ORYOL

also spelled Or'ol, or Orel, city and administrative centre of Oryol oblast (province), western Russia, on the headwaters of the Oka River at the Orlik confluence. Founded in 1564 as a fortress of the Muscovite State against Tatar attacks, it was the scene of heavy fighting during World War II. The city centre, with a street pattern of ring roads and radials and with a mixture of old and new buildings, lies on the high left bank of the Oka. Many of the streets of Oryol are named after writers and poets who were born or lived there, among them Ivan Turgenev, Leonid Andreyev, Ivan Bunin, and Nikolay Leskov. South of the Orlik and across the Oka lie the newer residential areas and industries, which include a range of engineering, clothing, and food processing. Turgenev's house is preserved as a museum. There are teacher-training and engineering institutes. Pop. (1989 prelim.) 337,000. also spelled Or'ol, or Orel, oblast (province), western Russia, occupying an area of rolling hills of the Central Russian Upland, into which are cut many broad, shallow river valleys. The greater part is in the basin of the upper Oka River. The oblast, centred on Oryol city, lies on the boundary of the mixed forest and forest-steppe zones. The soils indicate a former widespread forest cover, but this has been almost entirely cleared since the 16th century, and only small groves of oak or pine remain. Intensive soil erosion has resulted, and the hillsides are greatly cut up by ravines. The economy is mainly agricultural; but by the late 20th century more than half of the population had become urban. Rye, buckwheat, oats, and corn (maize) are the main crops, together with hemp, potatoes, and sugar beets. Area 9,550 square miles (24,700 square km). Pop. (1990 est.) 897,000.