Nur-Sultan

Nur-Sultan

(no͝or-so͝oltän`), formerly

Astana

(ästä`nä), city (2008 est. pop. 600,000), capital of Kazakhstan, in central Kazakhstan on the Ishim (Esil) River, within but independent of Aqmola prov. Agricultural machinery and consumer goods are manufactured; there are also leather-tanning, food-processing, clothing and footwear, and building-materials industries. Nur-Sultan is also an important rail junction. Several universities are there. The city was founded as a fortress in 1824. It was called (1832) Akmolinsk and was the capital from 1939 of the former Akmolinsk region until 1961, when it was renamed Tselinograd. As capital of the Virgin Lands TerritoryVirgin Lands Territory,
Rus. Tselinny Kray, former administrative division, c.231,000 sq mi (598,300 sq km), Central Asian USSR, in Kazakhstan. Created in 1960 by the merger of Kokchetav (Kökshetau), Kustanay (Qostanay), North Kazakhstan, Pavlodar, and Akmolinsk
..... Click the link for more information.  (Tselinny Kray) agricultural project, the city experienced a tremendous growth in population. After KazakhstanKazakhstan
or Kazakstan
, officially Republic of Kazakhstan, republic (2015 est. pop. 17,750,000), c.1,050,000 sq mi (2,719,500 sq km), central Asia. It borders on Siberian Russia in the north, China in the east, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan in the south,
..... Click the link for more information.  gained its independence, the city and the region were renamed (1992) Aqmola (or Akmola). In 1994, Aqmola was designated as the future capital of Kazakhstan, and after the capital was moved there in 1997 the city was renamed (1998) Astana. The transfer of the capital sparked a construction boom, most dramatically on the left bank of the Ishim where the new government offices are located. Among the city's many new buildings are many government facilities, the pyramidal Palace of Peace (2006), and the central concert hall (2009). In 2019 the city was again renamed, to honor Kazakhstan's first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev.