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Dnipropetrovsk[dunyip´´rOpetrOfsk´] Pronunciation Key, Rus. Dnepropetrovsk, city (1990 est. pop. 1,186,000), capital of Dnipropetrovsk region, central Ukraine, on the Dnieper River. A hub of rail and water transportation, it is a major industrial center with a huge iron and steel industry based on iron ore from the nearby Kryviy Rih mines and coal from the Donets Basin. The city also has plants producing heavy machinery, chemicals, rolling stock, and food products. Founded in 1787 by Potemkin on the site of a Zaporozhian Cossack village, it was named Katerynoslav (Rus. Yekaterinoslav) for Catherine II. It was called Novorossiysk from 1791 to 1802 and Katerynoslav until 1926, when it was renamed Dnipropetrovsk. The population greatly increased after the completion (1932) of the Dniprohes dam and power station. The city was occupied (1941–43) by German forces during World War II. It has art, historical, and zoological museums.
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