Map - Cahul District (Raionul Cahul)

Cahul is a district (raion) in the south of Moldova, with the administrative center at Cahul. As of January 2014 estimates, Cahul District had a population of 124,700.

The district has been inhabited since the Stone Age (50-45,000 BC). Two ancient settlements were founded around 1300 BC; archaeologists have found items belonging to the Bronze Age (15th-13th centuries BC). According to estimates of specialists, another village was established here around 300-400 BC. That has been confirmed by the remains of houses burned and the fragments of clay pots. Archaeological monuments recorded a settlement arising from employment of Dacia in the Roman Empire and devastated by the Huns in 376. The presence of nomads in these places is attested by the four burial mounds.

Localities with the earliest documented attestation are Crihana Veche, Manta, Valeni, Slobozia Mare, and Larga Veche; they were documented for the first time in 1425–1447. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the economy developed in agriculture, winery, and trade, along with an increase in population. On August 1, 1770, near Cahul lake, the Battle of Cahul took place (Russo-Turkish War, 1768-1774). It was the most important land battle of the Russo-Turkish War and one of the largest battles of the 18th century. In 1812, after the Russo-Turkish War, there was an intense russification of the native population during the occupation of Basarabia by the Russian Empire during this period (1812–1856, 1878–1917). Between 1813 and 1850, the Tsarist government colonized some of the region with Russians, Ukrainians, Bulgarians, and Gagauz. These ethnic groups now constitute 21% of the population of the district.

In 1856–1878, the district became part of Romania after the Crimean War. After the collapse of the Russian Empire, Bessarabia united with Romania (1918–1940, 1941–1944); the district was the center of Cahul County. In 1940, after the Molotov-Ribbentrop Treaty, Basarabia was occupied by the USSR. In 1991, as a result of the proclamation of Independence of Moldova, Cahul County was integrated into this country (1991–2003). In 2003, Cahul became an administrative unit of Moldova.