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definitions

St. Petersburg

noun
  1. Formerly Leningrad (1924–91); Also called Petrograd (1914–24). a seaport in NW Russian Federation in Europe, in the Gulf of Finland, off the Baltic Sea: founded 1703 by Peter the Great; capital of the Russian Empire (1712-1917).
  2. a city in W Florida, on Tampa Bay.

Russia

[ruhsh-uh]
noun
  1. Also called Russian Empire. Russian Rossiya. a former empire in E Europe and N and W Asia: overthrown by the Russian Revolution 1917. Capital: St. Petersburg (1703–1917).
  2. Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
  3. Russian Federation.
Related formsan·ti-Rus·sia, adjective
Can be confusedRussia Soviet Union
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for saint petersburg

Saint Petersburg

noun usually abbreviated to: St Petersburg
  1. a city and port in Russia, on the Gulf of Finland at the mouth of the Neva River: founded by Peter the Great in 1703 and built on low-lying marshes subject to frequent flooding; capital of Russia from 1712 to 1918; a cultural and educational centre, with a university (1819); a major industrial centre, with engineering, shipbuilding, chemical, textile, and printing industries. Pop: 5 315 000 (2005 est)Former names: Petrograd (1914–24), Leningrad (1924–91)
  2. a city and resort in W Florida, on Tampa Bay. Pop: 247 610 (2003 est)

Russia

noun
  1. the largest country in the world, covering N Eurasia and bordering on the Pacific and Arctic Oceans and the Baltic, Black, and Caspian Seas: originating from the principality of Muscovy in the 17th century, it expanded to become the Russian Empire; the Tsar was overthrown in 1917 and the Communist Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic was created; this merged with neighbouring Soviet Republics in 1922 to form the Soviet Union; on the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991 the Russian Federation was established as an independent state. Official language: Russian. Religion: nonreligious and Russian orthodox Christian. Currency: rouble. Capital: Moscow. Pop: 142 500 482 (2013 est). Area: 17 074 984 sq km (6 592 658 sq miles)
  2. another name for the Russian Empire
  3. another name for the former Soviet Union
  4. another name for the former Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Russian name: Rossiya
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for saint petersburg

Russia

1530s, from Medieval Latin Russi "the people of Russia," from Rus, the native name of the people and the country (cf. Arabic Rus, Medieval Greek Rhos), originally the name of a group of Swedish merchant/warriors who established themselves around Kiev 9c. and founded the original Russian principality; perhaps from Ruotsi, the Finnish name for "Sweden," from Old Norse Roþrslandi, "the land of rowing," old name of Roslagen, where the Finns first encountered the Swedes. This is from Old Norse roðr "steering oar," from Proto-Germanic *rothra- "rudder," from PIE *rot-ro-, from root *ere- (1) "to row" (see row (v.)).

Derivation from the IE root for "red," in reference to hair color, is considered less likely. Russian city-states were founded and ruled by Vikings and their descendants. The Russian form of the name, Rossiya, appears to be from Byzantine Greek Rhosia. Russification is from 1842.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
saint petersburg in Culture

Saint Petersburg

City in northwestern Russia, situated at the head of the Gulf of Finland on both banks of the Neva River and on the islands of its delta; the second-largest city in Russia; a major port, and one of the world's leading industrial and cultural centers.

Note

The first Russian city modeled after European cities, it was founded in 1703 by Peter the Great, who wanted to make it his “window to the West”; renamed Petrograd at the start of World War I and then Leningrad in 1924 in honor of Lenin.

Note

Because it is so far north, St. Petersburg experiences “white nights” for three weeks in June when the sky never completely darkens.

Note

It is the location of the historic Winter Palace, which was sacked during the Russian Revolution but later became the Hermitage Museum.

Note

With the collapse of communism, the city was renamed St. Petersburg.

Russia

A vast nation that stretches from eastern Europe across the Eurasian land mass. It was the most powerful republic of the former Soviet Union; ethnic Russians composed about half of the population. It is the world's largest country. Its capital and largest city is Moscow.

Note

Russia was ruled by czars of the Romanov family from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries.

Note

Peter the Great, a czar who reigned in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, attempted to westernize Russian government and culture.

Note

During the Russian Revolution of 1917, the Bolsheviks, under Lenin, took control of the government; communists governed from 1917 until 1991.

Note

Russia now occupies the seat on the Security Council of the United Nations formerly held by the Soviet Union.

St. Petersburg

City in western Florida.

Note

A popular winter resort.

Note

Home for many retired persons from colder northern areas.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.