SIMBIRSK, a government of eastern Russia, on the right bank of the middle Volga, with Kazan on the N., Samara on the E., Saratoff on the S., and Penza and Nijni-Novgorod on the W., has an area of 19,110 square miles, and a population (1882) of 1,471,164. It is occupied by the eastern parts of the great central plateau of middle Russia, which slowly rises towards the south, and gently slopes in the north towards the great Oka depression of the middle Volga. Its higher parts range from 750 to 1000 feet above the sea, and form the Zheguleff range of hills, which compel the Volga to make its great bend at Samara; while the numerous valleys and ravines which intersect it, and are excavated to a depth of 700 to 800 feet, give quite a hilly aspect to several parts of it, especially in the east, where it descends with abrupt crags towards the broad valley of the Volga. In the west a broad depression, traversed by numerous rivers and streams, extends along the left bank of the Sura. All geological formations, from the Carboniferous upwards, are met with in Simbirsk. The Volga flows for 300 miles along the eastern boundary, separating Simbirsk from Samara. The shallow Sviyaga rises in the Samarskaya Luka Hills and flows parallel to the Volga, at a distance of 2 to 20 miles, but in an opposite direction. The Sura, also flowing northwards, waters the western part of Simbirsk; it is navigable for more than 270 miles, and, as it is free from ice earlier than the Volga and flows towards central Russia, goods are sometimes transported by land to the Sura to be shipped on it when speedy transport is desired. Its tributaries—the Barysh, Alatyr (100 miles), Piyana, and others—are not navigable. The Usa (80 miles) and the Syzrañ (100 miles) flow east and join the Volga below the ...Samara bend. A few lakes and marshes are met with in the west of the government. The forests, although rapidly disappearing, still cover 3,894,800 acres, while of the remainder 5,930,600 acres are arable, 1,150,800 acres prairie and pasture land, and 605,600 acres uncultivable. In the north excellent forests of timber cover large areas, but in the south they are rare. The climate is severe, and the extremes are great. At Simbirsk the average temperature is 38°∙7, but the thermometer sometimes reaches 114° F., and frosts of - 47° F. are not uncommon; the average rain and snow fall is only 17∙6 inches. South of the Samara Hills the climate is much less severe, and gardening, which is prosecuted with great difficulty in the north, flourishes there.
The population, which was but 1,192,510 in 1867, had reached 1,471,164 in 1882, of whom only 100,740 lived in towns. The greater number (about two-thirds) are Great Russians, the remainder being Mordvinians (13 per cent.), Tchuvashes (9∙3 per cent.), and Tartars (8∙3 per cent. ), with about 1000 Jews. The Mordvinians are chiefly settled in the north-west, in Ardatoff and Alatyr (40 and 26 per cent. of population), and on the Volga in Senghilei; the Tchuvashes make about one-third of the population of the districts of Buinsk and Kurmysh, contiguous to Kazan; the Tartars constitute about 35 per cent. in Buinsk and 18 per cent. in Senghilei. Only the Tartars (about 100,000) are Mohammedans, the remainder being Greek-Orthodox or Dissenters. As in other Volga governments, the villages in Simbirsk are mostly large, many of them having from 3000 to 5000 inhabitants. Agriculture, favoured by a fertile soil, is the chief occupation, grain being exported or manufactured into spirit. Linseed and hempseed are cultivated for exportation, as also kitchen-garden produce and some fruit. Bee-keeping is a favourite and remunerative occupation with Mordvinians, and fishing (sturgeon) is carried on in the Volga and the Sura. The timber-trade in the north and the shipbuilding on the Sura are considerable sources of wealth; wooden sledges and wheels are made and exported, as well as bags of lime-tree bast,— the last-named industry giving occupation to whole villages. Other petty trades, also carried on in conjunction with agriculture, are the manufacture of felts and felt hats, linen stuffs (especially among the Mordvinians), cottons, boots, and small metal wares. A characteristic feature of Simbirsk is the trade in wooden vessels, which are exported to Vyatka, Perm, Orenburg, Samara, and the Don, and there exchanged for cat, squirrel, and hare skins. Flour-mills are numerous. Watered by the Volga and Sura, and moreover traversed in its southern portion by the railway connecting Orenburg and Samara with Penza and Ryazan, by Batraki and Syzran, the government has an active trade. Its exports, however, are much below those of Samara and Saratoff. Batraki and Syzran are important centres of traffic, the aggregate amount of merchandise entered and cleared by rail and boat being respectively 2,435,000 and 2,000,000 cwts. (timber not included). The chief ports of lading on the Sura are Alatyr, Promzino-Gorodische, and Berezniki, each with exports valued at about 750,000 roubles. Corn, linseed, woollen stuffs, timber, potash, and wooden wares are the principal articles of trade.
Simbirsk is very backward as regards education. There were in 1882 only 462 schools (17,795 boys and 2663 girls) and 8 secondary schools (497 male and 516 female pupils).
The government is divided into eight districts, the chief towns of which, with their populations in 1880, are—Simbirsk (36,600), Alatyr (15,000), Ardatoff (4740), Buinsk (4130), Karsuñ (3740), Kurmysh (1930), Senghilei (3500), and Syzran (24,500). Kotyakoff (580) and Tagai (2400) have municipal institutions. The above-mentioned ports of lading are more important than most of the towns.
The first Russian settlers made their appearance in the Simbirsk region in the 14th century, but did not extend east of the Sura. Not till two centuries later did they cross the Sura and the district begin to be peopled by refugees from Moscow. The Zheguleff Mountains in the south still continuing to be a place of refuge for the criminal and the persecuted, Simbirsk was founded in 1648, and a palisaded earthen wall was built, running south-west of the new town, with small forts extending to the Sura. The region thus protected was soon settled, and, as the Russian villages advanced further south, Syzran was founded, and a second line of small forts, extending also towards the Sura, was erected. The colonizers settled rapidly, and the aboriginal Mordvinians soon adopted many of their customs, so as to lose their ethnographical individuality, especially within the last fifty years. Simbirsk received the name of an old Tartar settlement, Sinbir, situated 9 miles south of the present town, on the opposite bank of the Volga.
SIMBIRSK, capital of the above government, is situated 576 miles east-south-east of Moscow, between the Volga and the Sviyaga, here separated by an isthmus only 2 miles broad. The central part of Simbirsk—the Crown (Vyenets), containing the cathedral and the best houses— is built on a hill 560 feet above the Volga, whence there is a beautiful view over the low left bank of the river. Adjoining is the trading part of Simbirsk, while farther down on the slope, towards the Volga, are scattered the store-houses, the shops for the sale of stoneware and other merchandise brought by the steamers and boats, and the poorest suburbs of the city; these last also occupy the western slope towards the Sviyaga. There are three suburbs on the left bank of the Volga, communication with them being maintained in summer by steamers. A great fire having destroyed nearly all the town in 1864, it has been again built on a new plan, still mostly of wood. The cathedral of St Nicholas dates from 1712. The new one, that of the Trinity, was erected by the nobility in commemoration of 1812. The old church of St Nicholas on the Karamzin Square is architecturally pleasing. A public garden has been laid out on the top of the Vyenets Hill and another in the outskirts of the city, while no fewer than three hundred private gardens, where fruits are grown for exportation, are scattered throughout the town. The historian Karamzin (born in 1766 in the vicinity of Simbirsk) has a monument here, and a public library bearing his name contains about 15,000 volumes. Gardening and fishing occupy many of the inhabitants. The trade is brisk, corn being the principal item, while next come potash, wool, fruits, wooden wares, and manufactured produce. The Simbirsk fair, having a turnover of some 6 million roubles, still maintains its importance. The population (24,600 in 1867) was 36,600 in 1880.
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