The Volga River is the largest river system and one of the most important rivers in Europe. It rises northwest of Moscow in the Valday Hills and flows 3,700 km (2,300 mi) to the southeast before emptying into the Caspian Sea near the city of Astrakhan. It is navigable for about 3200 km (about 2000 mi), and large numbers of ships ply its waters with freight and passengers. The Volga is fed by more than 200 tributaries (about 70 of which are navigable), including the Kama, Samara, Oka, and Vetluga. Together, the Volga and its tributaries occupy a watershed covering about 1,450,000 sq. km (about 560,000 sq. mi), or about 40 per cent of European Russia.
The Volga in history
The Volga emerged as an important trade route between the Slavic lands of Eastern Europe and points farther east in the 8th century. By the 17th century the cities of Samara, Saratov, and Tsaritsyn (now Volgograd) were important trade ports along the river; so too, to a lesser degree, were Yaroslavl’, Kostroma, and Nizhniy Novgorod. Russian scientists and others conducted surveys of various stretches of the Volga between 1700 and 1900. The surveys, combined with the completion in 1808 of the canals linking the Volga and the Baltic river system, greatly accelerated economic development. Steamships and barges were the preferred modes of transport. The Volga was first harnessed to generate hydroelectric power in the late 1930s. During World War II (1939-1945), it served as an important transport route for troops and supplies, and the Battle of Stalingrad was fought along its banks.
Biological diversity
The Volga also supports about 70 species of fish, 40 of which have commercial value. These include the Caspian roach, herring, pike, and sturgeon. Also among other permanent inhabitants of the river are pike-perch, grayling, bream, carp, asp, ruff and bluefish, chub, and perch. There are some types of fish that come from the Caspian Sea – Sturgeon and beluga, white salmon and herring come here from the Caspian Sea.
Since 2008 Volga Day is celebrated on May 20. Usually during the day volunteers and people living along the river are cleaning the shores and nearby areas.
Songs about the Volga
Tatar songs
- “Су буйлап”
- “Идел буе каеннары”
- “И Идел, Иделкәем”
- “Идел вальсы”
- “Идел суы ага торыр”
- “Идел дулый”
- “Идел суы”
- “Кичке Идел”
- “Эх, Идел буйлары”
- “Идел ярларына басып торам”
- “Идел кичтем, дәрья гиздем”
- “Идел кызы”
- “Сөйгән яр”
- “Идел-йорт”
- “Авыл көе”
- “И, Казан, Казан”
- “Җәйнең матур аяз таңнарында”
- “Без — Казан кызлары”
Russian songs
- “Течет река Волга”
- “Волга в сердце впадает мое”
- “Течет река Волга”
- “А я без Волги просто не могу”
- “Песня о Волге”
- “Сердце России моей”
- “Душа России”
- “Волжская краса”
- “Всё непременно сбудется”
- “На волжском берегу”
- “Волга”
- “Огневые годы”
- “Волга — Родина моя!”
- “Краса России”
- “Ой ты, Волга — край морской!”
- “Ты скажи, скажи, Волга-матушка”
- “Разливайся, Волга, морем”
- “Дума над Волгой”
We do not provide links to the songs, but you always may use “copy-paste” method to find the songs on the Internet.
The Volga Basin is considered to be the cultural heart of Russia. More than 60 million people live in this area which contains 70 per cent of Russia’s cultural and architectural monuments. It is also the economic heartland of Russia with 46 per cent of the nation’s industrial potential, as well as 50 per cent of the entire Russian agrarian complex. More than 70 per cent of the country’s river transport and 20 per cent of its fish catch – including 90 per cent of Russian sturgeon – come from the Volga and its tributaries.
