- published: 01 Dec 2011
- views: 829811
Coordinates: 39°39′15″N 66°57′35″E / 39.65417°N 66.95972°E / 39.65417; 66.95972
Samarkand (Tajik: Самарқанд; Persian: سمرقند; Uzbek: Samarqand; from Sogdian: "Stone Fort" or "Rock Town") is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province. The city is most noted for its central position on the Silk Road between China and the West, and for being an Islamic centre for scholarly study. In the 14th century it became the capital of the empire of Timur (Tamerlane) and is the site of his mausoleum (the Gur-e Amir). The Bibi-Khanym Mosque remains one of the city's most notable landmarks. The Registan was the ancient center of the city.
In 2001, UNESCO added the city to its World Heritage List as Samarkand – Crossroads of Cultures.
The city was known by an abbreviated name of Marakanda when Alexander the Great took it in 332BC. There are various theories of how Marakanda evolved into Samarkanda/Samarkan. One derives the name from the Old Persian asmara, "stone", "rock", and Sogdian kand, "fort", "town". Others less convincingly derive the name from the old Turkic "Semiz-Kent" meaning "Rich City".[citation needed]. Since the name Marakanda was already in existence 2300 years ago and long before anyone had heard of Turks in that region of Transoxiana, this version is likely a folk etymology.
Andijan or Andizhan (Uzbek: Andijon / Андижон; Russian: Андижан) is the fourth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and the capital of the Andijan Province. It is located in the east of the country, at 40°47′N 72°20′E / 40.783°N 72.333°E / 40.783; 72.333, in the Fergana Valley, near the border with Kyrgyzstan on the Andijan-Say River. It has a population of 323,900 (1999 census estimate).
Arab geographers from the tenth century and later give the name as Andiyon, Andukan, Andugan, and Andigan. The etymology is unknown; the traditional explanation links it to the Turkic tribal name Andi.
The city of Andijan is located in the eastern point of the chain of the first settlements of the early civilizations of Fergana Valley. Study of the history of Andijan began nearly 100 years ago. At different times in the city was historical-ethnographic and archaeological excavations scientists A.k. Pisarčik, v.i. Kozenkova, b. Abdulgazieva, s. Jalilov and others. Detailed archaeological research of the city were carried out in 80-ies of the last century by the Institute of archaeology of the Academy of Sciences. Information about the structural and spatial location of Andijan, meet on a topographic map, 1893. At stake were the quarters, mosques, mausoleums, the streets of the city. Archaeologists researching historical locations such as Andijan, Čordona, Sarvontepa, Âkkatepa, Koštepa, Ark ichi, Shakhristan.
Uzbekistan i/ʊzˌbɛkɨˈstɑːn/, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan (Uzbek: O‘zbekiston Respublikasi, Ўзбекистон Республикаси) is the only doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of only two such countries worldwide. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south. Before 1991, it was part of the Soviet Union.
Uzbekistan is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia.
Once part of the Persian Samanid and later Timurid empires, the region was conquered in the early 16th century by Uzbek nomads, who spoke an Eastern Turkic language. Most of Uzbekistan’s population today belong to the Uzbek ethnic group and speak the Uzbek language, one of the family of Turkic languages.
Uzbekistan was incorporated into the Russian Empire in the 19th century, and in 1924 became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, known as the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (Uzbek SSR). It became independent on 31 August 1991 (officially, from the following day).