Derbend, Or Derbent, a fortified town of Russia in Daghestan, on the W. shore of the Caspian sea, lat. 42° 3' N., Ion. 48° 15' E.; pop. in 1867, 15,739, consisting of Mohammedans, Armenians, and Jews. The city rises from the harbor on the side of a wooded mountain, in the form of a quadrangle, and the summit is crowned by a citadel. The inhabitants manufacture silk, woollen, and cotton stuffs, and cultivate the vine and saffron. It is partly covered by walls, now dilapidated, but which were formerly of great strength, and also enclosed the defile known to the ancients as Albanian gates. From the iron gates of these walls it has its name, signifying "closed gates." Near Derbend commences the famous wall which extends westward for nearly 120 m. through Tabasseran, and formerly served as a defence to Persia against the northern barbarians. Its builder is unknown, some having attributed it to Alexander, others to Chos-roes I. In 728 Derbend was taken from the Khazars by the Arabs, and in 1220 by the Mongols. In 1589 the Turks captured part of the town, but were again expelled.

It was captured by Russia in 1722, restored to Persia in 1735, and taken again in 1795 by the Russians, who have kept it since.

Derbend.