Tag: Central Asia

GAFUROV, BOBOJAN GAFUROVICH

GAFUROV, BOBOJAN GAFUROVICH

(1908–1977), Tajik politician and scholar. Bobojan Ga- furovich Gafurov led the Tajikistan Soviet Socialist Republic from 1946 until 1956 as the first secretary of the Communist Party. Born in Ispisar (a remote northern province of the republic) in 1908, he began his career as a journalist and lecturer before joining the Communist Party apparatus and climbing up to the highest political post in the republic under Josef Stalin (1879–1953), then Soviet leader. In 1956 he left the republic to become the director of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Science in Moscow. Continue reading GAFUROV, BOBOJAN GAFUROVICH

HORSE, KARABAIR

HORSE, KARABAIR

Also known as Karabair- skaya (Russian), the Karabair is one of the most ancient horse breeds of Central Asia. In appearance the Karabair resembles the Arabian, Persian, and Turk-menian as well as the steppe horse breeds. The breed is improved through pure breeding. Karabair horses show good endurance and versatile working qualities. This breed was developed in Uzbekistan and north- ern Tajikistan (former Soviet republics of Central Asia) under the influence of southern and steppe breeds. It is well adapted to both saddle and harness, and has the typical build of a saddle and harness horse. Continue reading HORSE, KARABAIR

HORSE, LOKAI

HORSE, LOKAI The Lokai is a mixed breed from Central Asia. At 140–150 centimeters high, it is the shortest of Central Asian horse breeds. Strong and sure-footed, it is a good riding and pack horse, agile and enduring. Its coat is gray, bay, or chestnut (often with a golden tint), sometimes curled. It is an excel- lent riding horse, well-suited to competitive sports. The Lokai originates from the Pamir Mountains, now in Tajikistan, south of the Tian Shan range. Its name comes from the Lokai tribe of Uzbeks who, starting from the sixteenth century, improved this breed by crossing it with Akhal-Teke, Karabair, and even Ara- bian horses. The Lokai horse is common in Uzbek- istan and Tajikistan, where it is a good, tough saddle and pack pony in its native mountains, at altitudes of 2,000 to 4,000 meters. It can carry a rider eighty kilo- meters a day over mountain tracks at an average speed of eight or nine kilometers per hour. In a nomadic tra- dition, the mares are also milked. The tough and swift Lokai is famous for its use by Tajik riders in the eques- trian game of kopar (kokpar) where riders fight over a goat carcass (similar to the related sport of Afghanistan known as buzkashi). Continue reading HORSE, LOKAI

Tajikistan in Focus

Hello, this is a blog that will try to bring some of the history and also current events in Tajikistan into focus.  I will try to use both scholarly sources, and also popular media sources.  I am not above referring to Wikipedia.

Tajikistan
Politics
History
Geography
Economy

 

Society
Culture · Demographics · People · Ethnic groups · Language · Education · Health · Media · Music · Literature · Sports · Cuisine · Cinema · Religion · Symbols · Flag · Anthem · Public holidays

 

Turkestan ASSR — Formed on 30th of April 1918, on the territory of the former Turkestan General-Governorate. As part of the delimitation programme of Soviet Central Asia, the Turkestan ASSR along with the Khorezm SSR and the Bukharan PSRwere disbanded on 27th of October 1924, and in their place came the Union republics of Turkmen SSR and Uzbek SSR. The latter contained the Tajik ASSR until December 1929 when it too became a full Union republic, the Tajik SSR. The RSFSR retained the newly formed Kara-Kirghiz and the Kara-Kalpak Autonomous Oblasts. The latter was part of the Kirgiz, then the Kazak ASSR until 1930, when it was directly subordinated to Moscow.

 A mountainous, landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and People’s Republic of China to the east. Tajikistan also lies adjacent to Pakistan‘s Chitral and the Gilgit-Baltistan region, separated by the narrow Wakhan Corridor, which is claimed by both Pakistan and Afghanistan.

-Wikipedia