The Chechen Republic consists of five cities and three villages. In addition to them, there are about 200 villages, among which there are officially abandoned. The cities of Chechnya differ in terms of population. Grozny is in the first place, more than 200 thousand people live in it. The rest are far behind, being cities with fewer than 60 thousand people. However, every year the population is growing. It is possible that in ten years the republic will become the one where more than 1 million people live.
Shawls
The city of Shali is located 40 kilometers southeast of Grozny. It received official status in 1990. The overthrow of the Tatar-Mongol yoke in the distant XIV century and the expulsion of Dagestan landowners, proteges of the Golden Horde, contributed to the founding of Shali. Despite the military events, the city’s population is growing steadily and in 2016 amounted to more than 52 thousand people, most of whom are Chechens by nationality. Shawl is far from railway lines. And by bus, the city is connected only with Grozny. Modern Shali was rebuilt after the Chechen military operations.
Urus-Martan
The second city after the capital of Grozny in terms of population in Chechnya. At the beginning of 2016, over 57 thousand inhabitants lived in it. Like some other cities in Chechnya, this one is located very close to the capital. It is located 30 kilometers south of Grozny, on the Martan River. Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, Urus-Martan was a village where there was no industry. The main attraction of the city is the ethnographic open-air museum "Dondi-Yurt". It recreates the atmosphere of the Chechen village of past centuries with unique household items that were collected throughout the entire region.
The main street of the city bears the name of the President of the Republic - A.A. Kadyrov. Many cities in Chechnya have districts named after scientists or other famous and influential people.
Gudermes
Currently, the city is the most important transportation hub of the North Caucasus. The highway to Baku passes through it, in the opposite direction you can get to Moscow. Gudermes is connected by rail with the largest cities in the region. It is the construction of the railway station and the necessity of living for the employees serving it, and the fact of the city's origin is determined. On the site of the aul, a workers' settlement was devastated; later, in 1941, it received city status. Among the population, representatives of Chechen nationality prevail, such as in the city according to the census, over 95%. Previously, Russians also inhabited the cities of Chechnya, but during the armed conflicts they all tried to leave the territory of the republic.