Khabarovsk ( ) is the largest

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

and the

administrative centre An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

Khabarovsk Krai Khabarovsk Krai (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (a krai) of Russia. It is located in the Russian Far East and is administratively part of the Far Eastern Federal District. The administrative centre of the krai is the types of ...

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 ...

,Law #109 located from the

China–Russia border The Chinese–Russian border or the Sino-Russian border is the Border, international border between China and Russia. After the final demarcation carried out in the early 2000s, it measures ,

, at the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...

of the

Amur The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer Manchuria, Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ...

and

Ussuri River The Ussuri ( ; ) or Wusuli ( ) is a river that runs through Khabarovsk and Primorsky Krais, Russia and the southeast region of Northeast China in the province of Heilongjiang. It rises in the Sikhote-Alin mountain range, flowing north and for ...

s, about north of

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( ; , ) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai and the capital of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. It is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, covering an area o ...

. As of the

2021 Russian census The 2021 Russian census () was the first census of the Russia, Russian Federation population since 2010 Russian census, 2010 and the third after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, dissolution of the Soviet Union. It took place between October 1 ...

, it had a population of 617,441. It was known as ''Khabarovka'' until 1893. The city was the administrative center of the

Far Eastern Federal District The Far Eastern Federal District ( rus, Дальневосточный федеральный округ, p=dəlʲnʲɪvɐˈstot͡ɕnɨj fʲɪdʲɪˈralʲnɨj ˈokrʊk) is the largest and the least populated federal districts of Russia, federa ...

of Russia from 2002 until December 2018, when the status was given to Vladivostok. As is typical of the interior of the Russian Far East, Khabarovsk has an extreme climate with strong seasonal swings resulting in strong, cold winters and relatively hot and humid summers.

History

Earliest record

Historical records indicate that a city was founded on the site in the eighth century. The

Tungusic peoples Tungusic peoples are an ethnolinguistic group formed by the speakers of Tungusic languages (or Manchu–Tungus languages). They are native to Siberia, Mongolia and China. The Tungusic language family is divided into two main branches, Northern ...

are indigenous to the city's vicinity. The city was named ( zh, t= 伯力, p=Bólì, labels=no) in Chinese when it was part of the Chinese empire. During the Tang dynasty, Boli was the capital of Heishui Protectorate, called Heishui Duhufu. In AD 722,

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (; 8 September 685 – 3 May 762), personal name Li Longji, was an Emperor of China, emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, reigning from 712 to 756. His reign of 44 years was the longest during the Tang dynasty. Throu ...

(唐玄宗) established Heishui Protectorate and gave self-rule to

Heishui Mohe The Heishui Mohe (; mnc, Sahaliyan i Aiman or ; ), rendered in English as Blackriver Mohe or Blackwater Mohe, were a tribe of Mohe people in Outer Manchuria along the Amur River () in what is now Russia's Khabarovsk Krai, Amur Oblast, Jewish Au ...

tribes. The seat of this administrative region was then established near today's Khabarovsk.

17th-century Russian exploration

In the mid-17th century, the Amur Valley became the scene of hostilities between the

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

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 ...

, who tried to expand into the region and collect tribute from the natives, and the rising

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

, who were intent on securing the region for themselves. The coastal areas had historically been the native home of the Manchu people.

Khabarov's Achansk

The Russian explorers and raiders of the 1650s set up a number of more or less fortified camps ('' ostrogs'') on the Amur. Most of them were in use for only a few months and later destroyed. It is usually thought that the first such camp in the general area of today's Khabarovsk was the fortified winter camp named Achansk () or Achansky gorodok (), built by the Cossacks of

Yerofey Khabarov Yerofey Pavlovich Khabarov-Svyatitsky (; 1603 – after 1671), was a Russian entrepreneur and adventurer, best known for his exploring the Amur river region and his attempts to colonize the area for Russia. For background, see Russian–Manchu ...

in September 1651 after they had sailed to the area from the upper Amur. The fort was named after the local tribe whom Khabarov's people called "Achans".Оксана Гайнутдинова (Oksana Gaynutdinova
Загадка Ачанского городка
(The mystery of Fort Achansk) On October 8 the fort was unsuccessfully attacked by joint forces of Achans and

Duchers The Duchers ( or дучеры) was the Russian name of the people populating the shores of the middle course of the Amur River, approximately from the mouth of the Zeya River, Zeya down to the mouth of the Ussuri, and possibly even somewhat furt ...

(who had good reasons to hate the Cossacks, due to their rather heavy-handed

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of lands which the state con ...

-extraction tacticsB.P. Polevoy (Б.П. Полевой)
Изветная челобитная С. В. Полякова 1653 г. и ее значение для археологов Приамурья
(S.V. Polyakov's denouncing letter (1653), and its significance for the archaeologists of the Amur Valley), in: Русские первопроходцы на Дальнем Востоке в XVII-XIX вв. (Историко-археологические исследования) (''First Russian explorers in the Far East in the 17th–19th centuries: Historical and archaeological research'' – B.P.Polevoy's preface to the document), vol. 2, Vladivostok, Russian Academy of Sciences, 1995. (This article also contains references to Polevoy's earlier publications) ), while many Russians were away fishing. In late November, Khabarov's people undertook a three-day campaign against the local chief Zhakshur (Жакшур) (whose name is also known in a more Russian version, Zaksor (Заксор)), collecting a large amount of tribute and announcing that the locals were now subjects of the Russian Czar. A similar campaign was waged later in winter against the Ducher chief Nechiga (Нечига), farther away from Achansk. On 24 or 26 March 1652, Fort Achansk was attacked by

cavalry, led by

Ninguta Ning'an () is a city located approximately southwest of Mudanjiang, in the southeast of Heilongjiang province, China, bordering Jilin province to the south. It is located on the Mudanjiang River (formerly known as Hurka River), which flows north, ...

's commander Haise, reinforced by Ducher auxiliaries, but the Cossacks stood their ground in a day-long battle and even managed to seize the attackers'

supply train In military contexts, a train is the logistical transport elements accompanying a military force. Often called a supply train or baggage train, it has the job of providing materiel for their associated combat forces when in the field. When focus ...

. Once the ice on the Amur broke in the spring of 1652, Khabarov's people destroyed their fort and sailed away. The exact location of Khabarov's Achansk has long been a subject for debate among Russian historians and geographers.Б.П. Полевой (B.P. Polevoy
О подлинном местоположении Косогорского острога 50-х гг. XVII века
(About the true location of the Kosogorsky ''Ostrog'' of the 1650s) A number of locations, both upstream and downstream of today's Khabarovsk, have been proposed since

Richard Maack Richard Otto Maack (; 4 September 1825 – 25 November 1886) was a Russian naturalist, geographer, and anthropologist. He is most known for his exploration of the Russian Far East and Siberia, particularly the Ussuri and Amur River valleys. ...

, one of the first Russian scholars to visit the region, identified Achansk in 1859 with the ruins on Cape Kyrma, which is located on the southern (Chinese) shore of the Amur, upstream of Khabarovsk. The most widely accepted point of view is probably that of

Boris Polevoy Boris Nikolayevich Polevoy (; – 12 July 1981) was a Soviet and Russian writer, screenwriter, journalist and war correspondent. He is the author of the book ''The Story of a Real Man'' about Soviet World War II fighter pilot Aleksey Maresyev. ...

, who believed that Khabarov's Achansk was located in the Nanai village later known as Odzhal- Bolon (), located on the left bank of the Amur, closer to

Amursk Amursk () is a town in Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located on the left bank of the Amur River south of Komsomolsk-on-Amur. The population as of 2024 is 37,501 people.{{cite web , url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/storage/mediabank/%D0%A1hisl_MO_01-01-202 ...

than to Khabarovsk. One of his arguments was that both Khabarov's Achan (sometimes also spelt by the explorer as Otshchan, Отщан), and Wuzhala (乌扎拉) of the Chinese records of the 1652 engagement are based on the name of the Nanai clan "Odzhal" (Оджал), corresponding to the 20th-century name of the village as well. (The name of the clan was also written as "Uzala", as in the name of its best-known member,

Dersu Uzala Dersu Uzala (; – 1908) was a Nanai trapper and hunter in the Okhotsk–Manchurian taiga. He worked as a guide for Vladimir Arsenyev, who immortalized him in his 1923 book '' Dersu Uzala''. The book was adapted into two feature films, with th ...

). Polevoy's view appeared to gain wide support among the Russian geographer community; petitioned by the Amur Branch of the

Russian Geographical Society The Russian Geographical Society (), or RGO, is a learned society based in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It promotes geography, exploration and nature protection with research programs in fields including oceanography, ethnography, ecology and stati ...

, the

Russian Government The Russian Government () or fully titled the Government of the Russian Federation () is the highest federal executive governmental body of the Russian Federation. It is accountable to the president of the Russian Federation and controlled by ...

renamed the village of Odzhal to Achan in 1977, to celebrate its connection with Khabarov's raid. As to the Cape Kyrma ruins, thought by Maack to be the remains of Achansk, B.P. Polevoy identified them as the remains of another ''ostrog'' – namely, Kosogorsky Ostrog, where

Onufriy Stepanov Onufriy Stepanov () (died June 30, 1658) was a Siberian Cossack and explorer of the Amur River. For background see Russian–Manchu border conflicts. 1653: After Yerofey Khabarov’s arrest and departure to Moscow in the fall of 1653, Onufriy S ...

stayed a few years later.

Qing Empire

After the

Treaty of Nerchinsk The Treaty of Nerchinsk of 1689 was the first treaty between the Tsardom of Russia and the Qing dynasty of China after the defeat of Russia by Qing China at the Siege of Albazin in 1686. The Russians gave up the area north of the Amur River as ...

(1689) between the

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia, also known as the Tsardom of Moscow, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of tsar by Ivan the Terrible, Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter the Great in 1721. ...

and the

Qing Empire The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

, the area became an uncontested part of China for the next century and a half. Modern historical maps of the Qing period published in China mark the site of future Khabarovsk as Bólì (). All of the middle and lower Amur region was nominally part of the

Jilin ) , image_skyline = Changbaishan Tianchi from western rim.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption = View of Heaven Lake , image_map = Jilin in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_al ...

Province, run first out of

and later out of

Jilin City Jilin City, Mandarin pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kirin (, International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA:/ki.rin/) is the second-largest city and former capital of Jilin province in northeast China. As of th ...

. French

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

s who sailed along the

Ussuri The Ussuri ( ; ) or Wusuli ( ) is a river that runs through Khabarovsk and Primorsky Krais, Russia and the southeast region of Northeast China in the province of Heilongjiang. It rises in the Sikhote-Alin mountain range, flowing north and formi ...

and the

Rivers in 1709 prepared the first more or less precise map of the region. According to them, the indigenous

Nanai people The Nanai people () are a Tungusic people of East Asia who have traditionally lived along Heilongjiang (Amur), Songhuajiang (Sunggari) and Wusuli River (Ussuri) on the Middle Amur Basin. The ancestors of the Nanai were the Wild Jurchens of no ...

were living on the Ussuri and on the Amur down to the mouth of the Dondon River (i.e., in the region including the site of the future Khabarovsk). These people were known to the Chinese as ''Yupi Dazi'' ("Fish skin Tartars"). Numerous later editions are available as well, including on
on Google Books
/ref>

From Khabarovka to Khabarovsk

Khabarovsk - residence of the governor-general of Eastern Siberia LCCN2004708062

In 1858, the area was ceded to Russia under the

Treaty of Aigun The Treaty of Aigun was an 1858 treaty between the Russian Empire and Yishan, official of the Qing dynasty of China. It established much of the modern border between the Russian Far East and China by ceding much of Manchuria (the ancestral h ...

. The Russians founded the military outpost of Khabarovka (), named after

. The post later became an important industrial center for the region. Town status was granted in 1880. In 1893, it was given its present name: Khabarovsk. In 1894, a department of the

was formed in Khabarovsk and to found libraries, theatres and museums in the city. Since then, Khabarovsk's cultural life has flourished. Much of the local indigenous history has been well preserved in the Regional Lore Museum and Natural History Museum and in places like near the Nanai settlement of Sikachi-Alyan, where cliff drawings from more than 13,000 years ago can be found. The Khabarovsk Art Museum exhibits a rare collection of old Russian icons. In 1916, the

Khabarovsk Bridge Khabarovsk Bridge is a road and rail bridge built in 1999. It crosses the Amur River in eastern Russia, and connects the urban-type settlement of Imeni Telmana in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast with the city of Khabarovsk in Khabarovsk Krai. Until ...

across the Amur was completed, allowing Trans-Siberian trains to cross the river without using

ferries A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus. ...

(or temporary rail tracks over the frozen river in winter). During the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

, Khabarovsk was occupied by

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

in September 1918.

Soviet era

By the Decree of the

Council of Labor and Defense The Council of Labor and Defense ()Sovet truda i oborony, Latin acronym: STO), first established as the Council of Workers' and Peasants' Defense in November 1918, was an agency responsible for the central management of the economy and production ...

of December 11, 1933, the Directorate of Road Construction of Eastern Siberia and the Far East (Daldorstroy) was created in Khabarovsk, with the task of constructing strategic highways according to the list of the government of the USSR, in the regions of Eastern Siberia and the

Soviet Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Eastern Fe ...

. The construction plans were announced at the

17th Congress of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) The 17th Congress of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), popularly known as the Executed Congress (as the majority of those present at the Congress were arrested or executed during the Great Purge) was held from 26 January to 10 February ...

, held in Moscow from January-February 1934, when the Second Five-Year Plan for the development of the Soviet Union was adopted. In accordance with it, it was planned to build a Vladivostok-Khabarovsk highway, with a hard (gravel) surface, 600 kilometers long. After the defeat of Japan in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Khabarovsk was the site of the

Khabarovsk War Crime Trials The Khabarovsk war crimes trials were the Soviet hearings of twelve Japanese Kwantung Army officers and medical staff charged with the manufacture and use of biological weapons, and human experimentation, during World War II. The war crimes tri ...

, in which twelve former members of the Japanese

Kwantung Army The Kwantung Army (Japanese language, Japanese: 関東軍, ''Kantō-gun'') was a Armies of the Imperial Japanese Army, general army of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1919 to 1945. The Kwantung Army was formed in 1906 as a security force for th ...

and

Unit 731 , short for Manchu Detachment 731 and also known as the Kamo Detachment and the Ishii Unit, was a covert biological and chemical warfare research and development unit of the Imperial Japanese Army that engaged in lethal human experimentat ...

were put on

trial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, w ...

for the manufacture and use of

biological weapons Biological agents, also known as biological weapons or bioweapons, are pathogens used as weapons. In addition to these living or replicating pathogens, toxins and biotoxins are also included among the bio-agents. More than 1,200 different kin ...

during World War II. Chinese Emperor

Puyi Puyi (7 February 190617 October 1967) was the final emperor of China, reigning as the eleventh monarch of the Qing dynasty from 1908 to 1912. When the Guangxu Emperor died without an heir, Empress Dowager Cixi picked his nephew Puyi, aged tw ...

, captured by Soviet troops in

Manchuria Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...

, was relocated to Khabarovsk and lived there from 1945 up to 1950, when he was returned to China. When Japan fell in September 1945 the United States reached an agreement with Stalin to build two U.S. Naval Advance Bases (Fleet Weather Centrals) in the USSR. The U.S. built one outside

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky (, ) is a city and the administrative center of Kamchatka Krai, Russia. It is located in the Far East of the country and lies along the coast of Avacha Bay by the Pacific Ocean, nearby Khalaktyrskoye Lake. As of the 202 ...

on the

Kamchatka Peninsula The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...

with the code name TAMA.Yanks in Siberia: U.S. Navy Weather Stations in Soviet East Asia, 1945, G. Patrick March, Pacific Historical Review, Vol. 57, No. 3 (Aug., 1988), pp. 327–342, Published by: University of California Pres

/ref> The other was outside Khabarovsk in buildings provided by the Soviets, code-named MOKO. For mail Khabarovsk was assigned U.S.Navy number 1168, FPO San Francisco. The American use of these two bases was short-lived. On 5 November 1956, the first phase of the city

tram A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

was commissioned. The Khabarovsk television studio began broadcasting in 1960. On 1 September 1967, the Khabarovsk Institute of Physical Education, now the Far Eastern State Academy of Physical Culture, opened. On 14 January 1971, Khabarovsk was awarded the

Order of October Revolution The Order of the October Revolution (, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on 31 October 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferred upon individuals or groups for services furthering communis ...

. In 1975 the first stage of the urban trolley opened. In 1976 the city hosted an international ice hockey tournament with the ball for the prize of the newspaper '' Sovietskaya Rossia''. In 1981 the

Bandy World Championship The Bandy World Championship is a competition for the men's teams of bandy-playing nations. The tournament is administrated by the Federation of International Bandy. It is distinct from the Bandy World Cup, a club competition, and from the ...

was played in the city.

Russian Federation

In 1996, Khabarovsk held its first

mayoral elections Mayoral is an adjectival form of mayor. It may refer to: In people * Borja Mayoral (born 1997), Spanish footballer * César Mayoral (born 1947), Argentine diplomat * David Mayoral (born 1997), Spanish footballer * Jordi Mayoral (born 1973), Spanis ...

. Paul D. Filippov, whose candidacy was supported by Governor

Viktor Ishayev Victor Ivanovich Ishayev (, born 16 April 1948) is a Russian politician. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation. He had been the Presidential plenipotentiary envoy in the F ...

, was defeated. In 1998, reconstruction of the central square of Khabarovsk was completed. In May 2000,

President of Russia The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the State Council (Russia), Federal State Council and the President of Russia#Commander-in-ch ...

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

, decreed that new federal districts be formed, and Khabarovsk became the center of the

. In 2006, the Center for Cardiovascular Surgery, a high-tech medical center, was constructed according to a Russian national health project. In 2008, the train station was completely renovated, and the adjacent square was reconstructed to include fountains and an underground passage. In 2009, Khabarovsk hosted the EU-Russia summit. In 2010, the city hosted a meeting of the Great Circle of Ussuri

. On 3 November 2012, Khabarovsk was awarded the

honorary title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

of "

City of Military Glory The City of Military Glory () is an List of orders, decorations, and medals of the Russian Federation, honorary title bestowed upon the citizenry of cities in Russia where soldiers had displayed courage and heroism during the Eastern Front (World W ...

". On 9 July 2020, the governor of the region, Sergei Furgal, was arrested and flown to Moscow. The 2020 Khabarovsk Krai protests began on 11 July 2020 in support of Furgal.

Flag

The flag of Khabarovsk displays a

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae (). They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats ...

on the right (Red side) and a

Siberian tiger The Siberian tiger or Amur tiger is a population of the tiger subspecies ''Panthera tigris tigris'' native to Northeast China, the Russian Far East, and possibly North Korea. It once ranged throughout the Korea, Korean Peninsula, but currently ...

on the left (blue side), holding a yellow shield with a blue reversed

pall Pall may refer to: * Pall (funeral), a cloth used to cover a coffin * Pall (heraldry), a Y-shaped heraldic charge * Pall (liturgy), a piece of stiffened linen used to cover the chalice at the Eucharist * Pall Corporation, a global business * Pall. ...

and a red

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

. The flag is a representation of the coat of arms of Khabarovsk. The flag was adopted on 30 October 2007 and is 2:3 in ratio.

Geography

The city is located 30 kilometers (19 mi) from the China–Russia border, at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers, about 800 kilometers (500 mi) north of

Climate

Khabarovsk experiences a monsoonal dry-winter

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

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 ...

''Dwb'' borders on ''Dwa'',

Trewartha climate classification The Trewartha climate classification (TCC), or the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification (KTC), is a climate classification system first published by American geographer Glenn Thomas Trewartha in 1966. It is a modified version of the Köp ...

''Dcbc'' bordering on ''Dcac''). Its climate is strongly continental, featuring very warm summers and bitterly cold winters. The average annual

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

is , mainly concentrated in the summer. In a few years, November to March hardly receive any precipitation. The driest year was 2001 with only of precipitation and the wettest was 1981 when of precipitation fell. The wettest month was August 1981 with a total precipitation of . Due to high summer

humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...

, overnight lows remain mild to warm during several months. Snowfall is common, though light, with an average maximum snow height of . During peak winter, highs above freezing are very rare. The city's extreme climate sees daily average high and low temperatures vary by around over the course of the year. The average temperature in January is and the average for July is . Extremes have ranged from in June 2010 to in January 2011. Txu-oclc-6614368-nm53-11

Administrative and municipal status

Khabarovsk is the

administrative center An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgiu ...

of the

krai A krai or kray (; , , ''kraya'') is one of the types of federal subjects of modern Russia, and was a type of geographical administrative division in the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR. Etymologically, the word is related to the verb "" ...

and, within the framework of administrative divisions, it also serves as the administrative center of Khabarovsky District, even though it is not a part of it.Resolution #143-pr As an administrative division, it is incorporated separately as the city of krai significance of Khabarovsk—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 ...

. As a municipal division, the city of krai significance of Khabarovsk is incorporated as Khabarovsk Urban Okrug.Law #177

Demographics

Ethnic composition (2010): *

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

– 92.6% *

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

– 1.8% *

Koreans Koreans are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. The majority of Koreans live in the two Korean sovereign states of North and South Korea, which are collectively referred to as Korea. As of 2021, an estimated 7.3 m ...

– 1.1% *

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

– 0.6% *

Tatars Tatars ( )Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary are a group of Turkic peoples across Eas ...

– 0.5% *

Uzbeks The Uzbeks () are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group native to Central Asia, being among the largest Turkic ethnic groups in the area. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, next to Kazakhs, Kazakh and Karakalpaks, Karakalpak ...

– 0.5% * Others – 2.9%

Economy and infrastructure

Primary industries include iron processing, steel milling, Khabarovsk shipyard, Daldizel, machinery, petroleum refining, flour milling, pharmaceutical industry, meatpacking and manufacturing of various types of heavy and light machinery. A high-speed international fiber-optic cable connects the city of Khabarovsk with the city of Fuyuan in China.

Transportation

The city is a principal railway center and is located along the

Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...

; the rail distance of Khabarovsk railway station from

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

is . Khabarovsk is served by the

Khabarovsk Novy Airport Khabarovsk Novy Airport () is an airport located at the eastern part of Khabarovsk, Khabarovsk Krai, Russia. Khabarovsk Novy Airport was the main hub for the Russian airline Dalavia, which was shut down by the government due to large debts. Vl ...

with international flights to

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...

European Russia European Russia is the western and most populated part of the Russia, Russian Federation. It is geographically situated in Europe, as opposed to the country's sparsely populated and vastly larger eastern part, Siberia, which is situated in Asia ...

, and

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

. Road links include the

Trans-Siberian Highway The Trans-Siberian Highway is the unofficial name for a network of federal highways that span the width of Russia from the Baltic Sea of the Atlantic Ocean to the Sea of Japan. In the Asian Highway Network, the route is known as AH6. It stretch ...

( M58 and M60 Highways), and water transport links are provided by the

Amur River The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ''proper'' is ...

and

. Public transport includes:

(8 routes); trolleybus (4 routes); bus and fixed-route taxi (

marshrutka ''Marshrutnoye taksi''Harbin Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...

) In 2021, the construction of a paid high-speed bypass of the city was completed.

Education

There are the following institutions of higher education in Khabarovsk: *

Pacific National University The Pacific National University (PNU) is a public university in Khabarovsk, Russia, established in 1958. PNU has over 12,000 students in 80 various academic majors. Yuriy S. Marfin, the rector of the Pacific National University History The P ...

(former Khabarovsk State University of Technology or

Polytechnic Institute An institute of technology (also referred to as technological university, technical university, university of technology, polytechnic university) is an institution of tertiary education that specializes in engineering, technology, applied science ...

) *

Far Eastern State University of Humanities The Far Eastern State University of Humanities (previously KSPU — Khabarovsk State Pedagogical University) is a university in Khabarovsk Krai, in the Far East of Russia. History Establishment Far Eastern State University of Humanities was ...

(former Khabarovsk State Teachers Training University) *Far Eastern State Medical University *Khabarovsk State Academy of Economics and Law *Far Eastern State Transport University *Far Eastern Academy of Public Service *Far Eastern State Physical Education University *Khabarovsk State Institute of Arts and Culture

Tourism

Khabarovsk Transfiguration Cathedral 2010-12 1291801948

A key street in Khabarovsk is the broad Amursky Boulevard with its many shops and a local market. The city's five districts stretch for along the Amur River. The similar boulevard – Ussuryisky is located between the two main streets Muravyov-Amursky and Lenin street and runs to the city's artificial lakes (Gorodskie Prudi) with the sport complex Platinum Arena. The lakes are famous for their fountains with the light show. The Military History Museum of the Far Eastern Military District is located in the city, the only such museum in the Russian Far East. There is a walking tour from the

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

Square to Utyos on Amur via Muravyov-Amursky Street, where visitors find traditional Russian cuisine restaurants and shops with souvenirs. There are a number of night clubs and pubs in this area. In wintertime ice sculptures are on display on the cities squares and parks. Artists come from as far as

Harbin Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...

in China. Unlike

, the city has never been closed to foreigners, despite it being the headquarters of the

Far East Military District The Far Eastern Military District () was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific Fleet and part of the Siberian Military District to form the new Eastern Military District. His ...

, and retains its historically international flavor. Once the capital of the

(from 1926 to 1938), since the demise of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, it has experienced an increased Asian presence. It is estimated that over one million Chinese travel to and through Khabarovsk yearly, and foreign investment by

ese and

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, people from the Korean peninsula or of Korean descent * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Korean **Korean dialects **See also: North–South differences in t ...

corporations have grown in recent years. The city has a multi-story shopping mall and about a dozen hotels. Aleksandr Fedosov, the Khabarovsk Krai Minister of Culture, estimates that the city became more attractive to tourists following the

2015 Bandy World Championship 2015 Bandy World Championship 2015 was the XXXVth Bandy World Championship. At the FIB congress held during the XXXIVth World Championship in 2014, it was announced that Khabarovsk in Russia had been elected as host city. It was also decided t ...

. Khabarovsk is the closest major city to

Birobidzhan Birobidzhan ( rus, Биробиджан, p=bʲɪrəbʲɪˈdʐan; , ), also spelt Birobijan ( ), is a town and the administrative centre of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast, Russia, located on the Trans-Siberian Railway, near the China–Russia bord ...

, which is the

of the

Jewish Autonomous Oblast The Jewish Autonomous Oblast (JAO) is a federal subject of Russia in the far east of the country, bordering Khabarovsk Krai and Amur Oblast in Russia and Heilongjiang province in China. Its administrative center is the town of Birobidzhan. ...

, located on the

, close to the border with China. The

is a

federal subject The federal subjects of Russia, also referred to as the subjects of the Russian Federation () or simply as the subjects of the federation (), are the administrative division, constituent entities of Russia, its top-level political division ...

in the

Russian Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...

, bordering

and

Amur Oblast Amur Oblast () is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located on the banks of the Amur and Zeya rivers in the Russian Far East. The oblast borders Heilongjiang province of the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the south. The administrati ...

in Russia and

Heilongjiang Heilongjiang is a province in northeast China. It is the northernmost and easternmost province of the country and contains China's northernmost point (in Mohe City along the Amur) and easternmost point (at the confluence of the Amur and Us ...

province in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. Its

is 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 ...

, and it is the only region in the world in which

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

is the official language. Khabarovsk provides the closest major airport to

, which is

(KHV / UHHH), 198 km from the center of

Military

The headquarters of the

Russian Ground Forces The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...

Eastern Military District The Order of the Red Banner Eastern Military District ( Russian: Восточный военный округ) is a military district of Russia. It is one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction wi ...

is located at 15 Serysheva Street. The district was preceded by the

Far Eastern Military District The Far Eastern Military District () was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific Fleet and part of the Siberian Military District to form the new Eastern Military District. Histo ...

, which was located in the same location. The following component units of the district are stationed in the city: * 104th Chuj Headquarters Brigade * Honour Guard Company of the Khabarovsk Garrison * 17th Independent Electronic Warfare Brigade * 118th Independent Pontoon-Bridge Railway Battalion * 392nd Pacific Training Center for Junior Specialists *

11th Air and Air Defence Forces Army The 11th Red Banner Air and Air Defence Forces Army () is a formation of the Russian Aerospace Forces, located in the Russian Far East, whose zone of responsibility covers the Eastern Military District. The 11th Army Air Force and Air Defense Army ...

Military Band of the Eastern Military District The Military Band of the Eastern Military District is a military band unit of the Russian Armed Forces. It is a branch of the Military Band Service of the Armed Forces of Russia. The band mainly performs in Khabarovsk and in cities in the Eastern ...

All 5 of these units make up the Khabarovsk Garrison. The

Russian Navy The Russian Navy is the Navy, naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It has existed in various forms since 1696. Its present iteration was formed in January 1992 when it succeeded the Navy of the Commonwealth of Independent States (which had i ...

's Pacific Fleet maintains a presence in the city as well. There is also an airbase located to the east of the city. The main public relations asset for the military in the city is the Military History Museum of the Far Eastern Military District and the district military band.

Sports

Amur Khabarovsk Hockey Club Amur (), commonly referred to as the Amur Khabarovsk, is a professional ice hockey club based in Khabarovsk, Russia. It is a member of the Chernyshev Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Located in the Russian Far East, th ...

, a professional ice hockey club of the international

Kontinental Hockey League The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; ) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (20), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1), and China (1) for a total of 23 clubs. It was considered in ...

and plays its home games at the

Platinum Arena Platinum Arena Khabarovsk () is an indoor arena located in Khabarovsk, the capital of Khabarovsk Krai in eastern Russia. The arena was opened in 2003 and has a capacity of 7,100. It is the home arena of the ice hockey team Amur Khabarovsk of the ...

. It used to be the furthest team from the European-based teams in the league until

Admiral Vladivostok Hockey Club Admiral, also known as Admiral Vladivostok, () is a professional ice hockey club based in Vladivostok, Russia. It is a member of the Chernyshev Division in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Admiral play its home games at Fetisov ...

joined the KHL in 2013 as an expansion team. *

FC SKA-Khabarovsk Football Club SKA-Khabarovsk () is a Russian professional association football club based in Khabarovsk which plays in the second-tier Russian First League. They played in the Russian Premier League for the first time ever in the 2017–18 seaso ...

, a professional

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

team playing in the

Russian First League The Russian First League (, Pervaya liga), formerly called Russian First Division () and Russian Football National League (FNL) () is the second level of the Football in Russia#League system, Russian football league system. The Russian Professio ...

, the second tier of Russian association football. *

SKA-Neftyanik SKA-Neftyanik () is a professional bandy club from Khabarovsk, 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 wor ...

, a professional

bandy Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two team sport, teams wearing Ice skates#Bandy skates, ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. The playin ...

club which plays in the top-tier

Russian Bandy Super League The Russian Bandy Super League (), is a men's professional bandy league in Russia, the top division of Russian bandy. There is no definite rule which teams will be relegated or promoted. Besides results on the ice, financial resources and infrast ...

at its own indoor venue

Arena Yerofey Arena Yerofey () is a bandy arena in Khabarovsk, Russia, which hosted the 2015 Bandy World Championship. The 2018 Bandy World Championship was also hosted there, but only Division A that time around. The arena was built in 2013, is 46,000 m2 an ...

. It is both the easternmost and southernmost team in the top division. In the 2016–17 season the club became Russian champion for the first time. As of 2019 the team has won the title three years in a row.

International events

The city was a host to the

1981 Bandy World Championship The 1981 Bandy World Championship was the 12th Bandy World Championship and was contested by four men's bandy playing nations. The championship was played in Khabarovsk in the Soviet Union from 7 February-15 February 1981. Sweden became champions ...

. It also hosted the

, which was visited by Prime Minister

Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...

. Khabarovsk organised the 2018 tournament as well, but not Division B that time around, which was held in Chinese

. The event was named by the Federal Agency for Tourism as one of the best 200 events of the year. A delegation from the

2022 Winter Olympics The 2022 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Beijing 2022 (2022), were an international winter multi-sport event held from 4 to 20 February 2022 in Beijing, China, and surrounding areas wit ...

organising committee visited Khabarovsk to watch matches in the bandy league to study the plans if the sport was to be added to the Games program.

Notable people

Twin towns – sister cities

Khabarovsk is twinned with: * Niigata, Japan (1965) *

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

, United States (1988) *

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, Canada (1990) As of March 4, 2022,

Victoria City Council The Victoria City Council is the Local government, governing body of the City of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.. The council consists of the mayor plus eight councillors. A deputy mayor is appointed wikt:Monthly, monthly. The councillors a ...

voted to suspend the city's relationship with Khabarovsk as a result of the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

. *

, China (1993) *

Bucheon Bucheon (; ) is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Bucheon is located away from Seoul, of which it is a satellite city. It is located between Incheon and Seoul. Bucheon is the second most densely populated city in South Korea after Seo ...

, South Korea (2002) *

Sanya Sanya; Chinese postal romanization, also spelled Samah is the southernmost city on Hainan Island, and one of the four prefecture-level cities of Hainan, Hainan Province in Southeast China, South China. According to the Sixth National Populati ...

, China (2011)

Awards

*Khabarovsk placed first in different categories of "Most Developed and Comfortable City of Russia" in 2006, 2008 and 2009. *In 2010, Khabarovsk won the second place in the

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

list of most suitable cities for private business in Russia. First place went to

Krasnodar Krasnodar, formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southern Russia, with a population of 1,154,885 residents, and up to 1.263 millio ...

References

Notes

Citations

Sources

* * * * * * *Nikolay P. Kradin. ''It Is Protected by the State: the Monuments of Architecture in Khabarovsk''. Khabarovsk: Chastnaya kollektsiya, 1999. 192 p.

External links

Official website of Khabarovsk

Khabarovsk Business Directory

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070614144454/http://dicimg.empas.com/art/k03n001801m4.jpg map of the Manchu-Korean expedition against Russian expansion (나선정벌 (羅禪征伐)
Major problems of Russian-Korean relationship

Website of Khabarovsk
{{Use mdy dates, date=October 2012 1858 establishments in the Russian Empire Geography of Northeast Asia Russian Far East Primorskaya Oblast