Kinshasa | |
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State | |
Country | |
Capital | |
Population | 9046000 |
Kinshasa (; French: [kinʃasa]; Lingala: Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville (Dutch: Leopoldstad), is the capital and the largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city is situated alongside the Congo River.
Once a site of fishing and trading villages, Kinshasa is now a megacity with a population of about 16 million. It faces Brazzaville, the capital of the neighbouring Republic of the Congo, which can be seen in the distance across the wide Congo River, making them the world's second-closest pair of capital cities after Rome and Vatican City. The city of Kinshasa is also one of the DRC's 26 provinces. Because the administrative boundaries of the city-province cover a vast area, over 90 percent of the city-province's land is rural in nature, and the urban area occupies a small but expanding section on the western side.
Arkhangelsk | |
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State | Arkhangelsk Oblast |
Country | Russia |
Capital | |
Population | 350982 |
Arkhangelsk (UK: , US: ; Russian: Арха́нгельск, IPA: [ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲsk]), also known in English as Archangel and Archangelsk, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, in the north of Western Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near its exit into the White Sea. The city spreads for over 40 kilometers (25 mi) along the banks of the river and numerous islands of its delta. Arkhangelsk was the chief seaport of medieval and early modern Russia until 1703 (when it was replaced by Saint Petersburg).