The city, which played a large significant role in the history of Russia, today is a metropolis with a population of more than a million people. This article will help you take an excursion into the history of the city and answer the question of what Volgograd used to be called. During the entire history of its existence, it changed its name twice.
How Volgograd came to be
What was the name of the city before and how did it develop? It was founded at the end of the 16th century, but many researchers believe that the settlement existed a long time ago, even during the time of the Tatar-Mongol yoke. Along with Samara and Saratov, the city of Tsaritsyn was founded as a fortress by a garrison of military Cossacks and the local governor Grigory Zasekin at the behest of Ivan the Terrible after the conquest of the Astrakhan kingdom. There was active trade in the region with the Caspian territories, so there was an urgent need to ensure the safety of merchants carrying money and goods across from the raids of nomads. The fortress was guarded by archers on duty around the clock, who raised the garrison from the watchtowers upon an alarm signal.
City development
What was Volgograd called before, before 1925? Until that time he was called Tsaritsyn. The city began to develop rapidly, moving to the right bank of the great Russian Volga River after the final victory over the wild hordes. Its inhabitants were distinguished by their liveliness and enterprise, therefore, from a paramilitary settlement on the outskirts of the state, Tsaritsyn quickly took on the guise of a merchant city. But in subsequent centuries of its history, Tsaritsyn was often called “Ponizovaya freemen” by the people, since fugitive slaves and peasants from all over Rus' gathered in the Lower Volga. History has preserved the names of famous heroic fighters for the free life of the people - Stepan Razin, Kondraty Bulavin, Emelyan Pugachev.
How did Volgograd get its name?
Not everyone knows what the city was called before and what the history of each of its names is. Those who are not good at history are sure that Tsaritsyn was named in honor of Empress Catherine the Great. This is an incorrect assumption, although it is to her that he owes the transformation from a narrow military settlement into a rapidly developing city. And the name arose thanks to the small river Tsaritsa, from which only a few springs remained. But five centuries ago the river bed was full, and it rather rapidly carried its clayey waters to the Volga. Because of its color, the Mongol-Tatars began to call the river Sary-Su, which means “yellow water.” Later, this name began to be perceived by ear as the Queen, hence the first name of the city.
The earliest mentions of the Tsaritsyn fortress date back to therefore, since then this date has been considered official, and it is from here that Volgograd traces its history. Now you know what this city was called before and where the first name came from.
Early 20th century
During the Civil War, the city found itself at the junction of battles between the Red and White Guards, who captured the city and dealt very cruelly with the Red soldiers who were captured - they were hacked to pieces with sabers. Great damage was caused to the city: residential and cultural buildings were razed to the ground, water supply and sewerage systems, as well as a power plant, were disabled, and industrial enterprises were almost destroyed. This was followed by the restoration of the city. First, the industry giants launched: metallurgical, sawmill, and wood processing plants, then they set up lines for hosiery and clothing factories, built and launched food industry enterprises.
Second title
What was the former name of Volgograd (1925-1961)? In 1925, the city of Tsaritsyn changed its name to Stalingrad. Of course, this renaming is associated with I.V. Stalin, who since 1922 was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party. By this time, the city had 112 thousand people, it ranked nineteenth in terms of population among Russian cities. Two years later the population was already 140 thousand, which served as an impetus for large-scale housing construction.
Subsequently, the city, like the whole country as a whole, developed towards industrialization. The country's first tractor plant was built, and the Red October metallurgical plant began producing high-quality steel.
War
But the outbreak of the war knocked the ground out from under our feet and subjugated everything. From its first days, Stalingrad turned into the largest arsenal in southeast Russia. The factories continuously produced and repaired tanks, ships, and machine guns. A militia division and eight battalions were formed on the territory of the city. Defensive construction reached a huge scale. Railway lines were built, which played a huge role in supplying troops. Since 1942, Stalingrad has repelled regular enemy air raids by local air defense forces.
The city worked and fought in spite of the fascist invaders, thwarting Hitler's plans. The enemy command sent its selected forces to Stalingrad. If they managed to defeat the main shock concentration of troops, this would significantly change the course of the battles. But Stalingrad stubbornly resisted the onslaught, its heroic resistance allowed the Soviet troops to launch a decisive offensive. Having defeated the enemy, the Soviet army created the conditions for the course of the entire war. At the Stalingrad line, the enemy was not only stopped, but also crushed physically and morally.
Memorial Complex
The legendary Battle of Stalingrad was left behind, turning the city into ruins. In memory of this battle, a famous memorial complex was erected on Mamayev Kurgan with the world famous monument “The Motherland Calls!”, which became a symbol of the city. It took nine years to build, its height is 55 meters, its weight is 8000 tons, the complex is part of the Monument is visible from all over the city.
What was Volgograd called before? Until 1961, it bore the proud name of Stalingrad, but, despite the historical significance of the name, the country's authorities decided to rename the city, giving it a third name - Volgograd, due to its geographical location. According to historians, this idea was put forward in order to combat Stalin’s personality cult.
So you have become acquainted with a brief history of the city and now you can answer any question about what the city of Volgograd used to be called.
Russia is an ancient country. And on its territory there are many cities whose age has exceeded a thousand years. The historical and cultural heritage that they have preserved is an invaluable gift from past generations to future generations.
We present to you the oldest cities in Russia.
The official date of foundation of one of the cities that now makes up the Golden Ring of Russia is considered to be 990. And the founder is Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich.
Under the leadership of Vladimir Monomakh and Yuri Dolgoruky, the city became an important stronghold for the defense of the Rostov-Suzdal principality. And under Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky, Vladimir became the capital of the principality.
During the Tatar raids (1238 and later), the city surprisingly did not suffer much. Even the Golden Gate has survived to this day, although in a slightly different form from its original form.
On the territory of Vladimir there is the Vladimir Central prison, glorified by Mikhail Krug, built under Catherine II. It contained such famous personalities as Vasily Stalin, the son of Joseph Stalin, Mikhail Frunze and dissident Julius Daniel.
9. Bryansk -1032 years
It is not known exactly when exactly the city of Bryansk arose. The approximate date of its foundation is considered to be 985.
In 1607, the city was burned so that it would not fall to False Dmitry II. It was rebuilt and for the second time survived the siege of the troops of the “Tushinsky Thief”.
In the 17th century, Bryansk was one of the most important trading centers in Russia. And currently it is an important industrial center of the country.
8. Pskov – 1114 years
The founding date of Pskov is considered to be 903, when the city was first mentioned in the Laurentian Chronicle. Olga, the first Christian princess in Rus' and the wife of the Kyiv prince Igor Rurikovich, originally from Pskov.
For a long time, Pskov was one of the largest cities in Europe and was an impregnable barrier on the western borders of the country.
And in March 1917, while at Pskov station, the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II abdicated the throne and simply became a citizen of Romanov.
7. Smolensk - 1154 years
In September, beautiful and ancient Smolensk will celebrate its anniversary - 1155 years since its founding. It is only one year behind its closest rival in terms of mention in the chronicles (863 versus 862 for Murom).
For many centuries, this “key city” protected Moscow from attacks by a number of European countries. During the Time of Troubles, the residents of Smolensk heroically held a siege for 20 months in the fortress, which was besieged by Polish troops. Although the Poles still managed to take the city, King Sigismund III, who spent all his money on the siege, had to abandon the idea of going to Moscow. And the Moscow garrison of Poles, which did not receive military assistance, surrendered to the Russian militia under the leadership of Dmitry Pozharsky and Kuzma Minin.
6. Murom – 1155 years
This small city, located on the left bank of the Oka, is mentioned in the Tale of Bygone Years. Its name supposedly came from the Muroma tribe, although historians do not rule out an inverse relationship. One of the main characters of the Russian epic epic, the legendary hero Ilya Muromets, comes from the city of Murom. The townspeople are proud of this and even erected a monument to the hero in the city park.
5. Rostov the Great - 1156 years
Rostov, the current center of the Yaroslavl region, traces its official chronology back to 862. After its founding, the city became one of the most important settlements in the Rostov-Suzdal land. And he got the prefix “Great” thanks to the Ipatiev Chronicle. In it, when describing the events of 1151 (the victory of Prince Izyaslav Mstislavich over Yuri Dolgoruky), Rostov was called the Great.
4. Veliky Novgorod – 1158 years
At the beginning of June 2018, Veliky Novgorod will celebrate the 1159th anniversary of its founding. According to the official version, Rurik was called to reign here. And in 1136 Novgorod became the first free republic in the history of feudal Rus'. The city escaped the fate of many Russian cities and was not affected by the Mongol invasion. Precious architectural monuments of Rus' from the pre-Mongol period have been preserved in it to this day.
3. Old Ladoga - over 1250 years old
In 2003, the village of Staraya Ladoga celebrated its 1250th anniversary. Until 1703, the settlement was called “Ladoga” and had the status of a city. The first mention of Ladoga dates back to 862 AD (the time of the calling of the Varangian Rurik to reign). There is even a version that Ladoga is the first capital of Rus', because Rurik reigned there, and not in Novgorod.
2. Derbent - over 2000 years
If you conduct a survey about which is the oldest city in Russia, most educated people will name Derbent as such. This sun-drenched city, the southernmost in Russia, located in the Republic of Dagestan, officially celebrated its 2000th anniversary in September 2015. However, many Derbent residents, as well as some scientists conducting excavations on the territory of Derbent, are confident that the city is 3000 years older.
The Caspian Gate - and this is precisely the ancient name of Derbent - was mentioned as a geographical object back in the 6th century. Don e. in the works of the ancient Greek geographer Hecataeus of Miletus. And the beginning of the modern city was laid in 438 AD. e. Then Derbent was the Persian fortress of Naryn-Kala, with two fortress walls blocking the path along the shore of the Caspian Sea. And the earliest mention of Derbent as a stone city was in 568 AD or the 37th year of the reign of Shah Khosrow I Anushirvan.
The date of 2000 years is not exact, but more of an anniversary date, and refers to the time of the appearance of the first fortifications in Caucasian Albania.
Until 2014, when the Crimean Peninsula returned to Russia, Derbent held the title of the oldest Russian city. However, in 2017, the Rambler / Saturday media reported that The Academic Council of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences recognized Kerch as the most ancient city in Russia. The ruins of the ancient Greek colony of Panticapaeum have been preserved on the territory of the city. Historically, Kerch is the heir of Panticapaeum and its age has exceeded 2600 years.
According to archaeological research, the foundation of Kerch dates back to the time range from 610 to 590 BC. e. Historical and architectural monuments belonging to different eras have been preserved on its territory. These include: burial mounds from the Bronze Age, the ruins of the city of Nymphaeum, the ancient settlement of Myrmekiy, etc.
Kerch did not immediately receive its current name, after Panticapaeum ceased to be the historical and cultural center of the Black Sea region.
- In the 8th century, the city came under the rule of the Khazar Khaganate and was renamed from Panticapaeum to Karsha or Charsha.
- In the 10th century, the Northern Black Sea region came under the control of the Rus. The Tmutarakan principality appeared, which included the city of Karsha, named Korchev. It was one of the most important sea gates of Kievan Rus.
- In the 12th century, Korchev came under Byzantine rule, and in the 14th century it became part of the Black Sea Genoese colonies, and was called Vospro, as well as Cherchio. The local inhabitants also retained the name Korchev in everyday use.
- In the 15th century, the merchant and diplomat Josaphat Barbaro, in one of the chapters of his work “Travels to Tana,” named the city Chersh (Kersh).
- In 1475, the Turks captured the Genoese colonies and Cerchio became part of the Ottoman Empire. The city began to be called Cherzeti. He repeatedly suffered from raids by Zaporozhye Cossacks.
- In the 16th century, ambassadors of the Moscow kings going to the Crimean Khan knew the city as “Kerch”.
- In 1774, Kerch (already under its final name) became part of the Russian Empire. This happened following the results of the Russian-Turkish War of 1768-1774.
In order for Kerch to officially top the list of the oldest cities in Russia, it is necessary to obtain the approval of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Russian government. The management of the East Crimean Nature Reserve prepared the relevant documents last year.
On May 19, 2016, it became known about the decision of the Verkhovna Rada of Independent Ukraine to rename the city of Dnepropetrovsk to Dnepr. The renaming was initiated by the city council at the end of 2015 as part of the decommunization of the names of Ukrainian cities. The fact is that the city was renamed in honor of the Soviet party and statesman Grigory Petrovsky (1878 - 1958), and not in honor of the Apostle Peter, as might have been expected. And now the capital of the Dnepropetrovsk region of Ukraine is the city of Dnieper.
A similar situation in Russia is associated with Yekaterinburg and St. Petersburg, which, having returned to their former names, remained the centers of the Sverdlovsk and Leningrad regions, respectively. But that's not even what we're talking about. Today I just wanted to remember and find out the former names of Russian cities. Because many former names are not only unheard of, but may even seem paradoxical. For example, what is the name of Stavropol-on-Volga today? Don't remember? Because how else would you know the old name of Togliatti, if you were either not born and lived there, or had relatives there, or were a Wasserman from Russian geography. For everyone else - this article.
Cities with a population of more than 500 thousand people
To determine the order of indicating cities whose names have changed during Russian history, the principle of population decrease was chosen - from the largest to the smallest. To do this, it turned out to be sufficient to use a list of Russian cities with the corresponding rank, for example, in the Wikipedia table. It seems enough to limit ourselves to cities with a population of more than 500 thousand people, and say a few words about the rest separately. So.
| City | Former names | Notes |
| Saint Petersburg | Petrograd (1914 – 1924) Leningrad (1924 – 1991) |
Yes, Peter’s child was imprinted in the history of the Great Patriotic War with the sad phrase “siege of Leningrad.” The former capital of the Russian Empire, Petrograd was renamed in honor of the pseudonym of the leader of the world revolution. |
| Ekaterinburg | Sverdlovsk (1924 – 1991) | Yakov Mikhailovich Sverdlov, together with Lenin, authorized the execution of the royal family in Yekaterinburg... |
| Nizhny Novgorod | Gorky (1932 – 1990) | Yes, if not for another pseudonym, this time of the writer Alexei Maksimovich Peshkov, the cars of the local plant would be called not GAZ, but NNAZ... |
| Samara | Kuibyshev (1935 – 1991) | Valerian Vladimirovich Kuibyshev is another associate of Lenin in the cause of the revolution. Born in Omsk, died in Moscow, but in 1917 he established Soviet power in Samara. |
| Permian | Molotov (1940 – 1957) | Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov is an ardent revolutionary and Soviet politician. The city of Perm was renamed Molotov in honor of the 50th anniversary of the then chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR. It is interesting that until 1957, two more cities bore his name in the version “Molotovsk” - Severodvinsk and Nolinsk. |
| Volgograd | Tsaritsyn (1589 – 1925) Stalingrad (1925 – 1961) |
The title of Hero City was awarded to Stalingrad in 1965, when the city lost the name of Stalin after the leader’s cult of personality was debunked. But the Battle of Stalingrad played a decisive role in the Great Victory. |
| Krasnodar | Ekaterinodar (1793 – 1920) | Catherine's gift to the Black Sea Cossack army. |
| Tolyatti | Stavropol / Stavropol-on-Volga (1737 – 1964) | Everything is simple: on the Volga - so as not to be confused with the Azov Stavropol, and Togliatti - in honor of the leader of the Italian Communist Party Palmiro Togliatti, who died in 1964. |
| Ulyanovsk | Sinbirsk (1648 – 1780) Simbirsk (1780 – 1924) | Named in honor of the real name of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, who was born here and died in 1924. |
| Makhachkala | Petrovskoye (1844 – 1857) Petrovsk (1857 – 1921) |
During the Persian campaign of 1722, the camp of Peter I’s troops was located here. It was renamed in honor of the Avar revolutionary, Bolshevik and Dagestan political figure Makhach Dakhadayev. Makhach, by the way, is his pseudonym. |
| Ryazan | Pereyaslavl-Ryazan (1095 – 1778) | Yes, Ryazan has been called Ryazan for three times less time compared to its former name. |
| Naberezhnye Chelny | Brezhnev (1982 – 1988) | Yes, the Brezhnev era was short and stagnant. |
Cities with a population of less than 500 thousand people
Yes, it would be completely wrong to focus only on large cities. After all, population is one thing, and proud names are another. It is difficult to imagine the current article without recalling Grebenshchikov’s line “This train flies like an apostolic rank on the way from Kalinin to Tver” and without indicating that from 1931 to 1990 Tver bore the name of the “All-Russian headman” Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin.
However, we can limit ourselves to simple mentions of how certain Russian cities were previously called. So:
Kirov – Vyatka – Khlynov
Kaliningrad – Twangste – Königsberg
Stavropol – Stavropol-Caucasian – Voroshilovsk
Sevastopol – Akhtiar
Ivanovo – Ivanovo-Voznesensk
Kurgan – Tsarevo Settlement – Kurganskaya Sloboda
Vladikavkaz - Ordzhonikidze (yes, if the city had been left named in honor of Grigory Nikolaevich Ordzhonikidze, it would not have been Vlaikavkaz, Ordzhonikidze’s “Alania” that would have been the Russian football champion in 1995)
Murmansk – Romanov-on-Murman
Yoshkar-Ola – Tsarevokokshaysk – Krasnokokshaysk
Syktyvkar – Ust-Sysolsk
Dzerzhinsk – Rastyapino
Veliky Novgorod – Novgorod
Engels – Pokrovskaya Sloboda – Pokrovsk
Yes, not only cities, but also entire countries and empires are insured against large-scale renaming. It is only important that the new names are chosen to suit your taste. Here is Tula, for example. As it was founded in 1146, it remains Tula today. Maybe it’s true what they say: whatever you call a ship, that’s how it will sail. This is especially true for such huge ships as cities.
A city that was “lucky” to change its names. The first name by which he was known was the name Khlynov. There are several versions of the origin of the name Khlynov. The first is based on the cry of the khly-khly birds that lived in the area where the city was formed: ... A kite flies by and shouts: “Kylno-kylno.” So the Lord himself indicated how to name the city: Kylnov...According to the second, the city was given the name of the Khlynovitsa river, which flows nearby into Vyatka, which, in turn, was so named after a breakthrough at a small dam: ...water poured through it , and the river was given the name Khlynovitsa... The third theory connects the name with the word khyn (ushkuynik, river robber), although most experts attribute a later appearance to this word.
The second name of the city was the name Vyatka. Some researchers are inclined to believe that it came from the name of the territorial group of Udmurts Vatka, who lived in these territories, which was traced back to the Udmurt word vad “otter, beaver.” However, such an etymology is completely unrealistic from a linguistic point of view. The name Vatka itself was formed from the hydronym Vyatka. According to another version, it is associated with the Vyada people, who had close relationships with the Udmurts. Some sources mistakenly associate the word Vyatka with the Vyatichi tribes who lived on the banks of the Oka. However, the word Vyatchans is recognized as the correct self-name; it has established itself as an ethno-funeral for the inhabitants of the Vyatka region. Moreover, historically such a correlation is completely unjustified: the Vyatichi did not go so far to the east. Nowadays, the most relevant version is L. N. Makarova - she considers the original toponym to be the name of the river (Old Russian in origin) with the meaning “larger” (cf. . other Russian vyache “more”).
The city received the name Kirov after the murder in 1934 of a native of the city of Urzhum, Vyatka Territory, Sergei Mironovich Kostrikov (Kirov).
The chronology of the renaming of the city is extremely complex and ambiguous, since few historical documents have been preserved confirming the very fact of the renaming. Usually, when talking about the old names of Kirov, they use a simplified chain of transformations Khlynov - Vyatka - Kirov, and indeed, when founded in 1181, the city was named Khlynov. Starting from 1374 (the first mention of Vyatka), the word Khlynov does not appear in any official document or chronicle; on the contrary, Vyatka was found on maps of that time, and was even included in the “List of all Russian cities near and far,” where it was included section of the so-called “Zalessky” cities after Nizhny Novgorod and Kurmysh. In 1455, a wooden Kremlin with an earthen rampart was built in Vyatka for defensive purposes, which was given the name of the Khlynovitsa river flowing nearby. Subsequently, the name Khlynov spread to the township part of the city, and from 1457 the whole city began to be called Khlynov. In 1780, by the highest decree of the Empress of All-Russia Catherine II, the name Vyatka was returned to the city, and the Vyatka province was transformed into the Vyatka governorate and transferred from the Siberian province part of Kazan. On December 5, 1934, by decree of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, Vyatka was named after Sergei Mironovich Kirov.
The city is located in a region with a large representation of national minorities, so names in other languages have historically been assigned to it. In Mari it is called “Ilna” or “Ilna-Ola” (“ola” means “city” in Mari). In the Udmurt language it is called “Vatka” and “Kylno”. In Tatar, the name of Kirov sounds like “Kolyn”. All these names are outdated and are not used in modern speech.
Young and old, large and small cities, under the influence of certain historical events, tend to change their name. Sometimes names change more than once, and not so rarely the first name of a city returns after a change again. We will look at 10 such Russian cities and talk about the events that preceded the renaming.
The most famous cities in Russia that changed their name:
1. St. Petersburg
From 1703 to 1914 the city was called St. Petersburg. The city was called Petrograd for only 10 years and in 1924, after the death of Lenin, it was renamed Leningrad. The city bore the name in honor of Lenin until 1991, when its historical name returned.
2. Sochi
1838 - Fort Alexandria, a year later - Navaginsky fortification. In 1964, the city was named Post Dakhovsky, and 10 years later - Dakhovsky Posad. The city has had its current name since 1896 in honor of the Sochi River.
3. Volgograd
Tsaritsyn has been the name of the city since 1589. Since 1925 it was renamed in honor of Stalin to Stalingrad. At the request of the workers, the city was renamed again in 1961, the name being tied to the Volga River flowing nearby.
4. Togliatti
This city was founded in 1737 and was called Stavropol or Stavropol-on-Volga. Renamed in 1964 and began to bear the name of the Italian Communist Party Secretary Palmiro Togliatti.
5. Kaliningrad
In 1946, the German city of Königsberg became a Soviet city and was renamed Kaliningrad in honor of party leader Mikhail Kalinin. The city had its first name back in 1225.
6. Makhachkala
In 1844, the Petrovskoye fortification was founded, since 1857 the settlement began to be called Port-Petrovsk or the port city of Petrovsk in honor of Peter I. In 1918, the city was renamed Shamil-Kala, in honor of the national hero of Dagestan Shamil, and the city was named Makhachkala in 1921 , in honor of another Dagestani – Makhach Dakhadaev.
7. Kirov
1181 – the settlement of Khlynov was formed. In 1347 it was renamed Vyatka, 110 years later - again to Khlynov, and from 1780 to 1934 the city was called Vyatka. In December 1934, the city was renamed in honor of the revolutionary and Leninist Sergei Mironovich Kirov (Kostrikov).
8. Novosibirsk
The settlement received its first name in honor of Emperor Alexander III and began to be called the village of Aleksandrovsky, and a year later - the village of Novo-Nikolaevsky, in honor of the new Tsar Nicholas II. Since 1903, the village became the city of Novonikolaevsk, and since 1925 - Novosibirsk.
9. Yoshkar-Ola
Like most cities in Russia, at first there was a first name (Tsarevokokshaysk, 1584), then with the advent of Soviet power the city changed its name (Krasnokokshaysk, 1918). And the city usually receives its third name in the middle or at the end of the 20th century. Yoshkar-Ola received this name in 1927.
10. Syktyvkar
The original name is associated with the place where the mouth of the Sysola River is located. The city had the name Ust-Sysolsk from 1780 to 1930. The new name has not changed its meaning, since Syktyvkar is translated from the local language as “city on Sysol” (“Syktyv” - “Sysola”, “kar” - “about”).
Many cities changed their names only during the Soviet period: Ekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk), Nizhny Novgorod (Gorky), Vladikavkaz (Ordzhonikidze, Dzadzhikau), Orenburg (Chkalov), Perm (Molotov), Samara (Kuibyshev), Tver (Kalinin), Elista (Stepnoy) and others. Basically, the renaming was in honor of writers and political figures. Sometimes names were changed only because the cities were named after Russian monarchs, whom the Soviet regime hated. Many historical names were returned in the 1990s after the collapse of the USSR.