Central Asia · The Soviet century and after
Uzbekistan
1991–present
The Republic of Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous country (about 39 million, 2026 census) and one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world. Area 448,978 km²; capital Tashkent.
- Existed
- 1991–present
- Shown on the map
- 1992–2024
- Peak area
- 414k km²
- Region
- Central Asia
Overview
The Republic of Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous country (about 39 million, 2026 census) and one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world. Area 448,978 km²; capital Tashkent. Uzbeks form about 89% of the population, with Tajik, Karakalpak, Kazakh, and Russian minorities; about 94% are Muslim (mostly Sunni). Uzbek is the official language; Russian remains a lingua franca.
Historical background
The region — ancient Transoxiana — was home to Sogdiana, Bactria, and Khwarazm; its cities (Samarkand, Bukhara) grew wealthy as Silk Road hubs from Achaemenid times through the Greco-Bactrian and Kushan periods. The Arab conquest (8th century) and the Samanid Empire made the region a center of the Islamic Golden Age, followed by the Karakhanids, Seljuks, and Khwarazmians, destroyed in the Mongol invasion of the 13th century. Timur (Tamerlane) founded the Timurid Empire (1370–1507) with its capital at Samarkand; his grandson Ulugh Beg presided over the Timurid Renaissance in astronomy and science. In the 16th century the Shaybanid Uzbeks conquered the region, which crystallized into the Emirate of Bukhara and the khanates of Khiva and Kokand. Russia conquered the area in the 19th century, making Tashkent the center of Russian Turkestan; after the Basmachi resistance, national delimitation created the Uzbek SSR on 27 October 1924. Soviet Uzbekistan became a leading cotton producer — with catastrophic consequences for the Aral Sea, which shrank to about 10% of its former area in one of the world's worst environmental disasters.
Independence and politics
Uzbekistan declared sovereignty on 20 June 1990 and independence on 31 August/1 September 1991. Islam Karimov, Communist Party first secretary since 1989, ruled as an authoritarian president until his death in September 2016, tolerating no genuine opposition; the 2005 Andijan events, in which security forces fired on protesters (estimates of deaths range widely, from the official 187 to several hundred), led to a rupture with the West and the eviction of the US from the Karshi-Khanabad airbase. Shavkat Mirziyoyev, long-time prime minister, succeeded Karimov in December 2016 and has pursued significant reforms: currency convertibility (2017), economic liberalization, release of political prisoners, and a major thaw in relations with Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan — a period sometimes called the "Uzbek Spring," though the political system remains authoritarian ("closed autocracy" per V-Dem 2024).
Economy and international relations
The economy, in gradual transition to market mechanisms, is based on cotton, gold, natural gas, and uranium; Uzbekistan is Central Asia's largest electricity producer. Nominal GDP was estimated at $181.5 billion (2026). Uzbekistan is a member of the UN, CIS, SCO (hosting its Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure in Tashkent), OIC, ECO, and the Organization of Turkic States, and maintains strong ties with Russia, China, Turkey, and increasingly the EU and US.
Culture
Uzbek culture reflects the Timurid Persianate-Islamic heritage — Samarkand, Bukhara, and Khiva are UNESCO World Heritage sites — with the Chaghatai literary tradition of Ali-Shir Nava'i central to national identity.
Common questions
- What was Uzbekistan?
- The Republic of Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous country (about 39 million, 2026 census) and one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world. Area 448,978 km²; capital Tashkent.
- When did Uzbekistan exist?
- Uzbekistan existed 1991–present. On this map it is drawn 1992–2024.
- How large was Uzbekistan?
- At its greatest extent drawn on this map, Uzbekistan covered about 414,000 km². That is the largest area the border data gives it across the years it is drawn, not necessarily its greatest extent in history.
- Who ruled Uzbekistan?
- Uzbekistan declared sovereignty on 20 June 1990 and independence on 31 August/1 September 1991. Islam Karimov, Communist Party first secretary since 1989, ruled as an authoritarian president until his death in September 2016, tolerating no genuine opposition; the 2005 Andijan events, in which security forces fired on protesters (estimates of deaths range widely, from the official 187 to several hundred), led to a rupture with the West and the eviction of the US from the Karshi-Khanabad airbase.
- What did the economy and culture of Uzbekistan rest on?
- The economy, in gradual transition to market mechanisms, is based on cotton, gold, natural gas, and uranium; Uzbekistan is Central Asia's largest electricity producer. Nominal GDP was estimated at $181.5 billion (2026).
Sources
Every source below was consulted while writing this entry.
- Wikipedia: Uzbekistan en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uzbekistan
This entry was written from the sources above and last updated .
This entry was researched and drafted with AI from the sources above, and has not been reviewed by a historian. How entries are made
Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0: reuse it with a credit to The World Through Time and a link to this page. Passages drawing on the Wikipedia articles listed above are also licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 by their contributors.
Border geometry for the map itself comes from Cliopatria v0.12 (Seshat Global History Databank, CC-BY-4.0).
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