Saratov is a large city on the banks of the Volgograd reservoir, the center of the region of the same name. One of the most important cultural, economic and educational centers of the Volga region. The main topic of this article will be the population of Saratov. How many people live in the city today? What is the ethnic composition of the population? What problems do the residents of Saratov face?
Saratov - the capital of the Volga region
The main city of the Volga region was founded in 1590. Scientists still cannot unravel the origin of its name. Some associate it with two Tatar words "sar" and "atav", which in general can be translated as "low-lying island". Others correlate the name of the city with the hydronym "Sarat" of Scythian-Iranian origin.
Modern Saratov is a large city with dozens of operating industrial enterprises, a developed cultural sphere and numerous ancient monuments. At the beginning of 2016, the citizens of Saratov received one very good news. Their native Saratov entered the top tenRussian cities for family holidays.
Sterlets are still depicted on the coat of arms of Saratov. Today, this craft can hardly be called the hallmark of the city, but they still did not change the coat of arms. Saratov was once famous for the production of wonderful and high-quality harmonicas. There are still craftsmen in the city who are still engaged in the manufacture and hand-painting of these musical instruments.
In the center of Saratov, many interesting sights have indeed been preserved. First of all - the main avenue of Kirov. In the evening it is lit up with lights, reminding everyone of the old and famous Soviet song. All tourists and guests are advised to visit the local Art Museum, whose collections include works by Shishkin, Bogolyubov, Repin and other artists. The building of the conservatory, the Trinity Cathedral, as well as the road bridge stretching over the Mother Volga have long been a kind of architectural symbols of Saratov.
Population of Saratov: size and dynamics
At the beginning of the twentieth century, no more than 200 thousand people lived in the "capital of the Volga region". And by the end of the same century, the population of Saratov had grown 4.5 times! Its peak number was in 1991 (almost 913 thousand).
842 thousand people live in the city as of 2015. In 2011, the UN ranked Saratov in sixth place in the list of cities in the world in terms of the fastest depopulation rates. However, the picture has improved slightly in recent years. Thus, the birth rate in the city remains atextremely low level. However, the average life expectancy of Saratov residents has slightly increased. In addition, migration growth has also increased significantly. Thus, the population of Saratov, starting from 2013, is no longer declining at such a rapid pace as before.
Near Saratov, on the opposite bank of the Volga, there is another city - Engels. There are proposals to merge these two settlements into a single agglomeration. In this case, the population of Saratov would be at least 1.2 million people. And the list of Russian millionaire cities would be replenished with one more item.
Population of Saratov: national and religious composition
Geographically, the city is located on the border of Europe and Asia. Historically, it was formed at the junction of several cultures. That is why the modern population of the city of Saratov is multi-ethnic.
The most numerous ethnic group here are Russians (about 91%). They are followed by Tatars (2%), Ukrainians (1.3%), Armenians (1.1%), Kazakhs, Azerbaijanis, Belarusians and Jews (less than 1%).
Saratov can also be called the center of many faiths. In addition to the Orthodox, there are quite a lot of Roman Catholics and Muslims. There are eight cemeteries in the city, including Old Believer, Jewish and Tatar.
Social Issues
In 2015, Saratov was one of the three poorest cities in Russia, according to research by the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. Thus, the share of the poor inthe capital of the Volga region amounted to 19%. And last year, Saratov "lit up" in another anti-rating, being in the top ten most depressive cities in Russia.
In addition to poverty, the problem of cleanliness of streets and yards is very acute here. Journalists and local residents have repeatedly written that the city is literally "just mired in garbage." True, in recent years, the situation with cleaning and landscaping has improved significantly.
Other problems of Saratov still remain unresolved. In particular, we are talking about an insufficient number of parking lots, uncontrolled cutting down of green areas within the city and a careless attitude towards architectural monuments.
Conclusion
In this article, we examined and studied the population of Saratov in detail. Its number, as of the end of 2015, is 842 thousand people. There has been positive population growth in recent years.
Representatives of various nationalities live in the city: Russians, Tatars, Ukrainians, Armenians, Kazakhs and others. Despite numerous city problems (poverty, unemployment, unsatisfactory condition of the streets and public utilities), Saratov continues to live and develop. And the positive dynamics of its population is a clear confirmation of this.
