Balashikha
| Balashikha (English) Балашиха (Russian) |
|
|---|---|
| - City - | |
 Clockwise: Lenin Avenue, Balashikha-Arena; Balashikha cotton mill #1, Balashikha railway station |
|
.svg) Location of Moscow Oblast in Russia |
|
 Balashikha
|
|
|
|
|
_(1999).png) |
.png) |
|
|
|
| Administrative status (as of December 2014) | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Moscow Oblast |
| Administratively subordinated to | Balashikha City Under Oblast Jurisdiction |
| Administrative center of | Balashikha City Under Oblast Jurisdiction |
| Municipal status (as of January 2015) | |
| Urban okrug | Balashikha Urban Okrug |
| Administrative center of | Balashikha Urban Okrug |
| Head | Vladimir Samodelov |
| Representative body | Council of Deputies |
| Statistics | |
| Area (urban okrug) (July 2012) | 244.18 km2 (94.28 sq mi) |
| Population (2010 Census) | 215,494 inhabitants |
| - Rank in 2010 | 86th |
| Density | 883/km2 (2,290/sq mi) |
| Time zone | MSK (UTC+03:00) |
| Founded | 1830 |
| City status since | 1939 |
| Postal code(s) | 143xxx |
| Dialing code(s) | +7 495 |
|
|
|
| on | |
Balashikha (Russian: Балашиха; IPA: [bəlɐˈʂɨxə]) is a city in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Pekhorka River 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) east of Moscow. Population: 215,494 (2010 Census);147,909 (2002 Census);135,841 (1989 Census); 92,400 (1970).
In finno-ugric languages Bala-shika means land of celebrations, land of laughter and fun. Before Slavs in this area lived Finno-Ugric peoples.
The city is known for its unique river and waterway system. The Pekhorka River system covers an area of 40 kilometers (25 mi) from north to south and 20 kilometers (12 mi) from east to west, and many small lakes and ponds were created by damming to provide water power for the cotton mills in the 19th century.
Balashikha was established in 1830. It was granted town status in 1939. Several rural hamlets had existed long before on the site of the modern city.
The city stands on the famous Vladimir Highway, which led out of Moscow to the east. This was the route along which convicted criminals were marched to forced labor camps in Siberia. The road was renamed Gorky Highway in the Soviet era. The failure of the Decembrist Revolt against Tsar Nicholas I led to the execution of its ringleaders and the exile of many nobles to Siberia. Soviet-era schoolchildren were told that the prisoners were marched in chains along this road followed by their wives. In truth, the Decembrist prisoners were sent from St. Petersburg, then the capital of Russia, through Yaroslavl, and not through Moscow and Balashikha, and the story was invented as part of celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the event in 1925.
...
Wikipedia