Ingria

Ingria, also known as Ingermanland, is a historical and geographical region on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Finland, centered on the delta of the Neva River and extending into parts of present-day northwestern Russia. The name has been used in Swedish, Russian, and Finnish sources and refers to the area surrounding Saint Petersburg and the adjacent parts of what is now Leningrad Oblast. Today the term is primarily used in historical and cultural contexts.

Geographically, Ingria roughly covers the coastal and near-coastal lands along the gulf, including the Neva’s delta region. Its historic boundaries vary in sources, but the core lies near the site of Saint Petersburg and the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland. The region is characterized by a low-lying, water-rich landscape with numerous rivers, canals, and islands.

Historically, Ingria was part of the Swedish Empire as Ingermanland from the early 17th century, following the 1613 Treaty of Stolbovo. In the aftermath of the Great Northern War, Russia acquired Ingria with the Treaty of Nystad in 1721, and Peter the Great founded Saint Petersburg in 1703 in the region, which later became part of the Russian Empire. Ingria was administered within various provincial frameworks, notably under Saint Petersburg governance. In the 20th century, the region experienced significant demographic changes due to wars and Soviet policies, including the displacement of Ingrian Finns.

Today, Ingria is not an official administrative unit but a historical designation that corresponds largely to the coastal areas around Saint Petersburg and adjacent parts of Leningrad Oblast. It remains a term used in historical discourse and in describing the cultural heritage of the Ingrian Finns, whose diaspora persists in Finland and other countries.