Volga region

The Volga region, known as the Povolzhye (UK: pə-VAWL-zhay, US: pə-VOHL-zhay; Russian: Поволжье [pɐˈvoɫʐje] lit. 'Along the Volga'), is a historical region in Russia that encompasses the drainage basin of the Volga River, the longest river in Europe, in central and southern European Russia. The Volga region is culturally separated into three sections: ■ Upper Volga Region – from the Volga River's source in Tver Oblast to the mouth of the Oka River in Nizhny Novgorod; ■ Middle Volga Region – from the mouth of the Oka River to the mouth of the Kama River south of Kazan; ■ Lower Volga Region – from the mouth of the Kama River to the Volga Delta in the Caspian Sea, in Astrakhan Oblast. The geographic boundaries of the region are vague, and the term Volga region is used to refer primarily to the Middle and Lower sections, which are included in the Volga Federal District and Volga economic region.