Any western man who wants
to meet Russian ladies and who is serious
about doing what it takes to make that happen
will naturally need to make plans to travel
to Russia. Traveling to Russia is not only
the means by which men will be able to meet
Russian ladies but it also represents is
an opportunity to become better acquainted
with Russian history and culture. Russia
spans eleven time zones and two continents
and is one of the most beautiful countries
in the world. Below are sa few particulars
about Russia and some of its major cities.
According to the published results of the
2002 Russian census, the total Russian population
is 145.2 million. 73% of Russian residents,
or 73% of the total population lives in
cities, while 27% live in rural areas. Russian
is seventh worldwide in terms of total population
behind China, India, US, Indonesia, Brazil
and Pakistan.
Compared to the last census, which was taken
in 1989, Russia's total population shrunk
by 1.8 million people. 1.6 million of those
people lived in cities and 200 thousand
lived in rural areas. Like most developed
countries, urbanization - or the process
where people move to cities - has stopped.
Almost 20% of the population lives in 13
cities with a population of one million
or more: Moscow,
Saint Petersburg,
Novosibirsk, Nizhny Novgorod,
Yekaterinburg,
Samara, Omsk,
Kazan, Chelyabinsk,
Rostov, Ufa,
Volgograd and Perm.
The two largest cities - Moscow and Saint
Petersburg have a population of 10.4 million
and 4.7 million, respectively. Moscow is
one of the world's 20 most populated cities.
More than 160 nationalities reside in Russia.
Seven nationalities have populations of
more than one million: Tatars, Ukrainians,
Bashkurs, Chuvashes, Chechens and Armenians.
Russians make up the largest percent of
the population with 116 million or 80% of
the total residents.
The country is composed of 67.6 million
men and 77.6 million women. For every thousand
men, there are 1147 women. For the past
30 years now, women have been increasing
their numbers compared to men. The medium
age for a resident of Russia is 37.7 years
or three years older than in 1989. Goskomstat
will continue publishing results of the
2002 Russian census in the months to come
with reports on economic activity, migration,
birthrates and living conditions of the
Russia population.
Brief notes on Russia's 13 largest cities:
Moscow Back
to TOP
Moscow (Russian Moskva), capital and largest
city of Russia, capital of Moscow Oblast,
and the country's leading political, cultural,
economic, and transportation center. Moscow
lies on the Moscow River in the west central
European part of Russia. The Russian emperors,
or tsars, made Moscow their base of rule
until 1712, when the capital was moved to
Saint Petersburg. Moscow was restored as
Russia's capital in 1918, and it served
as the capital of the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (USSR) from 1922 until 1991. Population
10.4 million. Saint Petersburg Back
to TOP
Saint Petersburg (Russian Sankt Peterburg),
second largest city and largest seaport
in Russia, located in the northwestern part
of the country, at the head of the Gulf
of Finland (an arm of the Baltic Sea). The
capital of Russia for two centuries (1712-1918),
Saint Petersburg is one of the most beautiful
cities in Europe, noted for its lavish palaces
and grand cathedrals. It is also a major
rail junction and an industrial, cultural,
and scientific center. The city is located
on both banks of the Neva River and on a
number of river islands. Saint Petersburg
has been renamed three times since its founding.
Construction of the city began in 1703,
ordered by Russian tsar (later emperor)
Peter the Great, who named it Saint Petersburg
after his patron saint. After World War
I broke out in 1914, the city's Germanic
name was changed to Petrograd. In 1924,
upon the death of Soviet leader Vladimir
Lenin, its name was changed to Leningrad.
Finally, in June 1991, six months before
the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
(USSR) officially dissolved and Russia emerged
as an independent country, the city reverted
to its original name. Population 4.7 million. Novosibirsk Back
to TOP
Novosibirsk, formerly Novonikolayevsk, city,
capital of Novosibirsk Oblast, in southern
Siberia Russia, located on the Ob' River.
Novosibirsk is the largest city and one
of the chief industrial centers of Siberia.
Manufactures include mining equipment, turbines,
textiles, chemicals, and heavy machine tools.
It is the seat of a university and a scientific
research center and has opera and ballet
companies. The city, founded in 1893 as
a stop on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, received
its current name in 1925. During World War
II (1939-45) many industries were moved
to Novosibirsk from the combat areas of
European USSR. Population (1999 estimate)
1,402,100. Nizhniy Novgorod Back
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Nizhniy Novgorod, city in western Russia,
at the confluence of the Oka and Volga rivers.
Nizhniy Novgorod is a major river port,
railroad hub, and industrial center. The
city is the site of one of the largest automobile
factories in Russia, and its manufactures
also include aircraft, textiles, and railroad
and electric equipment. Nizhniy Novgorod
has libraries, museums, a large university,
and several technical schools. Historical
structures include a stone kremlin (citadel)
built in the 13th century, two 13th-century
churches, and a 17th-century palace. Nizhniy
Novgorod was founded in 1221. In the late
14th century the city was plundered by the
Tatars before being annexed by Moscow in
1392. Important for its trade with Asia,
the city became famous for its trade fairs,
held annually from 1817 until 1917. From
1932 to 1991 it was named Gorky (also spelled
Gorki or Gor'kiy) in honor of the Russian
writer Maksim Gorky, who was born in the
city. Population (1999 estimate) 1,361,500.
Yekaterinburg Back
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Yekaterinburg, formerly Sverdlovsk, city,
administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast,
Russia, on the Iset River. Located on the
eastern slope of the Ural Mountains in a
mineral-rich region, Yekaterinburg is a
major industrial center and a station on
the Trans-Siberian Railroad. Among the large
industrial works located in the city are
platinum refineries, copper and iron smelters,
and factories producing electrical equipment,
chemicals, and heavy machinery. Yekaterinburg's
educational institutes include the Urals
A. M. Gorky State University (1920) and
the Yekaterinburg State Medical Institute
(1931). The city was founded in 1721 by
Tsar (later Emperor) Peter the Great as
an ironworking center and was named Yekaterinburg
for his wife, who was later proclaimed Empress
Catherine I. Industrial development was
spurred by the construction of the Great
Siberian Highway in the late 18th century
and the Trans-Siberian Railroad in the late
19th century. Emperor Nicholas II and his
family were held captive in the city by
the Bolsheviks after the Russian Revolution
and were killed here in 1918. The city was
renamed Sverdlovsk in 1924 in honor of Bolshevik
and Soviet leader Yakov M. Sverdlov. During
World War II (1939-1945) industry from threatened
European areas of the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (USSR) was transferred here. Following
the disintegration of the USSR at the end
of 1991, the city's name was changed back
to Yekaterinburg. Population (1999 estimate)
1,270,700. Samara Back
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Samara, formerly Kuybyshev, city, capital
of Samara Oblast, south central European
Russia. Located at the confluence of the
Volga and Samara rivers, the city is an
important port and a railroad and industrial
center. Manufactures include motor vehicles,
railroad equipment, chemicals, and machinery.
Samara is the primary refining center for
the Volga-Urals oil fields. Founded in 1586
as a defense outpost, Samara developed into
a grain-trade center for the Volga River
region. Major industrial growth began in
the early 20th century. From 1935 to 1991
the city was known as Kuybyshev in honor
of the Soviet leader V. V. Kuybyshev. When
Moscow was threatened by the Germans during
World War II, the city served (1941-1943)
as an administrative center of the Union
of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Population
(1999 estimate) 1,170,800. Omsk Back
to TOP
Omsk, city, southwestern Siberia Russia,
capital of Omsk Oblast, at the confluence
of the Irtysh and Om' rivers. The city is
a major commercial and industrial center
of the steppe region and is served by the
Trans-Siberian Railroad. Manufactures include
processed grain, refined petroleum, forest
products, agricultural machinery, and textiles.
Omsk was founded in 1716 as a Russian fortress.
Following the Russian Revolution of 1917,
the headquarters of the forces of Admiral
Alexander V. Kolchak, the anti-Bolshevik
leader, were located here. Population (1999
estimate) 1,157,600. Kazan Back
to TOP
Kazan, city in central European Russia,
capital of the republic of Tatarstan, and
a port at the confluence of the Volga and
Kazanka rivers. Kazan' is a major industrial,
commercial, and cultural center. Manufactured
products include machinery, refined petroleum,
chemicals, building materials, processed
food, footwear, soap, and textiles. Once
a prominent Muslim city, Kazan'' remains
a center of Tatar culture. It is the site
of Kazan' State University (founded in 1804),
where Leo Tolstoy and Vladimir Ilich Lenin
studied, and several technical schools.
Notable structures include the kremlin (citadel),
the oldest part of which dates from the
15th century; a 16th-century church; and
two 18th-century mosques. Kazan'' was founded
in the late 14th century and soon became
the capital of a powerful Tatar khanate.
In 1552 the city was annexed by Russia under
Ivan IV Vasilyevich. It was largely destroyed
in 1774 during a revolt by troops under
the leadership of the Cossack soldier Yemelyan
Pugachev, but was rebuilt soon thereafter,
during the reign of Catherine the Great.
Population (1999 estimate) 1,091,500. Chelyabinsk Back
to TOP
Chelyabinsk, city, southwestern Siberian
Russia, on the Miass River, in the foothills
of the Ural Mountains. Situated on the Trans-Siberian
Railroad in a rich coal-mining region, it
is one of the chief industrial centers of
Russia. Manufactures include iron and steel,
tractors and other agricultural machinery,
aircraft, and chemicals. Chelyabinsk was
founded (1736) as a fortress on the Russian
frontier. Large-scale industrialization
began in the 1890s. Population (1999 estimate)
1,085,800. Rostov-na-Donu Back
to TOP
Rostov-na-Donu, also Rostov-on-Don, or Rostov,
city, southwestern European Russia, capital
of Rostov Oblast. Situated on a high bank
of the Don River near its mouth on the Sea
of Azov, the city is an important commercial,
industrial, and transportation center. It
is connected by a deepwater canal to the
Sea of Azov, and by the Volga-Don Canal
to the Caspian, Baltic, and White seas.
The city is also linked by pipeline with
the petroleum fields of the Caucasus region.
Manufactures include ships, chemicals, agricultural
machinery, electric equipment, and building
materials. Several institutions of higher
learning, including a university, are in
Rostov-na-Donu. In 1749 a customs office
was established on the site of present-day
Rostov-na-Donu. A fortress was built here
in 1761, and in 1797 the settlement achieved
city status. In the 19th century it grew
as an important trading port. During World
War II the city was held twice (1941, 1942-1943)
by German forces and was damaged considerably.
Population (1999 estimate) 1,005,800. Ufa Back
to TOP
Ufa, city in southeastern European Russia,
administrative center of the republic of
Bashkortostan, situated at the confluence
of the Ufa and Belaya rivers. Located on
the western slopes of the Ural Mountains,
Ufa is an industrial city in which mining
and electrical equipment, refined petroleum,
forest products, chemicals, synthetic rubber,
and processed foods are manufactured. Founded
in 1574 as a fortress, it became the first
Russian town in the area called Bashkiria
in 1586. From 1922 to 1991, Ufa was the
capital of the Bashkir Autonomous Soviet
Socialist Republic (ASSR) of Soviet Russia.
In 1991 the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
(USSR) broke apart, and Bashkortostan became
a constituent republic of Russia. Population
(1999 estimate) 1,086,600. Volgograd Back
to TOP
Volgograd, formerly Stalingrad, city, capital
of Volgograd Oblast, southwestern Russia,
on the Volga River. Volgograd, an important
industrial, commercial, and transshipment
center of Russia, is a railroad hub and
a major Volga River port. It is linked to
the Don River by the Volga-Don Canal, constructed
between 1950 and 1957. A large hydroelectric
power dam is just north of the city. Among
the main industries in Volgograd are petroleum
refining, shipbuilding, and the manufacture
of aluminum, chemicals, processed food,
farm machinery, iron and steel, and forest
products. The University of Volgograd (1980)
is located in the city. Volgograd was founded
in 1589 as Tsaritsyn, a fortress on the
southeastern frontier of Russia. It was
taken by Cossack rebels twice: in 1670 by
Stenka Razin and in 1774 by Yemelyan Pugachev.
With the expansion of the Russian Empire
in the 19th century, Tsaritsyn became an
important port for products shipped down
the Volga River. Early in the Russian Revolution,
in 1917, the city was taken by the Bolsheviks.
During the civil war that followed it was
occupied by White Russian troops for three
months in 1919. In 1925 the city was renamed
Stalingrad, for Joseph Stalin, who had been
notable in the defense of the city against
the White Russians. Perm Back
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Perm, formerly Molotov, city in eastern
European Russia, on the Kama River. It is
the capital of Perm' Oblast. Located in
a region rich in mineral resources, the
city is an important industrial and transportation
center. Manufactures include chemicals,
agricultural machinery, and metal products.
Perm' is the seat of a university and several
professional and technical colleges. The
site of the city was settled in ancient
times. In 1568 Russian traders established
the town of Yegoshikha here, and in 1780
the community achieved city status as Perm'
and was made a district capital. Perm' was
merged with Molotovo in 1938, and the name
Molotov was adopted two years later. In
1957 the name Perm' was readopted. Population
(1999 estimate) 1,018,100.
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