- Russian:
- Volga
- Ancient (Greek):
- Ra or
- (Tatar):
- Itil or Etil
Volga River
-
What is the Volga River?
The Volga River is the longest river in Europe, and it serves as the main waterway of western Russia. Its basin covers about two-fifths of the European part of Russia and houses almost half of the country's population.
Rising in the Valdai Hills northwest of Moscow, the Volga travels 2,193 miles (3,530 kilometers) to the south, where it discharges into the Caspian Sea. The Volga River system consists of 151,000 rivers, as well as permanent and intermittent streams, with a total length of about 357,000 miles. The Volga is navigable for about 2,000 miles and, along with its tributaries, carries more than half of all inland freight in Russia.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Where is the Volga River located?
The Volga River is located in western Russia and is the longest river in Europe. Rising in the Valdai Hills northwest of Moscow, it flows 2,193 miles (3,530 kilometers) south to discharge into the Caspian Sea. Its river basin covers about two-fifths of the European part of Russia and contains almost half of the Russian Republic's population. The Volga River is of immense economic, cultural, and historic importance to Russia, ranking it among the worldās great rivers. The Volga is navigable for approximately 2,000 miles and, along with its tributaries, carries over half of all inland freight in Russia.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How long is the Volga River and where does it flow?
The Volga River, Europe's longest, stretches 2,193 miles (3,530 kilometers). Rising in the Valdai Hills northwest of Moscow, it flows south to discharge into the Caspian Sea. The Volga drops from 748 feet (228 meters) above sea level at its source to 92 feet below sea level at its mouth, receiving water from approximately 200 tributaries, mainly on its left bank. Its river system includes 151,000 rivers and streams, totaling about 357,000 miles in length. The Volga is navigable for about 2,000 miles and, with its tributaries, carries over half of the inland freight in Russia.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Why is the Volga River important to Russia?
The Volga River is vital to Russia because it serves as the country's principal waterway and is considered the historic cradle of the Russian state. Its basin covers about two-fifths of the European part of Russia and houses almost half of Russia's population.
The Volga River is crucial for transportation and navigation, as it carries over half of all Soviet inland freight and nearly half of the passengers using Soviet inland waterways. Connecting to the Baltic Sea, White Sea, Moscow River, and the Sea of Azov, the Volga integrates with almost the entire waterway system of Eastern Europe.
Moreover, the Volga-Don Canal links the Volga River with the Don River, opening the upper Volga, Kama River, and Urals regions to oceanic commerce.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What cities are found along the Volga River?
The Volga River flows through several major cities in Russia. These cities serve as important ports and industrial centers along the river.
Major cities along the Volga River:
* Astrakhan
* Kazan
* Kamyshin
* Nizhny Novgorod (formerly Gorky)
* Rybinsk
* Samara (formerly Kuybyshev)
* Saratov
* Tver (formerly Kalinin)
* Ulyanovsk (formerly Simbirsk)
* Volgograd
* YaroslavlThe Volga River is Europe's longest river and has immense economic, cultural, and historical importance to Russia. It is a crucial waterway for freight and passenger transport, connecting to the Baltic Sea, White Sea, Moscow River, and the Sea of Azov.
4 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How is the Volga River used for transportation, industry, and daily life in Russia?
The Volga River, the longest river in Europe, plays a crucial role in Russia, supporting transportation, industry, and daily life.
As a navigable waterway for about 2,000 miles, the Volga and its tributaries handle over half of Russia's inland freight and nearly half of its passenger traffic. Key cargo includes construction and raw materials, petroleum, coal, food, and machinery. Major ports along the river are Tver, Rybinsk, Yaroslavl, and Volgograd.
The Volga connects to the Baltic and White Seas via the Volga-Baltic Waterway and the White SeaāBaltic Canal, to Moscow via the Moscow Canal, and to the Sea of Azov via the Volga-Don Ship Canal, integrating it into eastern Europe's waterway system.
However, this extensive development has had adverse ecological effects, including reduced access for anadromous species and deterioration of fisheries due to pollution.
3 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Volga River, river of Europe, the continentās longest, and the principal waterway of western Russia and the historic cradle of the Russian state. Its basin, sprawling across about two-fifths of the European part of Russia, contains almost half of the entire population of the Russian Republic. The Volgaās immense economic, cultural, and historic importanceāalong with the sheer size of the river and its basināranks it among the worldās great rivers.
Rising in the Valdai Hills northwest of Moscow, the Volga discharges into the Caspian Sea, some 2,193 miles (3,530 kilometres) to the south. It drops slowly and majestically from its source 748 feet (228 metres) above sea level to its mouth 92 feet below sea level. In the process the Volga receives the water of some 200 tributaries, the majority of which join the river on its left bank. Its river system, comprising 151,000 rivers and permanent and intermittent streams, has a total length of about 357,000 miles.
Physical features
The river basin drains some 533,000 square miles (1,380,000 square kilometres), stretching from the Valdai Hills and Central Russian Upland in the west to the Ural Mountains in the east and narrowing sharply at Saratov in the south. From Kamyshin the river flows to its mouth uninterrupted by tributaries for some 400 miles. Four geographic zones lie within the Volga basin: the dense, marshy forest, which extends from the riverās upper reaches to Nizhny Novgorod (formerly Gorky) and Kazan; the forest steppe extending from there to Samara (formerly Kuybyshev) and Saratov; the steppe from there to Volgograd; and semidesert lowlands southeast to the Caspian Sea.
Physiography
The course of the Volga is divided into three parts: the upper Volga (from its source to the confluence of the Oka), the middle Volga (from the confluence of the Oka to that of the Kama), and the lower Volga (from the confluence of the Kama to the mouth of the Volga itself). The Volga is a small stream in its upper course through the Valdai Hills, becoming a true river only after the entrance of several of its tributaries. It then passes through a chain of small lakes, receives the waters of the Selizharovka River, and then flows southeast through a terraced trench. Past the town of Rzhev, the Volga turns northeastward, is swelled by the inflow of the Vazuza and Tvertsa rivers at Tver (formerly Kalinin), and then continues to flow northeastward through the Rybinsk Reservoir, into which other rivers, such as the Mologa and the Sheksna, flow. From the reservoir the river proceeds southeastward through a narrow, tree-lined valley between the Uglich Highlands to the south and the Danilov Upland and the Galich-Chukhlom Lowland to the north, continuing its course along the Unzha and the Balakhna lowlands to Nizhny Novgorod. (Within this stretch the Kostroma, Unzha, and Oka rivers enter the Volga.) On its east-southeastward course from the confluence of the Oka to Kazan, the Volga doubles in size, receiving waters from the Sura and Sviyaga on its right bank and the Kerzhenets and Vetluga on its left. At Kazan the river turns south into the reservoir at Samara, where it is joined from the left by its major tributary, the Kama. From this point the Volga becomes a mighty river, which, save for a sharp loop at the Samara Bend, flows southwestward along the foot of the Volga Hills in the direction of Volgograd. (Between the Samara Bend and Volgograd it receives only the relatively small left-bank tributaries of the Samara, Bolshoy Irgiz, and Yeruslan.) Above Volgograd the Volgaās main distributary, the Akhtuba, branches southeastward to the Caspian Sea, running parallel to the main course of the river, which also turns southeast. A floodplain, characterized by numerous interconnecting channels and old cutoff courses and loops, lies between the Volga and the Akhtuba. Above Astrakhan a second distributary, the Buzan, marks the beginning of the Volga delta, which, with an area of more than 7,330 square miles, is the largest in Russia. Other main branches of the Volga delta are the Bakhtemir, Kamyzyak, Staraya (Old) Volga, and Bolda.
Hydrology
The Volga is fed by snow (which accounts for 60 percent of its annual discharge), underground water (30 percent), and rainwater (10 percent). The natural, untamed regime of the river was characterized by high spring floods (polovodye). Before it was regulated by reservoirs, annual fluctuations in level ranged from 23 to 36 feet on the upper Volga, from 39 to 46 feet on the middle Volga, and from 10 to 49 feet on the lower Volga. At Tver the average annual rate of river flow is about 6,400 cubic feet (180 cubic metres) per second, at Yaroslavl 39,000 cubic feet per second, at Samara 272,500 cubic feet per second, and at the riverās mouth 284,500 cubic feet per second. Below Volgograd the river loses about 2 percent of its waters in evaporation. More than 90 percent of annual runoff occurs above the confluence of the Kama.
