Documents for "CIS and Baltic Political Geography":

• Şäki or Sheki , city (1989 pop. 56,223), N Azerbaijan, on the southern slope of the Caucasus. It is a silk and manufacturing center in a district that grows fruit and rice. Until its annexation (1805) by Russia...

• Öskemen formerly Ust-Kamenogorsk , city (1989 pop. 324,478), NE Kazakhstan, on the Irtysh River and in the foothills of the W Altai Mts. It is a river port and an industrial center with zinc, lead, and titanium-magnesium smelters...

• Abakan city (1990 est. pop. 153,000), capital of the Khakass Republic, in S central Siberian Russia, on the Yenisei River. A commercial center on the South Siberian RR, it produces footwear, foodstuffs,...

• Abkhazia autonomous republic (1990 est. pop. 539,000), 3,300 sq mi (8,547 sq km), in Georgia, between the Black Sea and the Greater Caucasus. Sukhumi (the capital) and Gagra are the chief cities. Despite some perpetually snowcapped peaks, the region is mainly one of subtropical agriculture. Tobacco is the leading crop; there are also tea and citrus plantations,...

• Adjarian Autonomous Republic or Ajarian Autonomous Republic , formerly Adzhar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic or Adzharistan , autonomous region (1990 pop. 382,600), c.1,160 sq mi (3,000 sq km), SW Georgia, on the Black Sea, bordering Turkey on the south. The capital is Batumi. Mountainous and forested, the region has a subtropical climate, and there are many health resorts. Tobacco, tea, citrus fruits, and avocados are leading crops; livestock raising is also important...

• Adygey Republic or Adygeya, formerly Adyge Autonomous Region, constituent republic (1990 est. pop. 435,000), c.2,935 sq mi (7,600 sq km), an enclave within Krasnodar Territory, SE European Russia, at the northern foothills of the Greater Caucasus. Maykop is the capital. Agriculture is the chief occupation; wheat, corn, and rice are the leading food crops. Cattle raising is the predominant farm industry. Forests in the Caucasian foothills support a...

• Adzhar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic see Adjarian Autonomous Republic , Georgia.

• Agin-Buryat Autonomous Area or Aga Buryat , administrative division (1995 pop. 79,400), 7,000 sq mi (19,000 sq km), S Siberian Russia, Chita region. Formed in 1937, the area follows the Onon River. Aginskoye, the capital, is an...

• Ajarian Autonomous Republic or Ajaria: see Adjarian Autonomous Republic.

• Akademgorodok city, W central Siberian Russia, near Novosibirsk. A scientific center begun in 1959, it is the site of 20 institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

• Akkerman see Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyy , Ukraine.

• Akmola and Akmolinsk: see Astana , Kazakhstan.

• Aktöbe or Aktyubinsk: see Aqtöbe , Kazakhstan.

• Alatyr city (1989 pop. 47,000), Chuvash Republic, E European Russia, at the confluence of the Sura and Alatyr rivers. Founded in 1552, it is a river port and railroad junction with locomotive and...

• Aldan city (1989 pop. 27,000), Sakha Republic, E Siberian Russia, on the Aldan Plateau. Located on a major north-south highway of the region, it is also in the heart of an important gold-mining area...

• Aleksandropol see Kumayri , Armenia.

• Aleksandrov city (1989 pop. 68,000), E European Russia. The city came under the control of the Muscovite princes in 1302. Ivan IV resided (1564-81) in Aleksandrov, where he organized his political police, the...

• Aleksandrov-Grushevski see Shakhty , Russia.

• Aleksandrovsk see Zaporizhzhya , Ukraine.

• Aleksandrovsk-Sakhalinsky city on N Sakhalin island, Russian Far East. A port on the Tatar Strait, it has lumber and fishing industries. The city was founded in 1881 as a place of exile.

• Alma-Ata see Almaty , Kazakhstan.

• Almaty formerly Alma-Ata , city (1993 pop. 1,176,000), capital of Almaty prov., Kazakhstan, in the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau. A terminus of the Turkistan-Siberia RR, Almaty is the industrial and cultural center of...

• Altai Republic or Altay Republic , constituent republic (1990 est. pop. 190,000), 35,800 sq mi (92,722 sq km), SE Siberian Russia. Bordering on Mongolia in the south, it contains most of the Altai Mts. and is drained by the Biya,...

• Altai Territory or Altay Territory, administrative division (1995 pop. 2,697,200), c.102,400 sq mi (265,220 sq km), S central Siberian Russia. Barnaul is the capital. It is drained by the Upper Ob River and traversed by the TurkSib and South Siberian railroads. To the southeast is the Altai Republic , a former subdivision of the region. The fertile Kulunda steppe, where spring wheat, oats, corn, and sugar beets are grown, is in the western part of the territory. Major cities, besides Barnaul,...

• Altay Republic see Altai Republic , Russia.

• Altay Territory see Altai Territory , Russia.

• Anau see Annau , Turkmenistan.

• Andijan or Andizhan , city (1991 pop. 298,000), capital of Andijan region, Uzbekistan, in the Fergana Valley, on the Andijan-Say River. It is an industrial center in an irrigated area that produces fruits, cotton, and...

• Angarsk city (1989 pop. 266,000), S Siberian Russia, on the Angara river and the Trans-Siberian RR. A major petrochemical center, its manufactures include fertilizers, synthetic fibers, and plastics...

• Angren city (1989 pop. 131,970), in the Tashkent region, Uzbekistan. The largest lignite-mining center in Central Asia, it was developed during and after World War II.

• Annau or Anau , town, in S Turkmenistan, 5 mi (8 km) SE of Ashgabat, near the Iranian border. At Annau, Raphael Pumpelly discovered (1903) traces of habitation dating back to c.3000 BC The excavations uncovered...

• Anzhero-Sudzhensk city (1989 pop. 108,000), SW Siberian Russia, on the Trans-Siberian RR. One of the oldest and largest coal-mining centers of the Kuznetsk Basin, the city was developed as a source of coal for the...

• Aqmola Kazakhstan: see Astana.

• Aqtöbe or Aktöbe , formerly Aktyubinsk , city (1993 est. pop. 264,000), NW Kazakhstan, on the Ilek River and the Kazalinsk RR. Aqtöbe has an important ferroalloy plant and chromium complex based on nearby ore deposits. Founded in 1869,...

• Archangel see Arkhangelsk , Russia.

• Arkhangelsk or Archangel , city (1990 est. 418,000), NW European Russia, on the Northern Dvina near its mouth at the White Sea. Although icebound much of the year, it is a leading Russian port and can generally be made...

• Armavir city (1989 pop. 161,000), Krasnodar Territory, SE European Russia, on the Kuban River. An important railroad junction, it has machine and tool plants. Meatpacking and other food processing are...

• Armenia Armenian Hayastan, officially Republic of Armenia, republic (2005 est. pop. 2,983,000), 11,500 sq mi (29,785 sq km), in the S Caucasus. Armenia is bounded by Turkey on the west, Azerbaijan on the...

• Artem city (1989 pop. 69,000), Maritime Territory (Primorsky Kray), Russian Far East. It is a coal-mining center and has an important thermoelectric station that utilizes local coal deposits.

• Artemovsk Ukr. Artemivsk, city (1989 pop. 90,000), in Ukraine. An industrial center of the Donets Basin, it produces metals, mining equipment, glass, bricks, and chemicals. Nearby are salt and dolomite deposits that are...

• Arzamas city (1990 pop. 110,000), E European Russia, on the Tyosha River. A rail junction, it has food-processing plants and industries that produce farm implements. An ancient Mordovian settlement,...

• Ashgabat formerly Ashkhabad, city (1991 pop. 412,200), capital of Turkmenistan, near the border with Iran, on the Trans-Caspian RR. The city has textile, motion picture, and crafts industries. Ashgabat was founded in 1881 as a...

• Ashkhabad see Ashgabat , Turkmenistan.

• Astana formerly Aqmola or Akmola , city (1993 est. pop. 287,000), capital of Kazakhstan and Aqmola prov., in central Kazakhstan on the Ishim (Esil) River. Agricultural machinery and consumer goods are manufactured; there are also...

• Astrakhan city (1990 pop. 521,000), capital of Astrakhan region, SE European Russia. A Caspian Sea port on the Volga River's southern delta, it is a center for river transport thanks to a canal built for...

• Atyrau formerly Guryev , city (1993 est. pop. 151,000), W Kazakhstan, on the Ural River and near the Caspian Sea. A port, rail center, and an industrial base of the Emba basin oil fields, it has refineries, petrochemical...

• Azerbaidzhan see Azerbaijan.

• Azerbaijan Azeri Azerbaycan, officially Republic of Azerbaijan, republic (2005 est. pop. 7,912,000), 33,428 sq mi (86,579 sq km), in Transcaucasia. Strategically situated at the gateway to SW Asia, Azerbaijan is bounded by...

• Azov city (1990 est. pop. 82,000), SE European Russia, a port on the Don River delta near the Sea of Azov. It is a rail junction, a light industrial center, and a fishing center. Tourism supplements...

• Badakhshan bädäkhshän´, bedekhshän´ , autonomous region (1991 est. pop. 167,100), c.24,600 sq mi (63,710 sq km), E Tajikistan, in the Pamir. It is bordered by China on the east and by Afghanistan on the south and west and is separated from Pakistan and Azad Kashmir by a narrow strip of Afghan territory. The eastern section (East Pamir)...

• Bagrationovsk town, NW European Russia, formerly in East Prussia, on the Polish border. Its German name was Eylau or Preussisch Eylau. It is a rail terminus and has meat-processing and dairy industries. The...

• Baikonur Cosmodrome formerly secret aerospace launch complex, Qyzylorda prov., S central Kazakhstan, near Leninsk (now Baikonur) but c.200 mi (320 km) SW of the mining town of Baikonur, whose name it was given to...

• Bakhchisaray [Turk.,=garden palace], city, in Ukraine. From the early 15th cent. until 1783 it was the capital of the khanate of Crimea, or Little Tatary. The palace of the khans, celebrated by Pushkin and...

• Baku see Baky.

• Baku see Baky , Azerbaijan.

• Baky formerly Baku , city (1991 pop. 1,782,000), capital of Azerbaijan, on the Caspian Sea. Greater Baky includes almost the whole Apsheron peninsula, on which Baky proper is situated. The city was a leading Soviet industrial and cultural center and until World War II was the USSR's chief petroleum center. It handled one of the...

• Balaklava section of the city of Sevastopol , in S Ukraine, on the Crimean peninsula. Fishing and limestone quarrying are carried on. In ancient times it was an important Greek commercial city. In the Middle Ages it belonged to the Genoese...

• Balkar see Kabardino-Balkar Republic.

• Balkash city (1989 pop. 86,609), in Kazakhstan, on the north shore of Lake Balkash. A railroad terminus and port, it has fish processing and copper-smelting industries. Balkash was founded as Bertys in 1929...

• Baltic provinces historic regions of Courland , Livonia , Estonia , and Ingermanland bordering on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. They were conquered by Russia from Sweden in the 18th cent. and made into provinces. Ingermanland was included into Russia proper, and the three...

• Baltic states the countries of Estonia , Latvia , and Lithuania , bordering on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. Formed in 1918, they remained independent republics until their involuntary incorporation in 1940 into the USSR. They regained their independence...

• Baranovichi Belarusian Baranavichy, Pol. Baranowicze , city (1989 pop. 159,315), in W Belarus. It is a major railway junction and has industries that manufacture machinery, metalware, and textiles. Founded as a railway station in 1870, Baranovichi...

• Barnaul city (1989 pop. 602,000), capital of Altai Territory, SW Siberian Russia, on the Ob River. A port and major railway junction, Barnaul is in the heart of the Kulunda steppe, an agricultural area...

• Bashkortostan or Bashkir Republic , constituent republic (1990 pop. 4,100,100), 55,444 sq mi (143,600 sq km), E European Russia, in the S Urals, occupying the Belaya River basin. Ufa is the capital; other important cities are Sterlitamak , Beloretsk , and Ishimbay. The Trans-Siberian and South Siberian railroads cross the republic. Bashkortostan forms the eastern part of the Volga-Ural petroleum region and also has natural gas, coal, salt, iron, gold,...

• Batalpashinsk see Cherkessk , Russia.

• Batumi or Batum , city (1990 est. pop. 136,609), capital of Adjarian Autonomous Republic, in W Georgia, on the Black Sea near the Turkish border. A major port and trade center, it is also the terminus of the...

• Baykonur Cosmodrome see Baikonur Cosmodrome.

• Begovat see Bekabad , Uzbekistan.

• Bekabad formerly Begovat , city (1989 pop. 82,082), Tashkent region, E Uzbekistan, on the Syr Darya River. It is an important industrial center, with a large steel mill and cement works. The Farkhad dam and hydroelectric...

• Bek-Budi Uzbekistan: see Karshi.

• Belarus or Byelarus , formerly Belorussia, officially Republic of Belarus, republic (2005 pop. 9,799,000), c.80,150 sq mi (207,600 sq km), E central Europe. It is sometimes called White Russia. Belarus borders on Poland in the west, on...

• Belcy Rus. Beltsy, city (1996 est. pop. 159,420), in Moldova. A river and railroad junction, its manufactures include foodstuffs, agricultural machinery, and furniture. The city was founded in the 15th...

• Belgorod city (1989 pop. 300,000), capital of Belgorod region, S central European Russia, on the Northern Donets River. It is a railway junction and one of the chief centers in Russia for the manufacture...

• Belgorod-Dnestrovsky see Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyy , Ukraine.

• Beloretsk city (1989 pop. 72,000), in Bashkortostan, W Siberian Russia, in the Urals and on the Belaya River. One of the oldest industrial cities of the Urals region, Beloretsk is a metallurgical center,...

• Belorussia see Belarus.

• Belovo city (1989 pop. 91,000), S central Siberian Russia. One of the largest industrial centers of the Kuznetsk Basin, it has a zinc plant and a thermal power station. There are coal mines nearby.

• Bendery or Bender: see Tighina , Moldova.

• Berdyansk city (1989 pop. 133,000), in SE Ukraine on the Berdyansk Gulf of the Sea of Azov. It is a port and a rail terminus. Industries include fishing and fish processing, flour milling, oil refining, and...

• Berdychiv Rus. Berdichev, city (1989 pop. 92,000), in central Ukraine, on the Hnylopyat River. It is a rail junction and the industrial and trade center of an area where sugar beets are raised. Engineering, sugar refining,...

• Berezniki city (1989 pop. 201,000), E European Russia, a port on the Kama River. Situated in an area rich in potassium salts, Berezniki is one of the main industrial centers of the Urals and contains a huge...

• Bessarabia historic region, c.17,600 sq mi (45,600 sq km), largely in Moldova and Ukraine. It is bounded by the Dniester River on the north and east, the Prut on the west, and the Danube and the Black Sea on the south. Consisting mainly of a hilly plain with flat steppes, it...

• Bezhitsa see Bryansk , Russia.

• Biel- For some Russian names beginning thus, use Bel-.

• Biisk see Biysk , Russia.

• Bila Tserkva Rus. Belaya Tserkov, city (1989 pop. 197,000), in central Ukraine, on the Ros River. It is a rail junction and an industrial and commercial center. Industries include food processing and the manufacture of machinery,...

• Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyy Rus. Belgorod-Dnestrovsky, city (1989 pop. 56,000), S Ukraine, a port at the mouth of the Dniester River. It is also a rail junction and a trade center for wine. Industries include fishing and fish processing, winemaking,...

• Birobidzhan see Jewish Autonomous Region , Russia.

• Bishkek formerly Frunze , city (1993 est. pop. 640,700), capital of Kyrgyzstan, on the Chu River and on a branch of the Turkistan-Siberia RR. It is a rail and highway hub and the industrial and cultural center of...

• Bisk see Biysk , Russia.

• Biysk city (1989 pop. 233,000), S central Siberian Russia, on the Biya River. A port and the terminus of a branch of the Turkistan-Siberia RR, Biysk manufactures food-processing equipment and was the...

• Blagoveshchensk city (1989 pop. 206,000), capital of Amur region, Russian Far East, at the confluence of the Amur and Zeya rivers. A river port and railroad hub on the Trans-Siberian RR, Blagoveshchensk is also...

• Bobruisk see Bobruysk , Belarus.

• Bobruysk Belarusian Babruysk, city (1989 pop. 221,166), central Belarus, a port on the Berezina River. It is also a railway junction and a machinery and chemical manufacturing center. Bobruysk was founded...

• Bogorodsk see Noginsk , Russia.

• Bokhara see Bukhara , Uzbekistan.

• Borodino village, central European Russia, c.70 mi (110 km) W of Moscow. It was the site, on Sept. 7, 1812, of a battle between Napoleon's Grande Armée and Gen. Mikhail Kutuzov's Russian forces defending...

• Brest formerly Brest-Litovsk , Pol. Brześć nad Bugiem, city (1989 pop. 258,016), capital of Brest region, W Belarus, at the confluence of the Western Bug and Mukhavets rivers near the Polish border. As a point of entry into Belarus, it has industrial,...

• Bryansk city (1989 pop. 452,000), capital of Bryansk region, central European Russia, on the Desna River. The city is a rail transportation hub, and it forms an important industrial district with nearby...

• Brześć nad Bugiem see Brest , Belarus.

• Bukhara city (1991 pop. 231,000), capital of Bukhara region, Uzbekistan, in the Zeravshan River valley. On the Shkhrud irrigation canal system, it is the center of a large cotton district and has textile...

• Buriat-Mongolia see Buryat Republic.

• Buryat Republic or Buryatia , constituent republic (1990 est. pop. 1,050,000), c.135,600 sq mi (351,200 sq km), SE Siberian Russia, N of Mongolia, extending between Lake Baykal and the Yablonovy Mts. Ulan-Ude is the capital. The republic is mountainous and heavily forested and has rivers and lakes that are rich in fish and that provide hydroelectric power. In the mountains are valuable deposits of coal,...

• Byelarus see Belarus.

• Caffa see Feodosiya , Ukraine.

• Carpathian Ukraine see Transcarpathian Region , Ukraine.

• Caspian Gates see Derbent , Russia.

• Central Asian Republics the countries of Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan , and Uzbekistan. Constituent republics of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , they all achieved independence...

• Cernauţi see Chernivtsi , Ukraine.

• Cesis Ger. Wenden, town (1989 pop. 22,013), central Latvia, on the Gauja River. It is a rail terminus, an agricultural market town, and a popular summer resort. Founded in 1209, Cesis was the seat of the Livonian...

• Chärjew or Chardzhou , city (1991 pop. 166,400), capital of Lebap region, NW Turkmenistan, on the Amu Darya River. It is a cotton- and silk-manufacturing center. The gas industry is important. Its superphosphate plant...

• Chardzhou see Chärjew , Turkmenistan.

• Cheboksary city (1989 pop. 420,000), capital of Chuvash Republic, NW European Russia, a port on the Volga River. Both a heavy industrial and an agricultural region, it is the site of a hydroelectric station...

• Checheno-Ingush Republic former republic, Russia: see Chechnya ; Ingushetia.

• Chechnya or Chechen Republic , region (1990 est. pop. 1,300,000, with neighboring Ingushetia), c.6,100 sq mi (15,800 sq km), SE European Russia, in the N Caucasus. Grozny is the capital. Prior to 1992 Chechnya...

• Chelyabinsk city (1989 pop. 1,142,000), capital of Chelyabinsk region, W Siberian Russia, in the southern foothills of the Urals and on the Mias River. It also lies on the Trans-Siberian RR. One of the major...

• Cheremiss see Mari El , Russia.

• Cheremkhovo city (1989 pop. 74,000), SE Siberian Russia, on the Trans-Siberian RR. The center of the Cheremkhovo coal basin, the city forms part of a minor industrial complex based mainly on coal and chemical...

• Cherepovets city (1989 pop. 310,000), NE European Russia, on the Rybinsk Reservoir. A rail and water transportation center of the Volga-Baltic Waterway , it has an iron and steel complex that supplies St. Petersburg's...

• Cherkasy city (1989 pop. 290,000), capital of Cherkasy region, in central Ukraine, a port on the Dnieper River. Situated on the shore of the Kremenchuk Reservoir, Cherkasy has food processing,...

• Cherkess Autonomous Region see Karachay-Cherkess Republic.

• Cherkessk city (1989 pop. 113,000), capital of Karachay-Cherkess Republic, Stavropol Territory, SE European Russian, on the Kuban River. Founded in 1825 as Batalpashinsk, it manufactures electrical...

• Chernihiv Rus. Chernigov , city (1990 est. pop. 296,000), capital of Chernihiv region, in N Ukraine, on the Desna River. It is a rail junction, a river port, and an air and highway transport hub. Industries include...

• Chernivtsi Ger. Czernowitz, Romanian Cernauţi, Rus. Chernovtsy, city (1989 pop. 257,000), capital of Chernivtsi region, SW Ukraine, on the Prut River and in the Carpathian foothills. It is a rail junction and the economic, cultural, and scientific center of the...

• Chernobyl Ukr. Chornobyl, abandoned city, N Ukraine, near the Belarus border, on the Pripyat River. Ten miles (16 km) to the north, in the town of Pripyat, is the Chernobyl nuclear power station, site of the worst nuclear...

• Chernorech see Dzerzhinsk , Russia.

• Chernovtsy see Chernivtsi , Ukraine.

• Cherson see Sevastopol , Ukraine.

• Chişinău formerly Kishinev , city (1996 est. pop. 735,229), capital of Moldova, on the Byk River, a tributary of the Dniester. Major industries include food and tobacco processing, the assembly of consumer and electrical...

• Chiatura city (1989 pop. 29,228), S central Georgia, on the Kvirila River. One of the world's largest manganese producers, Chiatura alone accounted for half of the world's manganese trade before World War...

• Chigirin Ukr. Chyhyryn, city, central Ukraine, on the Tyasmin River, a tributary of the Dnieper. Founded in 1589 as a fortress, Chigirin served as the residence of the hetman of Ukraine from 1649 (when it was so...

• Chimkent see Shymkent , Kazakhstan.

• Chirchik city (1989 pop. 156,654), suburb of Tashkent, E Uzbekistan. It is an industrial center with large fertilizer plants and machinery factories. There is a chain of hydroelectric stations on the...

• Chistopol city (1989 pop. 65,500), Tatarstan, E European Russia, on the Kuybyshev Reservoir. It is a grain-trading center and has machinery plants. Chistopol was chartered in 1781.

• Chita city (1989 pop. 366,000), capital of Chita region, SE Siberian Russia, at the confluence of the Chita and Ingoda rivers and on the Trans-Siberian RR. Railroad and food-processing equipment are...

• Chkalov see Orenburg , Russia.

• Chufut-Kale [Turk.,=Jews' city], ruined fortress and town, W Ukraine, in the Crimea. While under Turkish rule (1475-1783), it was the center of the Jewish sect of Karaites. Jewish inscriptions date back to...

• Chuvash Republic or Chuvashia, constituent republic (1990 pop. 1,326,000), 7,066 sq mi (18,301 sq km), E central European Russia, in the middle Volga valley. Cheboksary is the capital. The region, consisting largely of the Chuvash plateau, is wooded steppe. There are peat bogs and deposits of limestone, dolomite, clays, sands, and phosphorites. Grain, potatoes,...

• Circassia historic region, encompassing roughly the area between the Black Sea, the Kuban River, and the Caucasus, now largely the Krasnodar Territory of SE European Russia. The Circassians are a Muslim people, whose Russian name is Cherkess and whose native name is Adygey. They are now officially classified as three peoples: the Kabarda, in the...

• Crimea Rus. and Ukr. Krym, peninsula and autonomous republic (1991 est. pop. 2,363,000), c.10,000 sq mi (25,900 sq km), extreme SE Ukraine, linked with the mainland by the Perekop Isthmus. The peninsula is bounded on the S...

• Cronstadt see Kronshtadt , Russia.

• Czernowitz see Chernivtsi , Ukraine.

• Dünaburg see Daugavpils , Latvia.

• Dagestan Republic constituent republic (1999 pop. 2,074,000), c.19,400 sq mi (50,250 sq km), SE European Russia, bounded on the E by the Caspian Sea. Makhachkala (the capital) and Derbent are the chief cities. Dagestan in the south consists mainly of sections of the Caucasus Mts. Except for the Caspian plain and the Nogai steppe and the irrigated lowlands in the north, the terrain...

• Daugavpils Ger. Dünaburg, city (1992 est. pop. 129,050), SE Latvia, on the Western Dvina River. It is a rail junction and commercial center. The city's industries produce lumber, food products, electric machinery, and...

• Derbent city (1989 pop. 78,000), SE European Russia, in Dagestan, on the Caspian Sea. It stands on a narrow strip of land that forms a natural pass (the Caspian or Iron Gates) between the Caucasian...

• Detskoye Selo see Pushkin , Russia.

• Dmitrov city, N central European Russia, on the Moscow Canal. Dmitrov was founded in 1154. In the 13th cent. it became the capital of an independent duchy that was united with the grand duchy of Moscow in...

• Dneprodzerzhinsk see Dniprodzerzhynsk , Ukraine.

• Dnepropetrovsk see Dnipropetrovsk , Ukraine.

• Dniprodzerzhynsk Rus. Dneprodzerzhinsk, city (1989 pop. 282,000), central Ukraine, a port on the Dnieper River. It is a major industrial center with iron and steel, machine tool, chemical, and cement plants. Originally called Kamyanske...

• Dnipropetrovsk Rus. Dnepropetrovsk, city (1990 est. pop. 1,186,000), capital of Dnipropetrovsk region, central Ukraine, on the Dnieper River. A hub of rail and water transportation, it is a major industrial center with a huge iron...

• Donetsk city (1990 est. pop. 1,120,000), capital of Donetsk region, E Ukraine, on the Kalmius River. The largest industrial center of the Donets Basin and one of the largest in Ukraine, it has coal mines, coking plants, iron and steel mills, machinery works, and chemical plants. The city was founded in 1870 as Yuzovka, named after the Welsh...

• Dorpat see Tartu , Estonia.

• Drohobych Pol. Drohobycz, Rus. Drogobych, city (1989 pop. 78,000), Lviv region, W Ukraine, in the N Carpathian foothills. The major petroleum-refining center of the Boryslav oil field, it is linked by an oil pipeline with Boryslav and a...

• Dubna town (1989 pop. 66,000), Moscow region, central European Russia, near the confluence of the Volga and Dubna rivers. Founded in 1956, it is the seat of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. The...

• Dudinka city (1989 pop. 32,000), capital of the Taymyr Autonomous Area, Krasnoyarsk Territory, N Siberian Russia, on the Yenisei River. It is the river port for the Norilsk mining area and is accessible...

• Dushanbe city (1991 pop. 582,400), capital of Tajikistan, W Tajikistan. It is a major industrial and cultural center in a rich agricultural area. Coal, lead, and arsenic are mined nearby. A leading cotton...

• Dzerzhinsk city (1989 pop. 285,000), W European Russia, a port on the Oka River above. There is a huge chemical complex there. The city was called Chernorech until about 1919 and Rastyapino until 1929, when...

• Dzhambul see Taraz , Kazakhstan.

• Echmiadzin see Yejmiadzin , Armenia.

• Egorevsk see Yegorevsk.

• Ejmiadzin see Yejmiadzin , Armenia.

• Ekaterinburg see Yekaterinburg , Russia.

• Ekaterinodar see Krasnodar , Russia.

• Ekibastuz city (1990 pop. 134,627), N Kazakhstan. It is the industrial center of a bituminous coal-mining basin, which has coal reserves estimated at 8 billion tons. Although coal mining began in the late...

• Elets see Yelets , Russia.

• Elizavetgrad see Kirovohrad.

• Engels city (1989 pop. 181,000), E European Russia, a port on the Volga River. It has a large chemical fiber complex. Founded by Ukrainian settlers, it was a major destination of German settlers during...

• Erivan see Yerevan , Armenia.

• Estonia Estonian Eesti, officially Republic of Estonia, republic (2005 est. pop. 1,333,000), 17,413 sq mi (45,100 sq km). It borders on the Baltic Sea in the west; the gulfs of Riga and Finland (both arms of the Baltic)...

• Eupatoria see Yevpatoriya , Ukraine.

• Evenki Autonomous Area administrative division (1992 pop. 25,100), 287,645 sq mi (745,000 sq km), N central Siberian Russia, in the Central Siberian Uplands. The village of Tura is the capital. The area occupies the...

• Evpatoriya see Yevpatoriya , Ukraine.

• Eylau see Bagrationovsk , Russia.

• Far Eastern Republic   Far Eastern Russia, or Far Eastern Territory: see Russian Far East.

• Fellin see Viljandi , Estonia.

• Feodosiya city (1990 est. pop. 85,000), S Ukraine, on the Crimean peninsula. It is a major Black Sea port at the western end of the Feodosiya Gulf. Feodosiya is also a rail terminus. A popular Crimean sea...

• Fergana or Ferghana , city (1989 pop. 200,373), capital of Fergana region, E Uzbekistan, in the Fergana Valley. The marketing center of a large oasis area, it has silk, cotton, and artificial fiber industries. Oil,...

• Fergana Valley or Ferghana Valley, region, 8,494 sq mi (22,000 sq km), divided among Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan. The Fergana Range (part of the Tian Shan system) rises in the northeast and the Pamir in the south. The narrow Khudjand Pass in the west has historically served as an invasion route into the valley. The Xinjiang region of China borders the valley in the southeast. The Fergana...

• Friedland see Pravdinsk.

• Frunze see Bishkek , Kyrgyzstan.

• Gagra or Gagry , city (1989 pop. 26,636), W Georgia, on the Black Sea and at the foot of the Greater Caucasus. It is a subtropical health resort.

• Ganja see Gyandzha , Azerbaijan.

• Gatchina city (1989 pop. 80,000), NW European Russia. The city developed around the imperial palace (built 1766-81), which was used as a summer residence by Paul I in the 18th cent. and was a favorite...

• Georgia Georgian Sakartvelo, Rus. Gruziya, officially Republic of Georgia, republic (2005 est. pop. 4,677,000), c.26,900 sq mi (69,700 sq km), in W Transcaucasia. Georgia borders on the Black Sea in the west, on Turkey and Armenia in the...

• Georgiyevsk city (1989 pop. 63,000), SE European Russia, in the northern foothills of the Caucasus. It is an agricultural center with some industry. It was founded (1777) as a Russian fortress. The agreement...

• German Volga Republic former autonomous republic of the USSR, c.18,000 sq mi (46,600 sq km), along the lower Volga of SW Russia. Its largely German population was descended from the German colonists whom Catherine II...

• Gomel Belarusian Homyel, city (1990 est. pop. 507,000), capital of Gomel region, SE Belarus, on the Sozh River, a tributary of the Dnieper. A river port and a large railroad junction in an agricultural area, it is the...

• Gori city (1989 pop. 68,924), central Georgia. It has food processing plants. Mentioned in the 7th cent. as Tontio, it was later named after a fortress. Gori passed to Russia in 1801. Stalin was born...

• Gorki see Nizhny Novgorod , Russia.

• Gorky see Nizhny Novgorod , Russia.

• Gorky or Gorky Leninskoye , suburb of Moscow, central European Russia. The country home of Lenin, who died there, is now a memorial museum.

• Gorno-Altai Republic see Altai Republic , Russia.

• Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region see Badakhshan , Tajikistan.

• Grodno Belarusian Horodno, city (1990 est. pop. 272,000), capital of Grodno region, NW Belarus, on the Neman River. A river port and an important railway center, it has industries producing fertilizer, synthetic fibers,...

• Grozny or Groznyy , city (2006 est. pop. 230,000), capital of Chechnya , SE European Russia, in the northern foothills of the Greater Caucasus. One of Russia's oldest oil-producing areas (production began in 1893), Grozny was a major strategic goal of invading German...

• Gruziya see Georgia.

• Gumri see Kumayri , Armenia.

• Gunib village, SE European Russia, in Dagestan. Now a mountain resort in the North Caucasus, it was historically important as a natural fortress during the Caucasian wars of the 19th cent. The imam...

• Guryev see Atyrau , Kazakhstan