Kryvyi Rih (, , translit. Krivoy Rog) is a city in central Ukraine. It is situated in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, to the southwest of the oblast's administrative center, Dnipropetrovsk, at the confluence of the Inhulets and Saksahan rivers. The estimated population was 690,622 as of 2007. Kryvyi Rih is arguably the main steel industry city of Eastern Europe, being a large globally-important metallurgical center in the Kryvbas iron mining region. History The city was founded in the 17th century by Zaporozhian Cossacks. Kryvyi Rih in Ukrainian literally means Crooked Horn. According to local legend, the city was founded by a crooked (Ukrainian slang for one-eyed) Cossack named Rih. However, records pre-dating the existence of the city refer to the area by the same name, due to the shape of the landmass formed by the merging of the river Saksagan into the Ingulets. During the Russian