Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region". The last translation may lead to confusion, because the subdivision of "oblast" is called "raion" which is translated as "region" or "district", depending on the context.
Oblasts are a type of administrative division of Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Ukraine, and the now-defunct Soviet Union. Official terms in successor states of the Soviet Union differ, but some still use a cognate of the Russian term, e.g. voblast (voblasts, voblasts', ) is used for provinces of Belarus, and oblys (plural: oblystar) for provinces of Kazakhstan.
Read more about Oblast: Of Bulgaria, Of The Russian Empire, Of The Soviet Union, Of Russia, Of Former Yugoslavia