About Ufa city
General information
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The Aghidel river. |
The city of Ufa — is a large industrial, scientific and cultural centre of the country — is located in the East of Europe. Ufa city is the capital and administrative center of Bashkortostan Republic, Russia. Ufa is in the list of Russian twelve largest cities with population over one million people.
Ufa is an important transport, logistic and scientific city. Ufa city is situated about 1360 km to the southeast of Moscow. The city lies approximately 100 km West of the ancient Ural Mountain ridges. Major industrial cities such as Samara, Kazan, Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk, Orenburg are located in the immediate vicinity of Ufa. The capital of Bashkortostan lies upon a peninsula, occupying an elevated plateau encompassed from the three sides by the Aghidel (the Belaya), the Ufa and the Dyoma rivers. As in the whole of the Urals, the climate here is continental, but somewhat milder than in Yekaterinburg and Perm. Winters are normally snowy and cold and summers are hot.
Nature endowed this land with unique beauty. Here, side by side with the mountain ridges are beautiful lowlands stretching far and wide. Large expenses of the steppe alternate with thick wild forests. The charm of the landscape is accented by numerous rivers and lakes, so plentiful in this region. Different kinds of wild animals and birds inhabit this land. Both vegetation and wildlife are extremely rich and diverse here. The beauty of the Bashkirian nature is known far beyond the borders of the republic. People from different corners of the country come here to travel on horses, sledges, pontoons or to have walking tours to majestic places of the magnificent scenery.
History
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Salavat Ylaev monument. |
The magnificent natural scenery of Ufa and its surroundings depends on the city's location in the forest and steppe zone and rivers. It is not surprising, therefore, that the beauty of the land was noticed by people of the ancient past. Archaeologists have discovered remains of the primitive man settlements on the site of the present-day city. Following the collapse of the Kazan Khanate, Bashkiria voluntarily joined the Muscovite Russian State, the Bashkirs approached Tsar Ivan the Terrible with a request to construct a fortress to protect the land. In summer 1574, a detachment of Russian streltsi (privileged military corps) laid the foundation of a fortress on the high right bank of the Aghidel river. It was a fortress constructed by the order of Russian Tsar Ivan IV. Later, in 1586, the settlement received status of the town. The original name of the settlement was Tura-Tau after the name of the hill it was standing on. The present name “Ufa” meaning “small” in Turkic language was used by local people and later became the official name of the city.
Ufa grew into large trading and cultural center of Russia in the 18th century and became the capital city of Bashkiria region of Russia in 1802. After the discovery of oil in Bashkiria area Ufa city became a large oil extracting and refining center.
The republic is one of the largest industrial centers thanks to the availability of valuable minerals, raw materials. This land is fabulously rich in natural resources. However, the major wealth here is oil.
In 1941–42 more than 40 industrial enterprises were shifted to Ufa. During the war years Ufa became one of the major cities with a multi-industrial economy. In 1949 the Council of Ministers of the republic endorsed the Master Plan for Reconstruction and Development of the capital of Bashkortostan. That date may be considered as the starting point of the present-day Ufa. The city of today consists of a number of detached districts stretching from SW to NE for more than 30 miles occupying the area of approximately 180 sq. mi. The central and the longest (over 6 mi) street in Ufa — October Avenue — link the northern and the southern parts of the city. The city population is over 1,100,000 people. The largest ethnical groups include Russians (55,5%), Bashkirians (10,7%) and Tatars (27,9%). During 9—10 July 2015 Ufa hosted summits of the BRICS group and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
Economy
According to Forbes Ufa is the best city in Russia for business among cities with population over one million.
Industry
Many urban enterprises engaged in oil refining, chemistry, mechanical engineering reside in Ufa. Additionally, the economy of Ufa is composed of many fuel, energy and engineering complexes.
The value of goods, services, and manufacturing in Ufa totaled 185.0 billion rubles in 2009 ((DB regions of the Volga district))
Ufa is home to about 200 large and medium industrial enterprises.
Industry
Many urban enterprises engaged in oil refining, chemistry, mechanical engineering reside in Ufa. Additionally, the economy of Ufa is composed of many fuel, energy and engineering complexes.
The value of goods, services, and manufacturing in Ufa totaled 185.0 billion rubles in 2009 (DB regions of the Volga district)
Ufa is home to about 200 large and medium industrial enterprises.
Religion

Lyalya Tyolpan Mosque and Cathedral of the Nativity of the Theotokos.
The main religious confessions in the city are Islam (Sunni) and Orthodox Christianity.

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State academic drama theater named after M. Gafuri. |
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State opera and ballet theater. |
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Bashkir state puppet theater. |
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National symphonic orchestra. |
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National museum of Bashkortostan Republic. |