Oral

Orál, Ural'sk in Russian, formerly known as Yaitsk, is a city in northwestern Kazakhstan, at the confluence of the Ural and Chogan rivers close to the Russian border. As it is located on the western bank of the Ural river, it is considered geographically in Europe. It is the capital of the West Kazakhstan Region. The ethnic composition is dominated by Kazakhs and Russians. Population:Oral is an agricultural and industrial centre, and has been an important trade stop since its founding. Barge traffic has passed up and down the Ural River between the Caspian Sea and the Ural Mountains for centuries. Today it is one of the major entry points for rail traffic from Europe to Siberia, servicing the many new oil fields in the Caspian basin and the industrial cities of the southern Urals. It is served by Oral Ak Zhol Airport.HistoryOral, founded in 1613 by Cossacks, was originally named Yaitsk, after the Yaik river, the name of the Ural river at the time. Because the Yaik Cossacks sided with the insurrectionists during the rebellions of Stenka Razin and Pugachev, Empress Catherine II declared on 15th January, 1775 that the Yaik river would henceforth be renamed the Ural River and Yaitsk would be known as Ural'sk.