Nur-Sultan

Astana, renamed in 2019 to Nur-Sultan, is the capital city of Kazakhstan. Before, it was called Astana (Kazakh: Астана, Persian: آستانه)

Nur-Sultan has a population of 600,000 (2004). It has been the capital of Kazakhstan from 1998. The name "Astana", which in Kazakh language means "Capital city", was chosen because it is easily pronounced in many languages. In Kazakh, it is pronounced "As-ta-na", while in English (and, for instance, German), common pronunciation is "As-ta-na". It is in the Aqmola Province.

On 23 March 2019, a unanimous vote in Kazakhstan's parliament agreed the new name. The city was renamed Nur-sultan, after former president Nursultan Nazarbayev.