Uzbekistan

Republic of Uzbekistan
O‘zbekiston Respublikasi,
Ўзбекистон Республикаси (Uzbek)
Anthem: 
O‘zbekiston Respublikasining Davlat Madhiyasi,
Ўзбекистон Республикасининг Давлат Мадҳияси
"State Anthem of the Republic of Uzbekistan"
Location of Uzbekistan (green)
Location of Uzbekistan (green)
Capital
and largest city
Tashkent
41°19′N 69°16′E / 41.317°N 69.267°E / 41.317; 69.267
Official languagesUzbek[1][2]
Recognised regional languagesKarakalpak[3]
Ethnic groups
(2021)[4]
Demonym(s)Uzbekistani • Uzbek
GovernmentUnitary semi-presidential republic
• President
Shavkat Mirziyoyev
Abdulla Aripov
LegislatureOliy Majlis
• Upper house
Senate
• Lower house
Legislative Chamber
Formation
• Uzbek SSR established after national delimitation
27 October 1924
• Declared independence from the Soviet Union
1 September 1991
• Formally recognised
26 December 1991
1 May 2023
Area
• Total
447,400[6] km2 (172,700 sq mi) (55th)
• Water (%)
4.9
Population
• 2024 estimate
37,139,008[7] (36th)
• Density
80.2/km2 (207.7/sq mi) (138th)
GDP (PPP)2024 estimate
• Total
Increase $425.238 billion[8] (57th)
• Per capita
Increase $11,572[8] (122th)
GDP (nominal)2024 estimate
• Total
Increase $112.6 billion[9] (67th)
• Per capita
Increase $3010[8] (138th)
Gini (2013)Positive decrease 36.7[10][11]
medium inequality
HDI (2022)Steady 0.727[12]
high (106th)
CurrencyUzbek sum (UZS)
Time zoneUTC+5 (UZT)
Date formatdd/mm yyyyc
Drives onright
Calling code+998
ISO 3166 codeUZ
Internet TLD.uz
Website
gov.uz
  1. Co-official in Karakalpakstan.[1]
  2. On 31 August 1991, the Supreme Soviet of the Uzbek SSR voted to declare the country independent from the Soviet Union. The next day was declared a national holiday by the Uzbek government, and became an Independence Day.
  3. dd.mm.yyyy format is used in Cyrillic scripts, including Russian.

Uzbekistan,[a] officially the Republic of Uzbekistan,[b] is a doubly landlocked country located in Central Asia. It is surrounded by five countries: Kazakhstan to the north, Kyrgyzstan to the northeast, Tajikistan to the southeast, Afghanistan to the south, and Turkmenistan to the southwest, making it one of only two doubly landlocked countries on Earth, the other being Liechtenstein. Uzbekistan is part of the Turkic world, as well as a member of the Organization of Turkic States. Uzbek, spoken by the Uzbek people, is the official language and spoken by the majority of its inhabitants, while Russian and Tajik are significant minority languages. Islam is the predominant religion, and most Uzbeks are Sunni Muslims.[15]

The first recorded settlers in the land of what is modern Uzbekistan were Eastern Iranian nomads, known as Scythians, who founded kingdoms in Khwarazm, Bactria, and Sogdia in the 8th–6th centuries BC, as well as Fergana and Margiana in the 3rd century BC – 6th century AD.[16] The area was incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire and, after a period of Greco-Bactrian rule and later by the Sasanian Empire, until the Muslim conquest of Persia in the seventh century. The early Muslim conquests and the subsequent Samanid Empire converted most of the people into adherents of Islam. During this period, cities began to grow rich from the Silk Road, and became a center of the Islamic Golden Age. The local Khwarazmian dynasty was destroyed by the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, leading to a dominance by Mongol peoples. Timur (Tamerlane) in the 14th century established the Timurid Empire. Its capital was Samarkand, which became a centre of science under the rule of Ulugh Beg, giving birth to the Timurid Renaissance. The territories of the Timurid dynasty were conquered by Kipchak Shaybanids in the 16th century. Conquests by Emperor Babur towards the east led to the foundation of the Mughal Empire in India. Most of Central Asia was gradually incorporated into the Russian Empire during the 19th century, with Tashkent becoming the political center of Russian Turkestan. In 1924, national delimitation created the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic as a republic of the Soviet Union. It declared independence as the Republic of Uzbekistan in 1991.

Uzbekistan is a secular state, with a semi-presidential constitutional government. Uzbekistan comprises 12 regions (vilayats), Tashkent City, and one autonomous republic, Karakalpakstan. While non-governmental organisations have defined Uzbekistan as "an authoritarian state with limited civil rights",[17][2] significant reforms under Uzbekistan's second president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, have been made following the death of the first president, Islam Karimov. Owing to these reforms, relations with the neighbouring countries of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan have drastically improved.[18][19][20][21] A United Nations report of 2020 found much progress toward achieving the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.[22]

The Uzbek economy is in a gradual transition to the market economy, with foreign trade policy being based on import substitution. In September 2017, the country's currency became fully convertible at market rates. Uzbekistan is a major producer and exporter of cotton. With the gigantic power-generation facilities from the Soviet era and an ample supply of natural gas, Uzbekistan has become the largest electricity producer in Central Asia.[23] From 2018 to 2021, the republic received a BB− sovereign credit rating by both Standard and Poor (S&P) and Fitch Ratings.[24] The Brookings Institution described Uzbekistan as having large liquid assets, high economic growth, low public debt, and a low GDP per capita.[25] Uzbekistan is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), United Nations (UN) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

  1. ^ a b "Uzbekistan: Law "On Official Language"". Refworld. Archived from the original on 8 May 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan". constitution.uz. Archived from the original on 15 December 2015. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  3. ^ In the Republic of Uzbekistan any notary procedures shall be effected on the official language. Under request of citizens the text of document compiled by state notary or person acting as a notary shall be issued on RUSSIAN and if possible on other acceptable language. https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/eoir/legacy/2013/11/08/Law_on_official_language.pdf
  4. ^ "Permanent population by national and / or ethnic group, urban / rural place of residence". Data.egov.uz. 2-001-1779. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  5. ^ "2021 Report on International Religious Freedom: Uzbekistan". United States Department of State. Archived from the original on 2 June 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  6. ^ "Uzbekistan". Central Intelligence Agency. 27 February 2023. Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2023 – via CIA.gov.
  7. ^ "Demographic situation in the Republic of Uzbekistan - 9/5/2024". Statistics Agency of Uzbekistan. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  8. ^ a b c "World Economic Outlook Database, November 2023 Edition. (Uzbekistan)". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 10 November 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  9. ^ "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Income Gini coefficient". Human Development Reports. Archived from the original on 10 June 2010. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  11. ^ "GINI index – Uzbekistan". MECOMeter – Macro Economy Meter. Archived from the original on 4 April 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  12. ^ "Human Development Report 2023/24" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 13 March 2024. p. 275. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 March 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  13. ^ Wells, John C. (2008). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (3rd ed.). Longman. ISBN 978-1-4058-8118-0.. This source gives the British pronunciation as /ˌʊzbɛkɪˈstɑːn, ʌz-, -ˈstæn/, rather than /ʊzˌbɛk-/ found in CEPD. It also does not list the /ʊzˈbɛkɪstɑːn/ variant in American English.
  14. ^ Roach, Peter (2011). Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary (18th ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-15253-2. This source does not list the /-ˈstæn/ pronunciation in British English.
  15. ^ "Chapter 1: Religious Affiliation". The World's Muslims: Unity and Diversity. Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. 9 August 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
  16. ^ Pereltsvaig, Asya (25 February 2011). "Uzbek, the penguin of Turkic languages". Languages of the World. Archived from the original on 13 November 2021. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference US State Dept - human rights was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ "Eurasia's Latest Economic Reboot Can Be Found in Uzbekistan". Forbes. 14 September 2017. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  19. ^ Lillis, Joanna (3 October 2017). "Are decades of political repression making way for an 'Uzbek spring'?". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  20. ^ "Uzbekistan: A Quiet Revolution Taking Place – Analysis". Eurasia Review. 8 December 2017. Archived from the original on 8 December 2017. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
  21. ^ "The growing ties between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan – CSRS En". CSRS En. 28 January 2017. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  22. ^ "Uzbekistan". UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Archived from the original on 13 November 2021. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  23. ^ "Uzbekistan | Energy 2018". GLI – Global Legal Insights. Archived from the original on 3 December 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  24. ^ "Uzbekistan Sovereign credit ratings - data, chart". TheGlobalEconomy.com. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  25. ^ Pajank, Daniel (23 January 2019). "Uzbekistan's star appears in the credit rating universe". Brookings. Brookings Institution. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2019.


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