Konaev ( kk, Қонаев; russian: Конаев), previously known as Kapchagay ( kk, Қапчағай, links=no; russian: Капшагай, links=no or ), is a city with the
Almaty Region of
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
. It is located on the
Ili River, and has been built along with the construction of
Kapshagay Dam on that river in the 1960s. The dam has formed
Kapchagay Reservoir
Kapchagay Reservoir, also spelled Qapshaghay Bogeni Reservoir and sometimes referred to as Lake Kapchagay, is a major reservoir in Almaty Region in southeastern Kazakhstan, approximately 80 kilometres north of Almaty. The 140 kilometre long lake i ...
(a.k.a. Lake Kapshagai), a popular weekend destination for beach-goers from
Almaty. Population:
Many of Konaev's inhabitants fled the city after the dissolution of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
, but its population saw a resurgence in 2000 and has since returned to pre-dissolution numbers.
President
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's reforms of 17 March 2022 included provisions which renamed Kapshagay to Konaev (after
Dinmukhamed Kunaev
Dinmukhamed Akhmetuly "Dimash" Kunaev (also spelled Kunayev; kk, Дінмұхаммед (Димаш) Ахметұлы Қонаев, Dınmūhammed (Dimaş) Ahmetūly Qonaev, russian: Динмухаме́д Ахме́дович (Минлиахме ...
) and made the city the new capital of
Almaty Region following its old capital,
Taldykorgan
Taldykorgan ( kk, Талдықорған/Taldyqorğan; russian: Талдыкорган), known as ''Taldy-Kurgan'' until 1993, is the capital (called an administrative center) of Zhetysu Region, Kazakhstan. According to the 2010 Kazakh Census Res ...
, being separated from the region and becoming the capital of the newly-created
Zhetysu Region.
Geography
It is located on the shore of the Kapchagai reservoir, on the
Ili River near its intersection with the railway, 76 km north of
Almaty.
Administrative divisions
# the city of Konaev;
# Zarechny rural district;
# Shengeldinsky rural district.
See also
*
Kapchagay Reservoir
Kapchagay Reservoir, also spelled Qapshaghay Bogeni Reservoir and sometimes referred to as Lake Kapchagay, is a major reservoir in Almaty Region in southeastern Kazakhstan, approximately 80 kilometres north of Almaty. The 140 kilometre long lake i ...
References
Cities and towns in Kazakhstan
Populated places in Almaty Region
Populated places established in the 1960s
{{Kazakhstan-geo-stub