Should I refer to the city as Astana or Nur-Sultan when speaking with locals?
I'm traveling to Kazakhstan this September, and I was wondering what the best way is to refer to the capital city. I know that there were some minor protests over the name change back in March, and I really want to avoid accidentally wading into some kind of unforeseen hot-button political issue. Thank you for your help!
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Is it Astana or Nur-Sultan?
On 20 March 2019, the capital was renamed from Astana to its current name Nur-Sultan in honor of the long-ruling Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, shortly after his resignation.What is Astana called now?
On March 23, 2019, by the Presidential Decree of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the city of Astana was renamed to the city of Nur-Sultan - the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan. At present, the territory of the capital exceeds 722 square kilometres, the population is more than 1 million people.Why is Astana the weirdest capital city?
\u201cBecause of the climate, (the structure) was bound to be futuristic.\u201d From a distance, Astana's architecture looks disparate, however a strong Kazakh theme runs through it all. Baiterek is meant to evoke the local legend of the \u201cTree of Life\u201d; the story has a golden egg, and the building is topped with a golden orb.Cost of Living in Astana, Nur-Sultan Kazakhstan
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Images: Ketut Subiyanto, Sam Lion, Andrea Piacquadio, Andrea Piacquadio