Central Asia
Central Asia is a subregion of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to China and
Mongolia[4] in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. The region
consists of the former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and
Uzbekistan.[5] It is also colloquially referred to as "The -Stans" as the countries all have names
ending with the Persian suffix "-stan", meaning "land of".[6]
Central Asia
Area
4,003,451 km2 (1,545,741 sq mi)
Population
72,960,000 (2019) (16th)[1][2]
Population density
17.43 km2 (6.73 sq mi)
GDP (PPP)
$1.0 trillion (2019)[3]
GDP (nominal)
$300 billion (2019)[3]
GDP per capita
$4,000 (2019; nominal)[3]
$14,000 (2019; PPP)[3]
HDI
0.779 (high)
Demonym
Central Asian
Countries
5 recognized
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Tajikistan
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan
Languages
Russian, Karakalpak, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Turkmen,
Uzbek, and others
Time zones
2 time zones
UTC+05:00:
Standard: Kazakhstan (5 regions), Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
UTC+06:00:
Standard: Kazakhstan (4 cities, 9 regions),
Internet TLD
Kyrgyzstan
.kg, .kz,
.tj, .tm, .uz
Calling code
Zone 9 except Kazakhstan (Zone 7)
Largest cities
Lista
Almaty
Ashgabat
Bishkek
Dushanbe
Karaganda
Namangan
Nur-Sultan
Samarkand
Shymkent
Tashkent
UN M49 code
143 – Central Asia
142 – Asia
001 – World
a
With population over 500,000 people
In the pre-Islamic and early Islamic eras (c. 1000 and earlier) Central Asia was inhabited
predominantly by Iranian peoples,[7][8] populated by Eastern Iranian-speaking Bactrians, Sogdians,
Chorasmians and the semi-nomadic Scythians and Dahae. After expansion by Turkic peoples,
Central Asia also became the homeland for the Kazakhs, Uzbeks, Tatars, Turkmen, Kyrgyz, and
Uyghurs; Turkic languages largely replaced the Iranian languages spoken in the area, with the
exception of Tajikistan and areas where Tajik is spoken.
Central Asia was historically closely tied to the Silk Road trade routes,[9] acting as a crossroads for
the movement of people, goods, and ideas between Europe and the Far East.[10][11][12]
From the mid-19th century until almost the end of the 20th century, Central Asia was colonised by
the Russians, and incorporated into the Russian Empire, and later the Soviet Union, which led to
Russians and other Slavs emigrating into the area. Modern-day Central Asia is home to a large
population of European settlers, who mostly live in Kazakhstan; 7 million Russians, 500,000
Ukrainians,[13][14][15] and about 170,000 Germans.[16] Stalinist-era forced deportation policies also
mean that over 300,000 Koreans live there.[17]
Central Asia (2019) has a population of about 72 million people, in five countries: Kazakhstan (pop.
19 million), Kyrgyzstan (7 million), Tajikistan (10 million), Turkmenistan (6 million), and Uzbekistan
(35 million).[18]
Definitions
Political map of Central Asia and
the Caucasus (2000)
Political 2D map of Central Asia
including Afghanistan
One of the first geographers who mentioned Central Asia as a distinct region of the world was
Alexander von Humboldt. The borders of Central Asia are subject to multiple definitions. Historically,
political geography and culture have been two significant parameters widely used in scholarly
definitions of Central Asia.[19] Humboldt's definition composed of every country between 5° North
and 5° South of the latitude 44.5°N.[20] Humboldt mentions some geographic features of this region,
which include the Caspian Sea in the west, the Altai mountains in the north and the Hindu Kush and
Pamir mountains in the South.[21] He did not give an eastern border for the region. His legacy is still
seen: Humboldt University of Berlin, named after him, offers a course in Central Asian Studies.[22]
The Russian geographer Nikolaĭ Khanykov questioned the latitudinal definition of Central Asia and
preferred a physical one of all countries located in the region landlocked from water, including
Afghanistan, Khorasan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uyghuristan (Xinjiang), and
Uzbekistan.[23][24][25]
Expanded definition of Central Asia. Core
definition that includes the five post-Soviet
states in dark green. Afghanistan, the most
commonly added country to Central Asia, in
green. Regions that are sometimes
considered part of Central Asia in light
green.
Three sets of possible boundaries for the
Central Asia region (which overlap with
conceptions of South and East Asia).
Russian culture has two distinct terms: Средняя Азия (Srednyaya Aziya or "Middle Asia", the
narrower definition, which includes only those traditionally non-Slavic, Central Asian lands that were
incorporated within those borders of historical Russia) and Центральная Азия (Tsentralnaya Aziya
or "Central Asia", the wider definition, which includes Central Asian lands that have never been part
of historical Russia). The latter definition includes Afghanistan and 'East Turkestan'.[26]
The most limited definition was the official one of the Soviet Union, which defined Middle Asia as
consisting solely of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, omitting Kazakhstan.
Soon after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the leaders of the four former Soviet Central
Asian Republics met in Tashkent and declared that the definition of Central Asia should include
Kazakhstan as well as the original four included by the Soviets. Since then, this has become the
most common definition of Central Asia.
The UNESCO History of the Civilizations of Central Asia, published in 1992, defines the region as
"Afghanistan, northeastern Iran, northern and central Pakistan, northern India, western China,
Mongolia and the former Soviet Central Asian republics".[27]
An alternative method is to define the region based on ethnicity, and in particular, areas populated
by Eastern Turkic, Eastern Iranian, or Mongolian peoples. These areas include Xinjiang Uyghur
Autonomous Region, the Turkic regions of southern Siberia, the five republics, and Afghan
Turkestan. Afghanistan as a whole, the northern and western areas of Pakistan and the Kashmir
Valley of India may also be included. The Tibetans and Ladakhis are also included. Most of the
mentioned peoples are considered the "indigenous" peoples of the vast region. Central Asia is
sometimes referred to as Turkestan.[28][29][30]
Geography
On the southern shore of Issyk Kul
lake, Issyk Kul Region.
Central Asia is a region of varied geography, including high passes and mountains (Tian Shan), vast
deserts (Kyzyl Kum, Taklamakan), and especially treeless, grassy steppes. The vast steppe areas of
Central Asia are considered together with the steppes of Eastern Europe as a homogeneous
geographical zone known as the Eurasian Steppe.
Much of the land of Central Asia is too dry or too rugged for farming. The Gobi desert extends from
the foot of the Pamirs, 77° E, to the Great Khingan (Da Hinggan) Mountains, 116°–118° E.
Central Asia has the following geographic extremes:
The world's northernmost desert (sand dunes), at Buurug Deliin Els, Mongolia, 50°18' N.
The Northern Hemisphere's southernmost permafrost, at Erdenetsogt sum, Mongolia, 46°17' N.
The world's shortest distance between non-frozen desert and permafrost: 770 km (480 mi).
The Eurasian pole of inaccessibility.
A majority of the people earn a living by herding livestock. Industrial activity centers in the region's
cities.
Major rivers of the region include the Amu Darya, the Syr Darya, Irtysh, the Hari River and the
Murghab River. Major bodies of water include the Aral Sea and Lake Balkhash, both of which are
part of the huge west-central Asian endorheic basin that also includes the Caspian Sea.
Both of these bodies of water have shrunk significantly in recent decades due to diversion of water
from rivers that feed them for irrigation and industrial purposes. Water is an extremely valuable
resource in arid Central Asia and can lead to rather significant international disputes.
Topographic map of Central Asia.
Historical regions
Zhetysu
Dzungaria
Khwarezm
Ferghana Tarim_Basin
Historical regions of Central Asia
on a map of Kazakhstan
Zhetysu
Khwarezm
Transoxiana
(Sogdia)
Margiana
Historical Regions of Central Asia
on a map of Uzbekistan
Ferghana
Bactria
Khiva
Tashkent
Bukhara
Samarkand
Kokand
Merv
Balkh
Historic cities of Central Asia
Kokand is one of the many towns that rose and fell
in the Ferghana Valley
Central Asia is bounded on the north by the forests of Siberia. The northern half of Central Asia
(Kazakhstan) is the middle part of the Eurasian steppe. Westward the Kazakh steppe merges into
the Russian-Ukrainian steppe and eastward into the steppes and deserts of Dzungaria and
Mongolia. Southward the land becomes increasingly dry and the nomadic population increasingly
thin. The south supports areas of dense population and cities wherever irrigation is possible. The
main irrigated areas are along the eastern mountains, along the Oxus and Jaxartes Rivers and along
the north flank of the Kopet Dagh near the Persian border. East of the Kopet Dagh is the important
oasis of Merv and then a few places in Afghanistan like Herat and Balkh. Two projections of the
Tian Shan create three "bays" along the eastern mountains. The largest, in the north, is eastern
Kazakhstan, traditionally called Jetysu or Semirechye which contains Lake Balkhash. In the center is
the small but densely-populated Ferghana valley. In the south is Bactria, later called Tocharistan,
which is bounded on the south by the Hindu Kush mountains of Afghanistan. The Syr Darya
(Jaxartes) rises in the Ferghana valley and the Amu Darya (Oxus) rises in Bactria. Both flow
northwest into the Aral Sea. Where the Oxus meets the Aral Sea it forms a large delta called
Khwarazm and later the Khanate of Khiva. North of the Oxus is the less-famous but equally
important Zarafshan River which waters the great trading cities of Bokhara and Samarkand. The
other great commercial city was Tashkent northwest of the mouth of the Ferghana valley. The land
immediately north of the Oxus was called Transoxiana and also Sogdia, especially when referring to
the Sogdian merchants who dominated the silk road trade.
To the east, Dzungaria and the Tarim Basin were united into the Manchu-Chinese province of
Xinjiang (Sinkiang; Hsin-kiang) about 1759. Caravans from China usually went along the north or
south side of the Tarim basin and joined at Kashgar before crossing the mountains northwest to
Ferghana or southwest to Bactria. A minor branch of the silk road went north of the Tian Shan
through Dzungaria and Zhetysu before turning southwest near Tashkent. Nomadic migrations
usually moved from Mongolia through Dzungaria before turning southwest to conquer the settled
lands or continuing west toward Europe.
The Kyzyl Kum Desert or semi-desert is between the Oxus and Jaxartes, and the Karakum Desert is
between the Oxus and Kopet Dagh in Turkmenistan. Khorasan meant approximately northeast
Persia and northern Afghanistan. Margiana was the region around Merv. The Ustyurt Plateau is
between the Aral and Caspian Seas.
To the southwest, across the Kopet Dagh, lies Persia. From here Persian and Islamic civilisation
penetrated Central Asia and dominated its high culture until the Russian conquest. In the southeast
is the route to India. In early times Buddhism spread north and throughout much of history warrior
kings and tribes would move southeast to establish their rule in northern India. Most nomadic
conquerors entered from the northeast. After 1800 western civilisation in its Russian and Soviet
form penetrated from the northwest.
Names of historical regions
Ariana
Parthia
Bactria
Sogdia
Dahistan
Tokharistan
Khorasan
Transoxiana
Khwarazm
Turan
Margiana
Turkestan
Climate
Central Asia map of Köppen climate classification.
Because Central Asia is land-locked and not buffered by a large body of water, temperature
fluctuations are often severe, excluding the hot, sunny summer months. In most areas the climate is
dry and continental, with hot summers and cool to cold winters, with occasional snowfall. Outside
high-elevation areas, the climate is mostly semi-arid to arid. In lower elevations, summers are hot
with blazing sunshine. Winters feature occasional rain and/or snow from low-pressure systems that
cross the area from the Mediterranean Sea. Average monthly precipitation is very low from July to
September, rises in autumn (October and November) and is highest in March or April, followed by
swift drying in May and June. Winds can be strong, producing dust storms sometimes, especially
toward the end of the summer in September and October. Specific cities that exemplify Central
Asian climate patterns include Tashkent and Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, and
Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The last of these represents one of the wettest climates in Central Asia, with
an average annual precipitation of over 560 mm (22 inches).
Biogeographically, Central Asia is part of the Palearctic realm. The largest biome in Central Asia is
the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Central Asia also contains the
montane grasslands and shrublands, deserts and xeric shrublands and temperate coniferous
forests biomes.
As of 2022, Central Asia is one of the most vulnerable regions to global climate change in the world
and the region´s temperature is growing faster than the global average.[31]
History
Although, during the golden age of Orientalism the place of Central Asia in the world history was
marginalised, contemporary historiography has rediscovered the "centrality" of the Central Asia.[32]
The history of Central Asia is defined by the area's climate and geography. The aridness of the
region made agriculture difficult, and its distance from the sea cut it off from much trade. Thus, few
major cities developed in the region; instead, the area was for millennia dominated by the nomadic
horse peoples of the steppe.
Iranian-speaking people circa 170 BC. Eastern
Iranian languages are in orange, Western Iranian
languages are in red.
Relations between the steppe nomads and the settled people in and around Central Asia were long
marked by conflict. The nomadic lifestyle was well suited to warfare, and the steppe horse riders
became some of the most militarily potent people in the world, limited only by their lack of internal
unity. Any internal unity that was achieved was most probably due to the influence of the Silk Road,
which traveled along Central Asia. Periodically, great leaders or changing conditions would organise
several tribes into one force and create an almost unstoppable power. These included the Hun
invasion of Europe, the Wu Hu attacks on China and most notably the Mongol conquest of much of
Eurasia.[33]
During pre-Islamic and early Islamic times, southern Central Asia was inhabited predominantly by
speakers of Iranian languages.[7][34] Among the ancient sedentary Iranian peoples, the Sogdians and
Chorasmians played an important role, while Iranian peoples such as Scythians and the later on
Alans lived a nomadic or semi-nomadic lifestyle.
Uzbek men from Khiva, ca.
1861–1880
The Mongol Empire at its greatest
extent. The gray area is the later
Timurid Empire.
The main migration of Turkic peoples occurred between the 5th and 10th centuries, when they
spread across most of Central Asia. The Turkic peoples slowly replaced and assimilated the
previous Iranian-speaking locals, turning the population of Central Asia from largely Iranian, into
primarily of East Asian descent.[35] The Tang Chinese expanded westwards and controlled large
parts of Central Asia, directly and indirectly through their Turkic vassals. Tang China actively
supported the Turkification of Central Asia, while extending its cultural influence.[36] The Tang
Chinese were defeated by the Arabs at the battle of Talas in 751, marking the end of the Tang
Dynasty's western expansion and the 150 years of Chinese influence. The Tibetan Empire would
take the chance to rule portion of Central Asia along with South Asia. During the 13th and 14th
centuries, the Mongols conquered and ruled the largest contiguous empire in recorded history. Most
of Central Asia fell under the control of the Chagatai Khanate.
Central Asia in 1636. The Dzungar
Khanate was the last great nomadic
empire in Central Asia.
The dominance of the nomads ended in the 16th century, as firearms allowed settled peoples to
gain control of the region. Russia, China, and other powers expanded into the region and had
captured the bulk of Central Asia by the end of the 19th century. After the Russian Revolution, the
western Central Asian regions were incorporated into the Soviet Union. The eastern part of Central
Asia, known as East Turkestan or Xinjiang, was incorporated into the People's Republic of China,
having been previously subjugated by the Manchu Empire. Mongolia regained their independence
and have remained independent but became a Soviet satellite state until the dissolution of the
Soviet Union. Afghanistan remained relatively independent of major influence by the Soviet Union
until the Saur Revolution of 1978.
The Soviet areas of Central Asia saw much industrialisation and construction of infrastructure, but
also the suppression of local cultures, hundreds of thousands of deaths from failed collectivisation
programmes, and a lasting legacy of ethnic tensions and environmental problems. Soviet
authorities deported millions of people, including entire nationalities,[37] from western areas of the
Soviet Union to Central Asia and Siberia.[38] According to Touraj Atabaki and Sanjyot Mehendale,
"From 1959 to 1970, about two million people from various parts of the Soviet Union migrated to
Central Asia, of which about one million moved to Kazakhstan."[39]
With the collapse of the Soviet Union, five countries gained independence. In nearly all the new
states, former Communist Party officials retained power as local strongmen. None of the new
republics could be considered functional democracies in the early days of independence, although
in recent years Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia have made further progress towards more
open societies, unlike Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, which have maintained many
Soviet-style repressive tactics.[40]
Culture
Arts
Mosque in Petropavlovsk, Kazakhstan
At the crossroads of Asia, shamanistic practices live alongside Buddhism. Thus, Yama, Lord of
Death, was revered in Tibet as a spiritual guardian and judge. Mongolian Buddhism, in particular,
was influenced by Tibetan Buddhism. The Qianlong Emperor of Qing China in the 18th century was
Tibetan Buddhist and would sometimes travel from Beijing to other cities for personal religious
worship.
Saadi Shirazi is welcomed by a youth
from Kashgar during a forum in
Bukhara.
Central Asia also has an indigenous form of improvisational oral poetry that is over 1000 years old.
It is principally practiced in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan by akyns, lyrical improvisationalists. They
engage in lyrical battles, the aitysh or the alym sabak. The tradition arose out of early bardic oral
historians. They are usually accompanied by a stringed instrument—in Kyrgyzstan, a three-stringed
komuz, and in Kazakhstan, a similar two-stringed instrument, the dombra.
Photography in Central Asia began to develop after 1882, when a Russian Mennonite photographer
named Wilhelm Penner moved to the Khanate of Khiva during the Mennonite migration to Central
Asia led by Claas Epp, Jr. Upon his arrival to Khanate of Khiva, Penner shared his photography skills
with a local student Khudaybergen Divanov, who later became the founder of Uzbek photography.[41]
Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi
in Hazrat-e Turkestan, Kazakhstan.
Timurid architecture consisted of
Persian art.
Some also learn to sing the Manas, Kyrgyzstan's epic poem (those who learn the Manas exclusively
but do not improvise are called manaschis). During Soviet rule, akyn performance was co-opted by
the authorities and subsequently declined in popularity. With the fall of the Soviet Union, it has
enjoyed a resurgence, although akyns still do use their art to campaign for political candidates. A
2005 The Washington Post article proposed a similarity between the improvisational art of akyns
and modern freestyle rap performed in the West.[42]
As a consequence of Russian colonisation, European fine arts – painting, sculpture and graphics –
have developed in Central Asia. The first years of the Soviet regime saw the appearance of
modernism, which took inspiration from the Russian avant-garde movement. Until the 1980s,
Central Asian arts had developed along with general tendencies of Soviet arts. In the 90s, arts of the
region underwent some significant changes. Institutionally speaking, some fields of arts were
regulated by the birth of the art market, some stayed as representatives of official views, while many
were sponsored by international organisations. The years of 1990–2000 were times for the
establishment of contemporary arts. In the region, many important international exhibitions are
taking place, Central Asian art is represented in European and American museums, and the Central
Asian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale has been organised since 2005.
Sports
Kazakh man on a horse with golden
eagle
Equestrian sports are traditional in Central Asia, with disciplines like endurance riding, buzkashi,
dzhigit and kyz kuu.
The traditional game of Buzkashi is played throughout the Central Asian region, the countries
sometimes organise Buzkashi competition amongst each other. The First regional competition
among the Central Asian countries, Russia, Chinese Xinjiang and Turkey was held in 2013.[43] The
first world title competition was played in 2017 and won by Kazakhstan.[44]
Association football is popular across Central Asia. Most countries are members of the Central
Asian Football Association, a region of the Asian Football Confederation. However, Kazakhstan is a
member of the UEFA.
Wrestling is popular across Central Asia, with Kazakhstan having claimed 14 Olympic medals,
Uzbekistan seven, and Kyrgyzstan three. As former Soviet states, Central Asian countries have been
successful in gymnastics.
Mixed Martial Arts is one of more common sports in Central Asia, Kyrgyz athlete Valentina
Shevchenko holding the UFC Flyweight Champion title.
Cricket is the most popular sport in Afghanistan. The Afghanistan national cricket team, first formed
in 2001, has claimed wins over Bangladesh, West Indies and Zimbabwe.
Notable Kazakh competitors include cyclists Alexander Vinokourov and Andrey Kashechkin, boxer
Vassiliy Jirov and Gennady Golovkin, runner Olga Shishigina, decathlete Dmitriy Karpov, gymnast
Aliya Yussupova, judoka Askhat Zhitkeyev and Maxim Rakov, skier Vladimir Smirnov, weightlifter
Ilya Ilyin, and figure skaters Denis Ten and Elizabet Tursynbaeva.
Notable Uzbekistani competitors include cyclist Djamolidine Abdoujaparov, boxer Ruslan Chagaev,
canoer Michael Kolganov, gymnast Oksana Chusovitina, tennis player Denis Istomin, chess player
Rustam Kasimdzhanov, and figure skater Misha Ge.
Economy
GDP growth trends in Central Asia, 2000–2013.
Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030
(2015), Figure 14.1
GDP in Central Asia by economic sector, 2005 and
2013. Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards
2030, Figure 14.2
GDP per capita development in
Central Asia, since 1973
Since gaining independence in the early 1990s, the Central Asian republics have gradually been
moving from a state-controlled economy to a market economy. The ultimate aim is to emulate the
Asian Tigers by becoming the local equivalent, Central Asian snow leopards. However, reform has
been deliberately gradual and selective, as governments strive to limit the social cost and
ameliorate living standards. All five countries are implementing structural reforms to improve
competitiveness. Kazakhstan is the only CIS country to be included in the 2020[45] and 2019[46] IWB
World Competitiveness rankings. In particular, they have been modernizing the industrial sector and
fostering the development of service industries through business-friendly fiscal policies and other
measures, to reduce the share of agriculture in GDP. Between 2005 and 2013, the share of
agriculture dropped in all but Tajikistan, where it increased while industry decreased. The fastest
growth in industry was observed in Turkmenistan, whereas the services sector progressed most in
the other four countries.[47]
Public policies pursued by Central Asian governments focus on buffering the political and economic
spheres from external shocks. This includes maintaining a trade balance, minimizing public debt
and accumulating national reserves. They cannot totally insulate themselves from negative exterior
forces, however, such as the persistently weak recovery of global industrial production and
international trade since 2008. Notwithstanding this, they have emerged relatively unscathed from
the global financial crisis of 2008–2009. Growth faltered only briefly in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and
Turkmenistan and not at all in Uzbekistan, where the economy grew by more than 7% per year on
average between 2008 and 2013. Turkmenistan achieved unusually high 14.7% growth in 2011.
Kyrgyzstan's performance has been more erratic but this phenomenon was visible well before
2008.[47]
The republics which have fared best benefitted from the commodities boom during the first decade
of the 2000s. Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan have abundant oil and natural gas reserves and
Uzbekistan's own reserves make it more or less self-sufficient. Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan all have gold reserves and Kazakhstan has the world's largest uranium reserves.
Fluctuating global demand for cotton, aluminium and other metals (except gold) in recent years has
hit Tajikistan hardest, since aluminium and raw cotton are its chief exports − the Tajik Aluminium
Company is the country's primary industrial asset. In January 2014, the Minister of Agriculture
announced the government's intention to reduce the acreage of land cultivated by cotton to make
way for other crops. Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan are major cotton exporters themselves, ranking
fifth and ninth respectively worldwide for volume in 2014.[47]
Although both exports and imports have grown significantly over the past decade, Central Asian
republics countries remain vulnerable to economic shocks, owing to their reliance on exports of raw
materials, a restricted circle of trading partners and a negligible manufacturing capacity. Kyrgyzstan
has the added disadvantage of being considered resource poor, although it does have ample water.
Most of its electricity is generated by hydropower.[47]
The Kyrgyz economy was shaken by a series of shocks between 2010 and 2012. In April 2010,
President Kurmanbek Bakiyev was deposed by a popular uprising, with former minister of foreign
affairs Roza Otunbayeva assuring the interim presidency until the election of Almazbek Atambayev
in November 2011. Food prices rose two years in a row and, in 2012, production at the major
Kumtor gold mine fell by 60% after the site was perturbed by geological movements. According to
the World Bank, 33.7% of the population was living in absolute poverty in 2010 and 36.8% a year
later.[47]
Despite high rates of economic growth in recent years, GDP per capita in Central Asia was higher
than the average for developing countries only in Kazakhstan in 2013 (PPP$23,206) and
Turkmenistan (PPP$14 201). It dropped to PPP$5,167 for Uzbekistan, home to 45% of the region's
population, and was even lower for Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.[47]
Kazakhstan leads the Central Asian region in terms of foreign direct investments. The Kazakh
economy accounts for more than 70% of all the investment attracted in Central Asia.[48]
In terms of the economic influence of big powers, China is viewed as one of the key economic
players in Central Asia, especially after Beijing launched its grand development strategy known as
the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013.[49]
The Central Asian countries attracted $378.2 billion of foreign direct investment (FDI) between 2007
and 2019. Kazakhstan accounted for 77.7% of the total FDI directed to the region. Kazakhstan is
also the largest country in Central Asia accounting for more than 60 percent of the region's gross
domestic product (GDP).[50]
Central Asian nations fared better economically throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and
particularly Turkey was one of just a few countries in the globe to see activity increase in 2020.
Many variables are likely to have been at play, but disparities in economic structure, the intensity of
the pandemic, and accompanying containment efforts may all be linked to part of the variety in
nations' experiences.[51][52] Central Asian countries are, however, predicted to be hit the worst in the
future. Only 4% of permanently closed businesses anticipate to return in the future, with huge
differences across sectors, ranging from 3% in lodging and food services to 27% in retail
commerce.[53][54]
In 2022, experts assessed that global climate change is likely to pose multiple economic risks to
Central Asia and may possibly result in many billions of losses unless proper adaptation measures
are developed to counter growing temperatures across the region.[55][56]
Education, science and technology
Modernisation of research infrastructure
Bolstered by strong economic growth in all but Kyrgyzstan, national development strategies are
fostering new high-tech industries, pooling resources and orienting the economy towards export
markets. Many national research institutions established during the Soviet era have since become
obsolete with the development of new technologies and changing national priorities. This has led
countries to reduce the number of national research institutions since 2009 by grouping existing
institutions to create research hubs. Several of the Turkmen Academy of Science's institutes were
merged in 2014: the Institute of Botany was merged with the Institute of Medicinal Plants to
become the Institute of Biology and Medicinal Plants; the Sun Institute was merged with the
Institute of Physics and Mathematics to become the Institute of Solar Energy; and the Institute of
Seismology merged with the State Service for Seismology to become the Institute of Seismology
and Atmospheric Physics. In Uzbekistan, more than 10 institutions of the Academy of Sciences
have been reorganised, following the issuance of a decree by the Cabinet of Ministers in February
2012. The aim is to orient academic research towards problem-solving and ensure continuity
between basic and applied research. For example, the Mathematics and Information Technology
Research Institute has been subsumed under the National University of Uzbekistan and the Institute
for Comprehensive Research on Regional Problems of Samarkand has been transformed into a
problem-solving laboratory on environmental issues within Samarkand State University. Other
research institutions have remained attached to the Uzbek Academy of Sciences, such as the
Centre of Genomics and Bioinformatics.[47]
Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan are also building technology parks as part of their drive to modernise
infrastructure. In 2011, construction began of a technopark in the village of Bikrova near Ashgabat,
the Turkmen capital. It will combine research, education, industrial facilities, business incubators
and exhibition centres. The technopark will house research on alternative energy sources (sun,
wind) and the assimilation of nanotechnologies. Between 2010 and 2012, technological parks were
set up in the east, south and north Kazakhstan oblasts (administrative units) and in the capital, NurSultan. A Centre for Metallurgy was also established in the east Kazakhstan oblast, as well as a
Centre for Oil and Gas Technologies which will be part of the planned Caspian Energy Hub. In
addition, the Centre for Technology Commercialisation has been set up in Kazakhstan as part of the
Parasat National Scientific and Technological Holding, a joint stock company established in 2008
that is 100% state-owned. The centre supports research projects in technology marketing,
intellectual property protection, technology licensing contracts and start-ups. The centre plans to
conduct a technology audit in Kazakhstan and to review the legal framework regulating the
commercialisation of research results and technology.[47]
Trends in research expenditure in Central Asia, as a
percentage of GDP, 2001–2013. Source: UNESCO
Science Report: 2030 (2015), Figure 14.3
Countries are seeking to augment the efficiency of traditional extractive sectors but also to make
greater use of information and communication technologies and other modern technologies, such
as solar energy, to develop the business sector, education and research. In March 2013, two
research institutes were created by presidential decree to foster the development of alternative
energy sources in Uzbekistan, with funding from the Asian Development Bank and other institutions:
the SPU Physical−Technical Institute (Physics Sun Institute) and the International Solar Energy
Institute. Three universities have been set up since 2011 to foster competence in strategic
economic areas: Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan (first intake in 2011), an international
research university, Inha University in Uzbekistan (first intake in 2014), specializing in information
and communication technologies, and the International Oil and Gas University in Turkmenistan
(founded in 2013). Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are both generalizing the teaching of foreign
languages at school, in order to facilitate international ties. Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have both
adopted the three-tier bachelor's, master's and PhD degree system, in 2007 and 2012 respectively,
which is gradually replacing the Soviet system of Candidates and Doctors of Science. In 2010,
Kazakhstan became the only Central Asian member of the Bologna Process, which seeks to
harmonise higher education systems in order to create a European Higher Education Area.[47]
Financial investment in research
The Central Asian republics' ambition of developing the business sector, education and research is
being hampered by chronic low investment in research and development. Over the decade to 2013,
the region's investment in research and development hovered around 0.2–0.3% of GDP. Uzbekistan
broke with this trend in 2013 by raising its own research intensity to 0.41% of GDP.[47]
Kazakhstan is the only country where the business enterprise and private non-profit sectors make
any significant contribution to research and development – but research intensity overall is low in
Kazakhstan: just 0.18% of GDP in 2013. Moreover, few industrial enterprises conduct research in
Kazakhstan. Only one in eight (12.5%) of the country's manufacturing firms were active in
innovation in 2012, according to a survey by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Enterprises prefer
to purchase technological solutions that are already embodied in imported machinery and
equipment. Just 4% of firms purchase the license and patents that come with this technology.
Nevertheless, there appears to be a growing demand for the products of research, since enterprises
spent 4.5 times more on scientific and technological services in 2008 than in 1997.[47]
Central Asian researchers by sector of employment
(HC), 2013. Source: UNESCO Science Report:
towards 2030 (2015), Figure 14.5
Trends in researchers
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan count the highest researcher density in Central Asia. The number of
researchers per million population is close to the world average (1,083 in 2013) in Kazakhstan
(1,046) and higher than the world average in Uzbekistan (1,097).[47]
Kazakhstan is the only Central Asian country where the business enterprise and private non-profit
sectors make any significant contribution to research and development. Uzbekistan is in a
particularly vulnerable position, with its heavy reliance on higher education: three-quarters of
researchers were employed by the university sector in 2013 and just 6% in the business enterprise
sector. With most Uzbek university researchers nearing retirement, this imbalance imperils
Uzbekistan's research future. Almost all holders of a Candidate of Science, Doctor of Science or
PhD are more than 40 years old and half are aged over 60; more than one in three researchers
(38.4%) holds a PhD degree, or its equivalent, the remainder holding a bachelor's or master's
degree.[47]
Central Asian researchers by field of science, 2013.
Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030
(2015), Figure 14.4
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan have all maintained a share of women researchers above
40% since the fall of the Soviet Union. Kazakhstan has even achieved gender parity, with Kazakh
women dominating medical and health research and representing some 45–55% of engineering and
technology researchers in 2013. In Tajikistan, however, only one in three scientists (34%) was a
woman in 2013, down from 40% in 2002. Although policies are in place to give Tajik women equal
rights and opportunities, these are underfunded and poorly understood. Turkmenistan has offered a
state guarantee of equality for women since a law adopted in 2007 but the lack of available data
makes it impossible to draw any conclusions as to the law's impact on research. As for
Turkmenistan, it does not make data available on higher education, research expenditure or
researchers.[47]
Table: PhDs obtained in science and engineering in Central Asia, 2013 or closest year
PhDs
Total
Kazakhstan
(2013)
Kyrgyzstan
(2012)
Tajikistan
(2012)
Uzbekistan
(2011)
PhDs in science
Women
(%)
Total
Women
(%)
PhDs in engineering
Total
Total per Women
million
PhDs per
pop.
million pop.
Total
Women per
(%)
Women
PhDs per
million million
pop.
pop.
247
51
73
60
4.4
2.7
37
38
2.3
0.9
499
63
91
63
16.6
10.4
54
63
–
–
331
11
31
–
3.9
–
14
–
–
–
838
42
152
30
5.4
1.6
118
27.0
–
–
Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 (2015), Table 14.1
Note: PhD graduates in science cover life sciences, physical sciences, mathematics and statistics, and
computing; PhDs in engineering also cover manufacturing and construction. For Central Asia, the
generic term of PhD also encompasses Candidate of Science and Doctor of Science degrees. Data are
unavailable for Turkmenistan.
Table: Central Asian researchers by field of science and gender, 2013 or closest year
Researchers by field of science (head counts)
Total researchers (head
counts)
Per
Total
Sciences
Number
million of
pop.
Natural
women
Women
(%)
Total
Women
(%)
Engineering
Medical and
and
health
technology
sciences
Total
Women
(%)
Total
Women
(%)
Agricul
science
Total
W
Kazakhstan
2013
17,195 1,046 8,849
51.5
5,091 51.9
4,996 44.7
1,068 69.5
2,150 4
2,224
412
961
43.2
593
46.5
567
30.0
393
44.0
212
2,152
262
728
33.8
509
30.3
206
18.0
374
67.6
472
40.9
6,910 35.3
Kyrgyzstan
2011
Tajikistan
2013
2
Uzbekistan
2011
30,890 1,097 12,639
4,982 30.1
Source: UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 (2015), Table 14.1
Research output
Scientific publications from Central Asia catalogued
3,659 53.6
1,872 2
by Thomson Reuters' Web of Science, Science
Citation Index Expanded, 2005–2014, UNESCO
Science Report: towards 2030 (2015), Figure 14.6
The number of scientific papers published in Central Asia grew by almost 50% between 2005 and
2014, driven by Kazakhstan, which overtook Uzbekistan over this period to become the region's
most prolific scientific publisher, according to Thomson Reuters' Web of Science (Science Citation
Index Expanded). Between 2005 and 2014, Kazakhstan's share of scientific papers from the region
grew from 35% to 56%. Although two-thirds of papers from the region have a foreign co-author, the
main partners tend to come from beyond Central Asia, namely the Russian Federation, USA,
German, United Kingdom and Japan.[47]
Five Kazakh patents were registered at the US Patent and Trademark Office between 2008 and
2013, compared to three for Uzbek inventors and none at all for the other three Central Asian
republics, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.[47]
Cumulative total of articles by Central Asians
between 2008 and 2013, by field of science. Source:
UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 (2015),
Figure 14.6
Kazakhstan is Central Asia's main trader in high-tech products. Kazakh imports nearly doubled
between 2008 and 2013, from US$2.7 billion to US$5.1 billion. There has been a surge in imports of
computers, electronics and telecommunications; these products represented an investment of
US$744 million in 2008 and US$2.6 billion five years later. The growth in exports was more gradual
– from US$2.3 billion to US$3.1 billion – and dominated by chemical products (other than
pharmaceuticals), which represented two-thirds of exports in 2008 (US$1.5 billion) and 83%
(US$2.6 billion) in 2013.[47]
International cooperation
The five Central Asian republics belong to several international bodies, including the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Economic Cooperation Organization and the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation. They are also members of the Central Asia Regional Economic
Cooperation (CAREC) Programme, which also includes Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Mongolia
and Pakistan. In November 2011, the 10 member countries adopted the CAREC 2020 Strategy, a
blueprint for furthering regional co-operation. Over the decade to 2020, US$50 billion is being
invested in priority projects in transport, trade and energy to improve members' competitiveness.
The landlocked Central Asian republics are conscious of the need to co-operate in order to maintain
and develop their transport networks and energy, communication and irrigation systems. Only
Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan border the Caspian Sea and none of the republics has
direct access to an ocean, complicating the transportation of hydrocarbons, in particular, to world
markets.[47]
Kazakhstan is also one of the three founding members of the Eurasian Economic Union in 2014,
along with Belarus and the Russian Federation. Armenia and Kyrgyzstan have since joined this body.
As co-operation among the member states in science and technology is already considerable and
well-codified in legal texts, the Eurasian Economic Union is expected to have a limited additional
impact on co-operation among public laboratories or academia but it should encourage business
ties and scientific mobility, since it includes provision for the free circulation of labour and unified
patent regulations.[47][57]
Kazakhstan and Tajikistan participated in the Innovative Biotechnologies Programme (2011–2015)
launched by the Eurasian Economic Community, the predecessor of the Eurasian Economic Union,
The programme also involved Belarus and the Russian Federation. Within this programme, prizes
were awarded at an annual bio-industry exhibition and conference. In 2012, 86 Russian
organisations participated, plus three from Belarus, one from Kazakhstan and three from Tajikistan,
as well as two scientific research groups from Germany. At the time, Vladimir Debabov, scientific
director of the Genetika State Research Institute for Genetics and the Selection of Industrial Microorganisms in the Russian Federation, stressed the paramount importance of developing bioindustry. "In the world today, there is a strong tendency to switch from petrochemicals to renewable
biological sources", he said. "Biotechnology is developing two to three times faster than
chemicals."[47]
Kazakhstan also participated in a second project of the Eurasian Economic Community, the
establishment of the Centre for Innovative Technologies on 4 April 2013, with the signing of an
agreement between the Russian Venture Company (a government fund of funds), the Kazakh JSC
National Agency and the Belarusian Innovative Foundation. Each of the selected projects is entitled
to funding of US$3–90 million and is implemented within a public–private partnership. The first few
approved projects focused on supercomputers, space technologies, medicine, petroleum recycling,
nanotechnologies and the ecological use of natural resources. Once these initial projects have
spawned viable commercial products, the venture company plans to reinvest the profits in new
projects. This venture company is not a purely economic structure; it has also been designed to
promote a common economic space among the three participating countries.[47] Kazakhstan
recognises the role civil society initiatives have to address the consequences of the COVID-19
crisis.[58]
Four of the five Central Asian republics have also been involved in a project launched by the
European Union in September 2013, IncoNet CA. The aim of this project is to encourage Central
Asian countries to participate in research projects within Horizon 2020, the European Union's eighth
research and innovation funding programme. The focus of this research projects is on three
societal challenges considered as being of mutual interest to both the European Union and Central
Asia, namely: climate change, energy and health. IncoNet CA builds on the experience of earlier
projects which involved other regions, such as Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and the Western
Balkans. IncoNet CA focuses on twinning research facilities in Central Asia and Europe. It involves a
consortium of partner institutions from Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Poland, Portugal, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan. In May 2014, the
European Union launched a 24-month call for project applications from twinned institutions –
universities, companies and research institutes – for funding of up to €10, 000 to enable them to
visit one another's facilities to discuss project ideas or prepare joint events like workshops.[47]
The International Science and Technology Center (ISTC) was established in 1992 by the European
Union, Japan, the Russian Federation and the US to engage weapons scientists in civilian research
projects and to foster technology transfer. ISTC branches have been set up in the following
countries party to the agreement: Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
The headquarters of ISTC were moved to Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan in June 2014, three
years after the Russian Federation announced its withdrawal from the centre.[47]
Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan have been members of the World Trade Organization since
1998, 2013 and 2015 respectively.[47]
Territorial and regional data
Country
Kazakhstan
Area
Population[59][60]
km2
(2021)
Population
density
per km2
GDP
Nominal GDP
per
HDI
(2017)
capita
(2017)
C
(2017)
2,724,900
19,196,465
6.3 $160.839 billion
Kyrgyzstan
199,950
6,527,743
29.7
Tajikistan
142,550
9,750,064
Turkmenistan
488,100
Uzbekistan
448,978
N
$8,841
0.788
$7.061 billion
$1,144
0.655 B
60.4
$7.146 billion
$824
0.624 D
6,341,855
11.1
$37.926 billion
$6,643
0.688 A
33,905,800[61]
69.1
$47.883 billion
$1,491
0.701 T
Demographics
Ethnic map of Central Asia.
White areas are thinly-populated semi-desert.
The three northwest-tending lines are the Syr Darya and Amu Darya
Rivers flowing from the eastern mountains into the Aral Sea and in
the south the irrigated north side of the Kopet Dagh mountains.
S
Uzbek children in Samarkand
Children in Afghanistan
By a broad definition including Mongolia and Afghanistan, more than 90 million people live in
Central Asia, about 2% of Asia's total population. Of the regions of Asia, only North Asia has fewer
people. It has a population density of 9 people per km2, vastly less than the 80.5 people per km2 of
the continent as a whole. Kazakhstan is one of the least densely populated countries in the world.
Languages
Russian, as well as being spoken by around six million ethnic Russians and Ukrainians of Central
Asia,[62] is the de facto lingua franca throughout the former Soviet Central Asian Republics.
Mandarin Chinese has an equally dominant presence in Inner Mongolia, Qinghai and Xinjiang.
The languages of the majority of the inhabitants of the former Soviet Central Asian Republics
belong to the Turkic language group. Turkmen is mainly spoken in Turkmenistan, and as a minority
language in Afghanistan, Russia, Iran and Turkey. Kazakh and Kyrgyz are related languages of the
Kypchak group of Turkic languages and are spoken throughout Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and as a
minority language in Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Xinjiang. Uzbek and Uyghur are spoken in
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan and Xinjiang.
The Turkic languages may belong to a larger, but controversial, Altaic language family, which
includes Mongolian. Mongolian is spoken throughout Mongolia and into Buryatia, Kalmyk, Inner
Mongolia, and Xinjiang.
Middle Iranian languages were once spoken throughout Central Asia, such as the once prominent
Sogdian, Khwarezmian, Bactrian and Scythian, which are now extinct and belonged to the Eastern
Iranian family. The Eastern Iranian Pashto language is still spoken in Afghanistan and northwestern
Pakistan. Other minor Eastern Iranian languages such as Shughni, Munji, Ishkashimi, Sarikoli, Wakhi,
Yaghnobi and Ossetic are also spoken at various places in Central Asia. Varieties of Persian are
also spoken as a major language in the region, locally known as Dari (in Afghanistan), Tajik (in
Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), and Bukhori (by the Bukharan Jews of Central Asia).
Tocharian, another Indo-European language group, which was once predominant in oases on the
northern edge of the Tarim Basin of Xinjiang, is now extinct.
Other language groups include the Tibetic languages, spoken by around six million people across
the Tibetan Plateau and into Qinghai, Sichuan (Szechwan), Ladakh and Baltistan, and the Nuristani
languages of northeastern Afghanistan. Korean is spoken by the Koryo-saram minority, mainly in
Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.[63]
Religions
Religion in Central Asia
Islam (85.94%)
Christianity (7.22%)
Irreligion (6.44%)
Folk religion (0.8%)
Buddhism (0.4%)
Others (0.21%)
Judaism (0.02%)
A Kazakh wedding ceremony in a
mosque
Islam is the religion most common in the Central Asian Republics, Afghanistan, Xinjiang, and the
peripheral western regions, such as Bashkortostan. Most Central Asian Muslims are Sunni, although
there are sizable Shia minorities in Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
Buddhism and Zoroastrianism were the major faiths in Central Asia prior to the arrival of Islam.
Zoroastrian influence is still felt today in such celebrations as Nowruz, held in all five of the Central
Asian states.[64] The transmission of Buddhism along the Silk Road eventually brought the religion
to China.[65] Amongst the Turkic peoples, Tengrism was the leading religion before Islam.[66] Tibetan
Buddhism is most common in Tibet, Mongolia, Ladakh, and the southern Russian regions of Siberia.
The form of Christianity most practiced in the region in previous centuries was Nestorianism, but
now the largest denomination is the Russian Orthodox Church, with many members in Kazakhstan,
where about 25% of the population of 19 million identify as Christian, 17% in Uzbekistan and 5% in
Kyrgyzstan.
The Bukharan Jews were once a sizable community in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, but nearly all have
emigrated since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
In Siberia, shaministic practices persist, including forms of divination such as Kumalak.
Contact and migration with Han people from China has brought Confucianism, Daoism, Mahayana
Buddhism, and other Chinese folk beliefs into the region.
Country
Population
Christian
Pop.
Kazakhstan
Pop.
6,520,000
469,440
7.20
6,880,000
110,080
5,040,000
27,440,000
Tajikistan
Turkmenistan
Total
%
Irreligion
%
Pop.
Hindu
%
Pop.
18,745,000 3,130,415 16.70 12,034,290 64.20 3,524,060 18.80
Kyrgyzstan
Uzbekistan
Muslim
%
0 0.00 1
5,626,760 86.30
286,880
4.40
1.6
6,652,960
96.7
103,200
1.5
0
322,560
6.4
4,687,200
93.0
25,200
0.5
0
631,120
2.3 26,534,480
96.7
219,520
0.8
0
7.22 55,535,690 85.94 4,158,860
6.44
64,625,000 4,663,615
Geostrategy
Tartar prostrating before Qianlong
Emperor of China (1757).[67]
Political cartoon from the period of
the Great Game showing the Afghan
Amir Sher Ali with his "friends"
Imperial Russia and the United
Kingdom (1878)
P
0 0.00
<
0.1
<
0.1
<
0.1
1
0 0.00 2
Islam Karimov (President,
Uzbekistan) in the Pentagon,
March 2002
Central Asia has long been a strategic location merely because of its proximity to several great
powers on the Eurasian landmass. The region itself never held a dominant stationary population nor
was able to make use of natural resources. Thus, it has rarely throughout history become the seat
of power for an empire or influential state. Central Asia has been divided, redivided, conquered out
of existence, and fragmented time and time again. Central Asia has served more as the
battleground for outside powers than as a power in its own right.
Central Asia had both the advantage and disadvantage of a central location between four historical
seats of power. From its central location, it has access to trade routes to and from all the regional
powers. On the other hand, it has been continuously vulnerable to attack from all sides throughout
its history, resulting in political fragmentation or outright power vacuum, as it is successively
dominated.
To the North, the steppe allowed for rapid mobility, first for nomadic horseback warriors like the
Huns and Mongols, and later for Russian traders, eventually supported by railroads. As the
Russian Empire expanded to the East, it would also push down into Central Asia towards the sea,
in a search for warm water ports. The Soviet bloc would reinforce dominance from the North and
attempt to project power as far south as Afghanistan.
To the East, the demographic and cultural weight of Chinese empires continually pushed outward
into Central Asia since the Silk Road period of Han Dynasty. However, with the Sino-Soviet split
and collapse of Soviet Union, China would project its soft power into Central Asia, most notably in
the case of Afghanistan, to counter Russian dominance of the region.
To the Southeast, the demographic and cultural influence of India was felt in Central Asia, notably
in Tibet, the Hindu Kush, and slightly beyond. From its base in India, the British Empire competed
with the Russian Empire for influence in the region in the 19th and 20th centuries.
To the Southwest, Western Asian powers have expanded into the southern areas of Central Asia
(usually Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Turkmenistan). Several Persian empires would conquer and
reconquer parts of Central Asia; Alexander the Great's Hellenic empire would extend into Central
Asia; two Islamic empires would exert substantial influence throughout the region;[68] and the
modern state of Iran has projected influence throughout the region as well. Turkey, through a
common Turkic nation identity, has gradually increased its ties and influence as well in the region.
Furthermore, since Uzbekistan announced their intention to join in April 2018, Turkey and all of
the Central Asian Turkic-speaking states except Turkmenistan are together part of the Turkic
Council.[69]
In the post–Cold War era, Central Asia is an ethnic cauldron, prone to instability and conflicts,
without a sense of national identity, but rather a mess of historical cultural influences, tribal and
clan loyalties, and religious fervor. Projecting influence into the area is no longer just Russia, but
also Turkey, Iran, China, Pakistan, India and the United States:
Russia continues to dominate political decision-making throughout the former SSRs; although, as
other countries move into the area, Russia's influence has begun to wane though Russia still
maintains military bases in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.[70]
The United States, with its military involvement in the region and oil diplomacy, is also
significantly involved in the region's politics.[68] The United States and other NATO members are
the main contributors to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and also exert
considerable influence in other Central Asian nations.
China has security ties with Central Asian states through the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation,
and conducts energy trade bilaterally.[71]
India has geographic proximity to the Central Asian region and, in addition, enjoys considerable
influence on Afghanistan.[72][73] India maintains a military base at Farkhor, Tajikistan, and also has
extensive military relations with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.[74]
Turkey also exerts considerable influence in the region on account of its ethnic and linguistic ties
with the Turkic peoples of Central Asia and its involvement in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline.
Political and economic relations are growing rapidly (e.g., Turkey recently eliminated visa
requirements for citizens of the Central Asian Turkic republics).
Iran, the seat of historical empires that controlled parts of Central Asia, has historical and cultural
links to the region and is vying to construct an oil pipeline from the Caspian Sea to the Persian
Gulf.
Pakistan, a nuclear-armed Islamic state, has a history of political relations with neighbouring
Afghanistan and is termed capable of exercising influence. For some Central Asian nations, the
shortest route to the ocean lies through Pakistan. Pakistan seeks natural gas from Central Asia
and supports the development of pipelines from its countries. According to an independent study,
Turkmenistan is supposed to be the fifth largest natural gas field in the world.[75] The mountain
ranges and areas in northern Pakistan lie on the fringes of greater Central Asia; the Gilgit–
Baltistan region of Pakistan lies adjacent to Tajikistan, separated only by the narrow Afghan
Wakhan Corridor. Being located on the northwest of South Asia, the area forming modern-day
Pakistan maintained extensive historical and cultural links with the central Asian region.
Japan has an important and growing influence in Central Asia, with the master plan of the capital
city of Nur-Sultan in Kazakhstan being designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa, and the
Central Asia plus Japan initiative designed to strengthen ties between them and promote
development and stability of the region.
Russian historian Lev Gumilev wrote that Xiongnu, Mongols (Mongol Empire, Zunghar Khanate) and
Turkic peoples (First Turkic Khaganate, Uyghur Khaganate) played a role to stop Chinese aggression
to the north. The Turkic Khaganate had special policy against Chinese assimilation policy.[76]
Another interesting theoretical analysis on the historical-geopolitics of the Central Asia was made
through the reinterpretation of Orkhun Inscripts.[77]
The region, along with Russia, is also part of "the great pivot" as per the Heartland Theory of Halford
Mackinder, which says that the power which controls Central Asia—richly endowed with natural
resources—shall ultimately be the "empire of the world".[78]
War on Terror
In the context of the United States' War on Terror, Central Asia has once again become the center of
geostrategic calculations. Pakistan's status has been upgraded by the U.S. government to Major
non-NATO ally because of its central role in serving as a staging point for the invasion of
Afghanistan, providing intelligence on Al-Qaeda operations in the region, and leading the hunt on
Osama bin Laden.
Afghanistan, which had served as a haven and source of support for Al-Qaeda under the protection
of Mullah Omar and the Taliban, was the target of a U.S. invasion in 2001 and ongoing
reconstruction and drug-eradication efforts. U.S. military bases have also been established in
Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, causing both Russia and the People's Republic of China to voice their
concern over a permanent U.S. military presence in the region.
Western governments have accused Russia, China and the former Soviet republics of justifying the
suppression of separatist movements, and the associated ethnics and religion with the War on
Terror.
Major cultural, scientific and economic centres
Cities in Central Asia
Largest cities or towns in Central Asia
[79][80][81][82][83][84][85]
Rank
Tashkent
Country
Pop.
1 Tashkent
Uzbekistan
2,571,668
2 Almaty
Kazakhstan
1,703,481
3 Bishkek
Kyrgyzstan
1,027,200
4 Nur-Sultan Kazakhstan
1,014,015
5 Ashgabat Turkmenistan 727,000
Almaty
6 Shymkent Kazakhstan
683,273
7 Dushanbe Tajikistan
679,400
8 Namangan Uzbekistan
597,000
9 Samarkand Uzbekistan
530,000
10 Karaganda Kazakhstan
501,173
Bishkek
Nur-Sultan
City
Country
Population
Image
Information
The capital and second
largest city in Kazakhstan.
After Kazakhstan gained its
independence in 1991, the city
and the region were renamed
from Tselinograd to Aqmola.
The name was often
translated as "White
Tombstone", but actually
means "Holy Place" or "Holy
Shrine". The "White
Tombstone" literal translation
Nur-Sultan
Kazakhstan
1,006,574
was too appropriate for many
(2017)
visitors to escape notice in
almost all guide books and
travel accounts. In 1994, the
city was designated as the
future capital of the newly
independent country and
again renamed to the Astana
after the capital was officially
moved from Almaty in 1997.
In 2019 the city was renamed
one more time to Nur-Sultan
to honor the resigned
president.
City
Country
Population
Image
Information
It was the capital of
Kazakhstan (and its
predecessor, the Kazakh SSR)
from 1929 to 1998. Despite
Almaty
Kazakhstan
1,713,220
losing its status as the capital,
(2017)
Almaty remains the major
commercial center of
Kazakhstan. It is a recognised
financial center of Kazakhstan
and the Central Asian region.
The capital and the largest
city of Kyrgyzstan. Bishkek is
also the administrative center
Bishkek
Kyrgyzstan
1,027,200
(2019)
of Chüy Region, which
surrounds the city, even
though the city itself is not
part of the region, but rather a
region-level unit of
Kyrgyzstan.
The second largest city of
Kyrgyzstan. Osh is also the
administrative center of Osh
Osh
Kyrgyzstan
243,216
Region, which surrounds the
(2009)
city, even though the city itself
is not part of the region, but
rather a region-level unit of
Kyrgyzstan.
City
Country
Population
Image
Information
The capital and largest city of
Tajikistan. Dushanbe means
"Monday" in Tajik and
Dushanbe
Tajikistan
780,000
Persian,[86] and the name
(2014)
reflects the fact that the city
grew on the site of a village
that originally was a popular
Monday marketplace.
The capital and largest city of
Turkmenistan. Ashgabat is a
relatively young city, growing
out of a village of the same
name established by Russians
in 1818. It is not far from the
site of Nisa, the ancient
capital of the Parthians, and it
grew on the ruins of the Silk
Road city of Konjikala, which
was first mentioned as a wine-
Ashgabat
Turkmenistan
1,032,000
(2014)
producing village in the 2nd
century BC and was leveled by
an earthquake in the 1st
century BC (a precursor of the
1948 Ashgabat earthquake).
Konjikala was rebuilt because
of its advantageous location
on the Silk Road, and it
flourished until its destruction
by Mongols in the 13th
century AD. After that, it
survived as a small village
until the Russians took over in
the 19th century.[87][88]
City
Country
Population
Image
Information
The nation's fifth-largest city
and the capital of the Bukhara
Region of Uzbekistan.
Bukhara has been one of the
main centers of Persian
Bukhara
Uzbekistan
237,900
(1999)
civilisation from its early days
in the 6th century BC, and,
since the 12th century AD,
Turkic speakers gradually
moved in. Its architecture and
archaeological sites form one
of the pillars of Central Asian
history and art.
Kokand (Uzbek: Qo'qon /
Қўқон; Tajik: Хӯқанд; Persian:
‫ ;خوقند‬Chagatai: ‫;خوقند‬
Russian: Коканд) is a city in
Fergana Region in eastern
Uzbekistan, at the
southwestern edge of the
Kokand
Uzbekistan
209,389
Fergana Valley. It has a
(2011)
population of 192,500 (1999
census estimate). Kokand is
228 km southeast of
Tashkent, 115 km west of
Andijan, and 88 km west of
Fergana. It is nicknamed "City
of Winds", or sometimes
"Town of the Boar".
City
Country
Population
Image
Information
The second largest city in
Uzbekistan and the capital of
Samarqand Region. The city is
most noted for its central
position on the Silk Road
Samarkand
Uzbekistan
596,300
between China and the West,
(2008)
and for being an Islamic
center for scholarly study. It
was here that the ruler Ulugh
Beg (1394–1449) built a
gigantic astronomical
observatory.[89]
The capital and largest city of
Uzbekistan. In pre-Islamic and
early Islamic times, the town
and the region were known as
Chach. Tashkent started as an
Tashkent
Uzbekistan
2,571,668
oasis on the Chirchik River,
(2020)
near the foothills of the
Golestan Mountains. In
ancient times, this area
contained Beitian, probably
the summer "capital" of the
Kangju confederacy.[90]
See also
Chinese Central Asia: Western Regions
Central Asian Football Federation
Central Asian Games
Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program
Central Asian studies
Central Asian Union
Mountains of Central Asia
Central Asians in Ancient Indian literature
Continental pole of inaccessibility
Economic Cooperation Organization
Hindutash
Inner Asia
Russian Turkestan
Soviet Central Asia
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Further reading
Blank, Stephen J. (2013). Central Asia After 2014 (https://purl.fdlp.gov/GPO/gpo44943) .
ISBN 978-1-58487-593-2.
Chow, Edward. "Central Asia's Pipelines: Field of Dreams and Reality", in Pipeline Politics in Asia:
The Intersection of Demand, Energy Markets, and Supply Routes (http://www.nbr.org/publications/el
ement.aspx?id=456) . National Bureau of Asian Research, 2010.
Farah, Paolo Davide, Energy Security, Water Resources and Economic Development in Central
Asia, World Scientific Reference on Globalisation in Eurasia and the Pacific Rim, Imperial College
Press (London, UK) & World Scientific Publishing, November 2015. Available at SSRN:
http://ssrn.com/abstract=2701215
Dani, A.H. and V.M. Masson, eds. History of Civilizations of Central Asia (http://www.unesco.org/cul
ture/asia/index-en.html) . Paris: UNESCO, 1992.* Gorshunova. Olga V. Svjashennye derevja
Khodzhi Barora..., ( Sacred Trees of Khodzhi Baror: Phytolatry and the Cult of Female Deity in Central
Asia) in Etnoragraficheskoe Obozrenie, 2008, n° 1, pp. 71–82. ISSN 0869-5415 (https://www.world
cat.org/search?fq=x0:jrnl&q=n2:0869-5415) . (in Russian).
Klein, I.; Gessner, U.; Kuenzer (2012). "Regional land cover mapping and change detection in
Central Asia using MODIS time-series". Applied Geography. 35 (1–2): 219–234.
doi:10.1016/j.apgeog.2012.06.016 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.apgeog.2012.06.016) .
Luong, Pauline Jones (2004). The Transformation of Central Asia: States and Societies from Soviet
Rule to Independence (https://books.google.com/books?id=KefvEz9bfyEC) . Cornell University
Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-8842-9.
Mandelbaum, Michael, ed. Central Asia and the World: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan,
Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan. New York: Council on Foreign Relations Press, 1994.
Marcinkowski, M. Ismail. Persian Historiography and Geography: Bertold Spuler on Major Works
Produced in Iran, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Pakistan and Early Ottoman Turkey. Singapore:
Pustaka Nasional, 2003.
Olcott, Martha Brill. Central Asia's New States: Independence, Foreign policy, and Regional security.
Washington, D.C.: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1996.
Phillips, Andrew; James, Paul (2013). "National Identity between Tradition and Reflexive
Modernisation: The Contradictions of Central Asia" (https://www.academia.edu/2832538) .
National Identities. 3 (1): 23–35. doi:10.1080/14608940020028475 (https://doi.org/10.1080%2F1
4608940020028475) . S2CID 146570543 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:1465705
43) .
Hasan Bulent Paksoy. ALPAMYSH: Central Asian Identity under Russian Rule. Hartford: AACAR,
1989. http://vlib.iue.it/carrie/texts/carrie_books/paksoy-1/
Soucek, Svatopluk. A History of Inner Asia. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
Rall, Ted. Silk Road to Ruin: Is Central Asia the New Middle East? New York: NBM Publishing, 2006.
Stone, L.A. The International Politics of Central Eurasia (272 pp). Central Eurasian Studies On Line:
Accessible via the Web Page of the International Eurasian Institute for Economic and Political
Research: https://web.archive.org/web/20071103154944/http://www.iicas.org/forumen.htm
Trochev, Alexei; Slade, Gavin (2019), in Caron, Jean-François (ed.), "Trials and Tribulations:
Kazakhstan's Criminal Justice Reforms" (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-136693-2_5) , Kazakhstan and the Soviet Legacy, Singapore: Springer Singapore, pp. 75–99,
ISBN 978-981-13-6692-5, retrieved 4 December 2020.
Vakulchuk, Roman (2014) Kazakhstan's Emerging Economy: Between State and Market, Peter
Lang: Frankfurt/Main. Available at: www.researchgate.net/publication/299731455
Weston, David. Teaching about Inner Asia (http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9211/asia.htm) ,
Bloomington, Indiana: ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies, 1989.
Yellinek, Roie, The Impact of China's Belt and Road Initiative on Central Asia and the South
Caucasus (https://www.e-ir.info/2020/02/14/opinion-the-impact-of-chinas-belt-and-road-initiative
-on-central-asia-and-the-south-caucasus/) , E-International Relations, 14 February 2020.
External links
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General Map of Central Asia I – World Digital Library (http://www.wdl.org/en/item/11743/)
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