Qostanay

Qostanay,

 

Kostanay,

or

Kustanay

(all: ko͝os'tənī`), city (1993 est. pop. 228,000), N Kazakhstan, on the Tobol River. It is an agricultural center and producer of chemical fibers. Rich iron deposits are nearby at Rudnyy. The city expanded dramatically in the 1960s as a result of the Virgin Lands campaign. Like a number of other cities in N Kazakhstan, Qostanay is predominantly ethnically Russian.