Karakalpakstan
Coordinates: 43°10′N 58°45′E / 43.167°N 58.75°E
| Republic of Karakalpakstan
Qaraqalpaqstan Respublikası
Қарақалпақстан Республикасы Qoraqalpog‘iston Respublikasi Қоракалпоғистон Республикаси |
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 Political map of Karakalpakstan
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 Location of Karakalpakstan (coloured purple) with surrounding countries
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| Capital | Nukus[1] | |||||
| Official language(s) | Karakalpak, Uzbek | |||||
| Demonym | Karakalpak | |||||
| Government | Autonomous republic of Uzbekistan[2] | |||||
| - | President of the republic | Musa Erniyazov | ||||
| Autonomy | within Uzbekistan | |||||
| - | First mention of Karakalpaks | 1500s[3] | ||||
| - | Ceded to the Russian Empire | 1867[4] | ||||
| Area | ||||||
| - | Total | 164,900 km2 61,800 sq mi |
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| Population | ||||||
| - | 2007 estimate | 1,571,800 | ||||
| - | Density | 7.5/km2 19.4/sq mi |
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| Currency | Som (UZS) |
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Karakalpakstan (Karakalpak: Qaraqalpaqstan Respublikası or Қарақалпақстан Республикасы; Uzbek: Qoraqalpog‘iston Respublikasi or Қоракалпоғистон Республикаси) is an autonomous republic of Uzbekistan. It occupies the whole western end of Uzbekistan. The capital is Nukus (Karakalpak: No'kis or Нөкис). The Republic of Karakalpakstan has an area of 160,000 square kilometres (62,000 sq mi). Its territory covers the classical land of Khwarezm, though in classical Persian literature the area was known as "Kāt کات".
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[edit] History
From about 500 BC to 500 AD the region of Karakalpakstan was a thriving agricultural area supported by extensive irrigation.[5] The Karakalpak people, who were formerly nomadic herders and fishers, were first recorded in the 16th century.[3] Karakapakstan was ceded to the Russian Empire by the Khanate of Khiva in 1867. Under Soviet rule it was originally an autonomous area within Kazakhstan before becoming part of Uzbekistan in 1936.[4] The region was probably at its most prosperous in the 1960s and 1970s when irrigation from the Amu Darya was being expanded. Today, however, the destruction of the Aral Sea has rendered Karakalpakstan one of Uzbekistan's poorest regions.[3] The region is suffering from extensive drought, partly due to weather patterns, but also largely because the Amu and Syr Darya rivers are exploited mostly in the eastern part of the country. Crop failures have deprived about 48,000 of their main source of income and shortages of potable water have created a surge in infectious diseases.[6]
[edit] Geography
Karakalpakstan is mostly desert and is located in western Uzkebistan near the Aral Sea.[6][1] It has an area of 164,900 km²[2] and is surrounded by desert. The Kyzyl Kum desert is located to the east and the Kara Kum desert is located to the south. A rocky plateau extends west to the Caspian Sea.[5]
[edit] Politics
The republic of Karakalpakstan is formally sovereign and shares veto power over decisions concerning it with Uzbekistan. According to the constitution, relations between Karakalpakstan and Uzbekistan are "regulated by treaties and agreements" and any disputes are "settled by way of reconciliation". Its right to secede is limited by the veto power of Uzbekistan's legislature over any decision to secede.[2]
[edit] Demographics
The population of Karakalpakstan is estimated at 1.2 million, of whom about 400,000 are of the Karakalpak ethnic group, 400,000 are Uzbeks, and 300,000 are Kazakhs.[3] Their name means "Black Hat", but Karakalpak culture was so lost through Sovietization that the original meaning of the black hat is now unknown. The Karakalpak language is considered closer to Kazakh than to Uzbek. Indeed there are accusations that the ethnic group was an invention of the Soviet government to divide the Kazakh population.[7] The language was written in a modified Cyrillic in Soviet times and in the Latin alphabet since 1996.
Other than the capital Nukus, large cities include Xojeli (Uzbek: Xo'jayli; Russian: Ходжейли), Shimbai (Шымбай), Konirat (Қоңырат) and Moynaq (Uzbek: Mo'ynoq; Russian: Муйнак), a former Aral Sea port now some 85 kilometres (53 mi) inland.
[edit] Economy
The economy of the region, formerly heavily dependent on fisheries, is now supported by cotton, rice and melons. Hydroelectric power from a large Soviet-built station on the Amu Darya is also important.
The Amu Darya delta was once heavily populated, and supported extensive irrigation based agriculture for thousands of years. Under the Khorezm, the area attained considerable power and prosperity. However, the gradual climate change over the centuries, accelerated by human induced evaporation of the Aral Sea in the late 20th century has created an apocalyptic scene in the region. The ancient oasis of rivers, lakes, reed marshes, forests and farms are drying up and being poisoned by wind-borne salt as well as fertilizer and pesticide residues from the dried bed of the Aral Sea. Summer temperatures have risen 10 degrees Celsius and winter temperatures have decreased by 10 degrees Celsius. The rate of anemia, respiratory diseases, and other health problems has risen dramatically.[8]
[edit] Administrative divisions
| District name | District capital | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amudarya District | Man'g'it |
| 2 | Beruniy District | Beruniy |
| 3 | Shimbay District | Shimbay |
| 4 | Ellikqala District | Bostan |
| 5 | Kegeyli District | Kegeyli |
| 6 | Moynaq District | Moynaq |
| 7 | No'kis District | Aqman'g'it |
| 8 | Qonliko‘l District | Qanliko‘l |
| 9 | Qon'irat District | Qon'irat |
| 10 | Qarao'zek District | Qarao'zek |
| 11 | Shomanay District | Shomanay |
| 12 | Taxtako‘pir District | Taxtako‘pir |
| 13 | To'rtko‘l District | To‘rtko‘l |
| 14 | Xojeli District | Xojeli |
*Kegeyli district was created in 2004 by the merger of former Bozatau district (the northern part of district 5 on the map) and former Kegeyli district (the south-eastern part of district 5). This merger was effected by Resolution 598-II of the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan (11 February 2004) and Resolution 225 of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan (11 May 2004), which abolished Bozatau district and created the enlarged Kegeyli district. Prior to that date, there were 15 districts in Karakalpakstan. See Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Karakalpakstan and Karakalpakstan on gov.uz.
[edit] Independence movement
Recently the website of Radio Free Europe broadcast a report on the beginnings of an independence movement in Karakalpakstan due to the bad environmental and social conditions of the republic, though other residents and politicians from the region strongly deny the existence or desire for a genuine independence movement.[9]
[edit] Technology
[edit] Radio
In 2009, the first radio station of Karakalpakstan was opened. The station is called Nukus FM, which broadcasts on radiowave 100.4 MHz and only in Nukus. The radio doesn't broadcast online, but one can listen to the samples online on the music website of Karakalpakstan.[10]
[edit] See also
- Karakalpak Autonomous Oblast
- Karakalpak language
- Provinces of Uzbekistan
- Aral Sea
- Delta Blues (documentary film)
- Human rights in Uzbekistan
[edit] References
- ^ a b Batalden, Stephen K.; Batalden, Sandra L. (1997). The newly independent states of Eurasia: handbook of former Soviet republics. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 187. ISBN 0897749405. http://books.google.com/books?id=WFjPAxhBEaEC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s. Retrieved 2012-3-3.
- ^ a b c Roeder, Philip G. (2007). Where nation-states come from: institutional change in the age of nationalism. Princeton University Press. p. 55, 67. ISBN 0691134677. http://books.google.com/books?id=XAItI5C_JPUC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s. Retrieved 2012-3-3.
- ^ a b c d Mayhew, Bradley (2007). Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan. Lonely Planet. p. 258. ISBN 1741046149. http://books.google.com/books?id=DwX-UTmC1GwC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s. Retrieved 2012-3-3.
- ^ a b Eastern Europe, Russia and Central Asia. Taylor & Francis. 2002. p. 536. ISBN 1857431375. http://books.google.com/books?id=EPP3ti4hysUC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s. Retrieved 2012-3-3.
- ^ a b Bolton, Roy (2009). Russian Orientalism: Central Asia and the Caucasus. Sphinx Fine Art. p. 54. ISBN 1907200002. http://books.google.com/books?id=ppFqRnZXNWsC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s. Retrieved 2012-3-3.
- ^ a b Thomas, Troy S.; Kiser, Stephen D.; Casebeer, William D. (2005). Warlords rising: confronting violent non-state actors. Lexington Books. p. 30, 147 - 148. ISBN 0739111906. http://books.google.com/books?id=sgkIZDGtD1IC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s. Retrieved 2012-3-3.
- ^ Karakalpakstan: Uzbekistan’s latent conflict, January 6, 2012
- ^ Pearce, Fred (2007). When the Rivers Run Dry: Water, the Defining Crisis of the Twenty-first Century. Beacon Press. p. 211. ISBN 9780807085738. http://books.google.com/books?id=C0_q-90H1aAC&dq=karakalpakstan&source=gbs_navlinks_s.
- ^ Saidazimova, Gulnoza (2008). Uzbekistan: Shadowy Group Agitates For 'Free Karakalpakstan', Radio Free Europe, April 5, 2008
- ^ Nukus FM samples.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Karakalpakstan |
- Official website of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Karakalpakstan – http://sovminrk.gov.uz/lang/en/ (English)
- Karakalpakstan Tourism Site - http://www.karakalpakstan.org
- Karakalpakstan Photo galerey - http://www.karstars.com/photo/20
- Photos of Nukus city - http://enews.uz/index.php?newsid=29794 (Russian)
- Karakalpakstan online - http://www.kr.uz (Russian)
- Tours to Karakalpkstan - http://www.ayimtour.com
- Karakalpakstan – http://karakalpak.homestead.com
- Karakalpak music – http://berdakb.narod.ru
- Karakalpak language forum - http://www.karstars.com/forum
- Karakalpak media center - http://www.karstars.com/load
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