Semyon Dezhnev

Semyon Dezhnev was a 17th-century Russian explorer and Cossack who led an expedition around northeastern Siberia in 1648, passing through the strait between Asia and North America.

Dezhnev's 1648 expedition: A Russian expedition that sailed from the Kolyma River around the Chukchi Peninsula in 1648. Dezhnev commanded this voyage through the strait later named for Vitus Bering.
Russian conquest of Siberia: The expansion of Russian rule across Siberia from the late 16th century onward. Dezhnev's expeditions extended this expansion into the far northeast.
Vitus Bering: A Danish-born Russian naval officer who led expeditions across the North Pacific in the 18th century. Bering's 1728 voyage publicized the strait that Dezhnev had crossed decades earlier.
Bering Strait: A narrow sea passage separating Russia's Chukchi Peninsula from Alaska. Dezhnev's expedition passed through this strait in 1648.
Kolyma River: A river in northeastern Siberia that flows into the East Siberian Sea. Dezhnev's expedition set out from the Kolyma's mouth.
Siberian fur trade: The trade in animal furs that linked Siberia's peoples, Russian settlements, and distant markets. Demand for valuable furs motivated Cossack expeditions along Siberian rivers.
Fedot Popov: A Russian merchant who organized and joined the 1648 expedition led in part by Dezhnev. Popov financed and commanded part of the voyage alongside Dezhnev.
Diomede Islands: Two islands in the Bering Strait, with Big Diomede belonging to Russia and Little Diomede to the United States. The islands mark the passage Dezhnev's vessels traversed.
Chukchi Peninsula: A peninsula in Russia's far northeast, lying between the Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea. The 1648 voyage rounded this peninsula to reach the Pacific side.
Yakutsk: A city in eastern Siberia founded as a Russian fort in 1632. Yakutsk became a key base for Russian movement toward the Kolyma and beyond.

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