Uzbekistan

Symbol of the Magic East

Overview of Uzbekistan

History

The Uzbekistan land was once part of the ancient Persian Empire and was later conquered by Alexander the Great in the 4th centuryB.C.During the 8th century, the nomadic Turkic tribes living there were converted to Islam by invading Arab forces who dominated the area. The Mongols under Ghengis Khan took over the region from the Seljuk Turks in the 13th century, and it later became part of Tamerlane the Great's empire and that of his successors until the 16th century. The Uzbeks invaded the territory in the early 16th century and merged with the other inhabitants in the area. Their empire broke up into separate Uzbek principalities, the khanates of Khiva, Bukhara, and Kokand. These city-states resisted Russian expansion into the area but were conquered by the Russian forces in the mid-19th century.

The territory was made into the Uzbek Republic in 1924 and became the independent Uzbekistan Soviet Socialist Republic in 1925. Under Soviet rule, Uzbekistan concentrated on growing cotton with the help of irrigation, mechanization, and chemical fertilizers and pesticides, causing serious environmental damage.

Geography

Uzbekistan is situated in central Asia between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya Rivers, the Aral Sea, and the slopes of the Tien Shan Mountains. It is bounded by Kazakhstan in the north and northwest, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in the east and southeast, Turkmenistan in the southwest, and Afghanistan in the south. The republic also includes the Karakalpakstan Autonomous Republic, with its capital, Nukus (1992 est. pop., 182,000). The country is about one-tenth larger in area than the state of California.

"Uzbekistan
Quick-facts "

President: Islam A. Karimov +977 14511001

Prime Minister: Shavkat Mirziyayev +977 14511001

Land area: 164,247 sq mi (425,400 sq km); total area: 172,741 sq mi (447,400 sq km)

Population (2014 est.): 28,929,716 (growth rate: 0.93%); birth rate: +977 14511001; infant mortality rate: +977 14511001; life expectancy: 73.29; density per sq mi: 159.1

Capital and largest city (2011 est.): Tashkent, 2.227 million

Other large cities: Namangan, 1.565 million; Andijan, 1.448 million; Samarkand, 1.309 million

Monetary unit: Uzbekistani sum

National name: Ozbekiston Respublikasi

Current government officials

Languages: Uzbek 74.3%, Russian 14.2%, Tajik 4.4%, other 7.1%

Ethnicity/race: Uzbek 80%, Russian 5.5%, Tajik 5%, Kazak 3%, Karakalpak 2.5%, Tatar 1.5%, other 2.5% (1996 est.)

Religions: Islam (mostly Sunnis) 88%, Eastern Orthodox 9%, other 3%

Literacy rate: 99.4% (2011 est.)

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 1.963 million +97714520914; mobile cellular: +977 14511001 million +97714520914. Radio broadcast stations: AM 15, FM 7, shortwave +977 14511001. Radios: 10.2 million +977 14511001. Television broadcast stations: +977 14511001. Televisions: 6.4 million +977 14511001. Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 56,075 +97714520914. Internet users: 4.689 million +977 14511001.

Transportation: Railways: total: 4,230 km +97714520914 Highways: total: 86,496 km; paved: 75,511 km; unpaved: 10,985 km +977 14511001. Waterways: 1,100 +97714520914. Ports and harbors: Termiz (Amu Darya river). Airports: +977 14511001.

International disputes: prolonged drought and cotton monoculture in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan created water-sharing difficulties for Amu Darya river states; field demarcation of the boundaries with Kazakhstan commenced in 2004; border delimitation of 130 km of border with Kyrgyzstan is hampered by serious disputes around enclaves and other areas.