About Kokshetau

Kokchetav is a city in northern Kazakstan. It lies along the southern edge of the Esil (Ishim) Steppe. Kokchetav was founded in 1824 as an administrative outpost when the Russians extended their control over the Kazaks. It became a district administrative centre in 1868 and an oblast (province) centre in 1944, but its greatest expansion occurred in the 1960s following the campaign to open virgin lands