Kuybyshev Reservoir or Kuybyshevskoye Reservoir (russian: Ку́йбышевское водохрани́лище, Kuybyshevskoye Vodokhranilishche), sometimes called Samara Reservoir and informally called Kuybyshev Sea, is a
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
of the middle
Volga
The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...
and lower
Kama
''Kama'' (Sanskrit ) means "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature.Monier Williamsकाम, kāmaMonier-Williams Sanskrit English Dictionary, pp 271, see 3rd column Kama often connotes sensual pleasure, sexual ...
in
Chuvashia
Chuvashia (russian: Чувашия; cv, Чӑваш Ен), officially the Chuvash Republic — Chuvasia,; cv, Чӑваш Республики — Чӑваш Ен is a republic of Russia located in Eastern Europe. It is the homeland of the Chuv ...
,
Mari El Republic
The Mari El Republic (russian: Респу́блика Мари́й Эл, ''Respublika Mariy El''; Meadow Mari: ; Hill Mari: ) is a republic of Russia. It is in the European Russia region of the country, along the northern bank of the Volga Rive ...
,
Republic of Tatarstan
The Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Республика Татарстан, Respublika Tatarstan, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə tətɐrˈstan; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Республикасы), or simply Tatarstan (russian: Татарстан, tt ...
,
Samara Oblast
Samara Oblast ( rus, Сама́рская о́бласть, r=Samarskaya oblast, p=sɐˈmarskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localitie ...
and
Ulyanovsk Oblast
Ulyanovsk Oblast (russian: Ульяновская область, ''Ul’janovskaja oblast’'') is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It is located in the Volga Federal District. Its administrative center is the city of Ulyanovsk. Populatio ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
. The Kuybyshev Reservoir has a surface area of 6,450 km² and a volume of 58 billion cubic meters. It is the largest reservoir in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and third in the world by surface area. The major cities of
Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering a ...
,
Ulyanovsk
Ulyanovsk, known until 1924 as Simbirsk, is a city and the administrative center of Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Volga River east of Moscow. Population:
The city, founded as Simbirsk (), was the birthplace of Vladimir Lenin (born ...
, and
Tolyatti
Tolyatti ( rus, Толья́тти, p=tɐlʲˈjætʲ(ː)ɪ), also known as Togliatti, formerly known as Stavropol (1737–1964), is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Samara Oblast, Russia. It is the largest city in Russia which doe ...
are adjacent to the reservoir.
The reservoir was created by the dam of
Zhiguli Hydroelectric Station
The Zhiguli Hydroelectric Station or Zhigulyovskaya Hydroelectric Station (russian: Жигулёвская ГЭС, Zhigulyovskaya GES++), formerly known as Kuybyshev Hydroelectric Station (Kuybyshev GES) is a large dam and hydroelectric station ...
(formerly, V.I. Lenin Volga Hydroelectric Station), located between the cities of
Zhigulevsk
Zhigulevsk ( rus, Жигулёвск, p=ʐɨɡʊˈlʲɵfsk) is a town in Samara Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Volga River in the Samara Bend near the Zhiguli Mountains, west of Samara. Population:
Etymology
The name Zhigulevs ...
and Tolyatti in
Samara Oblast
Samara Oblast ( rus, Сама́рская о́бласть, r=Samarskaya oblast, p=sɐˈmarskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localitie ...
.
It was filled in 1955–1957.
With the filling of the reservoir in the 1950s, some villages and towns were submerged by the rising water and were rebuilt on higher ground. These included the old fortress town of Stavropol-on-Volga, which was replaced by Tolyatti. One district of Ulyanovsk is below water level and is protected from the reservoir by an
embankment
Embankment may refer to:
Geology and geography
* A levee, an artificial bank raised above the immediately surrounding land to redirect or prevent flooding by a river, lake or sea
* Embankment (earthworks), a raised bank to carry a road, railwa ...
.
File:Volga_steep_Tatarstan.jpg, Mountainous right bank of the reservoir
File:Kazan roots and Volga.JPG, Kuybyshev Sea near Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering a ...
File:Volga Rocks.jpg, Rocks and gypsum
Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, blackboard or sidewalk chalk, and drywall. ...
mine
Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to:
Extraction or digging
* Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging
*Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine
Grammar
*Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun
...
near the Kama's mouth
See also
*
Markiz Island
References
{{Kama River
Reservoirs built in the Soviet Union
Reservoirs in Russia
Reservoirs in Mari El
Reservoirs in Chuvashia
Reservoirs in Samara Oblast
Reservoirs in Ulyanovsk Oblast
Reservoirs in Tatarstan
RKuybyshev
RKuybyshev