Kazan

This article is about the capital city of Tatarstan. For other uses, see Kazan (disambiguation).

"Kasan" redirects here. For places in Iran, see Kasan, Iran.

Kazan Казань
City of republic significance
Other transcription(s)
• Tatar	Казан
Left to right, top to bottom: Spasskaya Tower, Söyembikä Tower, Qol Sharif Mosque; Palace of farmers, Epiphany Cathedral; View of Kazan
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Kazan
Kazan Location of Kazan Kazan Kazan (Tatarstan)
Coordinates: 55°47′27″N 49°6′52″E
Country	Russia
Federal subject	Tatarstan
Founded	1005 (see text)
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	1,143,535
• Estimate  (2018)	1,243,500 (+8.7%)
• Rank	8th in 2010
• Density	2,700/km2 (7,000/sq mi)
Administrative status
• Subordinated to	city of republic significance of Kazan
• Capital of	Republic of Tatarstan
• Capital of	city of republic significance of Kazan
Municipal status
• Urban okrug	Kazan Urban Okrug
• Capital of	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, IPA: [kɐˈzanʲ]; Template:Lang-tt) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,143,535, it is the eighth most populous city in Russia. Kazan lies at the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka Rivers in European Russia. The Kazan Kremlin is a World Heritage Site.

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" and it still is referred to as such. The city hosted the 2013 Summer Universiade, 2014 World Fencing Championships, the 2015 World Aquatics Championships, and one of the host cities for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

In 2015, Kazan was visited by 2.1 million tourists, which is a 20% increase in comparison with 2014. The Kazan Kremlin was visited by 1.5 million tourists in 2015 and hotel and entertainment complex with aquapark called “Kazan Riviera” was visited by 1 million tourists

Etymology

The origin of the name Kazan is uncertain. The most accepted legends derive it from the Bulgar (and also modern Tatar) word qazan, which means 'boiler' or 'cauldron'. One legend claims that the city was named after the river Kazanka, which was named after the son of a Bulgar governor dropped a copper cauldron into it. Other local legends, including research by the Tatar scholar Shigabetdin Marjani, claim that the city was named for the resemblance of the hill on which it sits to an upturned cauldron.

History

Main articles: History of Kazan and Timeline of Kazan

Middle Ages

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 was 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 Baghdad. 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, either the surviving Bulgars recuperated in numbers and were assimilated by a small number of Kipchaks from whom they adopted their language (a position known as Bulgarism), or Kipchaks and Bulgars intermixed to create the modern Kazan Tatar population. Kazan became a center of a duchy which was a dependency of the Golden Horde. Two centuries later, in the 1430s, Kipchak descendants of Genghis Khan, 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. Craft-based manufacturing also thrived, as the city gained a reputation for its leather and gold goods, as well as for the opulence of its palaces and mosques. 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 period

Annunciation Cathedral of Kazan Kremlin, 1561–1562

As a result of the Siege of Kazan, Russia under Ivan the Terrible conquered the city and massacred the majority of the population. During the governorship of Alexander Gorbatyi-Shuisky, most of the khanate's Tatar residents were killed or forcibly Christianized, the Kerashen Tatars. Mosques and palaces were ruined. The surviving Tatar population was moved to a place 50 kilometers (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.

Russian Empire period

Kazan city map from the 19th century, Russian edition

In 1708, the Tsardom of Kazan was abolished, and Kazan became the seat of Kazan Governorate. After Peter the Great's visit, the city became a center of shipbuilding for the Caspian fleet. The major Russian poet Gavrila 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 (1774–1776), an uprising by border troops and peasants led by the Don Cossack ataman (Captain) Yemelyan Pugachev, but the city, formerly largely of timber construction, was soon afterwards rebuilt, using stone and according to a grid pattern plan, during the reign of Catherine the Great. Catherine also decreed that mosques could again be built in Kazan, the first being Marjani Mosque.

At 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 the 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 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 period

Dmitry Medvedev visits Kazan

In the late 1980s and in the 1990s, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Kazan again became the center of Tatar culture and identity, and separatist tendencies intensified. With the return of capitalism, Kazan became one of the most important centers of the Russian Federation. The city went from 10th to 8th position in population ranking of Russian cities. In the late 2000s, the city earned 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 the Kremlin - has been rebuilt, however a large number of the city's historical districts were completely demolished in the renovation. Kazan celebrated its millennium in 2005, after a city-organized historical commission settled on 1005 as the official year of the city's founding. During the millennium celebrations, one of the largest mosque in Russia, Qolsharif, was dedicated in the Kazan Kremlin, the holiest copy of Our Lady of Kazan was returned to the city, the "Millennium Bridge" was inaugurated that year, and the Kazan Metro began operation. The government of the Russian Federation released the Medal "In Commemoration of the 1000th Anniversary of Kazan". In 2010, for the preparations to the 2013 Universiade, Kazan began even more renovation by modernizing its airport, fixing the streets, enhancing public transport, and adopting Russian, English, and Tatar languages in all transportation, large stores, and shopping centers.

Administrative and municipal status

Kazan is the capital of the republic. Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated as the city of republic significance of Kazan—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the districts. As a municipal division, the city of republic significance of Kazan is incorporated as Kazan Urban Okrug.

City divisions

City districts of Kazan

Kazan is divided into seven districts:

No.	District	Population	Area (km²)
1	Aviastroitelny	111,405	38.91
2	Vakhitovsky	86,202	25.82
3	Kirovsky	109,125	108.79
4	Moskovsky	130,537	38.81
5	Novo-Savinovsky	202,997	20.66
6	Privolzhsky	227,755	115.77
7	Sovetsky	275,514	167.00

Economy

Main article: Economy of Kazan

Kazan is one of the largest industrial and financial centers of Russia, and a leading city of the Volga economic region in construction and accumulated investment. City's Gross Regional Product had reached 380 billion rubles in 2011.(RUS) Казань побила рекорд по инвестициям

Total banking capital of Kazan banks is third in Russia. 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 among Eastern Europe science parks. Kazan ranks 174th (highest in Russia) in Mercer’s Worldwide Quality of Living Survey.

Investments

In 2011 city organisations and businesses attract more than 87 billion rubles for economy and social sphere development. This is 44% more than 2010 number. In 2014 businesses attracts 86 billion rubles. Most of them have been implemented in real economy sector.

Because of unstable economic situation within the country, there is a decrease of investment rates in 2015 and according to the statistics of the first part of the year it composed 51684.2 million rubles.

There are head offices of 6 companies that are in rating of top-500 in terms of revenues in Russia. Total square of city business centres is 330 thousand square metres.

Innovative economy in Kazan is represented by the biggest IT-park in Russia and also the biggest technical park in Europe. The only one online platform for governmental trade except the Moscow one is operated in Kazan. During post-soviet period Kazan was the leader in terms of house construction in Volga region and now it holds the position and implement Republican program of liquidation of dilapidated housing which was unique for Russia.

According to Forbes, Kazan has a 15th place in “Best cities for business in Russia” rating of 2010. Then in 2012 Kazan gets a 6th place in Quality of city environment rating, which is made by Russian Federation Ministry of Regional Development, Russian Alliance of Engineers, Federal Construction Agency, Federal Service of Supervision of Consumer Protection and Welfare and Moscow Federal University.

Transportation

Kazan International Airport

Night aerial view of Kazan

Bridge over Bolaq channel

City bus

Kazan International Airport is located 26 kilometers (16 mi) from the city center. It is a hub for Tatarstan Airlines and Kazan Air Enterprise and hosts eleven 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, famous in the past as "Aircraft Plant 22" ("22nd Zavod").

Adjacent to it lies a huge aircraft engines plant ("16th Zavod"). It produces versions of Tupolev 204 and 214 aircraft. In the past an Ilyushin-62, four-engine Russian mainliner, Tupolev-160 "Black Jack" supersonic strategic bomber and Tu-22M tactic bomber were also produced here. Both these plants and adjacent workers' housing make a whole city district known as "Aviastroitelny" ("Aircraft Builders").

Railways

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

The main railway station Kazan–Passazhirskaya is located in the city centre and includes a main building (built in 1896), a commuter trains terminal, a ticket office building and some other technical buildings. Station serves thirty-six intercity trains and more than eight million passengers per annum. The second terminus called "Kazan-2" is situated in the northern part of the city. Kazan also has nineteen platforms for commuter trains.

Riverside station

This station serves intercity ships and commuter boats. Pneumocushion boats are used in winter. Daily passenger turnover reaches 6 thousand.

Bus stations

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 20 rub.
• The Kazan tram system was founded in 1899. 8 routes use 187 km (116.20 mi) of lines and 197 tramcars. Single trip costs 20 rub. Rolling stock: LM-99, 71-608, 71-605.
• The Kazan trolleybus (electric bus) system was founded in 1948. 355 km (220.59 mi) of lines are used for 14 routes. Single trip costs 20 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 1,981 km (1,231 mi). All 1444 buses are colored red. Single trip costs 20 rub. Unlike in most Western cities, public bus routes are not municipal, operated by private companies and therefore are very efficient. Most of buses are imported, produced by "Golden Dragon", "Higer", "NefAZ", "MAZ", "Yutong", "Hyundai", "Bogdan"
• Travel cards that work within the metropolitan area reduce travel to 15 rub on trolley buses and buses, and offer considerable discounts on the metro line. These travel cards can be purchased from the post office.
• On July 1, 2013 the Veli’k bicycle sharing system was launched in Kazan. The system includes 7 self-service bicycle docking stations distributed throughout the centre of Kazan near the most popular city destinations, and 100 bikes. The service is open to everyone from 16 years of age. To access the service, you have to complete a simple sign-up procedure at www.Veli-k.ru, and buy a subscription for a suitable period of time. The first 30 minutes of every journey is free of charge. After the first half hour, a service charge applies.

Tourism

A lot of tourists visited Kazan Kremlin, the monument of UNESCO World Heritage list and other Kazan sights in any time of the year. Kazan circus, Sky complex “Kazan” and hotel and entertainment complex “Kazan Riviera” work mainly for republic residents and guests from the neighbor regions. Kazan registered trademarks, such as “Third capital of Russia” , “Third capital”, “Third city of Russia”, “Third city” and “Russia’s third capital” are aimed to attract new investments.

During 2015, Kazan was visited by more than 2,1 million tourists, which is 20% more than in 2014. Kazan Kremlin was visited by 1,5 million tourists, hotel and entertainment complex “Kazan Riviera” about 1 million tourists.

Kazan International Airport accepts 1million 680 thousands and 984 passengers in the period from January to November 2015. Regular international flights are operated to Istanbul (Turkey), Dubai (UAE), Helsinki (Finland) etc. In 2015 new flights to Almaty and Astana were opened.

Kazan Hotel complex is represented by 161 hotels with 7400 rooms, including 34 hostels. 5 hotels of international hotel chains are operated in Kazan: «Ibis», «ParkInnbyRadisson», «CourtyardbyMarriott», «Ramada» и «Double Tree by Hilton». Such hotel chains like “Sheraton” and “Rixos” are also interested in Kazan market. Three hotels have 5 stars classification: “Mirage”, “Korston” and “Luciano”. 6 more hotels were open in 2015. It brings 8% increase in room numbers.

File:Gastronomic festival.jpg

Like never before, 2015 was very eventful for Kazan. Another tourist season started from festival of Alla Duhova TODES ballet studios. It was held with Kazan Mayor’s office support from 24 to 26 April. New gastronomic festival called “Delicious Kazan” has become one more unexampled event in 2015. It was held during the May holidays and located on the Kaban Lake embankment in Old Tatar Settlement. Program of festival includes cooking master classes, good-food seminars, art-performances and national Tatar music. 26 restaurants- participants each day cooked something new and interesting for their guests. Besides that, guests can participate voting for the best national cuisine dish.

Opening of regular Kaban lake excursions is one more important event that was hold in Old Tatar Settlement during May holidays. Residents and guests were offered to hear a 45 minutes excursion in 5 languages- Russian, German, English, Chinese and Tatar.

Surely, such program of the first touristic months affects Kazan ratings. According to Trivago portal Kazan is in top 5 cities in Russia, including Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi, where tourists spend their May holidays from 1 to 10 May.

Other service of online booking Oktogo.ru creates ratings for Mays holidays and 9 May. According to these ratings, Kazan is in Top 3 for tourists.

For the first time in 2015 hotel gets 90% bookings. Average holiday time in Kazan was 3 days and average hotel booking from 1–3 May was 90-95%.

Such successful start was continued by Kazan CycleNight project. Second Cycle night was held in Kazan on the 30th May 2015 and unite more than 5000 participants. The length of the route was about 35 kilometers and it was go through main Kazan sights.

For the creation of hospitable atmosphere in anticipation of FINA Aquatics Championship, new project called «I help Kazan» was launched on the 1st of July 2015. The uniqueness of I help Kazan project is that, it creates a favorable climate for the comfort of the tourists. It contributes to the promotion of Kazan as an attractive tourist destination. And it gives to the people who helped us an ability to gain new knowledge, skills, contacts, experience, positive emotions and gifts.

Targeted programs are designed to create available information environment, to increase customer focus and service quality in the tourism industry facilities, creating a portrait of the tourist. And all this happening because of the community of open friendly citizens, who will smile, despite the weather, and find a few minutes to indicate the lost person right road. Motivation program also exists within «I help Kazan» project. Each member gain scores for activity and then can change scores on symbolized badge, cap, T-shirt or bag.

File:Buddy Bears.jpg

Such project for the first time implemented in Russia. This is a leading experience of active participation of residents in the strategy of tourist industry development in the region.

On the 8th August within «I help Kazan»project thousand people join their hands near the Kazan Kremlin to demonstrate love to the city and hug the Kremlin.

Especially for the festive atmosphere of closing FINA 2015 Championship JSC “Bakery plant” baked an amazing chak-chak (national Tatar dish) that weights several tons. The dish that is well known by all country as a symbol of Tatarstan has been painted with the national ornament and baked in the form of Spasskaya Tower of Kazan Kremlin. Each member of this grand event can try this food masterpiece. Main Russian TV channels have been translated this flash mob that unites more than 2000 people.

Opening of International Art Exhibition «United Buddy Bears - The Minis in Kazan» was hold in anticipation of FINA Aquatics Championship from 1 July to 31 August on the Kazan family center embankment. Kazan becomes the first city in Russia, who holds this exhibition. The exhibition won the hearts of Kazan citizens and guests. This can be seen on more than 15 thousand photos that were published in Instagram with special hashtag.

File:FINA KAZAN.jpg

And of course the most significant event of 2015 year was FINA Aquatics Championship holding from 24 July to 16 August. The guests were accommodating in 29 hotels and Universiade Village. During 16th FINA Aquatics Championship Kazan was visited by 170 thousand students. Average hotel bookings were 95%. According to the Department of National Migration Service Kazan was visited mostly by tourists from Germany, Ukraine, Turkey, USA, China, France and Italy. Also Kazan was visited by Japan, Korean, Canadian and Australian tourists.

From 16 to 18 October Kazan holds First International Festival of Argentinian Tango- FUEGO DE LA NOCHE KAZAN. Festival unites tango stars and just lovers from all over the world. Best tango dancers and teachers from Argentina take part in this event.

From 23 to 31 December on the 1st of May square Aeroflot company with Mayor’s office support represented New Year’s light show, which was visited by 20 thousand people.

During 2015 Kazan was represented on International Tourist exhibition MITT in Moscow, Kazan international tourism and sport exhibition KITS 2015, Pacific International Tourist Exhibition “PITE” in Vladivostok, «Beijing International Tourism Expo – 2015» in Beijing and World Travel Market 2015 in London. Kazan represented its tourist potential, traditions, dances and national food.

Moreover, in the beginning of 2015 Kazan won Russian grant for “Amazing Kazan” cycle route creation. This cycle excursion route starts and finishes near the Kazan Kremlin and goes through main historical sights of the city. It was officially opened on 23 October 2015.

Kazan was also represented in National tourism awards «Russian Event Awards», which was awarded to the winners of open voting in the event industry. Kazan hotel and trade center “Korston Kazan” won Gran Prix in nomination “Best platform for event tourism development” and Kazan Tango festival «Fuego de la noche Kazan» got the third place in “Best idea” nomination

File:Hospitality Stars.jpg

At the end of 2015 new Contest of professionalism in tourist industry “Stars of Hospitality” was launched for the first time in Kazan. The main purpose of the contest is to create an image of perfect worker in tourism industry. There are six nominations such as “Best hotel administrator/receptionist”, “Best maid”, “Best manager of inbound tourism”, “Best guide”, “Best waiter” and “Best bartender”.

Demographics

Population

Population of Kazan since 1800

Population: 1,143,535 (2010 Census); 1,105,289 (2002 Census); 1,094,378 (1989 Soviet census). Kazan metropolitan area's population is 1.57 mln.

Rating of city population as on 1 January 2015

Place in the World	Place in Europe	Place in Former USSR	Place in Russia	Place in region
	24	13	6	1

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	1,143,535 (census)

Ethnicity

Main articles: Islam in Tatarstan and Kazan ethnic communities

Young women in the street, outside Kazan University

The city's population consists mostly of ethnic Russians (48.6%) and ethnic Tatars (47.6%). The other ethnicities are Chuvash, Ukrainians, Azerbaijanis, Vietnamese, and Jews.

Religion

Predominant faiths of Kazan city are Sunni Islam and Eastern Orthodoxy with Catholicism, Protestantism, Judaism and the Bahá'í Faith also counted.

Languages

Tatar and Russian languages are widely spoken in the city. Russian is understood by everyone except for some older Tatars. Tatar is widely spoken mainly by Tatars.

Climate

Kazan has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) with long, cold winters (colder than Moscow), and warm, often dry summers. As a result of its far inland position, summers are extremely warm for its latitude and winters are quite cold compared to areas further west in Europe.

The warmest month is July with daily mean temperature near 20.2 °C (68.4 °F), and the coldest month is January, with a daily mean of −10.4 °C (13.3 °F).

Climate data for Kazan
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	4.5 (40.1)	5.2 (41.4)	14.0 (57.2)	29.5 (85.1)	33.5 (92.3)	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)	−7.2 (19.0)	−6.7 (19.9)	−0.2 (31.6)	10.2 (50.4)	19.0 (66.2)	23.6 (74.5)	25.5 (77.9)	22.9 (73.2)	16.3 (61.3)	8.1 (46.6)	−1.0 (30.2)	−5.8 (21.6)	8.7 (47.7)
Daily mean °C (°F)	−10.4 (13.3)	−10.1 (13.8)	−3.9 (25.0)	5.5 (41.9)	13.3 (55.9)	18.1 (64.6)	20.2 (68.4)	17.6 (63.7)	11.7 (53.1)	4.8 (40.6)	−3.4 (25.9)	−8.6 (16.5)	4.6 (40.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−13.5 (7.7)	−13.3 (8.1)	−7.2 (19.0)	1.7 (35.1)	8.3 (46.9)	13.4 (56.1)	15.5 (59.9)	13.3 (55.9)	8.2 (46.8)	2.2 (36.0)	−5.6 (21.9)	−11.4 (11.5)	1.0 (33.8)
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)	41 (1.6)	34 (1.3)	33 (1.3)	30 (1.2)	41 (1.6)	63 (2.5)	67 (2.6)	59 (2.3)	52 (2.0)	53 (2.1)	46 (1.8)	43 (1.7)	562 (22.1)
Average rainy days	3	2	4	11	15	18	16	16	18	17	10	5	135
Average snowy days	26	22	16	6	1	0	0	0	1	7	20	24	123
Average relative humidity (%)	84	80	76	67	58	65	68	70	75	80	85	84	74
Mean monthly sunshine hours	49	89	150	205	282	293	291	254	160	84	41	33	1,931
Source 1: Pogoda.ru.net
Source 2: NOAA (sun, 1961–1990)

Central Kazan

Kremlin

Main article: Kazan Kremlin

Nurulla Mosque

Belltower of Epiphany Church

The city has a citadel (Russian: кремль, tr. kreml', or sometimes Tatar: kirman), which was declared a World Heritage Site in 2000. Major monuments in the kremlin are the five-domed six-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 the 1900s 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 program "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. 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. 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

Both banks of Kazanka

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, 43 sports school, and 10 fine-arts schools, including the Kazan Art School founded in 1895.

Higher education

See also: List of Kazan Universities

Kazan Federal University

Main building of Tatarstan Academy of Sciences

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
• Volga Region State Academy of Physical Culture, Sport and Tourism - founded in July, 2010 in the framework of the XXVII World Summer Universiade Legacy. The branch, located in Naberezhnye Chelny, will proceed functioning.

Science

Kazan is a major scientific centre in Russia. Kazan formed a big number of scientific areas and schools (mathematical, chemical, medical, linguistic, geological, geobotanical, etc.). Scientific discoveries are a subject of special pride, including: 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. The city hosts:

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

Public health

1814 year is considered to be an official year of the beginning of scientific medicine in Kazan. Exactly at that time University Hospital was open. In 1930 Faculty of Medicine is separated from the Kazan Federal University and holds a lot of specialized hospitals under its patronage. Nowadays Kazan becomes the largest public health center in Russia. 120 medical organisations are operated in the city. Kazan Interregional clinical-diagnostic center is the largest in Volga region in cardiovascular and neurological diseases. The largest hospital in Kazan is Republican Clinical Hospital.

Government and administration

Kazan town hall (before 1917 - the Hall of Nobility)

Cabinet of Ministers

Mayor

See also: List of Kazan mayors

İlsur Metşin became the mayor of Kazan in November 17, 2005.

City Duma

Kazan City Duma is a representative body of the city, elected every four years and holds its sessions in Kazan City Hall.

Executive committee

Executive committee is a municipal body of the executive organs . The committee's head is Denis Kalinkin.

Government of the Republic of Tatarstan

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

Sports

"Basket-hall"

Kazan now is one of the most developed city in Russia in terms of sport. The city hosts two World Championships in Field Hockey in 2005 and 2011, World Summer Universiade 2013, World Championship in fencing in 2014, Aquatics Championship FINA 2015 and other international competitions of various levels. In future city will held 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup.

City is a leader in terms of winnings in various sports including most popular teams sports.

Men's teams:

Club	Sport	Founded	Current League	League Rank	Stadium
Rubin Kazan	Football	1936	Russian Premier League	1st	Kazan Arena
Rubin-2 Kazan	Football	1997	Russian Second Division	3rd	Rubin Stadium
Ak Bars Kazan	Ice Hockey	1956	Kontinental Hockey League	1st	Tatneft Arena
Bars Kazan	Ice Hockey	2009	Minor Hockey League	Jr. 1st	Tatneft Arena
Irbis Kazan	Ice Hockey	2011	Minor Hockey League Division B	Jr. 2nd	Tatneft Arena
Dynamo Kazan	Bandy	1958	Bandy Super League	1st	Raketa Stadium
UNICS Kazan	Basketball	1991	Professional Basketball League	1st	Basket-Hall Arena
Zenit Kazan	Volleyball	2000	Volleyball Super League	1st	Kazan Volleyball Centre
Sintez Kazan	Water Polo	1974	Water Polo Championship	1st	Orgsintez

Notable athletes

• Alexander Burmistrov, hockey player
• Viktor Kolotov, association football player
• Ruslan Nigmatullin, association football player
• Denis Arkhipov, hockey player
• Svetlana Demina, sport shooter
• Marat Safin, tennis player
• Dinara Safina, tennis player
• Alexander Fadeev, figure skater
• Danis Zaripov, hockey player

Infrastructure

• Kazan Arena - stadium with capacity 45,000, Universiade games have been held here.
• Central stadium - Olympic stadium, capacity 30,133. Home ground for FC «Rubin».
• 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 center, capacity 4,600. Home to VC «Zenit» and WVC «Dynamo-Kazan»
• Field Hockey center, capacity 2,700.
• «Raketa» and «Trudovye Rezervy» ice stadiums
• Sports palace, ice hockey stadium
• Kazan hippodrome
• Ski complex "Kazan"

Important events

• 2019 WorldSkills Championship
• Kazan is the host city for the 2013 Summer Universiade, 2015 World Aquatics Championships, 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup.
• 2016 - 48th International Chemistry Olympiad
• 2011 European Weightlifting Championships
• 2005 and 2011 Bandy World Championship
• 2010 finswimming European championship
• 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

Consulates

Two consulates general are found in Kazan.

• Consulate-General of Iran
• Consulate-General of Turkey
• Consulate- General of Hungary
• Consulate- General of Kazakhstan

Visa centers

• Italian Visa Center in Kazan.
• Joint Visa Application Center of European Union for:
  • Bulgaria
  • Czech Republic
  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • Greece
  • Iceland
  • Malta
  • Netherlands
  • Spain

Twin towns and sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Russia

Kazan is twinned with: 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, United States, since 1990

• Donetsk (Ukraine), since 2002
• Eskişehir (Turkey), since 1997
• Hangzhou (China), since 2002
• Istanbul (Turkey), since 2002
• Tabriz (Iran), since 2009
• Harare (Zimbabwe), since 2011
• Shenzhen (China), since 2012
• Guangzhou (China), since 2012
• Ankara (Turkey), since 2013Template: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

• Orenburg (Russia), since 2001
• Samara (Russia), since 1998
• Saratov (Russia), since 1999
• Shumen Province (Bulgaria), since 2003
• Tashkent (Uzbekistan), since 1998
• Ufa (Russia), since 1999
• Ulan-Ude (Russia), since 2003
• Ulyanovsk (Russia), since 1998
• Urbino (Italy), since 2001
• Volgograd (Russia), since 2005
• Yaroslavl (Russia), since 2003
• Yoshkar-Ola (Russia), since 2002
• Oryol (Russia), since 2010
• Tlemcen (Algeria), since 2011
• Verona (Italy), since 2011
• Grozny (Russia), since 2012
• Tyumen (Russia), since 2013
• Gwangju (Korea), since 2013
• Chengdu (China), since 2015

International organizations membership

• Organization of World Heritage Cities
• United Cities and Local Governments . Mayor of Kazan is a co-presidetn of UCLG.
• Twin Cities International Association
• Historic Cities International Association
• General Conference of Mayors for Peace
• Organisation of Islamic Capitals and cities (observer)
• Metropolis
• International Assembly of capitals and large cities of CIS

Kazan has an Alliance française center.

Kazan has an American Corner.

Famous people

Main article: List of people from Kazan

• Rashid Nezhmetdinov, International Master and 5-time winner of the Russian Chess Championship
• Dayana Kirillova, singer who represented Russia at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in 2013.
• Sofya Gulyak, Pianist, only female winner of The Leeds Piano Competition, in 2009.

References

Sources

• Министерство юстиции Республики Татарстан. Приказ №01-02/9 от 4 февраля 2014 г. «Об утверждении реестра административно-территориальных единиц и населённых пунктов в Республике Татарстан», в ред. Приказа №01-02/160 от 11 марта 2015 г. «О внесении изменений в Приказ Министерства юстиции Республики Татарстан от 04.02.2014 №01-02/9 "Об утверждении реестра административно-территориальных единиц и населённых пунктов в Республике Татарстан"». Опубликован: Официальный сайт правовой информации Министерства юстиции Республики Татарстан (http://pravo.tatarstan.ru), 27 февраля 2014 г. (Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Tatarstan. Order #01-02/9 of February 4, 2014 On the Adoption of the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units and Inhabited Localities in the Republic of Tatarstan, as amended by the Order #01-02/160 of March 11, 2015 On Amending the Order of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Tatarstan #01-02/9 of February 4, 2014 "On the Adoption of the Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Units and Inhabited Localities in the Republic of Tatarstan". ).
• Государственный Совет Республики Татарстан. Закон №46-ЗРТ от 15 сентября 2004 г. «О границах территории и статусе муниципального образования города Казани», в ред. Закона №132-ЗРТ от 26 декабря 2014 г. «Об изменении границ территорий отдельных муниципальных образований и внесении изменений в Законы Республики Татарстан "О границах территории и статусе муниципального образования города Казани" и "Об установлении границ территорий и статусе муниципального образования "Лаишевский муниципальный район" и муниципальных образований в его составе"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Республика Татарстан", №191, 21 сентября 2004 г. (State Council of the Republic of Tatarstan. Law #46-ZRT of September 15, 2004 On the Borders of the Territory and the Status of the Municipal Formation of the City of Kazan, as amended by the Law #132-ZRT of December 26, 2014 On Changing the Borders of the Territories of Various Municipal Formations and on Amending the Laws of the Republic of Tatarstan "On the Borders of the Territory and the Status of the Municipal Formation of the City of Kazan" and "On Establishing the Borders of the Territories and the Status of the Municipal Formation of "Laishevsky Municipal District" and of the Municipal Formations It Comprises". Effective as of the official publication date.).
• Álvarez Veinguer, Aurora (July 2007). "(Re)Presenting Identities: National Archipelagos in Kazan". Nationalities Papers. 35 (3): 457–476. doi:10.1080/00905990701368704.

External links

• Official website of Kazan
• Official website of Kazan Template:Ru icon
• Kazan bird's-eye
• Kazan weekend guide
• Virtual Guide around Kazan
• The Kazan Times: Business and political news from Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia and all over the World
• Kazan city tourist portal
• Kazan millennium
• Universiade Kazan 2013
• Kazan 1000 years old
• The history of Islamic religion in Kazan
• Kazan - Global Stroll
• http://www.kazan-memory.uni-tuebingen.de/indexee.html - Student project about Kazan's history (central aspects: memory, religion)
• The architecture of Kazan Template:Ru icon
• Russia - Republic of Tatarstan - Kazan - photo galleries
• Kazan Travels