Tambov Oblast (Russian: Тамбо́вская о́бласть, Tambovskaya oblast) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the city of Tambov. As of the 2010 Census, its population was 1,091,994.

Tambov Oblast is situated in forest steppe. It borders on the Ryazan, Penza, Saratov, Voronezh and Lipetsk Oblasts.

The oldest known population of the Tambov region, the Mordovians-Moksha, formed as a nation of local ethnic groups from the 6th century BCE. The first Russian settlers arrived in the pre-Mongol period, but the final settlement occurred in the 17th century. To protect the southern borders of Russia from the raids of the Tatars and the further development of 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.

Kozlovsky Uyezd originally existed in the Tambov area. In the course of the administrative reforms of Peter the Great in 1708 and 1719, it became part of Azov Governorate. New administrative divisions established the Tambov Viceroyalty in 1779 and from 1796 Tambov Governorate, with an area of 66.5 thousand km² divided into 12 uyezds. With almost no change to its boundaries, the Governorate remained in existence until 1928.

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