Simferopol' (Ukrainian Symferopil), city, southern Ukraine, capital of Crimean Oblast, on the Salgir River. It is a manufacturing, commercial, and transportation center located in a productive agricultural region. Products include canned fruit, flour, machine tools, and electric equipment. The site of Simferopol' was occupied by the Scythian settlement of Neapol from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th century AD. The modern city of Simferopol' was founded in 1784, when Russia was in control of the Crimean Peninsula. It was built near the Tatar town of Ak-Mechet. Population (1998 estimate) 341,000.
