Gmina Orla

Gmina Orla [ˈɔrla] (Belarusian: Гміна Орля) is a rural gmina (Polish: gmina wiejska) in Bielsk County, Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is located in north-eastern Poland.

Gmina Orla Orla Commune
Gmina
Coat of arms
Gmina Orla Gmina Orla
Coordinates (Orla): 52°42′26″N 23°19′48″E
Country	Poland
Voivodeship	Podlaskie
County	Bielsk
Seat	Orla
Government
• Mayor	Piotr Selwesiuk
Area
• Total	159.68 km^2 (61.65 sq mi)
Population  (2007)
• Total	3,256
• Density	20/km^2 (53/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	17-106
Area code(s)	+48 085
Car plates	BBI
Website	http://www.orla.pl

It is one of five Polish/Belarusian bilingual Gmina in Podlaskie Voivodeship regulated by the Act of 6 January 2005 on National and Ethnic Minorities and on the Regional Languages, which permits certain gminas with significant linguistic minorities to introduce a second, auxiliary language to be used in official contexts alongside Polish.[1]

Geography

Gmina Orla is located in the geographical region of Europe known as the Wysoczyzny Podlasko–Białoruskie (English: Podlaskie and Belarus Plateau) and the mezoregion known as the Równina Bielska (English: Bielska Plain).

The Orlanka River, a tributary of the Narew River, passes through Gmina Orla.

The Gmina covers an area of 159.68 square kilometres (61.7 sq mi).

Location

It is located approximately:

• 165 kilometres (102.5 mi) northeast of Warsaw, the capital of Poland
• 47 kilometres (29.2 mi) south of Białystok, the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship
• 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southeast of Bielsk Podlaski, the seat of Bielsk County

Climate

The region has a continental climate which is characterized by high temperatures during summer and long and frosty winters. The average amount of rainfall during the year exceeds 550 millimetres (21.7 in).

Demographics

Detailed data as of 31 December 2007:[2]

	Total		Women		Men
Unit	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%
Population	3,256	100	1,700	52.2	1,556	47.8
Population Density (persons/km²)	20.4		10.6		9.7

Municipal government

Gmina Orla in Bielsk County

Its seat is the village of Orla.

Executive branch

The chief executive of the government is the Mayor (Polish: Wójt).

Legislative branch

The legislative portion of the government is the City Council (Polish: Rada) comprising the President (Polish: Przewodniczący), the Vice-President (Polish: Wiceprzewodniczący) and thirteen councilors.

Villages

The following villages are contained within the gmina:

Czechy Zabłotne, Dydule, Gredele, Gregorowce, Koszele, Koszki, Krywiatycze, Malinniki, Malinniki-Kolonia, Mikłasze, Antonowo-Kolonia, Moskiewce, Oleksze, Orla, Paszkowszczyzna, Pawlinowo, Reduty, Spiczki, Szczyty-Dzięciołowo, Szczyty-Nowodwory, Szernie, Topczykały, Wólka, Wólka Wygonowska

Neighbouring political subdivisions

Gmina Orla is bordered by the gminas of Bielsk Podlaski, Boćki, Czyże, Dubicze Cerkiewne and Kleszczele

References

1. Dz. U. z 2005 r. Nr 17, poz. 141
2. "Central Statistical Office (GUS) Population: Size and Structure by Administrative Division" (in Polish). 2007-12-31. Archived from the original on 2008-02-01.