Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk
diocese of the Catholic Church in Russia
The Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk (Latin: Ircutscana Sancti Iosephi) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church located in the city of Irkutsk, which is part of the ecclesiastical province of the Mother of God at Moscow in Russia. The Diocese of Irkutsk is the largest geographical Catholic bishopric on earth, covering an area of 9,960,000 km2. The Catholic population of the diocese is estimated to be about 53,000. It has 42 parishes served by about 42 priests. The bishop is Cyryl Klimowicz, a Pole. The diocese is divided into five deaneries: Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Yakutsk, Vladivostok and Magadan.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk” is diocese of the Catholic Church in Russia. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Diocese, Saint and Joseph, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “diocese of the Catholic Church in Russia” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 18, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q876769. Authority coordinates are 52.263, 104.257. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk primary sources, Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk archive and Diocese research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Diocese of Saint Joseph at Irkutsk” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.