​BOLKHOV, a town of Russia, in the government of Orel, and 35 m. N. of the city of Orel. Pop. (1897) 20,703. It is prettily situated amongst orchards and possesses a cathedral. There is a lively trade in hemp, hemp-seed oil, hemp goods and cattle, and there are hemp-mills, soap-works and tanneries. The much-venerated monastery, Optina Pustyn, is close by.