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| Turkmenistan | Introduction | Back to Top |
Uzbekistan, republic in Central Asia, bordered on the west and north by Kazakhstan, on the east by Kyrgyzstan, on the south-east by Tajikistan, and on the south by Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. It was formerly the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Uzbekistan includes the Karakalpakstan Autonomous Republic (Qoraqalpoghiston), which occupies about 37 per cent of Uzbekistan's territory. Uzbekistan's land area totals about 447,400 sq km (172,750 sq mi). Toshkent is the capital and chief industrial and cultural centre.
Official Name- Republic of Uzbekistan| Uzbekistan | Provinces | Back to Top |
12 wiloyatlar (singular - wiloyat), 1 autonomous republic* (respublikasi), and 1 city** (shahri); Andijon Wiloyati, Bukhoro Wiloyati, Farghona Wiloyati, Jizzakh Wiloyati, Khorazm Wiloyati (Urganch), Namangan Wiloyati, Nawoiy Wiloyati, Qashqadaryo Wiloyati (Qarshi), Qoraqalpoghiston* (Nukus), Samarqand Wiloyati, Sirdaryo Wiloyati (Guliston), Surkhondaryo Wiloyati (Termiz), Toshkent Shahri**, Toshkent Wiloyati note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
| Uzbekistan | People | Back to Top |
With an estimated 25,155,064 inhabitants in 2001, Uzbekistan has the largest population of the former Soviet republics in Central Asia and the third largest population of all the former Soviet republics (after Russia and Ukraine). The country’s population growth rate is 1.6 percent per year due to relatively high birthrates. The average population density is 56 persons per sq km (146 per sq mi), although population density is far higher in the Fergana Valley, the most densely settled area in Central Asia.
Uzbeks make up about three-fourths of the population, followed by Russians, Tajiks, Tatars, Kyrgyz, Ukrainians, Kazaks, and Karakalpaks. The Uzbeks speak a language belonging to the southeastern, or Chagatai (Turki), branch of the Turkic language group. The Uzbeks are Sunnite Muslims, and they are considered to be among the most devout Muslims in all of Central Asia. They are also the least Russified of the Turkic peoples formerly under Soviet rule, and virtually all of them still claim Uzbek as their primary language. The majority of Uzbeks live in rural areas. Two-fifths of the population of Uzbekistan lives in urban areas; the urban population has a disproportionately high number of non-Uzbeks. Slavic peoples—Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians—held a large proportion of administrative positions. In the late 1980s and early '90s, many Russians and smaller numbers of Jews emigrated from Uzbekistan and other Central Asian states, changing the ethnic balance and employment patterns in the region.
| Uzbekistan | History | Back to Top |
The area of what is now Uzbekistan was incorporated into the eastern satrapies (Persian provinces ruled by a satrap) of Cyrus the Great’s Persian Empire in the 500s bc. These satrapies were known as Sogdiana, Bactria, and Khorezm. Macedonian leader Alexander the Great conquered the region in the early 300s bc, but Macedonian control lasted only until Alexander’s death in 323. In the 100s bc, part of present-day Uzbekistan was included in the vast empire of the Kushanas, descendants of a tribe from western China. At this time the region became an important part of the overland trade routes, known collectively as the Silk Road, that linked China with the Middle East and imperial Rome.
After the 8th-century introduction of Islam into Central Asia, several streams of population flowed into the territory now forming the land of Uzbekistan. Some migrations contributed to the demographic diversity that characterizes Uzbekistan. Before the lasting conquest by the Russians in the late 19th century, however, military invaders generally soon withdrew from the area. Arabs after AD 711, Mongols under Genghis Khan from the 13th century, Dzungars in the 15th–17th centuries, and Persians in the 18th century exerted less impact upon the makeup of the population than upon the social and political systems, because they left behind relatively small, assimilable numbers of their people.
In the 3rd century ad the Sassanid dynasty of Persia gained control over the region of Central Asia. Nomadic tribes from the north invaded between the 4th and 6th centuries, and the Western Turks gained the most extensive control over the region. In the 7th and 8th centuries Arab invaders conquered present-day Uzbekistan and introduced Islam. Then in the 9th century a Persian dynasty, the Samanids, emerged as local rulers and developed Bukhoro as an important center of Muslim culture. The Samanid dynasty declined in the 10th century, however, and a number of Turkic hordes vied for control until the great conquest of Mongol emperor Genghis Khan in the 13th century. In the 14th century the area was incorporated into the empire of the Turkic conqueror Tamerlane (Timur Lang), who established the Timurid dynasty. Tamerlane made Samarqand the capital of his vast empire in 1369, fashioning it into a magnificent imperial capital. Tamerlane’s grandson Ulug Beg emerged as the ruler of Samarqand in the early 1400s.
| Uzbekistan | Culture | Back to Top |
During the 1980s religious practice surged, transforming many aspects of Uzbek life, especially in the towns of the Fergana Valley and other concentrations of Muslim believers. This resurgence affected the republic's cultural life through the increased activities of religious schools, neighbourhood mosques, religious orders, and religious publishing ventures and through the Islamic Renaissance Party.
With the ancient cities of Bukhoro, Samarqand, and Khiva within its borders, Uzbekistan contains Central Asia’s oldest and most important cultural centers. Islam has been the dominant cultural tradition since the 8th century. During the Soviet period cultural development was restricted under the dogma of socialist realism, which forbade topics that were deemed nationalist—in many cases actually religious—and mandated that literature and art extol Communist themes. However, folk art continued to be produced during certain periods of Soviet history and has enjoyed a great renaissance since the late 1980s.
Over the centuries, the territory of what is now Uzbekistan has produced great scholars, poets, and writers whose heritage has enriched the general culture of humanity. The scholar and encyclopaedist al-Biruni, who lived in the 11th century, produced a series of geographic works about India and a wide range of writings in the natural sciences and humanities. In the 15th century the astronomer and mathematician Ulugh Beg founded a famous observatory in Samarkand. The late 15th-century scholar, poet, and writer 'Ali Shir Nava'i greatly advanced Turkic-language literature and was also a talented artist and composer.
| Uzbekistan | Life | Back to Top |
Uzbeks are among the most traditional of the Central Asian peoples. Traditional clothing is often worn on a daily basis, although Western-style clothing is also worn in the cities. Traditional men’s wear includes brightly colored striped robes, black boots, and embroidered skullcaps or turbans. Women wear colorful silk, cotton, or velvet dresses and head scarves. The Uzbek cuisine is distinctive, yet some Uzbek dishes, such as palov, are eaten throughout Central Asia. (Palov is a pilaf of rice, meat, vegetables, and sometimes dried fruit.) Other staples of the Uzbek diet include kabob (barbecued kebabs, especially mutton), laghmon (long, thick noodles often used in soups), and many varieties of bread, called non. Green tea is a common beverage. Common recreational activities include soccer and wrestling, and traditional horseback games are played on special occasions. One such game, known by various names throughout Central Asia (including ulaq, baiga, and buzkashi), is said to date from the days of Genghis Khan in the 13th century.
| Uzbekistan | Land | Back to Top |
Nearly four-fifths of Uzbekistan's territory, the sun-dried western area, has the appearance of a wasteland. In the northwest the Turan Plain rises 200 to 300 feet (60 to 90 metres) above sea level around the Aral Sea in Qoraqalpoghiston. This terrain merges on the south with the Kyzylkum (Uzbek: Qizilqum) Desert and farther west becomes the Ustyurt Plateau, a region of low ridges, salt marshes, sinkholes, and caverns.
| Uzbekistan | Plants and Animal | Back to Top |
Uzbekistan’s mixed topography provides divergent wildlife habitats. In the steppes the endangered saiga antelope can be found, as well as roe deer, wolves, foxes, and badgers. The desert monitor, a large lizard that can reach lengths of 1.6 m (5 ft), thrives in the Qyzylqum desert, along with a type of gazelle and a number of rodent species. The river deltas are home to wild boars, jackals, and deer, with a variety of pink deer living in the Amu Darya delta. The Turan (or Caspian) tiger is now extinct: The last one was killed in the Amu Darya delta in 1972. The endangered snow leopard, which has long been hunted illegally for its prized fur, lives in the eastern mountains. The mountains also are home to several types of mountain goat, including the Alpine ibex (characterized by enormous, back-curving horns), as well as lynx, wild boars, wolves, and brown bears.
| Uzbekistan | Economy | Back to Top |
In the mid-20th century the Soviet rulers of Uzbekistan intentionally developed the region as a supplier of raw materials for industrial processing elsewhere in the USSR and for export. It was during this time that Soviet planners implemented the disastrous shift to cotton production. That legacy is felt today. Uzbekistan’s economy is dependent upon cotton exports and therefore rises and falls as world prices fluctuate. Industries such as textile mills that could process the country’s raw materials are still underdeveloped. Uzbekistan must import food, despite potentially very fertile farmland.
Uzbekistan is among the world's leading cotton producers. The country also produces and exports a large volume of natural gas. Known for its orchards and vineyards, Uzbekistan is also an important region for raising Karakul sheep and silkworms. Uzbekistan's mineral and oil and gas reserves are substantial.
Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country of which 10% consists of intensely cultivated, irrigated river valleys. More than 60% of its population lives in densely populated rural communities. Uzbekistan is now the world's third largest cotton exporter, a large producer of gold and oil, and a regionally significant producer of chemicals and machinery. Following independence in December 1991, the government sought to prop up its Soviet-style command economy with subsidies and tight controls on production and prices. Faced with high rates of inflation, however, the government began to reform in mid-1994, by introducing tighter monetary policies, expanding privatization, slightly reducing the role of the state in the economy, and improving the environment for foreign investors. The state continues to be a dominating influence in the economy and has so far failed to bring about much-needed structural changes. The IMF suspended Uzbekistan's $185 million standby arrangement in late 1996 because of governmental steps that made impossible fulfillment of Fund conditions. Uzbekistan has responded to the negative external conditions generated by the Asian and Russian financial crises by tightening export and currency controls within its already largely closed economy. Economic policies that have repelled foreign investment are a major factor in the economy's stagnation. A growing debt burden, persistent inflation, and a poor business climate led to stagnant growth in 2000, with little improvement predicted for 2001.
| Uzbekistan | Communications | Back to Top |
general assessment: antiquated and inadequate; in serious need of modernization domestic: the domestic telephone system is being expanded and technologically improved, particularly in Tashkent and Samarqand, under contracts with prominent companies in industrialized countries; moreover, by 1998, six cellular networks had been placed in operation - four of the GSM type (Global System for Mobile Communication), one D-AMPS type (Digital Advanced Mobile Phone System), and one AMPS type (Advanced Mobile Phone System) international: linked by landline or microwave radio relay with CIS member states and to other countries by leased connection via the Moscow international gateway switch; after the completion of the Uzbek link to the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable, Uzbekistan will be independent of Russian facilities for international communications; Inmarsat also provides an international connection, albeit an expensive one; satellite earth stations - NA (1998)
| Uzbekistan | Languages | Back to Top |
The official state language is Uzbek. It is a member of the Eastern Turkic, or Karluk, language group. There are several Uzbek dialects. The written language that preceded modern Uzbek was written in an Arabic script, and Arabic letters continued to be used for about a decade after the creation of a modern Uzbek language under the Soviets. In the late 1920s, however, the Soviet government decreed that a Latin-based alphabet be used instead. Then in 1940 the government imposed a modified Cyrillic script (the script of the Russian language). In 1993 the government of independent Uzbekistan resolved to gradually revert to the Latin alphabet. Most ethnic minorities in Uzbekistan tend to speak their own native languages. Russian was the preferred language during the Soviet period and is still widely used in the cities.
| Uzbekistan | Politics | Back to Top |
Adolat (Justice) Social Democratic Party [Anwar JURABAYEV, first secretary]; Democratic National Rebirth Party (Milly Tiklanish) or MTP [Aziz KAYUMOV, chairman]; Fatherland Progress Party [Anwar Z. YOLDASHEV]; People's Democratic Party or NDP (formerly Communist Party) [Abdulkhafiz JALOLOV, first secretary]; Self-Sacrificers Party or Fidokorlar National Democratic Party [Ahtam TURSUNOV, first secretary] Political pressure groups and leaders: Birlik (Unity) Movement [Abdurakhim PULAT, chairman]; Erk (Freedom) Democratic Party [Muhammad SOLIH, chairman] was banned 9 December 1992; Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan [Abdumanob PULAT, chairman]; Independent Human Rights Society of Uzbekistan [Mikhail ARDZINOV, chairman]
| Uzbekistan | Government | Back to Top |
Uzbekistan promulgated its first constitution as an independent republic in 1992, replacing the constitution of the Soviet period. The new constitution declares Uzbekistan to be a secular and democratic republic and guarantees basic human rights. All citizens aged 18 and older may vote.
| Uzbekistan | Legal | Back to Top |
Legal system: evolution of Soviet civil law; still lacks independent judicial system Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Executive branch: chief of state: President Islom KARIMOV (since 24 March 1990, when he was elected president by the then Supreme Soviet) head of government: Prime Minister Otkir SULTONOV (since 21 December 1995) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president with approval of the Supreme Assembly elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 9 January 2000 (next to be held NA January 2005); note - extension of President KARIMOV's original term for an additional five years overwhelmingly approved - 99.6% of total vote in favor - by national referendum held 27 March 1995; prime minister and deputy ministers appointed by the president election results: Islom KARIMOV reelected president; percent of vote - Islom KARIMOV 91.9%, Abdulkhafiz DZHALALOV 4.2% Legislative branch: unicameral Supreme Assembly or Oliy Majlis (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 5 December and 19 December 1999 (next to be held NA December 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NDP 48, Self-Sacrificers Party 34, Fatherland Progress Party 20, Adolat Social Democratic Party 11, MTP 10, citizens' groups 16, local government 110, vacant 1 note: not all seats in the last Supreme Assembly election were contested; all parties in the Supreme Assembly support President KARIMOV Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Supreme Assembly)
| Uzbekistan | organization | Back to Top |
AsDB, CCC, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
| Uzbekistan | Education | Back to Top |
Education is compulsory in Uzbekistan until the ninth grade. Nearly the entire adult population can read and write. Illiteracy was high before the Soviet period but was virtually eliminated by 1970 as a result of the Soviet Union’s emphasis on free and universal education. Uzbekistan’s education system continues to follow the Soviet model in most respects, although some changes have been introduced since independence, such as a greater emphasis on Uzbek history and literature. So far the government has been unable to meet the Soviet level of funding for schools. Teachers are generally poorly paid, and new textbooks are in short supply.
| Uzbekistan | Defence | Back to Top |
Military branches:
Army, Air and Air Defense Forces, Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard
Military manpower - military age:
18 years of age
Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 6,550,587 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 5,318,418 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 274,602 (2001 est.)
| Uzbekistan | International Disputes | Back to Top |
occasional target of Islamic insurgents based in Tajikistan and Afghanistan
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