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Tajikistan

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Asian Countries;
Countries

   ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон
   Jumhurii Tojikiston
   Republic of Tajikistan

   Flag of Tajikistan Coat of Arms of Tajikistan
   Flag               Coat of Arms
   Motto: none
   Anthem: Surudi Milli
   Location of Tajikistan
   Capital
   (and largest city) Dushanbe
   38°33′N 68°48′E
   Official languages Tajik
   Government Republic
    - President Emomali Rahmonov
    - Prime Minister Okil Okilov
   Independence
    - Declared September 9, 1991
    - Completed December 25, 1991
    - Samanid Empire 875 AD
   Area
    - Total 143,100 km² ( 95th)
   55,251 sq mi
    - Water (%) 0.3
   Population
    - July 2005 estimate 6,507,000^1 ( 100th^1)
    - 2000 census 6,127,000
    - Density 45/km² ( 151st)
   117/sq mi
   GDP ( PPP) 2005 estimate
    - Total $8.802 billion ( 139th)
    - Per capita $1,388 ( 159th)
   HDI  (2003) 0.652 (medium) ( 122th)
   Currency Somoni ( TJS)
   Time zone TJT ( UTC+5)
   Internet TLD .tj
   Calling code +992
   ^1 Rank based on UN figures for 2005; estimate based on CIA figures for
   2006.

   The Republic of Tajikistan ( Persian: جمهوری تاجیکستان (Perso-Arabic),
   Tajik: ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон (Cyrillic), Çumhurii Toçikiston (Turkic) is
   a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. It borders
   Afghanistan to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the
   north, and China to the east. It is home mainly to the Tajiks, who
   share culture and history with the Iranians, and speak Tajik, a
   language closely related to Persian. Once the location of the famous
   Samanid Empire, Tajikistan became a constituent republic of the Soviet
   Union in the 20th century, known as the Tajik Soviet Socialist
   Republic.

   After independence, Tajikistan suffered from a devastating civil war
   which lasted from 1992 to 1997. Since the end of the war,
   newly-established political stability and foreign aid have allowed the
   country's economy to grow. Its natural resources such as cotton and
   aluminium have contributed greatly to this steady improvement, although
   an observer has characterized the country as having few natural
   resources besides hydroelectric power and its strategic location.

Name

   "Tajikistan" means the "Land of the Tajiks". Some believe that the name
   Tajik is a geographic reference to the crown (Taj) of the Pamir Knot.

   Tajikistan frequently appeared as Tadjikistan or Tadzhikistan in
   English. This is due to a transliteration from the Russian Таджикистан.
   In Russian there is no single letter j to represent the phoneme /ʤ/ and
   дж, or dzh, is used. Tadzhikistan is the most common alternate spelling
   and is widely used in English literature derived from Russian sources.
   Tadjikistan is the spelling in French and can occasionally be found in
   English language texts. The way of writing Tajikistan in the
   Perso-Arabic script is: .تاجکستان

   Controversy surrounds the correct term used to identify people from
   Tajikistan. The word Tajik has been the traditional term used to
   describe people from Tajikistan and appears widely in literature. But
   the ethnic politics of Central Asia have made the word Tajik a
   controversial word, as it implies that Tajikistan is only a nation for
   ethnic Tajiks and not ethnic Uzbeks, Russians etc. In addition, the
   Pamiri population in Gorno-Badakhshan also have sought to create an
   ethnic identity separate from that of the Tajiks. There is a growing
   consensus that Tajikistani, which is not ethnic specific and is
   inclusive of ethnic Tajiks and non-Tajiks alike, is the correct term to
   call people.

History

   The land that is now Tajikistan has been inhabited continuously since
   4,000 BC. It has been under the rule of various empires throughout
   history, mostly the Persian Empire. Before AD, it was part of the
   Bactrian Empire. Arabs brought Islam in the 7th century. The Persian
   Samanid Empire supplanted the Arabs and built the cities of Samarkand
   and Bukhara, which became the cultural centers of Tajiks. The Mongols
   would later take partial control of Central Asia, and later the land
   that today comprises Tajikistan became a part of the emirate of
   Bukhara. A small community of Jews, displaced from the Middle East
   after the Babylonian captivity, migrated to the region and settled
   there after 600 BC, though the majority of Jews did not migrate to
   Tajikistan until the 20th century.

   In the 19th century, the Russian Empire led by Andonis Petanski began
   to spread into Central Asia during the Great Game, and it took control
   of Tajikistan. After the overthrow of the Tsar in 1917, guerillas
   throughout Central Asia, known as basmachi waged a war against
   Bolshevik armies in a futile attempt to maintain independence. The
   Bolsheviks would prevail after a four year war, in which mosques and
   villages were burned down and the population heavily suppressed. Soviet
   authorities imposed a draconian secularization campaign, practicing
   Muslims, Jews, and Christians were heavily persecuted, and mosques,
   churches, and synagogues were closed.

Creation of Republic

   In 1924 the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was created as a
   part of Uzbekistan, but in 1929 the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic was
   made a separate constituent republic. Moscow did little to develop
   Tajikistan and it remained relatively behind other Soviet Republics in
   living conditions, education and industry. In the 1970s dissident
   Islamic underground parties began to form and by the late 1980s Tajik
   nationalists were calling for increased rights. Real disturbances did
   not occur within the republic until 1990. The following year, the
   Soviet Union collapsed, and Tajikistan declared its independence.

   The nation almost immediately fell into a civil war that involved
   various factions fighting one another, these factions were often
   distinguished by clan loyalties. The non-Muslim population,
   particularly Russians and Jews, fled the country during this time
   because of persecution, increased poverty and better economic
   opportunities in the West. Emomali Rahmonov came to power in 1992, and
   continues to rule to this day. However, he has been accused of ethnic
   cleansing against other ethnicities and groups during the Civil War of
   Tajikistan. In 1997 a ceasefire was reached between Rahmonov and
   opposition parties ( United Tajik Opposition). Peaceful elections were
   held in 1999, but they were reported by the opposition as unfair, and
   Rahmonov was re-elected by almost unanimous vote. Russian troops were
   stationed in southern Tajikistan, in order to guard the border with
   Afghanistan, until summer 2005. Since the September 11, 2001 attacks,
   American and French troops have also been stationed in the country.

Geography

   Enlarge
   Satellite photograph of Tajikistan
   Enlarge
   Satellite photograph of Tajikistan

   Tajikistan is landlocked, and is the smallest nation in Central Asia by
   area. It is covered by mountains of the Pamir range, and more than
   fifty percent of the country is over 3,000 meters (approx. 10,000 ft)
   above sea level. The only major areas of lower land are in the north
   which is part of the Fergana Valley, and in the southern Kafirnigan and
   Vakhsh valleys which form the Amu Darya and have much higher rainfall.
   Dushanbe is located on the southern slopes above the Kafirnigan valley.

   The Amu Darya and Panj rivers mark the border with Afghanistan, and
   Tajikistan's mountains are the major source of runoff for the Aral Sea
   basin.

   About 1% of the country's area is covered by lakes:
     * Kuli Sarez
     * Obanbori Norak
     * Qarokul
     * Shorkul
     * Yashilkul
     * Zorkul

   A photograph of Ismail Samani Peak (then known as Peak Communism) taken
   in 1989 when Tajikistan was part of the Soviet Union.
   Enlarge
   A photograph of Ismail Samani Peak (then known as Peak Communism) taken
   in 1989 when Tajikistan was part of the Soviet Union.

                          Mountain Height Location
       Independence Peak 7,174 m 23,537 ft     Northern border in the
                              Trans-Alay Range
    Kyzylart Pass 4,280 m 14,042 ft     Northern border in the Trans-Alay
                                    Range
       Ismail Samani Peak (highest) 7,495 m 24,590 ft     North of the
                    Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province
       Avicenna Peak 6,974 m 22,881 ft     North of Ismail Samani Peak
    Peak Korzhenievski 7,105 m 23,310 ft      Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous
                                  Province
     Qatorkuhi Akademiyai Fanho 6,785 m 22,260 ft      Gorno-Badakhshan
                             Autonomous Province
     Concord Peak 5,469 m 17,943 ft     Southern border in the northern
                        ridge of the Karakoram Range
   Qullai Karl Marks 6,726 m 22,067 ft     Southern border in the northern
                        ridge of the Karakoram Range
        Qullai Mayakovskiy 6,096 m 20,000 ft     Along the border to
                                Afghanistan.

Administrative divisions

   Administrative divisions of Tajikistan.
   Enlarge
   Administrative divisions of Tajikistan.

   The country is divided into regions, or provinces (singular: viloyat,
   plural: viloyatho) (the administrative centre name follows in
   parentheses):
    1. Sughd Viloyati Sughd ( Khujand)
    2. The Region of Republican Subordination is an area directly
       controlled by the national government in Dushanbe and has no
       viloyat-level administrative divisions.
    3. Khatlon Viloyati Khatlon ( Qurghonteppa)
    4. Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province (GBAP) Viloyati Mukhtori
       Kuhistoni Badakhshon ( Khorugh).

Exclaves

   There are three Tajik exclaves, all of them located in the Fergana
   Valley region where Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan meet. The
   largest is Vorukh (exclave area between 95–130 km²/37–50 sq mi,
   population estimated between 23,000 and 29,000, 95% Tajiks and 5%
   Kyrgyz, distributed among 17 villages), located 45 kilometres (28 mi)
   south of Isfara on the right bank of the Karafshin river, in Kyrgyz
   territory. Another exclave in Kyrgyzstan is a small settlement near the
   Kyrgyz railway station of Kairagach. The last is the village of Sarvan,
   which includes a narrow, long strip of land (about 15 km (9 mi) long by
   1 km (over ½ mi) wide) alongside the road from Angren to Kokand; it is
   surrounded by Uzbek territory.

   There are no enclaves within Tajikistan.

Politics

   Almost immediately after independence, Tajikistan was plunged into a
   civil war that saw various factions, allegedly backed by Russia and
   Iran, fighting one another. All but 25,000 of the more than 400,000
   ethnic Russians, who were mostly employed in industry, fled to Russia.
   By 1997 the war had cooled down, and a central government began to take
   form, with peaceful elections in 1999.

   "Longtime observers of Tajikistan often characterize the country as
   profoundly averse to risk and skeptical of promises of reform, a
   political passivity they trace to the country’s ruinous civil war,"
   Ilan Greenberg wrote in a news article in The New York Times just
   before the country's November 2006 presidential election.

   Tajikistan is officially a republic, and holds elections for the
   President and Parliament. The latest elections occurred in 2005, and as
   all previous elections, international observers believe them to have
   been corrupt, arousing many accusations from opposition parties that
   President Emomali Rahmonov manipulates the election process.

   The November 6, 2006 election was boycotted by "mainline" opposition
   parties, including the 23,000-member Islamic Renaissance Party. Four
   remaining opponents "all but endorsed the incumbent", Rakhmonov.

   Tajikistan to this date is the only country in Central Asia to have
   included an active opposition in its government. In the Parliament,
   opposition groups have often clashed with the ruling party, but this
   has not led to great instability.

Economy

   Tajikistan was the poorest country in Central Asia following a civil
   war after it became independent in 1991. With foreign revenue
   precariously dependent upon exports of cotton and aluminium, the
   economy is highly vulnerable to external shocks. In FY 2000,
   international assistance remained an essential source of support for
   rehabilitation programs that reintegrated former civil war combatants
   into the civilian economy, thus helping keep the peace. International
   assistance also was necessary to address the second year of severe
   drought that resulted in a continued shortfall of food production. On
   August 21, 2001, the Red Cross announced that a famine was striking
   Tajikistan, and called for international aid for Tajikistan and
   Uzbekistan. Tajikistan's economy grew substantially after the war. The
   GDP of Tajikistan expanded at an average rate of 9.6% over the period
   of 2000-2004 according to the World Bank data. This improved
   Tajikistan's position among other Central Asian countries (namely
   Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan), which seem to have degraded economically
   ever since.

Demographics

   Tajikistan has a population of 7,320,815 (July 2006 est.). The major
   ethnic group is the Tajik, although there is a sizeable minority of
   Uzbeks, and a small population of Russians, whose numbers are declining
   due to emigration. Pamiris of Badakhshan are considered to belong to
   larger group of Tajiks. Likewise, the official language of Tajikistan
   is Tajik Persian, while Russian is largely spoken in business and for
   government purposes. Although the Tajik and Uzbek are now classified as
   separate ethnic groups, on account of their languages, this is a
   relatively new phenomenon and originates from the conquest of Central
   Asia by the Russian Empire in the 19th century. Despite its poverty,
   Tajikistan has a high rate of literacy with an estimated 98% of the
   population having the ability to read and write. Most of the population
   follows Sunni Islam, although a sizeable number of Shi'a are present as
   well. Bukharan Jews had lived in Tajikistan since the 2nd century BC,
   but today only a few hundred remain. There is also a small population
   of Yaghnobi people.
   A statue of Vladimir Lenin still stands in Tajikistan's capital of
   Dushanbe.
   Enlarge
   A statue of Vladimir Lenin still stands in Tajikistan's capital of
   Dushanbe.

   The Tajik Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare reported that 104,272
   disabled people are registered in Tajikistan (2000). This group of
   people suffers most from poverty in Tajikistan. The Tajik government
   and the World Bank considered activities to support this part of the
   population described in the World Bank's Poverty Reduction Paper.

Culture

   The Yaghnobi people live in mountainous areas of northern Tajikistan.
   The estimated number of Yagnobians is now about 250,000. Forced
   migrations have decimated their numbers. They speak the Yaghnobi
   language, which has its roots in the Sogdian language.
     * Music of Tajikistan
     * Islam in Tajikistan
     * Public holidays in Tajikistan
     * Cuisine of Tajikistan

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tajikistan"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
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