Isfara ( tg, Исфара fa, اسفره; russian: Исфара) is a city in
Sughd Region
Sughd Province ( tg, Вилояти Суғд, Viloyati Sughd, Sogdia Region , fa, ولایت سغد) is one of the four administrative divisions and one of the three provinces ( tg, вилоятҳо, viloyatho , fa, ولایت) that make up ...
in northern
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
, situated on the border with
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...
. The city was the seat of the former
Isfara District.
There are currently territorial disputes between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan over the area of Isfara Valley.
History

The first author who mentions Esfara as a town, is
Bābor. He praised the orchards and fruits of Isfara, especially its almonds. The 16th century saw the construction of large public buildings, notably
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a Place of worship, place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers (sujud) ...
s and
medreseh
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated ' ...
. In the 18th century Isfara was the seat of the Khan of Ḵoqand whose wars with Bokhara resulted in the destruction of some historical monuments.
Around 20 km south, in the village of
Chorku, the
mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be con ...
Hazrati Shoh Mausoleum, is carved from wood, partly dating back to the 8th century, a structure that is unique in Central Asia.
Demographics
The population of Isfara is mostly
Tajik
Tajik, Tadjik, Tadzhik or Tajikistani may refer to:
* Someone or something related to Tajikistan
* Tajiks, an ethnic group in Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Uzbekistan
* Tajik language, the official language of Tajikistan
* Tajik (surname)
* Tajik cu ...
.
Geography
Isfara is situated near the border junction of three independent states
Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
,
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
and
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...
, at a height of 863m above sea level. The river
Isfara flows through the city. Its territory is 832 km
2.
Climate
The average temperature is 11.8 °C (53.2 °F) with the warmest month being July with an average temperature of 25 °C (77 °F) and the coldest month being January with an average temperature of -2.7 °C (27.1 °F). The average amount of precipitation is 544.6mm (21.4") and there are on average 74.3 days of participation.
Subdivisions
Before ca. 2018, Isfara was the seat of
Isfara District, which covered the same area as the present city of Isfara.
[ The city of Isfara covers Isfara proper, three towns and nine jamoats.][ These are as follows:][Jamoat-level basic indicators]
United Nations Development Programme in Tajikistan, accessed 3 October 2020
Economy
Some 20 industrial companies in Isfara produce electrical equipment, chemical and metallurgical products, construction materials, food products and others.
Isfara is famous for its apricot orchards.
See also
* List of cities in Tajikistan
This is a list of cities in Tajikistan.
The largest metropolitan area in Tajikistan is that of the capital Dushanbe, with 863,400 inhabitants (2020 est.). Thirteen percent of the population of the country lives in the region of the capital.
...
References
{{Sughd
Populated places in Sughd Region
Cities in Central Asia
Kyrgyzstan–Tajikistan border crossings