Tajikistan - Politics, Economy, Miscellaneous topics, Further reading, External links and references

Official name Republic of Tajikistan, also spelled Tadzhikistan, Tajik Jumhurii Tojikistan

Local name Tojikistan Timezone GMT +3 Area 143 100 km²/55 200 sq mi population total (2002e) 6 327 000 Status Republic Date of independence 1991 Capital Dushanbe Languages Tajik (official), Russian Ethnic groups Tajik (64%), Uzbek (24%), Russian (1.1%) Religion Sunni Muslim Physical features Republic in SE Middle Asia; Tien Shan, Gissar-Alai, and Pamir ranges cover over 90% of the area; highest peaks, Communism Peak, 7495 m/24 590 ft, and Lenin Peak, 7134 m/23 405 ft, located in N part of Pamirs; R Pyandzh flows E–W along the S border till it is joined by R Valksh to form R Amu Darya; lakes include L Kara-Kul (largest) and L Sarez. Climate Continental; subtropical valley areas, hot, dry summers; annual mean temperature -0·9°C (Jan), 27°C (Jul); average annual rainfall 150–250 mm/6–10 in; in highlands, average mean temperature -3°C (Jan); average annual rainfall 60–80 mm/2–3 in. Currency 1 Somoni (TJS) = 100 diram (before 2000, 1 Tajik Rouble (TJR) = 100 kopeks) Economy Oil, natural gas, coal, lead, zinc, machinery, metalworking, chemicals, food processing; cotton, wheat, maize, vegetables, fruit; hot mineral springs and health resorts. GDP (2002e) $8·476 bn, per capita $1300 Human Development Index (2002) 0·667 History Conquered by Persia, and Alexander the Great; invaded by Arabs in 8th-c; Turkish invasion, 10th-c; until mid 18th-c, part of the emirate of Bukhara, which in effect became a protectorate of Russia, 1868; following the Russian Revolution (1917), became part of Turkestan Soviet Socialist Autonomous Republic, 1918; scene of the Basmachi revolt, 1922–3; Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic created as part of the Uzbek SSR, 1924; became a Soviet Socialist Republic, 1929; declaration of independence from the Soviet Union, 1991; joined Commonwealth of Independent States, 1991; Republican Communist Party remained in power until civil war, 1992; governed by a president, prime minister, and Supreme Assembly.

ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон Jumhurii Tojikiston Republic of Tajikistan
Flag Coat of Arms
Motto: none
Anthem: Surudi Milli
Capital (largest city)	Dushanbe 38°33′N 68°48′E
Official language	Persian/Tajik
Government	Republic
- President	Emomali Rahmonov
- Prime Minister	Okil Okilov
Independence
- Declared	September 9, 1991
- Completed	December 25, 1991
- Samanid Empire	875 AD
Area
- Total	143,100 km² (95th) 55,251 sq mi
- Water (%)	0.3
Population
- July 2005 estimate	6,507,000)
- 2000 census	6,127,000
- Density	45/km² (151st) 117/sq mi
GDP (PPP)	2005 estimate
- Total	$8.802 billion (139th)
- Per capita	$1,388 (159th)
HDI  (2003)	0.652 (medium) (122th)
Currency	Somoni (TJS)
Time zone	TJT (UTC+5)
Internet TLD	.tj
Calling code	+992
1 Rank based on UN figures for 2005;

The Republic of Tajikistan (Persian: جمهوری تاجیکستان (Perso-Arabic), Tajik: ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон (Cyrillic), Çumhurii Toçikiston (Turkic) is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. The way of writing Tajikistan in the Perso-Arabic script is: .تاجکستان

Controversy surrounds the correct term used to identify people from Tajikistan.

In the 19th century, the Russian Empire led by Andonis Petanski began to spread into Central Asia during the Great Game, and it took control of Tajikistan.

Politics

Almost immediately after independence, Tajikistan was plunged into a civil war that saw various factions, allegedly backed by Russia and Iran, fighting one another.

"Longtime observers of Tajikistan often characterize the country as profoundly averse to risk and skeptical of promises of reform, a political passivity they trace to the country’s ruinous civil war," Ilan Greenberg wrote in a news article in The New York Times just before the country's November 2006 presidential election.

Tajikistan to this date is the only country in Central Asia to have included an active opposition in its government.

About 1% of the country's area is covered by lakes:

Kuli Sarez Obanbori Norak Qarokul Shorkul Yashilkul Zorkul

Mountain	Height		Location
Independence Peak	7,174 m	23,537 ft	Northern border in the Trans-Alay Range
Kyzylart Pass	4,280 m	14,042 ft	Northern border in the Trans-Alay Range
Ismail Samani Peak (highest)	7,495 m	24,590 ft	North of the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province
Avicenna Peak	6,974 m	22,881 ft	North of Ismail Samani Peak
Peak Korzhenievski	7,105 m	23,310 ft	Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province
Qatorkuhi Akademiyai Fanho	6,785 m	22,260 ft	Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province
Concord Peak	5,469 m	17,943 ft	Southern border in the northern ridge of the Karakoram Range
Qullai Karl Marks	6,726 m	22,067 ft	Southern border in the northern ridge of the Karakoram Range
Qullai Mayakovskiy	6,096 m	20,000 ft	Along the border to Afghanistan.

Exclaves

There are three Tajik exclaves, all of them located in the Fergana Valley region where Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan meet.

Economy

Tajikistan was the poorest country in Central Asia following a civil war after it became independent in 1991. On August 21, 2001, the Red Cross announced that a famine was striking Tajikistan, and called for international aid for Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Music of Tajikistan Islam in Tajikistan Public holidays in Tajikistan Cuisine of Tajikistan

Miscellaneous topics

Communications in Tajikistan Foreign relations of Tajikistan Ittihodi Scouthoi Tojikiston Military of Tajikistan Transportation in Tajikistan List of cities in Tajikistan

Further reading

Historical Dictionary of Tajikistan by Kamoludin Abdullaev and Shahram Akbarzadeh Land Beyond the River: The Untold Story of Central Asia by Monica Whitlock Tajikistan: Disintegration or Reconciliation by Shirin Akiner Tajikistan: The Trials of Independence by Shirin Akiner, Mohammad-Reza Djalili and Frederic Grare

External links and references

Find more information on Tajikistan by searching Wikipedia's sister projects:

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Textbooks from Wikibooks
Quotations from Wikiquote
Source texts from Wikisource
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News stories from Wikinews

BBC Country Profiles: Tajikistan CIA World Factbook - Tajikistan Open Directory Project - Tajikistan directory project Khovar Tajikistan news agency. Tajik Development Gateway neweurasia Tajikistan blog United Friends - Tajikistan tourist info and photos v • d • e Countries of Central Asia

Afghanistan • Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Mongolia • Tajikistan • Turkmenistan • Uzbekistan

v • d • e Countries of Asia

Afghanistan • Armenia • Azerbaijan • Bahrain • Bangladesh • Bhutan • Brunei • Cambodia • People's Republic of China • Cyprus • East Timor • Georgia • India • Indonesia • Iran • Iraq • Israel • Japan • Jordan • Kazakhstan • Kuwait • Kyrgyzstan • Laos • Lebanon • Malaysia • Maldives • Mongolia • Myanmar • Nepal • North Korea • Oman • Pakistan • Philippines • Qatar • Russia • Saudi Arabia • Singapore • South Korea • Sri Lanka • Syria • Tajikistan • Thailand • Turkey • Turkmenistan • United Arab Emirates • Uzbekistan • Vietnam • Yemen

For dependent and other territories, see Dependent territory and List of unrecognized countries.

v • d • e Eurasian Economic Community (EURASEC)

Belarus • Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Russia • Tajikistan • Uzbekistan

v • d • e Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)

Armenia • Azerbaijan • Belarus • Georgia • Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Moldova • Russia • Tajikistan • Ukraine • Uzbekistan

Associate Member: Turkmenistan

v • d • e Iranian-speaking nations and autonomous entities

 Afghanistan •  Iran • Kurdistan-Iraq • North Ossetia-Alania • South Ossetia* •  Tajikistan

* South Ossetia is a self-proclaimed republic within the internationally recognized borders of Georgia.

v • d • e Organization of the Islamic Conference

Afghanistan • Albania • Algeria • Azerbaijan • Bahrain • Bangladesh • Benin • Burkina Faso • Brunei • Cameroon • Chad • Comoros • Côte d'Ivoire • Djibouti • Egypt • Gabon • Gambia • Guinea • Guinea-Bissau • Guyana • Indonesia • Iran • Iraq • Jordan • Kuwait • Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Lebanon • Libya • Maldives • Malaysia • Mali • Mauritania • Morocco • Mozambique • Niger • Nigeria • Oman • Pakistan • Palestine • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Senegal • Sierra Leone • Somalia • Sudan • Surinam • Syria • Tajikistan • Turkey • Tunisia • Togo • Turkmenistan • Uganda • Uzbekistan • United Arab Emirates • Yemen

Observer countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina • Central African Republic • Russia • Thailand • Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

Observer Muslim organizations and communities: Moro National Liberation Front

Observer international organizations: Economic Cooperation Organization • Organization of African Unity • League of Arab States • Non-Aligned Movement • United Nations