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Overview
Uzbekistan's oasis cities were jewels of the Silk Road. Alexander, the Arab conquest, the Samanid Persianate renaissance, the Mongols and Timur's world empire all shaped its history.
Basic Information
CapitalTashkent
Population36 million
Area447,400 km²
CurrencyUzbekistani som (UZS)
LanguagesUzbek
RegionCentral Asia
History Timeline
- 329 BCEAlexander reaches Sogdiana
- 819 – 999Samanid Empire at Bukhara
- 1370 – 1507Timurid Empire
- 1868 – 1991Russian and Soviet rule
Ancient Peoples
- Sogdians
- Turks
- Uzbeks
Ancient Kingdoms
- Bactria
- Sogdiana
- Khwarezmia
Empires
- Samanid
- Timurid
- Bukhara Khanate
- Russian
- Soviet
Religions
- Sunni Islam
- Zoroastrianism (historical)
Culture
Registan madrasas, ikat textiles, plov cuisine, classical Persian poetry (Bukhara).
Language
Uzbek is a Turkic language, now written in Latin script.
Important Battles
- Battle of Talas751
Abbasids defeat Tang China
Historical Figures
Ibn Sina (Avicenna)
980 – 1037
Polymath born near Bukhara
Timur
1370 – 1405
Timurid conqueror
Ulugh Beg
1394 – 1449
Astronomer-king
Archaeological Sites
- Afrasiab (Samarkand)
- Ancient Merv (borderland)
UNESCO World Heritage Sites
- Samarkand
- Bukhara
- Historic Khiva (Itchan Kala)
- Shakhrisyabz
Dynasties
- Samanid
- Timurid
Colonial Period
Russian Turkestan 1868 – 1917; Uzbek SSR 1924 – 1991.
Modern History
Presidential republic pursuing gradual liberalization.