city and capital of Buryatiya, east-central Russia. It lies at the confluence of the Selenga and Uda rivers and in a deep valley between the Khamar-Daban and Tsagan-Daban mountain ranges. The wintering camp of Udinskoye, established there in 1666, became the town of Verkhne-Udinsk in 1783; it was renamed Ulan-Ude in 1934.

The city's development was greatly stimulated when the Trans-Siberian Railroad reached it in 1900 and later by the construction of a branch line to Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia in 1949—a branch extended to Peking in 1956. Ulan-Ude's role as a major rail junction led to the establishment of large locomotive and carriage repair works. Other industries include glassmaking, food processing, and other light industries. Ulan-Ude has agricultural, teacher-training, technological, and cultural institutes, several theatres, and a philharmonic hall. Pop. (1991 est.) 362,400.