The village was founded in 1934 following the collectivisation of a number of nomadic herders into a collective farm called Vperyod (Russian: Вперёд), which was initially located further north on the Rauchua River near its mouth on the shore if the East Siberian Sea. In 1947, the collective farm was moved to the present site of the village on the banks of the River Keperveyem. A new airfield was developed in the winter of 1963, which would go on to become the gateway to Bilibinsky District.
Change in municipal status
On November 20, 2010, a law was passed abolishing Keperveyem Rural Settlement.[6] Keperveyem still exists as a selo, but is now municipally incorporated into Bilibino Urban Settlement.[6] The local municipal administration of Keperveyem was abolished, and governmental power, along with municipal property, property rights and budgets were transferred to Bilibino municipal administration.[6]
Demographics
The population as at January 2010 was 336, of whom 166 were male and 170 female,[4] a slight variation on a 2010 estimate of 328 on the Bilibinsky District Official website,[2] and down from an estimated population of 461 in 2005 in a report on the Kupol gold project.[13] The head of the village is Sergei Mikhalin.[2] The village was demographically organised thus:
Inhabitants are reindeer herding, fishing, hunting, seasonal picking berries and mushrooms, as well as maintenance of the airfield infrastructure. The village is also the base of the municipal agricultural enterprise "Keperveem."
The village has a Children's Art School, post office, recreation center, library, shop and operates a boarding school. In 1998, the school was reorganized into a single complex kindergarten-school through the merger of middle school and kindergarten "Brusnichka" and this is where a number of children from remote villages and camps live and study during the academic year. The school operates an art studio "Northern Lights", the national dance studio "Nutengrep" publishes the newspaper "Chic" and has created its own museum. School is the winner of the All-Russia competition of educational institutions, introducing innovative educational programs, in 2007 it was awarded a grant in the amount of 1 million rubles.[14]
A Young Reindeer Festival is held here every August on Native Peoples' Day.[11] There is a folklore ensemble in the village called Nutengrep (Russian: Нутэнгрэп).[10]
Transport
The village is 36 km from the district centre Bilibino[2] and approximately 626 km from the okrug centre Anadyr.[2] It is the site of Keperveyem Airport, which serves Bilibino, around which the village is situated.[11] There is also a road linking Keperveyem and the airport with Bilibino and onward to Vesenny[15] There is also a small network of roads within the settlement including:[16]
Улица Береговая (Ulitsa Beregovaya, lit. Coastal Street)
Улица Билибина (Ulitsa Bilibina, lit. Bilibin Street)
Улица Гагарина (Ulitsa Gagarina, lit. Gagarin Street)
Улица Кавракая (Ulitsa Kavrakaya)
Улица Комарова (Ulitsa Komarova)
Улица Лесная (Ulitsa Lechnaya, lit. Forest Street)
Улица Портовая (Ulitsa Portovaya, lit. Port Street)
Улица Центральная (Ulitsa Tsentralnaya, lit. Central Street)
^ abcThe results of the 2010 Census are given for Keperveyem Rural Settlement, a municipal formation of Bilibinsky Municipal District. According to Law #148-OZ, Keperveyem is the only inhabited locality on the territory of Keperveyem Rural Settlement.
^ abInformation on KeperveyemArchived 2013-10-30 at the Wayback Machine Electoral Commission of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug (Избирательная комиссия Чукотского автономного округа). Retrieved 15 April 2012. (in Russian)
Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №33-ОЗ от 30 июня 1998 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №55-ОЗ от 9 июня 2012 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон Чукотского автономного округа "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу по истечении десяти дней со дня его официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №7 (28), 14 мая 1999 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #33-OZ of June 30, 1998 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #55-OZ of June 9, 2012 On Amending the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of after ten days from the day of the official publication.).
Дума Чукотского автономного округа. Закон №43-ОЗ от 29 ноября 2004 г. «О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Билибинского района Чукотского автономного округа», в ред. Закона №88-ОЗ от 20 октября 2010 г «О преобразовании путём объединения поселений на территории Билибинского муниципального района и внесении изменений в Закон Чукотского автономного округа "О статусе, границах и административных центрах муниципальных образований на территории Билибинского района Чукотского автономного округа"». Вступил в силу через десять дней со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Ведомости", №31/1 (178/1), 10 декабря 2004 г. (Duma of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. Law #43-OZ of November 29, 2004 On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Bilibinsky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, as amended by the Law #88-OZ of October 20, 2010 On the Transformation (Merger) of the Settlements on the Territory of Bilibinsky Municipal District and Amending the Law of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug "On the Status, Borders, and Administrative Centers of the Municipal Formations on the Territory of Bilibinsky District of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug". Effective as of the day ten days after the official publication date.).