334.8 km2
| | Rakhmonbek Usmonov
|
Amir Timur Museum, Tashkent Tower, Cathedrale du Sacre-Cœur de Tachkent Westminster International University in Tashkent, Tashkent University of Information Technologies, National University of Uzbekistan, Tashkent State Economic University, Tashkent Institute of Railway Transport Engineers
|
Tashkent ( Uzbek: Russian: , literally "Stone City") is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. The officially registered population of the city in 2012 was about 2,309,300.
Due to its position in Central Asia, Tashkent came under Sogdian and Turkic influence early in its history, before Islam in the 8th century AD. After its destruction by Genghis Khan in 1219, the city was rebuilt and profited from the Silk Road. In 1865 it was conquered by the Russian Empire, and in Soviet times witnessed major growth and demographic changes due to forced deportations from throughout the Soviet Union. Today, as the capital of an independent Uzbekistan, Tashkent retains a multi-ethnic population with ethnic Uzbeks as the majority.
During its long history, Tashkent has had various changes in names and political and religious affiliations.
Geography and climate
Tashkent 41°18?N 69°16?E is situated in a well-watered plain to the west of the last Altai mountains on the road between Shymkent and Samarkand. Tashkent sits at the confluence of the Chirchik river and several of its tributaries and is built on deep alluvial deposits up to 15 metres (49 ft). The city is located in an active tectonic area suffering large numbers of tremors and some earthquakes. One earthquake in 1966 measured 7.5 on the Richter scale. The local time in Tashkent is UTC/GMT +5 hours.
Main sights
Due to the destruction of most of the ancient city during the 1917 revolution and, later, to the 1966 earthquake, little remains of Tashkents traditional architectural heritage. Tashkent is, however, rich in museums and Soviet-era monuments. They include:
Kukeldash Madrasah. Dating back to the reign of Abdullah Khan II (1557–1598) it is currently being restored by the provincial Religious Board of Mawarannahr Moslems. There is talk of making it into a museum, but it is currently being used as a mosque.Chorsu Bazaar, located near the Kukeldash Madrassa. This huge open air bazaar is the center of the old town of Tashkent. Everything imaginable is for sale.Telyashayakh Mosque (Khast Imam Mosque). It Contains the Uthman Quran, considered to be the oldest extant Quran in the world. Dating from 655 and stained with the blood of murdered caliph, Uthman, it was brought by Timur to Samarkand, seized by the Russians as a war trophy and taken to Saint Petersburg. It was returned to Uzbekistan in 1924.Yunus Khan Mausoleum. It is a group of three 15th-century mausoleums, restored in the 19th century. The biggest is the grave of Yunus Khan, grandfather of Mughal Empire founder Babur.Palace of Prince Romanov. During the 19th century Grand Duke Nikolai Konstantinovich, a first cousin of Alexander III of Russia was banished to Tashkent for some shady deals involving the Russian Crown Jewels. His palace still survives in the centre of the city. Once a museum, it has been appropriated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Alisher Navoi Opera and Ballet Theatre, built by the same architect who designed Lenins Tomb in Moscow, Aleksey Shchusev, with Japanese prisoner of war labor in World War II. It hosts Russian ballet and opera.Fine Arts Museum of Uzbekistan. It contains a major collection of art from the pre-Russian period, including Sogdian murals, Buddhist statues and Zoroastrian art, along with a more modern collection of 19th and 20th century applied art, such as suzani embroidered hangings. Of more interest is the large collection of paintings "borrowed" from the Hermitage by Grand Duke Romanov to decorate his palace in exile in Tashkent, and never returned. Behind the museum is a small park, containing the neglected graves of the Bolsheviks who died in the Russian Revolution of 1917 and to Ossipovs treachery in 1919, along with first Uzbekistani President Yuldosh Akhunbabayev.Museum of Applied Arts. Housed in a traditional house originally commissioned for a wealthy tsarist diplomat, the house itself is the main attraction, rather than its collection of 19th and 20th century applied arts.History Museum the largest museum in the city. It is housed in the ex-Lenin Museum.Amir Timur Museum, housed in a building with brilliant blue dome and ornate interior. It houses exhibits of Timur and of President Islam Karimov. The gardens outside contain a statue of Timur on horseback, surrounded by some of the nicest gardens and fountains in the city.Navoi Literary Museum, commemorating Uzbekistans adopted literary hero, Alisher Navoi, with replica manuscripts, Arabic calligraphy and 15th century miniature paintings.The Russian Orthodox church in Amir Temur Square, built in 1898, was demolished in 2009. It is necessary to note that this building was not used as religious building since the 1920s due to the antireligious campaign conducted by Bolshevik (communist) government from Moscow across the former Soviet Union. During the Soviet period the building was used for different non-religious purposes; after independence it was a bank.
Tashkent also has a World War II memorial park and a Defender of Motherland monument.
Tashkent Wikipedia (Text) CC BY-SA
(,)http://sanat.orexca.com/2007/2007-2/img/ptichtash1.jpg(,)http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/%25D0%25A2%25D0%25B0%25D1%2588%25D0%25BA%25D0%25B5%25D0%25BD%25D1%2582_%25D0%25BF%25D0%25B0%25D1%2581%25D1%2581%25D0%25B0%25D0%25B6_%25D0%2590%25D1%2580%25D0%25B8%25D1%2584-%25D0%25A5%25D0%25BE%25D0%25B4%25D0%25B6%25D0%25B8.jpg(,)http://sambuh.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/tashkent_monument_khast_imam_photo.jpg(,)http://sanat2013.orexca.com/eng/2-07/img/tashmonum1.jpg(,)http://sanat2013.orexca.com/eng/2-07/img/tarifoto1.jpg(,)http://www.people-travels.com/images/mega/tashkent-history/tashkent-history_3.jpg(,)http://sambuh.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/tashkent_monument_photo.jpg(,)http://www.visituzbekistan.travel/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/botanic-garden-tashkent-3.jpg(,)http://www.travel-pictures-gallery.net/images/silk-road/uzbekistan-country/uzbek-0003.jpg(,)http://farm8.static.flickr.com/7474/15600134260_1bef78538a_m.jpg(,)http://www.china-briefing.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/kyrgyz-landscape.jpg(,)http://www.visituzbekistan.travel/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/botanic-garden-tashkent-5.jpg(,)http://www.uz24.uz/userfiles/images/vystavka(,)http://weezbo.com/images/2013/03/1361521819_4-640x505.jpg(,)http://www.travel-pictures-gallery.net/images/silk-road/uzbekistan-country/uzbek-0039.jpg(,)http://artstudioreynolds.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/BL_Tashkent_oct22-27-470x260.jpg(,)http://www.remotelands.com/images/itinerary_more/140417003.jpg(,)http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/snow-mountain-tashkent-uzbekistan-8505471.jpg(,)http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/snow-mountain-tashkent-uzbekistan-8505511.jpg(,)http://cache4.asset-cache.net/gc/148690320-view-of-chatkal-mountain-range-from-the-gettyimages.jpg%3Fv%3D1%26c%3DIWSAsset%26k%3D2%26d%3DLyBcaiBLeGoedGXLOCpjaL1FQbmpsPHt6QojxsylY8LrGaU0mlHJeNbfE%252Fpo8XJa(,)http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/symbol-tashkent-city-21111117.jpg(,)http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/tashkent-city-landscape-29224706.jpg(,)http://www.visituzbekistan.travel/sightseeing/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/tashkent-restaurant-pilav-center.jpg(,)http://www.orexca.com/img/restaurants/raajkapur/2-2.jpg(,)http://i0.wp.com/foodperestroika.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/dolmashurpa3-small.jpg(,)http://www.orexca.com/img/restaurants/raajkapur/11-11.jpg(,)http://www.orexca.com/img/restaurants/brahm/2-2.jpg(,)http://cdn2.vtourist.com/19/4685127-Very_tasty_Tashkent.jpg(,)http://i.guim.co.uk/static/w-620/h/q-95/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2015/3/26/1427383230313/48fcfda1-22d1-4088-ae8d-2eda77fb1eb2-620x372.jpeg(,)http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/04/1f/f3/d1/national-food.jpg(,)http://www.visituzbekistan.travel/sightseeing/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/tashkent-angels-food.jpg(,)http://www.visituzbekistan.travel/sightseeing/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/tashkent-bistro.jpg(,)http://www.visituzbekistan.travel/sightseeing/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/tashkent-eating-cuisine-chinese-530x200.jpg(,)https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1179/1201973136_1292736e33_z.jpg%3Fzz%3D1