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Turkmenistan Cities
Turkmenistan is situated in the very heart of
Central Asia between the
Caspian Sea in the west and
the great
Amu Darya in the east, from
Aral Sea littoral steppes
in the north to the Kopet Dag mountain range to the south.
Turkmenistan is an independent
state founded in 1991 after the disintegration of the
USSR and five years
later it attained a unique political status which was recognized by the United
Nations Organization. The founder of the state, the national leader of
Turkmenistan, President
Saparmurat Turkmenbashy has clearly specified the character of his country and
its place in the sophisticated geopolitical space by capacious formulation
“permanent neutrality”.
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Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan has borne this name
since 1881. According to archeological delta, settlements belonging to the Great
Silk Road have existed on the territory of the present city since at least the
end of the first millennium BC. The chronological distance between them and the
present city is so great, that we are unable to speak about any town-building
continuity. That connection traces back to the beginning of XIX century, when
there was a Turkmen urban settlement here, called Ashgabat. |
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| Dehistan was one of large
economic, trade-industrial and cultural centres of the south western
Turkmenistan. The
city existed in the 9-14th centuries. Its total area was about
200ha, the city was surrounded by a double ring of defensive walls. Three
caravansaries were discovered on its territory. Pottery and brick-burning
kilns, khanaka, country mosque, bazaar square, typical for the East medieval
cities were marked around the city wall. Monumental buildings including
mosques, minarets, madrasahs and a number of cultural buildings were
concentrated there. |
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| The intellectual heritage of
the east was always attractive to
Europe. In the early Middles Ages, translations of Arabic origins laid the
foundation of the European science: mathematics, medicine, philosophy,
astronomy. The west is systematically studying the works of oriental
philosophers including Turkmen scientists that were born and live in our
country. |
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| Kunya Urgench. At the beginning of the 1st century
AD the Chinese sources mentioned the city of Yue-gan which is identified with
city of Gurgench or Urgench. It relates to Khorezm according to the ancient and
medieval geographic conceptions. In the later period this city is mentioned in
connection with the most important political events. Kunya Urgench had been
destroyed and rebuilt several times. |
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| Mary is the second largest city in
Turkmenistan and
lies about 350km east of Ashgabat. It is a capital of Mary Region known as the
province of
Margiana in
ancient times. Mary (Merv) was once known as the “
Pearl of the East” and was
the second city of
Islam after
Baghdad between the 8th-13th centuries before it fell
victim to the most horrific slaughter by the Mongols. Merv changed its name to
Mary in 1937 and has grown into
Turkmenistan’s
largest city. |
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| Turkmenabat is the third
largest city of
Turkmenistan and the centre of Lebap region. It’s situated on the left bank of the
Amu Darya
River. The
past of the city has not yet been researched profoundly, but it’s known that it
was born at the beginning of the one thousand BC, thanks to the
Great Silk Road which
pioneered from
China through
Central Asia to the
Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. The town Amul was one of the most
important points for the
Silk Road. Those who see the
Amu
Darya
River for
the first time are surprised at its muddy yellow-green colour owing to its
strong stream and a lot of particles of mud containing various nutrient
substances forming the fertile soil. |
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| Turkmenbashy (formerly called
Krasnovodsk), 654km from the capital of
Turkmenistan with
population of about 70.000. It is situated on the
Caspian Sea and has some
magnificent sandy beaches. One hundred twenty six years ago Colonel
N.G.Stoletov founded a town which he named «Krasnovodsk». It became the
administrative centre of the Caspian region and retained that status until
1917. |
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According to historians’
assessments, history of civilizations which existed on this land in the past
accounted for five thousand years. Remains of those disappeared cultures can be
found here almost everywhere: in the desert and at foothills of mountains,
along the channels of dried rivers and in caves. Traces of human activity have
been preserved in the form of implements, domestic utensils and real works of
art made of stone and bone, ceramics and metal, including bronze, silver and
gold. But it is the architecture that makes us recollect distant ancestors of
the Turkmens – starting from the earthenware houses, sanctuaries and formerly
inaccessible fortresses of the ancient world to the luxurious palaces and
temples of the Middles Ages. Certainly, few things that local towns were
renowned for had escaped destructions and remained intact till nowadays.
Biblical truth that every thing is good in its season has been eloquently
confirmed here.
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