Turkistan (city)

This article is about the city in Kazakhstan. For the general region, see Turkestan.
Turkistan
Түркістан / Türkıstan (Kazakh)
Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi
Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi
Turkistan is located in Kazakhstan
Turkistan
Turkistan
Location in Kazakhstan
Coordinates: 43°18′07″N 68°16′09″E / 43.30194°N 68.26917°E / 43.30194; 68.26917
Country Kazakhstan
RegionTurkistan Region
Government
 • Akim (mayor)Azimbek Pazylbekuly[1]
Population
 (2023)
 • City
300,000
 • Urban
250,000

Turkistan (Kazakh: Түркістан / Türkıstan [tʉrkɘ̆sˈtɑn]) is a city and the administrative center of Turkistan Region of Kazakhstan, near the Syr Darya river. It is situated 160 km (100 mi) north-west of Shymkent on the Trans-Aral Railway between Kyzylorda to the north and Tashkent to the south. Its population has increased in ten years from 102,505 (1999 Census results)[2] to 142,899 (2009 Census results).[2] Turkistan's most prominent historical and cultural asset is the Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi, a UNESCO World Heritage site.[3] The city is served by Hazrat Sultan International Airport.

In 2021, Turkistan was proclaimed by the Organization of Turkic States as "Spiritual Capital of the Turkic World".[4] In the same year, Turkistan was named as one of the top ten tourist destinations in Kazakhstan.[5]

  1. ^ "Азимбек Пазылбекулы назначен новым акимом Туркестана". inform.kz (in Russian). 2024-10-01. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
  2. ^ a b "Население Республики Казахстан" [Population of the Republic of Kazakhstan] (in Russian). Департамент социальной и демографической статистики. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  3. ^ "World Heritage List". UNESCO.
  4. ^ "Turkistan Declaration of the Informal Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States". Turkic Council.
  5. ^ "Kazakhstan Selects Top 10 Tourist Destinations". The Astana Times. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 2021-09-27.