Moscow
The Russian capital, Moscow, is the main political, economic, cultural, and scientific center in Russia, and the eastern part of the European continent, and it is the largest city on this continent, and 2014 Moscow is ranked the ninth most expensive city in the world and is home to the Ostankino Tower. It is the tallest existing structure on the continent.
Label
The reason for naming the city of Moscow is due to the Moskva River, which runs through the heart of the capital. The city has received many nicknames such as the Third Rome for being one of the main sites of the Catholic Church, The City of the Hero, the First Throne, and Whitestone.
Geography
Location
Moscow is located on the banks of the Moskva River in the Central Federal District of European Russia, and the river flows through the city for a distance of up to 500 km through the eastern European plains in central Russia. The city's coordinates are between 45°55′ in the north direction and 37°37′ in the east direction. The distance between the eastern and western sides of Moscow is 39 km, and between the northern and southern sides is about 52 km, and the total area of the city is 2500 km².
The climate
Moscow has a generally cold climate; The average annual temperature is 5.8°. In winter, temperatures drop below zero, and the months of December, January, and February are characterized by the lowest temperatures during the year, as this leads to heavy snowfall, and snow cover prevails throughout the city in the months of December, January, February, and March, with altitudes of up to 35 Centimeter. While the summer is mild, with temperatures reaching their peak in July with an average of 19.2°.
Timing
Moscow time is the reference that most western regions of Russia follow. It is called Moscow Standard Time (MSK), and this time is three hours longer than UTC +3, and by an equal period of time from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). +3).
Population
According to official statistics, Moscow's population reached 11,918,057 people in 2012, increasing to 11,503,501 people registered in 2010, making it the most populous city in Russia. The city includes many different races and nationalities, most notably Russians, Ukrainians, Tatars, Armenians, Azerbaijanis, Belarusians, and others.
The language
The official language of the city of Moscow is the Russian language, in accordance with Article 68 of the Russian Constitution, which states that the Russian language is an official language throughout the territory of the Russian Federation; The Russian language is spoken by 6,435,753 people in Moscow, which is roughly half of the population. Besides the Russian language, there are many other languages that are used in Moscow, and they are as follows:
- Ukrainian: Spoken by 78,520 people.
- Armenian: Spoken by 29,254 people.
- Tatar: Spoken by 20,232 people.
- Uzbek: 17,217 people speak it.
- Belarusian: spoken by 11,599 people.
- Other languages: spoken by 806,790 people.
Religions
Christianity is the official religion in Moscow and the most widespread in it, mainly represented by the Orthodox Church. There are also followers of Christianity from other denominations, such as Roman Catholics, Protestants, and others. In addition to Christianity, various other religions spread in Moscow, such as adherents of Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and Baha'ism.
Economy
The city has one of the largest local economies in the European continent, and this economy constitutes 22% of the Russian GDP, as the value of the gross regional product of Moscow amounted to 12,808,573.4 rubles ($ 203,620.58) and is considered the financial center, and home to banks, and major companies in the country, and the city depends for its economy on natural gas and industry. The industrial sector includes the manufacture of chemicals, metals, foodstuffs, textiles, furniture, energy production, software development, and industrial machinery. Thus, Moscow is one of the most important industrial cities in the world, as the city alone contains 500 companies.
Tourism
The city of Moscow is distinguished by its tourist attractions, as it has the largest number of visitors and tourists among Russian cities, as the number of tourist trips to Moscow alone reached 4 million trips in 2011. The city includes many tourist services; It includes service facilities such as luxury hotels and shopping centers, in addition to more than 400 museums, 200 art galleries, 129 theaters, and others.
Gardens and parks
The city includes 96 parks and 18 gardens. The total area of green spaces in the city is 450 square kilometers and 100 square kilometers of forests; It is one of the most beautiful cities. These areas are frequented by thousands of visitors daily; For the purposes of enjoying its beauty, reading, dancing, and playing, the most famous of these spaces are Gorky Park, Culture Park, Lisopark, Zmaelovsky, Veli, Sokolniki Park, Sene Ostrov, and the National Park.
The media
The city is home to various media; It contains many English-language newspapers such as Moscow Times, and Russian-language newspapers such as Kommersant, Novaya Gazeta, and many televisions such as Russia I, II, V, Twenty-four, NTV, TSENTR, REN TV, STS-3, TNT, ZED, Euronews, Disney, Moskva, 2X2, Petersburg, RBC, RU.TV. In addition to television channels, Moscow has 50 radio stations, including Radio Europa Plus, Megapolis, Radio Kultrora, Pioneer, Svoboda, Komsomolskaya Pravda, Monte Carlo, and Orpheus.