ÿþ<html> <head> <title> WHKMLA : Historical Dictionaries : Central Asia </title> <!-- copyright Alexander Ganse, 2004-2006 --> </head> <body bgcolor="lightblue" text="black" link="blue" vlink="red" alink="brown"> <style> <!-- A{ font-weight: bold; font-size: 10pt; font-face: arial; } --> </style> <DIV align ="center"> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../../index.html"> <img src = "../../whkmla2.jpg" border = "0"></a></TD></TR></TABLE> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD width = "150" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "2" face = "arial"><B> Timeline </b></font></TD> <TD width = "36" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../../timelines/wh/tlcasia.html"> <img src = "../../region/arrowleft.gif" width = "36" height = "36" border = "0"> </a></TD> <TD align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../../timelines/whchapters.html"> <img src = "../banhistdic.jpg" border = "0"> </TD> <TD width = "36" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <A HREF = "../../biographies/wh/biocasia.html"> <img src = "../../region/arrowright.gif" width = "36" height = "36" border = "0"> </a></TD> <TD width = "100" height = "36" align = "center" valign = "center"> <font size = "2" face = "arial"><B> Biographies </b></font></TD></TR></TABLE> <font size = "3" face = "arial"><B><i>First posted on June 12th 2004 </i></b></font><BR><BR><BR><BR> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD align = "center" valign = "center" width = "900"> <font face = "Times Roman" size = "5"><B> Historical Dictionaries : Central Asia </B></font> <BR> <font face = "Times Roman" size = "2"><i> http://www.zum.de/whkmla/histdic/wh/hdcasia.html </i></font> </B></font></TD></TR></TABLE> <BR><BR> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD align = "left" valign = "center" width = "150"> <font face = "Times Roman" size = "2"> <A NAME = "afghanistan">Afghanistan</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "almaty">Almaty</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "amurprovince">Amur Province</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "angloafghanwars">Anglo-Afghan Wars</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "anglorussianentente">Anglo-Russian Entente</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "astrakhan">Khanate of Astrakhan</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> Bactria <BR> <A NAME = "basmachirevolt">Basmachi Revolt</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "bukhara">Khanate of Bukhara</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "buryatmongols">Buryat Mongols</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "chagatay">Chagatay</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "choresm">Choresm</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "deportation">Deportation</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "dzungars">Dzungars</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "eastturkestan">East Turkestan</A> <BR> <A NAME = "fareasternprovince">Far Eastern Province</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> Ghaznavids <BR> <A NAME = "gokturks">Gokturk Khaganate</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "gokturkscript">Gokturk script</A> <BR> <A NAME = "goldenhorde">Golden Horde</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "greathorde">Great Horde <BR> of the Kazakhs</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "hsiungnu">Hsiung-nu</A> <BR><BR> Huns <BR> <A NAME = "ilkhanate">Il-Khanate</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "iran">Iran</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "irkutsk">Irkutsk</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "isfahan">Isfahan</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "islamicrevolution">Islamic Revolution</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "jindynasty">Jin Dynasty</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "jurchen">Jurchen</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kabul">Kabul</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kalmyks">Kalmyks</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "karakhitan">Kara-Khitan</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kashgar">Kashgar</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kazakhassr">Kazakh ASSR</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kazakhstan">Kazakhstan</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> Khanate of Kazan <BR> <A NAME = "khitan">Khitan</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "khiva">Khanate of Khiva</A> <BR> <A NAME = "khuraltai">Khuraltai</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "kipchaktatars">Kipchak Tatars</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kokand">Khanate of Kokand</A> <BR> <A NAME = "kirghizassr">Kirghiz ASSR</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "kyrgyzstan">Kyrgyzstan</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "lesserhorde">Lesser Horde <BR> of the Kazakhs</A> <BR><BR> Liao Dynasty <BR> <A NAME = "middlehorde">Middle Horde <BR> of the Kazakhs</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "manchudynasty">Manchu Dynasty</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "manchuria">Manchuria</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "manchurianscript">Manchurian script</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "mongolia">Mongolia</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "mongolscript">Mongol script</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "mujahedeen">Mujahedeen</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "sassanids">Neo-Persian Empire</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "oyrats">Oyrat Mongols</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "pahlevidyn">Pahlevi Dynasty</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "paxmongolica">Pax Mongolica</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "persianrevolution">Persian Revolution</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "qajardyn.html">Qajar Dynasty</A> <BR> <A NAME = "safaviddyn">Safavid Dynasty</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "samaniddyn">Samanid Dynasty</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "samarkand">Samarkand</A> <BR><BR><BR> Sassanid Dynasty <BR> <A NAME = "secrethistory">Secret History</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "shaibanids">Shaibanids</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "shamanism">Shamanism</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "sibir">Khanate of Sibir</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "silkroad">Silk Road</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "sogdiana">Sogdiana</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "stepperoad">Steppe Road</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "tajikistan">Tajikistan</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "tannutouva">Tannu Touva</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "taliban">Taliban</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "tashkent">Tashkent</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "tehran">Tehran</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "tibet">Tibet</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "timurids">Timurids</A> <BR> <A NAME = "transib">Transiberian Railroad</A> <BR><BR> Touva <BR> <A NAME = "turkestan">Turkestan</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "turkmenistan">Turkmenistan</A> <BR><BR> <A NAME = "uighurs">Uighurs</A> <BR><BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "uzbekistan">Uzbekistan</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "westturkestan">West Turkestan</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "xinjiang">Xinjiang</A> <BR><BR><BR> <A NAME = "yuandyn">Yuan Dynasty</A> <BR><BR><BR> </font></TD> <TD align = "left" valign = "center" width = "500"> <font face = "Times Roman" size = "2"> mountainous, landlocked country located in Central Asia, bordering on Iran, Pakistan, <BR> China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Population consists of several ethnic <BR> groups, the most important being the Pashtu, the speakers of Persian, the Uzbeks and <BR> Turkmen, Baluchi etc. In history Afghanistan experienced both frequent invasions and <BR> herself was the launching site for invasions, primarily down the Khyber Pass into India. <BR> As a modern state, Afghanistan emerged as a region which maintained her independence <BR> between the Persian Empire, the Russian Empire and British India; Britain and Russia <BR> agreed on maintaining Afghanistan as a buffer state (Anglo-Russian Entente of 1907). <BR> The monarchy was toppled in 1973; the Soviets invaded in 1979, turning Afghanistan <BR> into a satellite state. The US supported the Mujahedeen resistance fighters; the Soviets <BR> withdrew in 1989; Afghanistan was contested by a number of warlords. In 1992 the <BR> Taliban, supported from Pakistan, brought most of the country under their control. Opium <BR> became the major crop; Afghanistan hosted terrorist training camps. In 2001 the Taliban <BR> regime were ousted, democracy introduced. see Afghanistan pages <A HREF = "../../region/centrasia/xafghanistan.html">at this site</A> <BR> founded by the Russian as Fort Vernoe in 1854, a military garrison in potentially hostile, <BR> recently conquered country. In 1921 renamed Alma-Ata or Almaty. Capital of the Kazakh <BR> ASSR / Kazakh SSR since 1925; of independent Kazakhstan 1991-1997. Largest city in <BR> Kazakhstan. <BR> land to the north of the Amur River, Chinese according to the Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689) <BR> ceded by China to Russia in the Treaty of Aigun 1860. A part of it was designated in <BR> 1931 as Jewish autonomous region (Birobijan). <BR> First Anglo-Afghan War 1838-1842, see page <A HREF = "../../military/19cen/afghanwar1.html">at this site</A> <BR> Second Anglo-Afghan War 1878-1880, see page <A HREF = "../../military/19cen/afghanwar2.html">at this site</A> <BR> Third Anglo-Afghan War 1919, see page <A HREF = "../../military/betwwars/afghanwar3.html">at this site</A> <BR> With the Russian defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, the main British <BR> concern of a perceived Russian threat - a Russian, permanently ice-free port on the <BR> Pacific Ocean (Port Arthur) was removed. In 1907, Russia and the U.K. signed a document <BR> in which they delineated and recognized their mutual spheres of interest in Central Asia. <BR> Afghanistan was to remain a buffer state; Persia was divided in three zones, a Russian, <BR> a British, and a buffer zone. <BR> Fragment of the Khanate of the Golden Horde, which disintegrated in the 1440es. <BR> Astrakhan was seat of a Khanate in 1466; was conquered by the Russians in <BR> 1556. An Ottoman attempt to take Astrakhan from the Russians in 1569 failed. <BR> Descendents of the last Khan of Astrakhan established themselves as Khans of Bukhara <BR> 1598-1747. <BR> click <A HREF = "hdhellenism.html#bactria">here</A> <BR>. resistance of the Turkmen against Soviet rule, between 1918 and 1923 in form of open <BR> revolt; resistance continued until 1931. see entry from <A HREF = "http://www.onwar.com/aced/data/bravo/basmachi1916.htm">ACED</A> <BR> founded by descendants of the last Khan of Astrakhan in 1598, Russian protectorate <BR> since 1868, turned into the Bukharan ASSR in 1924. see Bukhara pages <BR> <A HREF = "../../region/centrasia/xuzbekistan.html">at this site</A> <BR> the Treaty of Nertchinsk 1689 partitioned Mongol lands, leaving the Buryat Mongols on <BR> the Russian side of the border. The nearby Russian city of Irkutsk had been founded in <BR> 1686. In 1923 the Buryat-Mongolian ASSR was created, within the RSFSR. Buddhist. <BR> 1227-1363, also spelled Jagatai, Mongol Khanate in Central Asia, located between the <BR> Blue/Golden Horde, the Il-Khanate and Yuan-Dynasty China. Already in the 1240es at <BR> war with the Blue/Golden Horde, the unity of the Mongol Empire was upheld until the <BR> 1290es, only after which Chagatay became fully independent. Khan Tarmashirin <BR> converted to Islam in 1327. Defeated and conquered in 1358-1363 by Kurgan and Timur <BR> Lenk. <BR> also spelled Chorasan, Khwarizm; historical region in Central Asia (Amu-Darja, Syr-Darja <BR> valleys), in the 3rd to 8th century A.D. Kingdom of Choresm, then conquered by the <BR> Caliphate, in the late 12th/early 13th century state ruled by the Khwarizmshah, 1218-1227 <BR> conquered by Genghis Khan. <BR> In 1937 Stalin ordered the deportation of the Koreans living in the the Russian Far East, <BR> in 1941 the deportation of the Volga Germans, in 1944 the deportation of the Crimean <BR> Tatars, all of them to Central Asia. Other victims of Stalin's displeasure - Estonians, <BR> Latvians etc. shared the fate, but in these cases only part of these peoples were <BR> deported. <BR> also spelled Zungars or Jungars; Mongols from Dzungaria; in the early 18th century <BR> they caused trouble, temporarily controlling Tibet. Defeated, dispersed by the Chinese <BR> (Qing Dynasty) <BR> geographical term, used in the 19th and early 20th century to describe Xinjiang. <BR> ceded by China to Russia in the Treaty of Beijing 1860. Vladivostok was founded in <BR> 1860; Khabarovsk had been founded by the Russians in 1858 (although then still located <BR> on Chinese soil). During the Russian Civil War, until 1922, occupied by the Japanese.<BR> Part of the RSFSR. <BR> click <A HREF = "hdsasia.html#ghaznavids">here</A> <BR> literally, Celestial Turks, Central Asian state 552-745, covering Mongolia and Kazakhstan <BR> ruled by a Khagan; Shamanistic, while attracting Buddhist, Nestorian Christian, <BR> Manichaean missionaries. Used Gokturk script. <BR> Runic script used by the Gokturks. <BR> created by the merger of the Blue and White Horde in 1378 (both being Kipchak Tatars). <BR> The expression often is used for the Blue Horde as well; ruled the Russian steppe <BR> (1240) 1378-c.1440, when it disintegrated into the Khanates of Kazan, Crimea, Sibir and <BR> Astrakhan. Berke Khan 1255-1267 converted to Islam; the Golden Horde suffered defeats <BR> at the hands of Timur Lenk in the 1390es and never fully recovered. <BR> In the 16th century the Kazakhs divided into three divisions; the Great Horde controlled <BR> Semirech'ye and southern Kazakhstan. In 1742 parts of it accepted a Russian <BR> protectorate, the remainder in 1820. see account from <A HREF = "http://www.sitara.com/kazak/history.html">Welcome to Kazakhstan</A> <BR> or Xiung-nu, a people of pastoral nomads mentioned in early Chinese records. Identified <BR> as the (eastern) Huns. Against them, the Great Wall of China was built. <BR> click <A HREF = "hdbarbaric.html#huns">here</A> <BR> Mongol Khanate founded by Hulagu Khan with the center in Persia, established c.1255, <BR> Ilkhan Ghazan converted to Islam in 1297. Fragmentized in 1335. <BR> Modern Iran emerged out of the Safavid Empire, which made Shi'ism state religion. <BR> The Safavids were succeeded by the Zand, the Qajar and Pahlevi Dynasties. The <BR> Islamic Revolution of 1979 established the Islamic Republic of Iran. Historically often <BR> referred to as Persia. Main language Farsi. see Iran pages <A HREF = "../../region/centrasia/xiran.html">at this site</A> <BR> most important city of Russian Siberia, founded in 1686 as a fortified outpost in <BR> potentially hostile country. Here the Transiberian railway was interrupted, as Lake <BR> Baikal was crossed by ferry. <BR> large city in Iran; capital of the Safavid Dynasty 16th century-1722, when it was raided <BR> by Afghans. <BR> While Shah Reza Pahlevi and his wives enjoyed popularity in the western tabloid press, <BR> his rule benefitted a small pro-western elite, while the urban poor suffered. The secret <BR> police suppressed political opposition. In the late 1970es, Shah Reza Pahlevi was <BR> critically ill; in this situation Ayatollah Khomeini, from his exile in Paris, called on the <BR> Muslims in Iran to stand up against the government; his speeches (on tape) where <BR> distributed in the mosques of Iran. In 1979 the Shah was flown to the U.S.A. to <BR> receive treatment; mass demonstrations resulted in the appointment of a new secular <BR> administration, which again was overturned; Iran was declared an Islamic Republic. <BR> Iran is a democracy, in which a Council of Guardians approves or disqualifies candidates <BR> who want to run for election. <BR> (here the second Jin Dynasty is referred to) 1125-1234, also called the Jurchen Dynasty, <BR> ruled Manchuria, adjacent stretches of eastern Mongolia and northern China until <BR> conquered by the Mongols. <BR> people who lived in and around Manchuria in the 12th, 13th century, respectively their <BR> language. Their state is referred to as the second Jin Dynasty. Used a script based on <BR> that of the Khitan. <BR> mentioned in the 4th century B.C., the main importance lay in her proximity to the <BR> Khyber Pass, the invasion route into India. In 1504, Babur conquered Kabul, from here <BR> he launched the conquest of Delhi in 1526. Capital of Afghanistan. <BR> Mongols who, in the early 17th century, from their homes in Dzungaria, migrated into <BR> the Lower Volga region. Buddhists. They were deported by Stalin in WW II, permitted <BR> to return by Khrushchev in 1957. The Kalmyk ASSR (within the RSFSR) was est. in <BR> 1935, dissolved in 1943, reestablished in 1958. Republic of Kalmykia-Khalmg-Tangeh <BR> proclaimed in 1992, within Russian Republic. <BR> When Khitan was conquered by the Jurchen, a branch of the Khitan migrated into <BR> Central Asia and established the Kara-Khitan Khanate in modern Kyrghyzstan, which <BR> lasted from 1125-1220, when it was conquered by the Mongols. <BR> important city in SW Xinjiang, on the rim of the Tarim Basin, on the Silk Road. <BR> Buddhist in the early centuries A.D., Islam introduced by the Uighurs in the 10th c. <BR> 1862-1877 center of the revolt of the Chinese Turkestan Muslims under Yakub Beg <BR> against Chinese rule. <BR> Established as the Kirghiz ASSR in 1920, renamed Kazakh ASSR in 1925; in 1926 <BR> the Kirghiz ASSR (not identical with the first; modern Kyrghyzstan) was split off. <BR> In 1936 elevated Kazakh SSR. Independent in 1991, with the dissolution of the USSR. <BR> Modern name for the former Kazakh SSR (since 1936), which, with the dissolution of <BR> the USSR in 1991, became independent. Capital, until 1997 Almaty, since 1997 <BR> Astana. Largest of the former Soviet Central Asian republics, considerable Russian <BR> minority. <BR> click <A HREF = "hdeeurope.html#kazan">here</A> <BR> people who lived in Manchuria; eastablished the state of the Liao Dynasty (907-1125) <BR> who controlled Manchuria, eastern Mongolia and parts of modern China. Developed <BR> the Khitan script. They werre conquered in 1125 by the Jurchen. A branch of the <BR> Khitan, the Kara-Khitan, migrated into modern Kyrghyzstan, where they established <BR> the Kara-Khitan state (1125-1220). <BR> established in 1517; Russian protectorate since 1873. abolished in 1924. <BR> or Huraltai, Mongolian assembly held on the occasion of the death of a Khan. Here <BR> the successor was approved and directives for the next conquests were given. <BR> Turkic people, pastoral nomads living in Central Asia when defeated by Genghis Khan. <BR> He regarded them troublemakers and sent them westward with the order to conquer. <BR> They took Kiev in 1240, fought the Battles of Legnica/Liegnitz and Sajo in 1241, <BR> established Khanate of Blue/Golden Horde (see there). <BR> established in 1710, with her center in Ferghana; conquered by the Russians in 1876. <BR> established in 1926. Not to be confused with the first, much larger Kirghiz ASSR, <BR> established in 1920, renamed Kazakh ASSR in 1925, of which this Kirghiz ASSR <BR> split off in 1926. In 1936 elevated SSR. Since 1991 independent as Kyrgyzstan. <BR> Former Kirghiz ASSR (est. 1926), elevated SSR in 1936, independent since 1991. <BR> capital Bishkek. Muslimic. <BR> In the 16th century the Kazakhs divided into three divisions; the Lesser Horde, <BR> which occupied western Kazakhstan. Accepted Russian protection in 1731. <BR> see account from <A HREF = "http://www.sitara.com/kazak/history.html">Welcome to Kazakhstan</A> <BR> see under Khitan <BR> In the 16th century the Kazakhs divided into three divisions; the Middle Horde, <BR> which occupied north-central Kazakhstan. Accepted Russian protection in 1730. <BR> see account from <A HREF = "http://www.sitara.com/kazak/history.html">Welcome to Kazakhstan</A> <BR> a people inhabiting Manchuria; in the early 17th century established the Later Jin <BR> Dynasty which in 1636 was changed into the Qing Dynasty; in western sources <BR> often referred to as the Manchu Dynasty. They conquered Beijing in 1644, <BR> subsequently all of China, in the early 18th century Mongolia, Xinjiang and Tibet. <BR> Ruled China until 1911. The Manchurian people are almost completely absorbed <BR> by the Chinese. Manchurian script. <BR> historical region in NE Asia, long home to pastoral nomadic people, among them <BR> the Khitan, Jurchen and Manchu. Opened for Chinese settlement late in the 19th <BR> century; from 1931 to 1944 Japanese satellite state (Manchukuo); since 1946 <BR> again Chinese; in modern diction Northeastern China. <BR> developed in 1599, based on the Mongolian. Today only used by a small number <BR> of writers outside of Manchuria. Written from top to bottom. <BR> modern Mongolia (Outer Mongolia) emerged out of Khalkha Mongolia, a Lamaist <BR> theocracy 1638-1924, which recognized Qing Chinese sovereignty since 1691. <BR> The Treaty of Nerchinsk 1689 between Russia and China allocated the Buryat <BR> Mongols to Russia. In 1911 (Outer) Mongolia declared independence from China, <BR> Tannu Touva separated from Mongolia in the following years. Mongolia was declared <BR> a People's Republic in 1924. Democratization came in 1990-1992. <BR> introduced in the 12th century, adapted from Sogdian. Used in Mongolia until <BR> 1943, when it was replaced by Cyrillic. <BR> Arabic, literally 'holy warriors'. In Iran, leftist guerillas striving for a socialist republic <BR> in 1979 and following called themselves People's Mujahedeen; more famous were <BR> the Afghan Mujahedeen who resisted Soviet occupation 1979-1989. <BR> or Sassanid Empire, established in 226 A.D. by Shapur I. who toppled the ruling <BR> Parthian Dynasty and reintroduced Zoroastrianism as state religion, ending <BR> Hellenism in Iran. Conquered by the Caliphate in 651. <BR> in the 15th century, the Mongol people split in two branches, the Khalkha and the <BR> Oyrat Mongols; the Oyrats lived to the west of the Khalkha. Under Khan Eden Taiji <BR> they temporarily threatened Ming China. They later were defeated by the Khalkha; <BR> the Kalmyks are a branch of the Oyrat. <BR> ruled Iran from 1926 to 1979. During and after WW II only nominally in charge; <BR> after Mossadegh was toppled in 1953, Shah Reza Pahlevi assumed control. In <BR> 1979 toppled by the Islamic Revolution. <BR> Mongolian Peace, term expressing the situation which allowed merchants such as <BR> the Polo family and papal ambassadors to travel overland from Europe to China and <BR> back. Despite episodic wars between the Mongolian Khanates, lasted from c.1240 <BR> to the 1290es. <BR> 1905-1906, compelled Shah Mozaffar ad-Din to grant a constitution which established <BR> the Majlis, Iran's parliament. The Revolution was also somewhat xenophobic, as the <BR> British and Russian embassies tried to pressurize the Shah for concessions etc. <BR> Ruled Iran from 1795 to 1926. <BR> first established in Azerbaijan in 1501; extended their influence over all of Iran, fought <BR> off Ottoman attempts to conquer the country. Established Shi'ite Islam as state <BR> religion; moved capital to Isfahan in 1598. Ruled until Isfahan was taken by Afghan <BR> raiders in 1722. <BR> dynasty ruling eastern Persia and adjacent Chorasan from 819 to c.1000, nominally <BR> subject to the Abbasid Caliphate, Muslim. A Persian state, with developed civilization, <BR> home to physician Avicenna. Fell to the Seljuk Turks. <BR> ancient city located on the Silk Road; taken by Alexander the Great in 329 B.C., <BR> capital of Timur Lenk's Empire 1370-1405, again capital under his grandson Ulugh <BR> Beg 1417-1449. In 1868 conquered by the Russians. <BR> also spelled Sasanid Dynasty, see under Neo-Persian Empire <BR> Genghis Khan's Mongols, when conquering the largest Empire in history, provided <BR> over excellent intelligence. Mongolians learnt the languages of the conquered <BR> peoples respectively of their enemies, and, despite having a script of their own, few <BR> Mongol records have survived, in part because the Mongolians were secretive. One <BR> text that has survived is the Secret History of the Mongols, from c.1240. see <BR> article from <A HREF = "http://altaica.narod.ru/shengl.htm">Monumenta Altaica</A> <BR> Uzbek Dynasty which ruled Samarkand-Bukhara 1505-1598. Then they were <BR> overthrown by the Astrakhanids (see under Astrakhan). <BR> a religion in which gods perceived to be present in animals, rivers, mountains etc. <BR> are worshipped; shamans functioned as priests. The pastoral nomads of Central <BR> Asia were Shamanist, before accepting religions such as Buddhism or Islam. <BR> In some regions of Siberia, Shamanism is still practiced. <BR> broke away from the Khanate of the Golden Horde in 1464; conquered by Yermak <BR> for the Stroganoff family in 1582, soon annexed by Russia. covered only the <BR> extreme west of the region today known as Siberia. Muslim. <BR> name given by historians to an ancient network of overland trade routes which <BR> connected China with Mesopotamia, Persia and the Mediterranean. The oasis <BR> along the Silk Road (Dunhuang, Kashgar, Samarkand, Tashkent) were ancient <BR> centers of civilization. <BR> historical region in Central Asia; Persian satrapy located between Amu-Darja <BR> and Syr-Darja. Between 3rd and 8th centuries A.D. a Kingdom; Sogdian script. <BR> In the 8th century conquered by the Caliphate. <BR> a belt of grasslands stretching from western Mongolia over Kazakhstan, southern <BR> Russia and Ukraine into Wallachia. A route taken by numerous Central Asian <BR> invaders of eastern Europe - which in many cases were expelled by other <BR> pastoral nomads who claimed their pastures. The last to take this route were the <BR> Kalmyks. <BR> In 1924 the Tajik ASSR was created, out of the Tajik sections of the Khanate of <BR> Bukhara; later adjacent stretches of land were added. In 1936 elevated a SSR, <BR> in 1991 independent; then experienced civil war. see Tajikistan pages <BR> <A HREF = "../../region/centrasia/xtajikistan.html">at this site</A> <BR> until 1911 part of Mongolia - which again was a Lamaist theocracy and a satellite <BR> of Qing China. Mongolia declared independence in 1911; Tannu Touva split off <BR> when Mongolia briefly was occupied by Chinese troops 1919-1921. Was annexed <BR> by the USSR in 1944. see Tannu Touva pages <A HREF = "../../region/centrasia/xtouva.html">at this site</A> <BR> radical Islamic Afghan faction; established control over most of Afghanistan in <BR> 1992, ending years of fragmentation under a number of warlords. Supported from <BR> Pakistan. They strictly enforced Islam; underheld training camps for terrorists, <BR> grew opium for export; destroyed the Buddha reliefs at Bamiyan. The Taliban <BR> government was ousted by an international coalition late in 2001. <BR> city located on the Silk Road, has important monuments dating back in the 16th <BR> century. Capital of Uzbekistan since 1925. <BR> city in Iran, capital since 1795 (begin of the Qajar Dynasty). At present a population <BR> of over 11 million. <BR> region in Central Asia standing out for her high altitude, a plateau over 4000 m high. <BR> During the 7th to 9th century a power, episodically invading Bengal or China. Since <BR> 1642 a Lamaist theocracy, since 1724 a Chinese vassall. Declared independence <BR> in 1911; Chinese sovereignty was restored in 1950/1951. A Tibetan revolt against <BR> Chinese rule failed in 1959; the Dalai Lama fled to India that year. <BR> the descendants of Timur Lenk. Timurid Babur in 1526 established Mughal Empire. <BR> constructed between 1891 and 1905, with French capital. 9,288 km long, <BR> connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East. <BR> see under Tannu Touva <BR> geographical expression describing southern Central Asia, consisting of Western <BR> (or Russian) Turkestan and Eastern (Chinese) Turkestan. In 1865 the Russian <BR> province of Turkestan was created (covering only southern parts of West Turkestan). <BR> Dissolved in 1924, when the Turkmen, Uzbek and Tajik ASSRs were created. <BR> established as Turkmen ASSR in 1924, elevated to an SSR in 1936, independent <BR> in 1991. <BR> A Turkic people; following the collapse of the Gokturk Empire they established a <BR> Khanate in the 8th century, which between 850 and 1218 controlled Xinjiang. <BR> At first Buddhist / Manichaean, in the 10th century they converted to Islam. <BR> Conquered by the Mongols. <BR> In the 16th century, the Uzbek Turks conquered the region of modern Uzbekistan. <BR> The Khanates of Khiva and Bukhara were basically Uzbek states. In 1924 the <BR> Uzbek ASSR was established; in 1936 elevated a SSR, in 1991 independent. <BR> geographical expression describing the area covered by the modern republics of <BR> Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. Used since <BR> the 19th century. <BR> older spelling Sinkiang, Chinese name for East Turkestan. Chinese (Qing) province <BR> since the early 18th century; Muslim population majority; in 1862-1877 site of <BR> rebellion of Xinjiang Muslims under Jakub Beg. <BR> Mongol Dynasty ruling China 1260/1279-1378. Favoured Buddhism, international <BR> trade. Overthrown in 1368 by the Ming Dynasty. Most famous Yuan ruler Kublai <BR> Khan. <BR> </font></TD> </TR></TABLE> <BR><BR> <TABLE border = "0" cellspace="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"> <TR> <TD align = "left" valign = "center" width = "700"> <font face = "Times Roman" size = "2"> PRINTED REFERENCE : <BR> Alan J.K. Sanders, Historical Dictionary of Mongolia, Rowman & Littlefield 1996, [G] <BR> </font></TD></TR></TABLE> <BR><BR> </DIV> </DIV> <DIV align="center"> <A href="mailto:aganse@hotmail.com"> <IMG src="../../email.gif" border="0"></a><BR> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <!-- Start of CH Counter --> <script type="text/javascript"> //<!-- // chCounter v2.0.0 // settings: cstatus = "active"; visible = "0"; path_to_counterfile = "http://www.zum.de/whkmla/counter/counter.php"; urlhp = "http://www.zum.de"; //////////////// url = unescape(location.href); file = url.substring(url.lastIndexOf(urlhp) + urlhp.length, url.length); file = (file.charAt(0) != "/") ? 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