Bukhara
Bukhara (Uzbek: Buxoro/Бухоро, ; Бухоро, ) is the seventh-largest city in Uzbekistan, with a population of 280,187, and the capital of Bukhara Region.
People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time. Located on the Silk Road, the city has long served as a center of trade, scholarship, culture, and religion. The mother tongue of the majority of people of Bukhara is Tajik, a dialect of the Persian language, although Uzbek is spoken as a second language by most residents. Bukhara served as the capital of the Samanid Empire, Khanate of Bukhara, and Emirate of Bukhara and was the birthplace of scholar Imam Bukhari. The city has been known as "Noble Bukhara" (Bukhārā-ye sharīf). Bukhara has about 140 architectural monuments. UNESCO has listed the historic center of Bukhara (which contains numerous mosques and madrasas) as a World Heritage Site.
The exact name of the city of Bukhara in ancient times is unknown. The whole oasis was called Bukhara in ancient times, and probably only in the tenth century it was finally transferred to the city.
According to some scholars, the name dates back to the Sanskrit "Vihara" (Buddhist monastery). This word is very close to the word in the language of the Uyghur and Chinese Buddhists, who named their places of worship the same way. Very few artifacts related to Buddhism have survived to modern age in the city. But, numerous Arabic, Persian, European and Chinese travellers and historians noted the place and Uzbekistan itself to be once populated by mostly Buddhists and few Zoroastrians. Indeed, the first Islamic text on Bukhara relates to the first Arab invader of Bukhara, Ubaidullah bin Ziad, who noted Bukhara to be a Buddhist country with Buddhist monasteries ruled by a queen regent acting on behalf of her son.
According to other sources (such as Encyclopædia Iranica), the name Bukhara is possibly derived from the Sogdian βuxārak ("Place of Good Fortune"), a name for Buddhist monasteries.
In the Tang dynasty, and other successive dynasties of Imperial China, Bukhara was known under the name of Buhe/Puhe(捕喝), which has been replaced in Chinese by the modern generic phonetic spelling Bùhālā (布哈拉).
In the 19-20th centuries, Bukhara was known as Bokhara, in the English publications, as exemplified by the writings and reports on the Emirate of Bukhara during the Great Game.
Muhammad ibn Jafar Narshakhi in his History of Bukhara (completed AD 943–44) mentions: "Bukhara has many names. One of its names was Numijkat. It has also been called 'Bumiskat'. It has 2 names in Arabic. One is 'Madinat al Sufriya' meaning—'the copper city' and another is 'Madinat Al Tujjar' meaning—'The city of Merchants'. But, the name Bukhara is the original name and more known than all the other names. In Khorasan, there is no other city with so many names." Since the Middle Ages, the city has been known as Buḫārā / بخارا in Arabic and Persian sources. The modern Uzbek spelling is Buxoro.
The city's name was mythologized as Albracca in the Italian epic poem Orlando Innamorato, published in 1483 by Matteo Maria Boiardo.
People have inhabited the region around Bukhara for at least five millennia, and the city has existed for half that time. Located on the Silk Road, the city has long served as a center of trade, scholarship, culture, and religion. The mother tongue of the majority of people of Bukhara is Tajik, a dialect of the Persian language, although Uzbek is spoken as a second language by most residents. Bukhara served as the capital of the Samanid Empire, Khanate of Bukhara, and Emirate of Bukhara and was the birthplace of scholar Imam Bukhari. The city has been known as "Noble Bukhara" (Bukhārā-ye sharīf). Bukhara has about 140 architectural monuments. UNESCO has listed the historic center of Bukhara (which contains numerous mosques and madrasas) as a World Heritage Site.
The exact name of the city of Bukhara in ancient times is unknown. The whole oasis was called Bukhara in ancient times, and probably only in the tenth century it was finally transferred to the city.
According to some scholars, the name dates back to the Sanskrit "Vihara" (Buddhist monastery). This word is very close to the word in the language of the Uyghur and Chinese Buddhists, who named their places of worship the same way. Very few artifacts related to Buddhism have survived to modern age in the city. But, numerous Arabic, Persian, European and Chinese travellers and historians noted the place and Uzbekistan itself to be once populated by mostly Buddhists and few Zoroastrians. Indeed, the first Islamic text on Bukhara relates to the first Arab invader of Bukhara, Ubaidullah bin Ziad, who noted Bukhara to be a Buddhist country with Buddhist monasteries ruled by a queen regent acting on behalf of her son.
According to other sources (such as Encyclopædia Iranica), the name Bukhara is possibly derived from the Sogdian βuxārak ("Place of Good Fortune"), a name for Buddhist monasteries.
In the Tang dynasty, and other successive dynasties of Imperial China, Bukhara was known under the name of Buhe/Puhe(捕喝), which has been replaced in Chinese by the modern generic phonetic spelling Bùhālā (布哈拉).
In the 19-20th centuries, Bukhara was known as Bokhara, in the English publications, as exemplified by the writings and reports on the Emirate of Bukhara during the Great Game.
Muhammad ibn Jafar Narshakhi in his History of Bukhara (completed AD 943–44) mentions: "Bukhara has many names. One of its names was Numijkat. It has also been called 'Bumiskat'. It has 2 names in Arabic. One is 'Madinat al Sufriya' meaning—'the copper city' and another is 'Madinat Al Tujjar' meaning—'The city of Merchants'. But, the name Bukhara is the original name and more known than all the other names. In Khorasan, there is no other city with so many names." Since the Middle Ages, the city has been known as Buḫārā / بخارا in Arabic and Persian sources. The modern Uzbek spelling is Buxoro.
The city's name was mythologized as Albracca in the Italian epic poem Orlando Innamorato, published in 1483 by Matteo Maria Boiardo.
Map - Bukhara
Map
Country - Uzbekistan
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| Flag of Uzbekistan | |
The first recorded settlers in what is now Uzbekistan were Eastern Iranian nomads, known as Scythians, who founded kingdoms in Khwarazm (8th–6th centuries BC), Bactria (8th–6th centuries BC), Sogdia (8th–6th centuries BC), Fergana (3rd century BC – sixth century AD), and Margiana (3rd century BC – sixth century AD). The area was incorporated into the Iranian Achaemenid Empire and, after a period of Macedonian rule, was ruled by the Iranian Parthian Empire and later by the Sasanian Empire, until the Muslim conquest of Persia in the seventh century.
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| UZS | Uzbekistan som | so'm or Ñўм | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| RU | Russian language |
| TG | Tajik language |
| UZ | Uzbek language |