ASTRAKAN, a government of European Russia, bounded on the south-east by the Caspian Sea, north-east by Orsenburg, north by Saratov, west by the country of the Don Cossacks, and south-east by the Caucasus. It lies between Lat. 44. 50. and 49. 50. N. and between Long. 43. 30. and 51. 0. E. It has an area of about 50,000 square miles, divided into two nearly equal parts by the Volga, and consists chiefly of sandy deserts, interspersed with saline lakes; but in the delta and on the banks of the rivers, grapes and other fruits of southern climates are raised. The population in 1846 was estimated at 284,400, comprising Russians, Tartars, Georgians, Armenians, Persians, Hindus, &c., who engage in the rearing of horses, cattle, and sheep, and also in the fishing of sturgeon, which forms the principal source of wealth to the government. The annual revenue derived from this source is estimated at from two to three million of rubles. The vicissitudes of climate are great: with a mean annual temperature of 48° Fahr., the summer averages 70°, and the winter 13° Fahr.