Kazan

Kazan (Qazan) 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 is one of the host cities for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and 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 the city’s hotel and entertainment complex with an aquapark called “Kazan Riviera” was visited by 1 million tourists.

The origin of the name Kazan is uncertain. The most accepted legends derive it from the Bulgar (and also modern Tatar) wordqazan, 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.

In 2005 Tatarstan celebrated Milennium of Kazan.