What it's known for
Almaty is Kazakhstan's most populous city. It became the capital in 1929, during the Soviet era, stayed the capital after independence, and is still known as the country's 'southern capital'.
Almaty
City in KazakhstanIn the south-east of Kazakhstan, Almaty spreads across the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains, near the border with Kyrgyzstan. Most of the city is between about 700 and 900 m above sea level.
Fun facts
- The name is often translated as 'full of apples', and the old name Alma-Ata means 'father of the apples'; the region is thought to be the apple's ancestral home.
- The Medeu skating rink, in a mountain valley above the city, lies at about 1,690 m, one of the highest skating rinks in the world.
- The Ascension Cathedral, built in 1907 from Tian Shan spruce wood, is 56 m tall and survived a strong earthquake in 1911.
Finding it on the globe
Aim at the south-east corner of Kazakhstan, near the mountains on the Kyrgyz border: Almaty is about 200 km east-north-east of Bishkek.
Easy to mix up
Almaty was the capital until 1997, when the government moved to Akmola, now called Astana, about 970 km to the north-north-west.
Sources: Wikipedia: Almaty, Wikipedia: List of national capitals