Urban legends of Nizhny Novgorod and the region are oral traditions, rumors, and semi-mythical stories passed by word of mouth and invariably told to visitors. The section brings together legends about natural and historical events — for example, the Nizhny Novgorod Landslide, said to have halted Tatar invaders, or the underground river Pochayna beneath the kremlin walls — as well as more recent urban myths: unrealized projects such as Trains Along the Volga River and legends about iconic figures of Nizhny Novgorod politics and culture.
Many stories in this section balance between documented fact and popular conjecture: behind them lie real places, events, and people, which over time have acquired details that can no longer be verified. This is precisely what makes Urban Legends) a distinctive source for understanding how Nizhny Novgorod makes sense of its own history.