Other Russian Towns and Cities

Federal Subjects: Oblasts, Krais, Republics, Etc

The Russian Federation consists of subjects (analogous to US states). There are several ranks of subjects: the oblast ("area") is the most generic type, the krai ("territory") is usually more remote or close to borders, the respublika (republic) is a subject populated with an ethnicity other than Russian, and usually has some special rights; there are also "autonomous" districts or oblasts, that were part of another subject in Soviet times. The cities of Moscow and St.Petersburg are subjects in their own right, as is the Baikonur space launch facility that is surrounded by in Kazakhstan, but rented and administered by Russia.

Kaliningrad

Formerly Königsberg (it was German until 1945), this city is located in an exclave on the Baltic coast, boarding on Poland and Lithuania. It is also a military base. The Kaliningrad Oblast is the only federal subject that doesn't border any other subjects and is surrounded by foreign territory. The Oblast contains more than 90% of the world's amber deposits. Königsberg was the hometown of Immanuel Kant, who reportedly never travelled more than 100 miles from there. Also famous for its seven bridges.

Severomorsk

Located in the north-west of Russia, this closed city is the headquarters of the Northern Fleet of the Russian Navy.

Vladivostok

End of the Trans-Siberian railway in the far east of Russia. Home of the Pacific Fleet. Capital of the Primorski Krai, the southeasternmost of the subjects and the most settled one in the Russian Far East. The taiga forests of this krai are home to the Ussuri tiger and many other Far Eastern species. Famous for cheap Japanese cars (Japan is next door); near everyone drives a Japanese car in Vladivostok.

Volgograd

Once called Stalingrad, this city in southern Russia was the site of one of the most famous battles of World War Two. One of the largest cities in Southern Russia. The Motherland Statue is located here.

Volgograd Oblast also contains Uryupinsk, a town that enjoys the reputation of a stereotypical boring hicksville. The joke goes: When people from Uryupinsk die, they go either to heaven or back to Uryupinsk.

Chelyabinsk

An industrial city in the Ural mountains, capital of the Chelyabinsk oblast. Famous for the "Stern City" Memetic Mutation ; popular joke says that the people of Chelyabinsk are unrealistically manly, tough and stern (an old gag resurrected by the Nasha Russia TV show, which is responsible for so many MemeticMutations it's a wonder it doesn't have its own page yet). The oblast was the site of an infamous nuclear leakage in 1950s, and some areas are still radioactive.

Novosibirsk

The third largest city in Russia and the largest one in Siberia, also the home of quite a few heavy industry and military objects(namely, a SLBM storage that somehow ended up deep south and well away from, say, Murmansk and Novorossiysk(the Baltic/Northern Navy home ports, located far behind the north polar circle). Somewhat famous for having some of the components of the LHC built there(and in Russian internets, said collider inspired a lot of backdraft), and still considered a scientific center on par with, of course, Moscow and St. Petersburg. Temperatures drop to -45 degrees Celsius in winter, which reverts to +35 in summer - even if it's in the south, no one said Siberia wasn't harsh.

Samara (formerly known as Kuibyshev)

This city on the Volga river almost became the capital of Russia during the siege of Moscow during WWII; embassies, manufacturing plants and government facilities were evacuated there, but Stalin showed his courage and didn't leave Moscow.

The Samara Oblast also contains Togliatti/Tolyatti, the city where they make Alleged Cars.

Not to be confused with the Lada Samara series of cars, named after the city (and one of the models made in Togliatti).

Kazan (or Qazan in the Tatar language)

This city on the Volga is the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, home to Russia's largest ethnic minority, the Tatars (although most of them live outside Tatarstan nowadays). Their language belongs to the Turkic family and their main religion is Sunni Islam. This makes Kazan an important cultural centre for Russia's Muslim population. However, it is also an important site for Russian Orthodox believers, since Our Lady of Kazan is one of their holiest icons. Because of this the city's architecture reflects both Christian and Islamic influences. In 2009 Kazan acquired the exclusive right to the brand "Third Capital of Russia". The final scene of Quantum of Solace takes place there.

Rostov-on-Don

Located on the Don River in Southern Russia, this million-plus population city is a major port, with canals linking it to five seas. The Don region is home to the Don Cossack Host, the largest group of Russian Cossacks, although their HQ is in the neighbouring city of Novocherkassk.

Magnitogorsk

Just east of the Urals, this Stalin-era city was the centrepiece of the Five-Year Plans, especially its steel works. A closed city from 1937 to perestroika. A famous Soviet movie about its construction Vremya, vperyod! ("Time, Forward!") was released in 1956 and the theme from that movie was also used for the Soviet news programme Vremya.

Yekaterinburg (formerly known as Sverdlovsk)

Named after Catherine the Great Catherine I, Peter the Great's wife, it is the fourth largest city and the unofficial capital of the Urals, although people from Chelyabinsk may disagree (and if they disagree, you better run). One of Russia's oldest industrial centres at the heart of a region rich with mineral resources. Notable in the XX century history of Russia/USSR for being the place where Tsar Nicholas II and his family were executed, one of the largest suppliers for the war effort in World War II and the hometown of Boris Yeltsin, Russia's first post-Soviet president.

Sochi

A not so small resort town bordering the Black Sea, Sochi was chosen to host the 2014 Winter Olympics, edging out Pyeongchang, South Korea and Salzburg, Austria. This will be the first time Russia hosts The Olympics as the Russian Federation (1980 Summer Games doesn't technically count, as they were hosted by Moscow, USSR). It's also Russia's best resort, because the famous resorts of Crimea now belong to Ukraine.