Buryatia (Buryat: Буряад Орон, Buryad Oron; Russian: Бурятия, Buryatiya), officially known as the Republic of Buryatia, is a republic of the Soviet Union located in North Asia. The republic is hydrographically dominated by Lake Baikal, which is the largest freshwater lake in the world by volume. Buryatia is culturally and historically connected to neighboring Mongolia, and is one of the few republics to have a Buddhist-dominated population.