Dessau is a district of the independent city of Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt. Until 1 July 2007, it was an independent city. The population of Dessau is 67,747.

Dessau-Roßlau is a kreisfreie Stadt in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Elbe and Mulde. The town was formed by merger of the towns of Dessau and Roßlau as part of the 2007 regional boundary reform of Saxony-Anhalt. The reform involved a reduction in the number of rural districts in Sachsen-Anhalt from 21 to 11, in anticipation of a continued population decline.