Volga

The Volga is the <a href="/facts/List_of_rivers_of_Europe/qvPkenTo">longest river</a> in <a href="/facts/Europe/DTAtrKfh">Europe</a> and the longest <a href="/facts/Endorheic_basin/0CHdGUlG">endorheic basin</a> river in the world. Situated in <a href="/facts/Russia/jfkCwyxn">Russia</a>, it flows through <a href="/facts/Central_Russia/Fex3flnk">Central Russia</a> to <a href="/facts/Southern_Russia/xIMKQR0L">Southern Russia</a> and into the <a href="/facts/Caspian_Sea/Ymc08gkR">Caspian Sea</a>. The Volga has a length of 3,531 km (2,194 mi), and a catchment area of 1,360,000 km2 (530,000 sq mi). It is also Europe's largest river in terms of average <a href="/facts/Discharge_(hydrology)/aFeFEHpC">discharge</a> at delta – between 8,000 m3/s (280,000 cu ft/s) and 8,500 m3/s (300,000 cu ft/s) – and of <a href="/facts/Drainage_basin/lzsx0XJS">drainage basin</a>. It is widely regarded as the <a href="/facts/Rivers_in_Russia/FtMBrcVx">national river</a> of <a href="/facts/Russia/jfkCwyxn">Russia</a>. The hypothetical old Russian state, the <a href="/facts/Rus%2527_Khaganate/AR11MhIj">Rus' Khaganate</a>, arose along the Volga c. 830 AD. Historically, the river served as an important meeting place of various <a href="/facts/Eurasia/KlLI9GDM">Eurasian</a> civilizations.
The river flows in Russia through <a href="/facts/Forest/RnMtb31v">forests</a>, <a href="/facts/Forest_steppe/0M5wuWeG">forest steppes</a> and <a href="/facts/Steppe/IAako607">steppes</a>. Five of the <a href="/facts/List_of_cities_and_towns_in_Russia_by_population/y4efQ8fS">ten largest cities of Russia</a>, including the nation's capital, <a href="/facts/Moscow/AcFYpQUR">Moscow</a>, are located in the Volga's drainage basin. Because the Volga drains into the <a href="/facts/Caspian_Sea/Ymc08gkR">Caspian Sea</a>, which is an <a href="/facts/Endorheic_basin/0CHdGUlG">endorheic</a> body of water, the Volga does not naturally connect to any of the world's oceans.
Some of the largest <a href="/facts/Reservoir/2FewszmR">reservoirs</a> in the world are located along the Volga River. The river has a symbolic meaning in <a href="/facts/Russian_culture/yyNgyMKe">Russian culture</a> – <a href="/facts/Russian_literature/xBdGRAWw">Russian literature</a> and <a href="/facts/Russian_folklore/wSJeHwhk">folklore</a> often refer to it as Волга-матушка Volga-Matushka (Mother Volga).

Volga open-in-new

Volga