Gelendzhik (; Adyghe: Хъулъыжъий, Ḣułəžij) is a

resort town A resort town, resort city or resort destination is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding area. Sometimes ...

Krasnodar Krai Krasnodar Krai (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (a krai), located in the North Caucasus region in Southern Russia and is administratively a part of the Southern Federal District. Its administrative center is the t ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, located on the Gelendzhik Bay of the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

, between

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk (, ; ) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities designated by the Soviet Union as a Hero City. The population was History In antiquity, the shores of the ...

( to the northwest) and

Tuapse Tuapse (; , Ṫuapsă ) is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the northeast shore of the Black Sea, south of Gelendzhik and north of Sochi. Population: Tuapse is a sea port and the northern center of a resort zone which extends sou ...

( to the southeast). Greater Gelendzhik sprawls for along the coastline and covers an area of , although only fall within the boundaries of Gelendzhik proper. Population:

History

In antiquity, the Gelendzhik Bay was the site of a minor Greek outpost, mentioned as Torikos () in the

Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax The ''Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax'' is an ancient Greek periplus (περίπλους ''períplous'', 'circumnavigation') describing the sea route around the Mediterranean and Black Sea. It probably dates from the mid-4th century BC, specifically t ...

. It is unknown to Hellenistic sources, but reappears in Roman ones under the name of Pagrae in 64 BC. The colony was wiped out by the invading

Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th centuries AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was par ...

, which were succeeded by the

Zygii The Zygii (, ''Zygoí'') or Zygians were described by Strabo as a nation to the north of Colchis. He wrote: ''And on the sea lies the Asiatic side of the Cimmerian Bosporus, Bosporus, or the Sindi (people), Syndic territory. After this latter, ...

soon after. During the

Late Middle Ages The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...

, the

Genoese Republic The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in both the Mediterranean and ...

had a notable influence on the region, while the Ghisolfi, a Genoese-Jewish family, had a prominent role in the trade and commerce in Gazaria. During this period the town was named Maurolaca or Mauro Laco, and was considered one of the most important

Genoese colonies The Genoese colonies were a series of economic and trade posts in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and Black Seas. Some of them had been established directly under the patronage of the republican authorities to support the economy of the loca ...

in the Black Sea. Before Russia secured the coast by the

Treaty of Adrianople (1829) The Treaty of Adrianople (also called the Treaty of Edirne) concluded the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–29, between Imperial Russia and the Ottoman Empire. The terms favored Russia, which gained access to the mouths of the Danube and new territ ...

, a brisk slave trade had been carried on between the mountaineers and the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. Since the Circassian beauties were usually traded for gold and other commodities before being taken to Turkish seraglios, the market place became known as "Gelendzhik" (from "gelincik"), literally, "little bride" in

Turkish Language Turkish ( , , also known as 'Turkish of Turkey') is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, a member of Oghuz languages, Oghuz branch with around 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and one of two official languag ...

. In 1831, one of the first forts of the Black Sea Coastal Line was set up at Gelendzhik. At the outbreak of the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

the fort had to be blown up and abandoned, but it was resettled by the

Cossacks The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic languages, East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borde ...

in 1864, at the conclusion of the Russian-Circassian War, and became known as the ''

stanitsa A stanitsa or stanitza ( ; ), also spelled stanycia ( ) or stanica ( ), was a historical administrative unit of a Cossack host, a type of Cossack polity that existed in the Russian Empire. Etymology The Russian word is the diminutive of the word ...

'' of Gelendzhiksaya. Town status was granted to Gelendzhik in 1915.

Description

During the

Soviet period The history of the Soviet Union (USSR) (1922–91) began with the ideals of the Russian Bolshevik Revolution and ended in dissolution amidst economic collapse and political disintegration. Established in 1922 following the Russian Civil War, ...

, Gelendzhik was developed as a

. It possesses sand beaches, three waterparks, two

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tran ...

lines, and two Orthodox churches (from 1909 and 1913, respectively). The environs of Gelendzhik are noted for a chain of

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

s, an outcrop of dolmens, two extremely ancient pine and

juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' ( ) of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere as far south ...

groves, and the Sail Rock, located from the town's central area. The coastal village of

Arkhipo-Osipovka Arkhipo-Osipovka () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, rural locality (a ''village#Russia, selo'') and a Black Sea resort under the jurisdiction of the City of federal subject significance, Town of Gelendzhik in Krasnodar Krai, Russi ...

, administrated from Gelendzhik, contains the terminus of the

Blue Stream Blue Stream is a major trans-Black Sea gas Pipeline transport, pipeline that carries Natural gas in Turkey, natural gas to Turkey from Natural gas in Russia, Russia. The pipeline has been constructed by the Blue Stream Pipeline B.V., the Netherl ...

gas pipeline. An annual hydroaviasalon is held in Gelendzhik since 1996. Revealed on 29 March 2001 between Bietingen and

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; ; ; ; ), historically known in English as Shaffhouse, is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of Schaffh ...

, Litolmore Trading Limited, a company which conducts business in mineral fertilizers, coal, oil, gas, fuel oil, aviation and diesel fuel, is a Gelendzhik firm. A 17,691 square meters palace allegedly built for Vladimir Putin is located on the Gelendzhik Bay not far from the city.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is, together with twenty rural localities, incorporated as the

Town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

of Gelendzhik—an administrative unit with the status equal to that of the

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

.Reference Information #34.01-707/13-03 As a municipal division, the Town of Gelendzhik is incorporated as Gelendzhik Urban Okrug.Law #668-KZ

Climate

Gelendzhik has a borderline

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

: ''Cfa'') and a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(

: ''Csa''). The climate of Gelendzhik is noticeably drier than Novorossiysk and Tuapse. Winters are mild and snowfall is light. Summers are hot with warm evenings. Sometimes Gelendzhik has experienced big floods as it happened in 2012 ( 2012 Krasnodar Krai floods).

Transportation

Gelendzhik is served by the Gelendzhik Airport. A new terminal of Gelendzhik Airport was built in December 2021.

Twin towns – sister cities

Gelendzhik is twinned with: *

Cramlington Cramlington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland. It is north of Newcastle upon Tyne. The name suggests a probable founding by the Danes or Anglo-Saxons. The population was 28,843 as of 2021 census data from Northumberland County Cou ...

, United Kingdom *

Ayia Napa Ayia Napa ( , ), officially Romanization, romanised Agia Napa, is a Tourism in Cyprus, tourist resort at the far eastern end of the southern coast of Cyprus. Etymology The name Ayia Napa is derived from a Venetian Cyprus, Venetian-era monaster ...

, Cyprus *

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; ) is a small city in the southwestern French Departments of France, department of Charente, of which it is the Prefectures of France, prefecture. Located on a plateau overlooking a meander of ...

, France *

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; or ; ) is a city in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim (district), Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of t ...

, Germany *

Kallithea Kallithea (Greek language, Greek: Καλλιθέα, meaning "beautiful view") is a suburb in Athens#Athens Urban Area, Athens agglomeration and a municipality in South Athens (regional unit), south Athens regional unit. It is the eighth larges ...

, Greece *

Netanya Netanya () () or Natanya (), is a city in the "Planet Bekasi" Central District (Israel), Setanyahu of Israel, Israel BAB ih, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa, between the Poleg stre ...

, Israel *

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Vitsyebsk (, ; , ; ) is a city in northern Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Vitebsk Region and Vitebsk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has 358,927 inhabitants, m ...

, Belarus

References

Notes

Sources

* *

External links

* * * *Gelendzhik Business Director
jsprav.ru
{{Use mdy dates, date=September 2012 Cities and towns in Krasnodar Krai Black Sea Governorate Seaside resorts in Russia Territories of the Republic of Genoa 1831 establishments in the Russian Empire