What is the capital city of Russia? Moscow
Moscow is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 12.4 million residents within the city limits, over 17 million residents in the urban area, and over 20 million residents in the metropolitan area.
The city covers an area of 2,511 square kilometres, while the urban area covers 5,891 square kilometres, and the metropolitan area covers over 26,000 square kilometres. Moscow is among the world’s largest cities, being the largest city entirely in Europe, the largest urban area in Europe, the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and the largest city by land area on the European continent.
The name of the city is thought to be derived from the name of the Moskva River. There have been proposed several theories of the origin of the name of the river. Finno-Ugric Merya and Muroma people, who were among the several pre-Slavic tribes which originally inhabited the area, called the river supposedly Mustajoki, in English: Black river. It has been suggested that the name of the city derives from this term.
When did Moscow become the capital of Russia?
Originally established in 1147, Moscow grew to become a prosperous and powerful city that served as the capital of the Grand Duchy that bears its namesake. When the Grand Duchy of Moscow evolved into the Tsardom of Russia, Moscow still remained as the political and economic centre for most of the Tsardom’s history. When the Tsardom was reformed into the Russian Empire, the capital was moved from Moscow to Saint Petersburg diminishing the influence of the city. The capital was then moved back to Moscow following the October Revolution and the city was brought back as the political centre of the Russian SFSR and then the Soviet Union.
On March 12, 1918, Moscow became the capital once more but now it was the capital of the Soviet state. On March 16, 1918, the Extraordinary 4th all-Russian congress of Soviet authorized the government decision appending the instructions.
