Kazan

Kazan

Казань
Kazan Казань
City
Other transcription(s)
• Tatar	Казан, Qazan
	Flag Coat of arms
	Location of Kazan
	Kazan Location of Kazan Kazan Kazan (Tatarstan)
	Coordinates: 55°47′27″N 49°6′52″E / 55.79083°N 49.11444°E
Country	Russia
Federal subject	Tatarstan
Founded	~1005
Government
• Body	City Duma
• Mayor	Ilsur Metshin
Area
• Total	425.3 km2 (164.2 sq mi)
Elevation	60 m (200 ft)
Population (2010 Census)
• Total	1,143,600
• Estimate (2018)	1,243,500 (+8.7%)
• Rank	8th in 2010
• Density	2,700/km2 (7,000/sq mi)
Administrative status
• Capital of	Republic of Tatarstan
Municipal status
• Urban okrug	Kazan Urban Okrug
Time zone	UTC+3 (MSK )
Postal code(s)	420xxx
Dialing code(s)	+7 843
OKTMO ID	92701000001
City Day	August 30
Website	www.kzn.ru

Kazan (Russian: Каза́нь; Tatar: Казан, romanized: Qazan) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,143,600 (2010 Census preliminary results),^[3] it is the eighth most populous city in Russia. Kazan lies at the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka Rivers in European Russia. In April 2009, the Russian Patent Office granted Kazan the right to brand itself as the "Third Capital" of Russia. In 2009 it was chosen as the "sports capital of Russia".^[10] The Kazan Kremlin is a World Heritage Site.

History

Etymology

The origin of the name Kazan is uncertain. The most accepted legends derive it from the Bulgarian (and also modern Tatar) word qazan, which means 'boiler' or 'cauldron'.

Middle Ages

File:Firinat xalikov internal kazan.jpg

Medieval Kazan

There is a long-running dispute as to whether Kazan was founded by the Volga Bulgars in the early Middle Ages or by the Tatars of the Golden Horde in the mid-15th century, as written records before the latter period are sparse. If there were a Bulgar city on the site, estimates of the date of its foundation range from the early 11th century to the late 13th century (see Iske Qazan). It was a border post between Volga Bulgaria and two Finnic tribes, the (Mari and the Udmurt). Another vexatious question is where the citadel was built originally. Archaeological explorations have produced evidence of urban settlement in three parts of the modern city: in the Kremlin; in Bişbalta at the site of the modern Zilantaw monastery; and near the Qaban lake. The oldest of these seems to be the Kremlin.

If Kazan existed in the 11th and 12th centuries, it could have been a stop on a Volga trade route from Scandinavia to Iran. It was a trade center, and possibly a major city for Bulgar settlers in the Kazan region, although their capital was further south at the city of Bolğar.

After the Mongols devastated the Bolğar and Bilär areas in the 13th century, migrants resettled Kazan. Kazan became a center of a duchy which was a dependency of the Golden Horde. Two centuries later, in the 1430s, Hordian Tatars (such as Ghiasetdin of Kazan) usurped power from its Bolghar dynasty.

Some Tatars also went to Lithuania, brought by Vytautas the Great.

In 1438, after the destruction of the Golden Horde, Kazan became the capital of the powerful Khanate of Kazan. The city bazaar, Taş Ayaq (Stone Leg)' became the most important trade center in the region, especially for furniture. The citadel and Bolaq channel were reconstructed, giving the city a strong defensive capacity. The Russians managed to occupy the city briefly several times.

Russian Tsardom times

As a result of the Siege of Kazan (1552) Russia under Ivan the Terrible conquered the city for good and the majority of the population was massacred. During the governorship of Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky, most of the khanates's Tatar residents were killed or forcibly Christianized. Mosques and palaces were ruined. The surviving Tatar population was moved to a place 50 kilometres (31 mi) away from the city and this place was forcibly settled by Russian farmers and soldiers. Tatars in the Russian service were settled in the Tatar Bistäse settlement near the city's wall. Later Tatar merchants and handicraft masters also settled there. During this period, Kazan was largely destroyed as a result of several great fires. After one of them in 1579, the icon Our Lady of Kazan was discovered in the city. In the early 17th century, at the beginning of the Time of Troubles in Russia, the Tsardom of Kazan declared independence with the help of the Russian population, but this independence was suppressed by Kuzma Minin in 1612^{[citation needed]}.

Russian Empire times

In 1708, the Tsardom of Kazan was abolished, and Kazan became the center of a guberniya. After Peter the Great's visit, the city became a center of shipbuilding for the Caspian fleet. The major Russian poet Gavrila Romanovich Derzhavin was born in Kazan in 1743, the son of a poor country squire of Tatar ancestry though himself having a thoroughly Russian identity. Kazan was largely destroyed in 1774 as a result of the Pugachev revolt, a revolt by border troops and peasants led by the Don Cossack ataman (captain) Yemelyan Pugachev, but was rebuilt soon afterwards, during the reign of Catherine the Great. Catherine also decreed that mosques could again be built in Kazan, the first being Marjani Mosque. In the beginning of the 19th century Kazan State University and printing press were founded by Alexander I. It became an important center for Oriental Studies in Russia. The Qur'an was first printed in Kazan in 1801. Kazan became an industrial center and peasants migrated there to join its industrial workforce. In 1875, a horse tramway appeared; 1899 saw the installation of a tramway. After the Russian Revolution of 1905, Tatars were allowed to revive Kazan as a Tatar cultural center. The first Tatar theater and the first Tatar newspaper appeared.

Soviet period

In 1917 Kazan became one of the revolution centers. In 1918, Kazan was a capital of the Idel-Ural State, which was suppressed by the Bolshevist government. In the Kazan Operation of August 1918, it was briefly occupied by Czechoslovak Legions. In 1920 (after the October Revolution), Kazan became the center of Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In the 1920s and 1930s, most of the city's mosques and churches were destroyed, as occurred elsewhere in the USSR. During World War II, many industrial plants and factories to the west were relocated in Kazan, making the city a center of the military industry, producing tanks and planes. After the war Kazan consolidated as an industrial and scientific center. In 1979, the city's population reached one million.

Modern times

In the late 1980s and in the 1990s, after the dissolution of the USSR, Kazan again became the center of Tatar culture, and separatist tendencies intensified. With the return of the capitalism era Kazan became one the most important centers of the Russian Federation. The city came up from 10th to 6th position in population ranking of Russian cities. In the late 2000s the city earnt the right to host both the 2013 Summer Universiade and 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Millennium of Kazan

Since 2000, the city has been undergoing a total renovation. The historical center, including its Kremlin, has been rebuilt. Kazan celebrated its millennium in 2005, although the date of the «millennium», was fixed rather arbitrarily. During the millennium celebrations, one of the largest mosque in Russia, Qolsharif, was inaugurated in the Kazan Kremlin, the holiest copy of Our Lady of Kazan was returned to the city, the "Millennium Bridge" was inaugurated that year,^[11] and Kazan Metro began operation.

Demographics

Ethnicity and religion

The city's population consists almost entirely composed of either Russians (about 48.8 percent) and Tatars (about 47.5 percent). The remainder consists of Chuvash, Ukrainians, Azeri, and Jews.^[12] Major religions in Kazan city are Sunni Islam and Eastern Orthodoxy. Minor religions are Catholicism, Protestantism, Judaism, Krishnaism, and the Bahá'í Faith.

Languages

Tatar and Russian languages are widely spoken in the city. Russian is understood by practically all the population, apart from some older Tatars. Tatar is widely spoken mainly by Tatars.

Population

Population: 1,143,600 (2010 Census);^[3] 1,105,289 (2002 Census);^[9] 1,094,378 (1989 Soviet census).^[13]

Year	Population
1550	50,000
1557	7,000
1800	40,000
1830	43,900
1839	51,600
1859	60,600
1862	63,100
1883	140,000
1897	130,000
1917	206,600
1926	179,000
1939	398,000
1959	667,000
1979	989,000
1989	1,094,378 (census)
1997	1,076,000
2000	1,089,500
2002	1,105,289 (census)
2008	1,120,200
2009	1,130,717
2010	1,143,600 (census)

Climate

Kazan has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) with long cold winters and warm, often hot dry summers. The warmest month is July with daily mean temperature near 20 °C (68 °F), coldest - January −12 °C (10 °F).

Climate data for Kazan (1971 - 2000)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	3.8 (38.8)	5.2 (41.4)	11.0 (51.8)	29.5 (85.1)	33.8 (92.8)	37.5 (99.5)	38.9 (102.0)	39.0 (102.2)	32.3 (90.1)	23.4 (74.1)	15.0 (59.0)	6.1 (43.0)	39.0 (102.2)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	−8.2 (17.2)	−7.2 (19.0)	−0.6 (30.9)	9.8 (49.6)	18.9 (66.0)	23.5 (74.3)	25.0 (77.0)	22.4 (72.3)	15.8 (60.4)	7.2 (45.0)	−1.5 (29.3)	−5.7 (21.7)	8.3 (46.9)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−14.9 (5.2)	−14.0 (6.8)	−7.9 (17.8)	1.4 (34.5)	7.9 (46.2)	13.1 (55.6)	15.0 (59.0)	12.8 (55.0)	7.6 (45.7)	1.4 (34.5)	−6.3 (20.7)	−11.6 (11.1)	0.4 (32.7)
Record low °C (°F)	−46.8 (−52.2)	−39.9 (−39.8)	−31.7 (−25.1)	−25.6 (−14.1)	−6.5 (20.3)	−1.4 (29.5)	2.6 (36.7)	1.6 (34.9)	−5.4 (22.3)	−23.4 (−10.1)	−36.6 (−33.9)	−43.9 (−47.0)	−46.8 (−52.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	35 (1.4)	30 (1.2)	25 (1.0)	34 (1.3)	38 (1.5)	70 (2.8)	66 (2.6)	59 (2.3)	55 (2.2)	54 (2.1)	44 (1.7)	38 (1.5)	548 (21.6)
Source: ^[14]

Central Kazan

Kremlin

The city has a beautiful citadel (Russian: кремль, tr. kreml', or sometimes Tatar: kirman), which was declared the World Heritage Site in 2000. Major monuments in the kremlin are the 5-domed 6-columned Annunciation Cathedral (1561–62) and the mysterious leaning Soyembika Tower, named after the last queen of Kazan and regarded as the city's most conspicuous landmark.

Also of interest are the towers and walls, erected in the 16th and 17th centuries but later reconstructed; the Qol-Şarif mosque, which is already rebuilt inside the citadel; remains of the Saviour Monastery (its splendid 16th-century cathedral having been demolished by the Bolsheviks) with the Spasskaya Tower; and the Governor's House (1843–53), designed by Konstantin Thon, now the Palace of the President of Tatarstan.

Next door, the ornate baroque Sts-Peter-and-Paul's Cathedral on Qawi Nacmi Street and Marcani mosque on Qayum Nasiri Street date back to the 18th century.

Bistä or Posad

Central Kazan is divided into two districts by the Bolaq canal and Lake Qaban. The first district (Qazan Bistäse or Kazanskiy Posad), historically Russian, is situated on the hill, the second (İske Tatar Bistäse or Staro-Tatarskaya Sloboda), historically Tatar, is situated between the Bolaq and the Volga. Mosques, such as Nurullah, Soltan, Bornay, Apanay, Äcem, Märcani, İske Taş, Zäñgär are in the Tatar district. Churches, such as Blagoveschenskaya, Varvarinskaya, Nikol'skaya, Tikhvinskaya, are mostly in the Russian part of the city. The main city-centre streets are Bauman, Kremlyovskaya, Dzerzhinsky, Tuqay, Puşkin, Butlerov, Gorkiy, Karl Marx and Märcani.

An old legend says that in 1552, before the Russian invasion, wealthy Tatars (baylar) hid gold and silver in Lake Qaban.

Wooden Kazan

In the beginning of 1990s most of Central Kazan was covered by wooden buildings, usually consisting of two floors. There was a historical environment of Kazan citizens, but not the best place to live in. During the Republican programme "The liquidation of ramshackle apartments" most of them (unlike other Russian cities), especially in Central Kazan, where the land is not cheap, were destroyed and their population was moved to new areas at the suburb of the city (Azino, Azino-2, Quartal 39). Nearly 100,000 citizens resettled by this programme.

Other major buildings

Another significant building in central Kazan is the former "Smolentzev and Shmelev" tea house and hotel, now the Shalyapin Palace Hotel. It is located at 7/80 Universitetskaya Street, at the corner of Universitetskaya and Bauman. A major landmark of late-19th and early-20th century commercial architecture, it consists of two portions. The original portion, built for a merchant named Usmanov in the 1860s, was bought by the inter-related families of Efim Smolentzev and Pavel and Nikolai Shmelev in 1899.^[15] They operated a store selling, among other things, tea. In 1910, the Smolentevs and Shmelevs constructed another portion, designed by architect Vasili Trifonov, and operated a hotel there.^[16] After the Russian Revolution, the building eventually became the Hotel Soviet and after 2000 it was heavily renovated to reopen as the Shalyapin Palace Hotel.

Cityscape

A panoramic view of Kazan Kremlin, Vernicle temple and Kazanka river right bank

Kazanka right bank

Education and science

Primary and secondary education

Primary and secondary education system of Kazan includes:

282 nurseries, most of which are municipal
178 schools, 2 of which are private
28 vocational technical schools
15 colleges
10 special colleges

There are also 49 music schools, 10 fine-arts schools and 43 sports schools.

Higher education

There are 44 institutes of higher education in Kazan, including 19 branches of universities from other cities. More than 140 000 students are educated in the city. Kazan Federal University (founded in 1804) is third oldest university in Russia after Saint Petersburg State University (1724) and Moscow State University (1755). In 2009 KFU got Federal status as main university of Volga Region. Some other prominent universities are:

Kazan State Technical University - founded in 1932. In 2009 it got status of National university;
Kazan State Medical University - founded in 1814 as a department within Kazan State University;
Kazan State Technological University - founded in 1919 on the base of pre-existing vocational school;
Kazan State Conservatory - founded in 1945;

Science

City is one of the biggest scientific centres of Russia. Kazan formed a big number of scientific areas and schools (mathematical, chemical, medical, linguistic, geological, geobotanical, etc.). It is subject of special pride: the creation of non-Euclidean geometry (Nikolai Lobachevsky), the discovery of the chemical element ruthenium (Claus), the theory about the structure of organic compounds (Aleksandr Butlerov), the discovery of the electron paramagnetic resonance (Yevgeny Zavoisky) and acoustic paramagnetic resonance (Altshuler) and many others. City hosts:

Kazan Science Centre of Russian Academy of Sciences, since 1945. It includes 5 academical institutions.
Tatarstan Academy of Sciences, since 1991. It includes 7 local departments with 13 academical institutions (also, 21 organisations are under the guidance of TAS) and one branch in Ulyanovsk.^[17]

Government and administration

Administrative division

Kazan is divided into seven districts:

No.	District	Population^[18]	Area (km²)
1	Aircraft Building	113,102	38.91
2	Vakhitov	81,995	25.82
3	Kirov	108,681	108.79
4	Moscow	129,834	38.81
5	New Savinovo	206,249	20.66
6	Volga Region	220,735	115.77
7	Soviet	275,970	167

Mayor

Mayor is the head of the city. İlsur Metşin has been the mayor of Kazan since November 17, 2005

City Duma

Kazan City Duma is a representative body of the city, elected every four years.

Executive committee

Executive committee is a municipal body of the executive organs. Committee's head is Rafis Burganov, since January 17, 2008.

Tatarstan government

Kazan hosts Tatarstan President's residence and administration (in Kremlin), Tatarstan's Cabinet of Ministers and Council of State (on Freedom square).

Economy

Kazan is one of the largest industrial and financial centres of Russia, and a leading city of the Volga economic region in construction and accumulated investment.^[19] City's Gross Regional Product had reached 306 bln roubles (~$10 bln) in 2010.^[20]

Total banking capital of Kazan banks is third in Russia.^[21] The main industries of the city are: mechanical engineering, chemical, petrochemical, light and food industries. An innovative economy is represented by the largest IT-park in Russia which is one of the largest of its kind amongst Eastern Europe science parks.^[22]^[23] Kazan ranks 174th (highest in Russia) in Mercer’s Worldwide Quality of Living Survey.^[24]

Transport

Kazan International Airport

File:Prospect Pobedy Kazan.jpg

"Prospect Pobedy" metro station

Kazan International Airport is located 26 kilometers from the city centre. It is a hub for Tatarstan Airlines and hosts 11 air companies. Airport is connected with city by bus route #97. There is also the Kazan Borisoglebskoye airfield, home to Kazan Aircraft Production Association, a major aircraft factory.

Railways

Kazan is connected with Moscow, Ulyanovsk, Yoshkar-Ola and Yekaterinburg by railways.

Main railway station "Kazan passazhirsky" is located in the city centre and includes main building (built in 1896), commuter trains terminal, ticket office building and some other technical buildings. Station serves 36 intercity trains and more than 8 million passengers per annum.^[25]

There is a second terminal in the northern part of city, it serves only one intercity train. Reconstruction of the Northern terminal has been frozen.

Kazan city has also 19 platforms for commuter trains

Riverside station

Station serves intercity ships and commuter boats. Pneumocushion boats are used in winter time. Daily passenger turnover reaches 6 thousands.

Bus station

There are two bus stations in Kazan — Central and Southern. Bus routes connect Kazan with all districts of Tatarstan, Samara, Ufa, Tolyatti, Orenburg, Ulyanovsk, Cheboksary, Sterlitamak, Buzuluk, Baki and Aktobe. It is planned to build new stations in the East, West and North districts instead of Central for relieving city centre.

Highways

There are federal highway connections to Moscow and Ufa (E-22), Orenburg (R-239), Ul'yanovsk (R-241) and Igra (R-242). There are also R-175 federal highway and «Northern Europe — Western China» (in construction) route near the city.

There are five bridges across the Kazanka (Qazansu) river in the city, and one bridge connecting Kazan with the opposite bank of the Volga.

Public transit

A single-line Kazan Metro, the north-southeast Central Line, opened on 27 August 2005. The Kazan Metro has seven stations, but there are plans to extend the line in both directions and is due to cross the Kazanka river with the stations "Dekabristov", "Moskovskaya", "Aviastroitel`naya" in 2012. Single trip costs 13-15 rub.
The Kazan tram system was founded in 1899. 8 routes use 187 km (116.20 mi) of lines and 197 tramcars.^[26] Single trip costs 10-12 rub. Rolling stock: LM-99, 71-608, 71-605.
The Kazan trolleybus system was founded in 1948. 355 km (220.59 mi) of lines are used for 14 routes.^[27] Single trip costs 13-15 rub. Vehicles: ZIU-682, Trolza-5275-05 "Optima", VMZ-5298.01-50 "Avangard".
The Kazan bus system was totally renovated in 2007. 91 routes have an aggregate length of 1981 km. All 1444 buses are colored red. Single trip costs 16-18 rub. Buses are produced by "Golden Dragon", "Higer", "NefAZ", "MAZ", "Yutong", "Hyundai", "Bogdan"

Sports

Men's teams:

Ice hockey (KHL) - Ak Bars Kazan (2-time KHL champions; 4-time champion; 2007 IIHF European Champions Cup & 2008 IIHF Continental Cup winner)
Football (Russian Premier League) - FC Rubin Kazan (2-time champion)
Basketball (Russian Basketball Super League) - UNICS Kazan (2-time Cup holder; 2004 FIBA Europe League winner; 2011 Eurocup winner)
Volleyball (Russian Superleague) - VC Zenit Kazan (3-time champion; 2008 CEV Champions League winner)
Water polo (Higher League) - Sintez (2007 champion; 2005 Cup holder; 2007 LEN Cup winner)
Bandy (Higher League) - Dynamo^[28] (2009 Russian Cup holder,^[29] 2009 FIB Champions Cup winner, 2010 Bandy World Cup winner)
Rugby (Russian League) - Strela (6-time champion)
Field hockey (Russian League) - Dinamo (5-time champion)
Team handball - KAI-Zilant (dissolved in 2008);
Futsal - Privolzhanin (dissolved in 2004);

Famous athletes

Viktor Kolotov - football player
Ruslan Nigmatullin - football player
Denis Arkhipov - hockey player
Svetlana Demina - sport shooter

Infrastructure

Central stadium - olympic stadium, capacity 30,133. Home ground for FC «Rubin». Also, new football arena with capacity 45,000 is under construction and has to be ready in 2012-2013.
TatNeft Arena - indoor sporting arena, capacity 10,000. Home to HSC «Aq Bars»
Basket-Hall - indoor sporting arena, capacity 7,000 (large hall) and 1,500 (small hall). Home to BC «UNICS»
«Rubin» stadium, capacity 10,000. Home to FC «Rubin-2»
Volleyball centre, capacity 4,600. Home to VC «Zenit» and WVC «Dynamo-Kazan»
Field Hockey centre, capacity 2,700.
«Raketa» and «Trudoviye Rezervi» ice stadiums

Important events

Kazan is the host city for the 2013 Summer Universiade and 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Kazan will host 2011 weightlifting Europe championship
2005 and 2011 Bandy World Championships
2008 ice hockey juniors world championship
2008 boxing students world championship
2007 field hockey Europe championship

International relations

Branch Offices of Embassies

Branch Office of the Embassy of Belarus^[30]

Consulates

Two consulates general are found in Kazan.^[31]

Consulate-General of Iran.
Consulate-General of Turkey.

Visa centers

Italian Visa Center in Kazan.^[32]
Joint Visa Application Center of European Union for Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Iceland, Malta, Netherlands, Spain^[33]

Twin towns — Sister cities

Kazan is twinned with^[34]: Template:Multicol

Al Qalyubiyah (Egypt), since 2001
Al Minufiyah (Egypt), since 1997
Antalya (Turkey), since 2003
Astana (Kazakhstan), since 2004
Braunschweig (Germany), since 1988
College Station, Texas (USA), since 1990

Template:Multicol-break

Donetsk (Ukraine), since 2002
Eskişehir (Turkey), since 1997
Hangzhou (People's Republic of China), since 2002
Istanbul (Turkey), since 2002
Tabriz (Iran), since 2009

Template:Multicol-end

Kazan has also partner relations with the following cities and regions:

Template:Multicol

Almaty (Kazakhstan), since 1996
Arkhangelsk (Russia), since 1999
Astrakhan (Russia), since 1997
Baku (Azerbaijan), since 2003
Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), since 1998
Chelyabinsk (Russia), since 2002
Evpatoria (Ukraine), since 1998
Ivanovo (Russia), since 1997
Jūrmala (Latvia), since 2002
Kabul (Afghanistan), since 2005
Krasnoyarsk (Russia), since 2001
Nizhny Novgorod (Russia), since 1997
Oryol (Russia), since 2010