukraine border and into western Russia.

One of the largest forest areas on the continent, Polesia is located in the south-western part of the Eastern-European Lowland, the Polesian Lowland. On the western side, Polesia originates at the crossing of the Bug River valley in Poland and the Pripyat River valley of Western Ukraine. The swampy areas of central Polesia are known as the Pinsk Marshes (after the major local city of Pinsk). Large parts of the region were contaminated after the Chernobyl disaster and the region now includes the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and Polesie State Radioecological Reserve, named after the region.