General Information
Where Tajikistan sits, how many people live there, and how the country is governed.
Tajikistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia, bordered by Kyrgyzstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Afghanistan to the south and China to the east. It has a population of around 11 million and is the smallest republic in Central Asia by land area. The official language is Tajik and the currency is the Tajikistani somoni.
Geography and Climate#
Tajikistan is predominantly mountainous, with over 90% of its territory covered by the Pamir and Tian Shan ranges. The highest peak, Ismoil Somoni Peak, formerly known as Communism Peak, stands at 7,495 metres and lies in the Pamirs. Mount Chimtarga and Mount Ak-Su are the other notable summits.
The country has a continental climate, with cold winters and hot summers. Annual precipitation is relatively low and varies from region to region. The western regions near the Fergana Valley receive more rainfall than the eastern regions in the Pamir Mountains.
History#
The area was inhabited by Central Asian nomadic peoples including the Sogdians, Scythians and Yuezhi. Alexander the Great conquered the region in 329 BC, and it later formed part of the Persian world. Islam was introduced in the 7th century, and the region became part of the Samanid Empire, a Persian dynasty that made Bukhara and Samarkand centres of learning.
Tajikistan was subsequently ruled by a succession of powers, among them the Timurids, the Kokand Khanate and the Emirate of Bukhara. It came under Russian control in the 19th century and was absorbed into the Soviet Union in the early 20th, becoming a Soviet Socialist Republic in 1929. After the Soviet collapse in 1991 it declared independence.
Politics and Economy#
Tajikistan is a presidential republic, with the president serving as both head of state and head of government. The country has a multi-party political system, though the People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan is the dominant force within it.
The economy depends heavily on natural resources: hydroelectric power, aluminium and cotton. It also depends on remittances sent home by Tajik migrants working abroad, primarily in Russia, which leaves it exposed to economic conditions there. In recent years the government has been working to diversify the economy and attract foreign investment.
Culture and Society#
Tajik culture draws on Persian, Central Asian and Soviet influences. Traditional music and dance forms, among them shashmaqam and the Damai, are still widely performed and remain part of everyday celebration rather than museum pieces.
The Tajik people are predominantly Sunni Muslim, with a smaller Shia minority and other religious communities. Uzbeks, Kyrgyz and Pamiris make up the main ethnic minorities, the Pamiris being largely Ismaili and concentrated in the eastern mountains.
The country faces serious difficulties, including widespread poverty, corruption and political instability, and remains one of the weaker economies in the region. It sits at a crossroads between South, Central and East Asia, which has shaped both its history and its current position.