Anapa

Anapa is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. Population: 58,990 (2010).

History

The area around Anapa was settled in antiquity. It was originally a major seaport (Sinda) for the Natkhuay tribe of the Adyghe people and then the capital of Sindica. The colony of Gorgippia was built on the site of Sinda in the 6th century BCE by Pontic Greeks, who named it after a king of the Cimmerian Bosporus. In the 2nd and 3rd centuries BCE, Gorgippia flourished as part of the Bosporan Kingdom, as did its guild of shipowners, which controlled maritime trade in the eastern part of the Black Sea. A fine statue of Neokles (a local potentate, son of Herodoros) was unearthed by Russian archaeologists and is now on exhibit at the Russian Museum. Gorgippia was inhabited until the 3rd century CE, when it was overrun by nomadic tribes. These tribes are a Circassian or Adyghe origin, gave Anapa its modern name. Anapa was part of Sarmatians, Ostrogoths, European Huns, Avars, Gokturks, Khazars, Circassians and Golden Horde.

Anapa was conquered by the Genoese in 1300 and was renamed Mapa. Genoese possession of it lasted until Ottoman conquest in 1475. Ottomans completed a fortress to defend against the Russian threat in 1791. The fortress was repeatedly attacked by the Russian Empire and was all but destroyed during its last siege in 1829. The town was passed to Russia after the Treaty of Adrianople (1829). See Russian conquest of the Caucasus#Black Sea Coast. It was included in Black Sea Okrug of Kuban Oblast and was granted town status in 1846.

It was occupied by Ottomans between 1853-1856 during the Crimean War. It became part of Black Sea Governorate in 1896. Elizabeth Pilenko, later named as a saint in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, was the mayor during the Russian Revolution. It became part of Kuban-Black Sea Oblast in 1920. During World War II, it was occupied and totally demolished by Nazi Germany with the help of Romanian troops between August 30, 1942 and September 22, 1943.

Tourism

The town boasts a number of sanatoria and hotels. Anapa, Sochi, and several other cities along the Russian coast of the Black Sea have enjoyed a substantial increase in popularity since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, which left traditional Soviet resort cities in Crimea and Abkhazia on the other side of the national border. Anapa is served by the Anapa Airport.

Anapa, like the other Black Sea coast resorts, has a superb sunny summer climate. Anapa has beautiful, mostly sandy beaches. However, Anapa seldom attracts tourists from outside Russia due to its modest infrastructure and its inconvenient accessibility from Western Europe via Moscow or Krasnodar. Anapa remains an attractive and inexpensive option for Russians who prefer traditional Russian resorts to more expensive destinations.

Transportation

Transportation facilities include the Anapa Airport, a railway station, an international passenger port for small-tonnage ships, a bus station, and a network of highways.

Culture

The Town Theater of Anapa is located on Krymskaya Street. It was opened after the reconstruction of the Town Cultural Center. There are twenty nine public libraries including four for children. In 2010 the libraries of Anapa received more than 8,000 books, and magazines and newspapers were ordered costing more than 1,000,000 roubles, in addition, nine hundred CDs were purchased.

There is museum of Local History (Краеведческий музей) on Protapova Street.

Architecture and sights

• The Gorgippia Archeological museum
• Gates of Turkish fortress
• Church of St. Onuphrius
• Lighthouse
• Wildlife preserve of Bolshoy Utrish south of Sukko

List of mayors

• Maria Skobtsova
• Valentin Mashukov
• Germogen Korolyov
• Mikhail Boyur
• Vitaly Astapenko
• Vladimir Tsukanov
• Anatoly Pakhomov
• Tatyana Yevsikova

Activities carried out in the town

• Kinoshock film festival
• Blue-eyed Anapa song Festival
• Russian coast guard academy