Why is Kitay-gorod so called

Kitay-Gorod is a historical region in Moscow. This is a popular place with tourists, but not everyone knows that it has no connection with China itself.

What are the versions?

There are several versions of why Kitay-Gorod got its name. The most popular says that the name is derived from the word "whale". So in the 16th century they called the knitting of poles, which was used to protect the city under Ivan III.

Another version is related to the fact that the city was also built by the Italians, whose very name "city" will be citta.

Are there any versions with origin from the Chinese?

Finally, there is also a version related directly to China. According to her, Kitai-Gorod got its name because of the Chinese merchants in this region. However, this is unlikely, because Russian-Chinese relations did not yet exist at that time.