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The Mezen (russian: Мезень) is a river in
Udorsky District Udorsky District (russian: Удо́рский райо́н; kv, Удора район, ''Udora rajon'') is an administrative district (raion), one of the twelve in the Komi Republic, Russia.Law #13-RZ It is located in the west of the republic. T ...
of the
Komi Republic The Komi Republic (russian: Республика Коми; kv, Коми Республика), sometimes simply referred to as Komi, is a republic of Russia located in Eastern Europe. Its capital is the city of Syktyvkar. The population of th ...
and in Leshukonsky and
Mezensky District Mezensky District (russian: Мезе́нский райо́н) is an administrative district (raion), one of the twenty-one in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia.Law #65-5-OZ As a municipal division, it is incorporated as Mezensky Municipal District.Law ...
s of Arkhangelsk Oblast in
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
. Its mouth is located in the Mezen Bay of the
White Sea The White Sea (russian: Белое море, ''Béloye móre''; Karelian and fi, Vienanmeri, lit. Dvina Sea; yrk, Сэрако ямʼ, ''Serako yam'') is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is s ...
. Mezen is one of the biggest rivers of European Russia. It is long, and the area of its basin . The principal
tributaries A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...
of the Mezen are the
Bolshaya Loptyuga Bolshaya (Russian language for "big") may refer to: * Bolshaya, Arkhangelsk, a village * Bolshaya chistka, "Great Purge", the 1936–1938 Soviet purge * Bolshaya Izhora, an urban locality in the Lomonosovsky District of Leningrad Oblast * Bolshay ...
(left), the Pyssa (left), the Mezenskaya Pizhma (right), the
Sula Sula may refer to: Places Norway * Sula (island), an island in Sula municipality, Møre og Romsdal county * Sula, Møre og Romsdal, a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county * Sula, Solund, an island in Solund municipality, Vestland county * Y ...
(right), the Kyma (right), the Vashka (left), the Pyoza (right), and the Kimzha (left). The river basin of the Mezen comprises vast areas in the east and north-east of Arkhangelsk Oblast and in the west of the Komi Republic. The town of Mezen, the
urban type settlement Urban-type settlementrussian: посёлок городско́го ти́па, translit=posyolok gorodskogo tipa, abbreviated: russian: п.г.т., translit=p.g.t.; ua, селище міського типу, translit=selyshche mis'koho typu, ab ...
s of Usogorsk and Kamenka, as well as the administrative center of Udorsky District, the selo of Koslan all are located on the banks of the Mezen. The administrative center of Leshukonsky District, the selo of
Leshukonskoye Leshukonskoye (russian: Лешуконское) is a rural locality (a '' selo'') and the administrative center of Leshukonsky District of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located on the left bank of the Vashka River. It also serves as the administrat ...
, is located on the Vashka River several kilometers upstream from the confluence of the Vashka and the Mezen and is connected with the right bank of the Mezen by a ferry crossing. The source of the Mezen is in the
Timan Ridge The Timan Ridge (russian: Тиманский кряж – ''Timansky Kryazh'') is a highland in the far north of European Russia. Most of the Timan Ridge is situated in the Komi Republic, but the northernmost part is in Nenets Autonomous Okrug a ...
in the Komi Republic, west of the northern
Ural Mountains The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western ...
. It flows first south-west, then sharply turns roughly in the north-western direction. The upper course of the Mezen runs through the hilly landscape. The Mezen flows into the Mezen Bay of the White Sea near the town of Mezen, right below the Arctic Circle. Near its mouth, the Pyoza River enters from the east. The Mezen is navigable below the selo of Koslan, however, there is no regular passenger navigation except for ferry crossings.


History

The area was populated by
Finnic peoples The Finnic or Fennic peoples, sometimes simply called Finns, are the nations who speak languages traditionally classified in the Finnic (now commonly ''Finno-Permic'') language family, and which are thought to have originated in the region of ...
and then colonized by the
Novgorod Republic The Novgorod Republic was a medieval state that existed from the 12th to 15th centuries, stretching from the Gulf of Finland in the west to the northern Ural Mountains in the east, including the city of Novgorod and the Lake Ladoga regions of ...
. In the 13th century the Novgorod merchants already reached the
White Sea The White Sea (russian: Белое море, ''Béloye móre''; Karelian and fi, Vienanmeri, lit. Dvina Sea; yrk, Сэрако ямʼ, ''Serako yam'') is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is s ...
. The Mezen was used by Novgorod merchants as the trading route to the basin of the
Pechora Pechora (russian: Печо́ра; kv, Печӧра, ''Pećöra'') is a town in the Komi Republic, Russia, located on the Pechora River, west of and near the northern Ural Mountains. The area of the town is . Population: History Pechora was ...
which was attractive because of the fur. From the Northern Dvina, they went upstream the
Pinega Pinega (russian: Пинега) is a rural locality (a settlement), formerly a town, in Pinezhsky District of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Pinega River (hence the name). It serves as the administrative center of P ...
and took the boats by land to the Kuloy. The boats then were taken from the Kuloy to the Mezen. The river route continued east up the Pyoza, portage, and down the
Tsilma The Tsilma (russian: Цильма) is a river in Leshukonsky District of Arkhangelsk Oblast and Ust-Tsilemsky District of the Komi Republic in Russia. It is a left and one of the main tributaries of the Pechora. It is long, and the area of its ...
to the Pechora. Another route went from the Northern Dvina upstream the Pukshenga, then moved to the Pokshenga and downstream to the Pinega. From the Pinega, the merchants used the Yozhuga, the Zyryanskaya Vashka, and the Vashka to get to the Mezen. After the fall of Novgorod, the area became a part of the
Grand Duchy of Moscow The Grand Duchy of Moscow, Muscovite Russia, Muscovite Rus' or Grand Principality of Moscow (russian: Великое княжество Московское, Velikoye knyazhestvo Moskovskoye; also known in English simply as Muscovy from the Lat ...
. The first permanent Russian settlements on the Mezen River are mentioned during the 16th century: Yuroma (1513) and Koynas (1554). The middle course of the Mezen, approximately the current area of
Leshukonsky District Leshukonsky District (russian: Лешуко́нский райо́н) is an administrative district (raion), one of the twenty-one in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia.Law #65-5-OZ Municipally, it is incorporated as Leshukonsky Municipal District.Law # ...
, was where Russian and Komi cultures mixed the most. In the lower course of the Mezen, currently
Mezensky District Mezensky District (russian: Мезе́нский райо́н) is an administrative district (raion), one of the twenty-one in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia.Law #65-5-OZ As a municipal division, it is incorporated as Mezensky Municipal District.Law ...
, Russians dominated, whereas in the upper course, currently
Udorsky District Udorsky District (russian: Удо́рский райо́н; kv, Удора район, ''Udora rajon'') is an administrative district (raion), one of the twelve in the Komi Republic, Russia.Law #13-RZ It is located in the west of the republic. T ...
, Komi dominated.


References


External links

* {{Authority control Rivers of the Komi Republic Rivers of Arkhangelsk Oblast