Samara is a first-level division of Russia, in Asia. Its mapped cities centre on 53.2199° N, 49.8585° E.

What is the largest city in Samara?

Samara is the largest city mapped in Samara, with a metropolitan population of about 1.14 million.

How many cities are in Samara?

YearMaps maps 6 cities and towns in Samara, with a combined metropolitan population of about 2.34 million. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.

What is the largest lake in Samara?

The largest lake mapped in or beside Samara is Saratov Reservoir, at about 1,248 km².

Samara Map — Cities & Geography, Russia

Interactive Map of Samara

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About Samara

Samara, known as Kuybyshev from 1935 to 1991, is the largest city and the administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. It is sited at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara rivers. The city has a population of over 1.14 million residents, with up to 1.22 million residents in the urban agglomeration (not including Novokuybyshevsk, which is not conurbated). The city covers an area of 541.4 square kilometers (209.0 sq mi), and is the ninth-largest city and tenth-largest agglomeration in Russia, and the third-most populous city on the Volga and in the Volga Federal District.

Formerly a closed city, Samara is now a large and important social, political, economic, industrial, and cultural centre in Russia and hosted the European Union—Russia Summit in May 2007. It has a continental climate characterised by hot summers and cold winters. The life of Samara's citizens has always been intrinsically linked to the Volga River, which has not only served as the main commercial thoroughfare of Russia throughout several centuries, but also has great visual appeal. Samara's riverfront is one of the main recreation sites for both local citizens and tourists.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Samara (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Samara in Depth

History

Samara, together with its northern neighbour Kazan, is at the centre of the Idel-Ural historical region. Ahmad ibn Fadlan visited the area that is now Samara around 921 while on his journey to the Volga Bulgars who then controlled the region from their capital Bolghar.

The Volga port of Samara appears on Italian maps of the 14th century. Before 1586, the Samara Bend was a pirate nest. Lookouts would spot an oncoming boat and quickly cross to the other side of the peninsula so that the pirates could organize an attack. Officially, Samara started with a fortress built in 1586 at the confluence of the Volga and Samara Rivers. This fortress was a frontier post protecting the then easternmost boundaries of Russia from forays of nomads. A local customs office was established in 1600.

Geography

The development of the territory of modern Samara began in the 16th century with the foundation of the Samara fortress. Prior to the founding of the fortress, this area was home to piers for Volga ships. The official date of foundation of the settlement was the decree of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich of 1586. The location of the town was predetermined by several factors: strategic placement in order to ensure security from the raids of nomadic tribes; expansion of the Russian state in the Middle and Lower Volga regions; convenient location in the steppe landscape, at the intersection of the Volga and Samarka rivers.

The fortress was wooden with 11 towers, surrounded by a rampart and a moat, and occupied 5.2 hectares.

Demographics

The population of Samara was 1,173,393 in 2021, up from 1,164,685 in 2010.

Samara is a multi-confessional city with various religious groups, including an Orthodox Christian majority and minorities of Armenian Apostolic Christians, Catholics, Protestants, Muslims, and Jews.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Samara (CC BY-SA 4.0).

History of Samara: Empires and States

The atlas records 10 polities whose mapped territory included part of Samara, from Kimek-Kipchak confederation in 1072 CE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.

Polities that held Samara, in chronological order
Polity	Period here
Kimek-Kipchak confederation	1072–1235 CE
The Mongol Empire	1236–1293 CE
Golden Horde	1294–1449 CE
Blue Horde	1363–1401 CE
Nogai Horde	1450–1563 CE
Small Horde	1564–1587 CE
Tsardom of Russia	1588–1720 CE
The Russian Empire	1721–1916 CE
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics	1922–1991 CE
Russian Federation	1992–2024 CE

Historical Maps of Samara

Samara on the world map in each year one of these states held it:

Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.

Visiting Samara

Samara (Russian: Сама́ра suh-MAH-ruh), the sixth largest city in Russia and capital of an eponymous region, lies on the Volga River in European Russia. It is a major economic, industrial and cultural centre and has a population of over 1,164,000.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Samara (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Largest Cities in Samara

6 cities mapped. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.

Largest Cities in Samara
#	Name	Population	Region	Role
1	Samara	1.14 million	Samara	Admin-1 capital
2	Tolyatti	702,879	Samara	Populated place
3	Syzran	189,338	Samara	Populated place
4	Novokuybishevsk	152,334	Samara	Populated place
5	Chapayevsk	107,164	Samara	Populated place
6	Otradnyy	50,127	Samara	Populated place

Major Dams in Samara

1 dam mapped. Ranked by structural height. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.

Major Dams in Samara
#	Name	Height	River	Capacity	Completed
1	Kuybyshev Dam (Zhiguli HPP)	52 m	Volga	2,488 MW	1957

Largest Lakes in Samara

1 lake mapped. Ranked by mapped surface area. A lake on a border is listed under each country it lies in, with the area of the whole lake. Assigned by the nearest mapped city, so features near the boundary may belong to a neighbouring division.

Largest Lakes in Samara
#	Name	Surface Area	Type
1	Saratov Reservoir	1,248 km²	Reservoir

Samara: Quick Answers

Where is Samara?: Samara is a first-level division of Russia, in Asia. Its mapped cities centre on 53.2199° N, 49.8585° E.
What is the largest city in Samara?: Samara is the largest city mapped in Samara, with a metropolitan population of about 1.14 million.
How many cities are in Samara?: YearMaps maps 6 cities and towns in Samara, with a combined metropolitan population of about 2.34 million. This counts mapped settlements, not every municipality.
What is the largest lake in Samara?: The largest lake mapped in or beside Samara is Saratov Reservoir, at about 1,248 km².