Ulyanovsk

Capital and commercial centre of Ulyanovsk oblast (region), Russian Federation, situated on the River Volga, 190 km/118 mi south of Kazan; population (1996 est) 680,000. Ulyanovsk is a port on the Samara (formerly Kuibyshev) Reservoir. It has engineering works (making cars and machine tools), electronics factories, food-processing plants, and light industries. It is also an important transportation centre, and a focus of local culture. Historically, the city is famous as the birthplace (in 1870) of Lenin, whose family name was Ulyanov.

Ulyanovsk was founded in 1648 as a fortress town, acting as a first line of defence for Moscow. It has been a provincial capital since 1780.

Ulyanovsk

Oblast (region) in the west-central Russian Federation; area 37,300 sq km/14,402 sq mi; population (1996) 1,495,000 (73% urban). The capital is Ulyanovsk. Wheat, sunflowers, and maize are grown; there is cattle breeding. Industries include engineering, lumbering, and textile production. The region is situated mainly on the upland bordering the right bank of the middle reaches of the River Volga. The area on the river's left bank consists of forested steppe. Some 25% of the total area of Ulyanovsk is mixed forest.