Chișinău

Chișinău (/ˌkɪʃɪˈnaʊ/ KISH-in-OW, US also /ˌkiːʃiːˈnaʊ/ KEE-shee-NOW, Romanian: [kiʃiˈnəw] ^ⓘ; formerly known as Kishinev) is the capital and largest city of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial centre, and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc, a tributary of the Dniester. According to the results of the 2014 census, the city proper had a population of 532,513, while the population of the Municipality of Chișinău (which includes the city itself and other nearby communities) was 700,000. Chișinău is the most economically prosperous locality in Moldova and its largest transportation hub. Nearly a third of Moldova's population lives in the metro area.

Moldova has a history of winemaking dating back to at least 3,000 BCE. As the capital city, Chișinău hosts the yearly national wine festival every October. Though the city's buildings were badly damaged during the Second World War and earthquakes, a rich architectural heritage remains. In addition, it has numerous buildings designed in the postwar Socialist realism and Brutalist architecture styles.

The city's central railway station boasts a Russian-Imperial architectural style, and maintains direct rail links to Romania. The Swiss-Italian-Russian architect Alexander Bernardazzi designed many of the city's buildings, including the Chișinău City Hall, Church of Saint Theodore, and the Church of Saint Panteleimon. The city hosts the National Museum of Fine Arts, Moldova State University, Brancusi Gallery, and National Museum of History of Moldova, with more than 236,000 exhibits.

There are bustling markets in the north of the city, including the house where Alexander Pushkin once resided while in exile from Alexander I of Russia. It has now been adapted as a museum. The Nativity Cathedral, located at the centre of the city and constructed in the 1830s, has been described as a "masterpiece" of Neoclassical architecture.