Editing Semey (section)

==History==
[[File:Mosque Semey.jpg|thumb|[[Tatar Mosque of Semey]], 2009]]
The first Russian settlement in the area dates from 1718, when [[Tsardom of Russia|Russia]] built a fort beside the river [[Irtysh River|Irtysh]], near the ruins of an ancient [[Buddhist]] monastery, where seven buildings could be seen. The fort (and later the city) was named ''Semipalatinsk'' ([[Russian language|Russian]] for "Seven-Chambered City") after the monastery. The fort suffered frequent flooding caused by snowmelt swelling the Irtysh.

In 1778 the fort was relocated {{convert|18|km}} upstream to less flood-prone ground.{{citation needed|date=December 2021}} A small city developed around the fort, and largely served the river trade between the nomadic peoples of [[Central Asia]] and the growing [[Russian Empire]]. The construction of the [[Turkestan-Siberia Railway]] in the early 20th century added to the city's importance, making it a major point of transit between Central Asia and Siberia. On 19 May 1854, Semipalatinsk was designated as the capital of the [[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Russia|Semipalatinsk Oblast]] within the Russian Empire.

Between 1917 and 1920, the city operated as the capital of the largely unrecognized [[Alash Autonomy]], a state (1917–1920) established after the outbreak of the [[October Revolution]] in Russia. The city was called '''Alash-qala''' during the Alash Autonomy years. [[Red Army]] forces loyal to [[Petrograd]] took control of the area in 1920. It was the center of the {{Interlanguage link multi|Semipalatinsk Governorate|ru|3=Семипалатинская губерния}} until 17 January 1928, then of the [[Eastern Kazakhstan Oblast]] between 17 January 1928 and 14 October 1939 and finally of the [[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Kazakhstan|Semipalatinsk Oblast]] between 1939 and 1997.

In 1949 the [[Soviet atomic bomb project|Soviet atomic bomb programme]] selected a site on the [[steppe]] {{convert|180|km|mi|abbr=on}} west of the city as the location for its weapons testing. For decades, [[Kurchatov, Kazakhstan|Kurchatov]] (the secret city at the heart of the test range named for [[Igor Kurchatov]], father of the Soviet atomic bomb) was home to many of the brightest stars of Soviet weapons science. The [[Soviet Union]] operated the [[Semipalatinsk Test Site]] (STS) from the first explosion in 1949 until 1989; 456 nuclear tests, including 340 underground and 116 atmospheric tests, took place there.<ref>Vakulchuk, R., Gjerde, K., Belikhina, T. and Apsalikov, K. 2014. Semipalatinsk nuclear testing: the humanitarian consequences. Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, Oslo. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323116670</ref>

Some land around Semey has suffered environmental and health effects from the time of its atomic prosperity: nuclear fallout from the atmospheric tests and uncontrolled exposure of the workers, some of whom lived in the area close to the testsite, have resulted in high rates of [[cancer]], childhood [[leukemia]], and [[birth defect]]s among the residents of neighbouring villages.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/08/30/btsc.chance.nukes/index.html "Inside the nuclear underworld: Deformity and fear"], [[CNN]], retrieved 2007-08-31</ref>

Modern Semey, a bustling university town, has a population exceeding 350,000. Because of its proximity to the Kazakh border with the Russian Federation, and the large scientific community attached to the STS labs and the university, which includes many Russians, Semey is said to have a more Russian character than other cities in Kazakhstan.

[[Semipalatinsk Oblast, Kazakhstan|Semipalatinsk Oblast]] merged with the larger [[East Kazakhstan Region]], whose capital city is [[Oskemen]], on 23 May 1997.

The [[Semey Bridge]], a suspension bridge across the Irtish River, connects the two major parts of Semey. It has a main span of {{convert|750|m}} and a total length of {{Convert|1086|m}}.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?ID=s0001312 |title= Semipatalinsk Irtysh River Bridge (2002)  |work= en.structurae.de  |access-date= 16 August 2011}}
</ref> Construction began in 1998 and the bridge opened to traffic in November 2000.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.jica.go.jp/english/our_work/evaluation/oda_loan/post/2007/pdf/project39_full.pdf | title=Irtysh River Bridge Construction Project / Field Survey | publisher=Japan International Cooperation Agency | date=September 2006 | access-date=8 January 2016 }}</ref>

In 2007 the Semipalatinsk City Council voted unanimously in favour of changing the name of the city to ''Semey''. The Chairman said that existing name had negative associations because of the extensive atomic testing there.<ref>
{{cite web
| url             =  http://lenta.ru/news/2007/06/19/name/
| title           = Семипалатинск исчезнет с карты Казахстана [Semipalatinsk disappears from the map of Kazakhstan]
| date            = 2007-06-19
| department      = Byvshiy SSSR [The former USSR]
| website         = Lenta.ru
| access-date     = 2015-09-10
| quote           = Депутаты городского собрания Семипалатинска единогласно проголосовали за переименование города в Семей. [...] 'Прежнее название немного отпугивало инвесторов, так как ассоциировалось с полигоном. [...]', - пояснил решение депутатов председатель сессии горсовета Куат Мирашев. [The representatives of the city corporation of Semipalatinsk voted unanimously for renaming the city as Cemey. 'The former name rather discouraged investors, since it was associated with the [atomic] test-site. [...]', said the chairman of the session of the city council, Kuat Mirashev, in explaining the decision.]
}}
</ref>

In March 2022, Semey was selected by [[President of Kazakhstan|President]] [[Kassym-Jomart Tokayev|Tokayev]] as the prospective capital of the new [[Abai Region]]. This came into force on 8 June 2022 when Abai Region became an official [[Regions of Kazakhstan|Region of Kazakhstan]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=В Казахстане появится четыре новых региона|url=https://www.interfax.ru/world/828462 |access-date=2022-04-20 |website=Interfax.ru |language=ru}}</ref>