Pavlodar

About Pavlodar

Pavlodar is a city in northeastern Kazakhstan and the capital of Pavlodar Region. It is located 450 kilometres (280 mi) northeast of the national capital Astana and 405 kilometres (252 mi) southeast of the Russian city of Omsk along the Irtysh River. In 2010, the city had a population of 331,710. The city is served by Pavlodar Airport.

One of the oldest cities in northern Kazakhstan, Pavlodar was founded in the 9th century as the settlements of Khakan-Kimak and Imakia, the capitals of the Kimek–Kipchak confederation.

Koryakovsky fort was founded in 1720 as an Imperial Russian outpost. The settlement was created to establish control over the region's salt lakes, an important source of valuable salt. In 1861 the settlement was renamed Pavlodar and incorporated as a town. Pavlodar's significance was due in large measure to the substantial agricultural and salt-producing industries that had developed there despite the town's relatively small population. Pavlodar's population numbered only about 8,000 in 1897. The name Pavlodar means The Gift of Paul, and was chosen to commemorate the birth of the Grand Duke...

Overview adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA. Photography via Wikimedia Commons.