 | You can helpexpand this article with text translated fromthe corresponding article in Russian. (March 2016)Click [show] for important translation instructions.
|
TheVolga region, known as thePovolzhye (UK:/pəˈvɔːlʒeɪ/pə-VAWL-zhay,US:/pəˈvoʊlʒeɪ/pə-VOHL-zhay;Russian:Поволжье[pɐˈvoɫʐje]lit. 'Along the Volga'), is a historical region inRussia that encompasses thedrainage basin of theVolga River, the longest river in Europe, in central and southernEuropean Russia.
The Volga region is culturally separated into three sections:
The geographic boundaries of the region are vague, and the termVolga region is used to refer primarily to the Middle and Lower sections, which are included in theVolga Federal District andVolga economic region.
The Volga Region is almost entirely within theEast European Plain, with a notable distinction contrasting the elevated western side featuring theVolga Upland, and the eastern side known asTransvolga (Russian:Заволжье,Zavolžje). The latter consists of the elevated High Transvolga and thelowland Low Transvolga.[citation needed] TheIdel-Ural region, a collection of sixfederal subjects between the Volga River and theUral Mountains, is generally considered as a part of the Volga Region, although the river does not run through each of them. Idel-Ural is within an extensive north-western protrusion of the Volga River'sdrainage basin, including numeroustributaries such as theMalaya Kokshaga River. It also includes sub-tributaries, such as theBelaya River which joins the Kama River, a tributary of the Volga.[citation needed]
According to different sources, the region was mainly inhabited by Slavic, Turkic and Viking people.[1][2] The Povolzhye played an important part of the emergence of theRus' Khaganate. The Volga River was used mainly by traders from the Oriental and Viking world.[3]
The region is home to a large portion of Russia's population, with the major cities ofYaroslavl,Kostroma,Nizhny Novgorod,Cheboksary,Kazan,Ulyanovsk,Tolyatti,Samara,Saratov,Volgograd andAstrakhan all located directly on the Volga River. Other major cities on tributaries of the Volga includeRyazan,Dzerzhinsk,Kaluga andOryol on the Oka River,Penza on theSura River,Perm andNaberezhnye Chelny on the Kama River,Yoshkar-Ola on the Malaya Kokshaga River, andDimitrovgrad on theBolshoy Cheremshan River.[citation needed]
Major cities located on tributaries of the Volga's tributaries includeMoscow, the largest city andcapital of Russia, on theMoskva River, a tributary of the Oka River.Kirov is located on theVyatka River, andUfa,Sterlitamak andSalavat are located on the Belaya River, both tributaries of the Kama River.
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of July 2025 (link)55°00′00″N50°00′00″E / 55.0000°N 50.0000°E /55.0000; 50.0000
