Bilär (Tatar Cyrillic: Биләр; also Bilyar, Bülär, Бүләр) was a medieval city in Volga Bulgaria and its capital before the Mongol invasion of Volga Bulgaria. It was located on the left bank of the Little Cheremshan River in modern-day Alekseyevsky District of Tatarstan.
The city was founded by the Bilär tribe of the Volga Bulgars. It was also known as "Great City" (Великий город) in the Russian chronicles, because the number of citizens was reputedly in excess of 100,000 [1]. Bilär was the main trade center in Middle Volga, and served as the capital of Volga Bulgaria in the 12th and 13th centuries. In 1236, the city was sacked by the hordes of Batu Khan. The city was later rebuilt, but it never regained its former size or power. The city's ruins (nearly 8 km²) were explored by Rychkov, Tatischev, Xalikov and Xucin.
Bilär today is a Russian village founded in 1654 as a border fort. In 1930-1963 it was an administrative center of Bilyarsky District. As established by the 2000 census, its population was 2,270. It is the birthplace of chemist Alexander Arbuzov.
Honour
Bilyar Point on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Bilär.
References
- ^ Халиков А. Х. Татарский народ и его предки. — Казань: Татарское кн. изд-во, 1989, С.93.
External links
Coordinates: 54°59′07″N 50°23′52″E / 54.9852722322°N 50.3977194544°E
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