Astrakhan << AHS truh kahn or AHS truh khan or AS truh `kan` >> (pop. 475,629) is a city in southwestern Russia, on the Volga River Delta. Astrakhan extends over several islands in the region. It is the administrative center of Astrakhan oblast (region). Astrakhan is an important trading center because of its good water connections with the ports on the Caspian Sea and the river ports of the Volga. Fishing is one of its main industries, and caviar is a chief product. Like Moscow, Astrakhan is dominated by an old fortress called a kremlin.
Astrakhan was established as an outpost of Genghis Khan’s empire in the early 1200’s. The Asian conqueror Timur (also called Tamerlane) destroyed it in 1395. Later, Astrakhan was rebuilt. In 1556, Ivan the Terrible captured the city and made it part of Russia.
