City of Uzbekistan - Kokand

The territory of modern Uzbekistan is at the crossroads of ancient trade routes connecting the Far East with the Near East and Europe. Therefore, it is not surprising that among its cities there are so many ancient settlements that were known in ancient Rome. Today, Kokand in Uzbekistan is one of such settlements, whose history goes back to ancient times. Once upon a time this city even had a metropolitan status.

Kokand city in Uzbekistan

During the Soviet era, several seasons of archaeological work were carried out on the territory of Kokand, as a result of which ancient walls and foundations of monumental structures dating back to the llth centuries AD were discovered. E.

But scientists do not limit the history of the city only this period, they look even deeper. Considering the fact that the settlement appeared in the center of the so-called Sokh oasis, it can be assumed that already in the Vll century BC. E on the territory of Kokand there were permanent settlements of ancient farmers who built special hydro facilities for irrigation of their fields.

Later references to the city are found in the records of Arab travelers who describe a city whose location is roughly comparable to Kokand. In Arabic records, it was called Khovakend or Khokand.

Arab travelers and merchants could not miss this city, as it was located on the trade route between India, China and Persia.

Fergana region

The climate of the whole of Uzbekistan and Kokand in particular is characterized by pronounced seasonal fluctuations and a sharp continentality. In such conditions, the lack of natural irrigation requires constant work on watering the plantations, without which no people can survive.

Because of this, the Fergana region occupies a special place on the map of Uzbekistan, the largest city of which is Kokand. However, the administrative center is the city of Fergana.

The Fergana region differs from other regions of Uzbekistan with a mild climate, pure healing air. Despite the same insignificant amount of precipitation as in other regions of the country, the Ferghana Valley offers generally more favorable conditions for agriculture, as it is protected from winter winds, such as those that dry the soil in the Tashkent oasis.

In addition, the region has huge water resources of the Syr Darya, Isfayramsy, Isfara and Sokh rivers, which for many centuries allow local peasants to grow cotton and various vegetables.

Economy of Kokand

Uzbekistan ranks fourth in the world in terms of gold reserves, and the seventh in terms of the amount of precious metal produced annually. However, the genuine support of the Uzbek economy is traditionally considered to be agriculture, which flourishes in the country, despite all the climatic difficulties.

From the planned economy of the USSR, Uzbekistan inherited a rather monotonous agriculture, specializing mainly in the production of cotton, which during the Soviet era turned into a monoculture.

However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union in agriculture, there were rapidly emerging trends in introducing diversity in production. Many areas have been sown with wheat, the yield of which, due to proper agronomy, has grown significantly from year to year.

And of course, during independence, the number of independent producers has grown, which are striving for maximum satisfaction of consumer demand existing in the market of Uzbekistan. Kokand, for example, specializes in cotton processing and food production.

A long history of colonization

Before becoming part of the Russian Empire, the territory of modern Uzbekistan and Kokand was independent and had serious resistance to Russian troops. The first clash between the Kokand Khanate, whose political center was the city of Kokand, and the Russian Empire occurred in the 1850s when two army detachments invaded the territory of the Khanate.

The war with the state removed from the center of Russia, consisting of a chain of armed clashes, lasted eighteen years, and the result was the signing of a trade agreement that the khanate, and with it the Bukhara emirate, transformed into a state dependent on Russia.

The city of Kokand in Uzbekistan still occupies a special position, which is expressed mainly in the significant development of industry and a large number of service enterprises. For example, in Kokand there is the Railway Administration of Fergana region, despite the fact that Fergana is considered an administrative center.

The modernity of Uzbekistan

Kokand, being one of the most ancient cities of the country, attracts numerous tourists from Europe, Russia and the Far East, primarily from China. However, first of all, tourists are interested not in archaeological excavations of ancient settlements, but in the architectural heritage of the late period of the Kokand Khanate and the Soviet period, since the colonial period in the architecture of Uzbekistan is of little interest.

One of the most remarkable sights of the city is the Khudoyar Khan's palace, the one who signed the enslaving treaty with the Russian Empire, thereby putting an end to the independence of his state.

This palace is a showcase of luxury and narcissism, and he thought about in order to surpass all the Khan's palaces built before his beauty. However, its construction was completed five years after the conquest of Kokand, and the palace became only a monument of a bygone era.