Sughd Province, also referred to as the

Sogdia Sogdia () or Sogdiana was an ancient Iranian peoples, Iranian civilization between the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, and in present-day Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Sogdiana was also a province of the Achaemen ...

Region, and Leninabad before 2001, is one of the four administrative divisions and one of the three

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

that make up

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

. Centered in the historical

Sogdiana Sogdia () or Sogdiana was an ancient Iranian civilization between the Amu Darya and the Syr Darya, and in present-day Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. Sogdiana was also a province of the Achaemenid Empire, and l ...

, it is located in the northwest of the country, with an area of some 25,400 square kilometers and a population of 2,707,300 (2020 estimate), up from 2,233,550 according to the 2010 census and 1,871,979 in 2000. The capital is

Khujand Khujand, sometimes spelled Khodjent and formerly known as Leninabad from 1936 to 1991, is the second-largest city of Tajikistan and the capital of Tajikistan's northernmost Sughd province. Khujand is one of the oldest cities in Central Asia, d ...

. The Province's ethnic composition in 2010 was 84% Tajik, 14.8% Uzbek, 0.6% Kyrgyz, 0.4% Russian and 0.1% Tatar. The province shares a border with

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

( Surxondaryo, Qashqadaryo,

Jizzakh Jizzakh ( ; , ) is a city and the center of Jizzakh Region in Uzbekistan, located in the northeast of Samarkand. It is a district-level city. The population of Jizzakh is 179,200 (2020 est.).Sirdaryo Sirdaryo ( / ; ) is a city in Sirdaryo Region of Uzbekistan. It serves as the administrative center of Sirdaryo District. Its population is 28,800 (2016). Climate Sirdaryo has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification ...

Namangan Namangan is a district-level city in eastern Uzbekistan. It is the administrative, economic, and cultural center of Namangan Region. Namangan is located in the northern edge of the Fergana Valley, less than 30 km from the Kyrgyzstan border ...

Samarkand Samarkand ( ; Uzbek language, Uzbek and Tajik language, Tajik: Самарқанд / Samarqand, ) is a city in southeastern Uzbekistan and among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in Central As ...

Tashkent Tashkent (), also known as Toshkent, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uzbekistan, largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of more than 3 million people as of April 1, 2024. I ...

and

Fergana Fergana ( uz-Latn-Cyrl, Fargʻona, Фарғона, ), () or Ferghana, also Farghana is a district-level city and the capital of Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan. Fergana is about 320 km east of Tashkent, about 75 km southwest of A ...

regions),

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

(

Osh Osh is a city in Kyrgyzstan. Osh or OSH may also refer to: * Osh (food), in Tajik and Uzbek cuisines * Osh (singer) (born 1995), English singer and rapper * OSH, the IATA code for Wittman Regional Airport near Oshkosh, Wisconsin, United States ...

and

Batken Batken (also called Batkent) is a town in southwestern Kyrgyzstan, on the southern fringe of the Fergana Valley. It is the administrative seat of Batken Region. Since 2000, it is a city of regional significance, i.e. not part of a district. Howeve ...

regions) and

Districts of Republican Subordination Districts under Tajikistan Central Government Jurisdiction, also translated as Districts of Republican Subordination or Districts under Republic(an) Subordination (; , Latin Tajik alphabet: ), is a region in Tajikistan, consisting of 9 distric ...

. The

Syr Darya The Syr Darya ( ),; ; ; ; ; /. historically known as the Jaxartes ( , ), is a river in Central Asia. The name, which is Persian language, Persian, literally means ''Syr Sea'' or ''Syr River''. It originates in the Tian Shan, Tian Shan Mountain ...

river flows through it. It contains the Akash Massif and

Mogoltau Massif Important Bird Area The Mogoltau Massif Important Bird Area is a 268 km2 tract of land in north-eastern Sughd Province in northwestern Tajikistan. It has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA). Description The Mogoltau Mass ...

s. Sughd is separated from the rest of Tajikistan by the

Gissar Range The Hisar Range, formerly the Gissar Range, is a mountain range in Central Asia, in the western part of the Pamir-Alay system, stretching over 200 km in the general east–west direction across the territory of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. G ...

(passes may be closed in winter). The southern part of the region is the east-west valley of the upper

Zarafshan River The Zarafshon is a river in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan in Central Asia. Its name, "spreader of gold" in Persian language, Persian, refers to the presence of gold-bearing sands in the upper reaches of the river. To the ancient Greeks it was known ...

. North, over the Turkestan Range, is the

Ferghana Valley The Fergana Valley (also commonly spelled the Ferghana Valley) in Central Asia crosses eastern Uzbekistan, southern Kyrgyzstan and northern Tajikistan. Encompassing three former Soviet republics, the valley is ethnically diverse and relation ...

. The region has 29% of Tajikistan's population and one-third of its

arable land Arable land (from the , "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the purposes of a ...

. It produces two-thirds of the country's GDP.Robert Middleton and Huw Thomas, 'Tajikistan and the High Pamirs', Odyssey Books, 2008, page 166

Economy

The economy of Sughd has been growing steadily since 2000, at the average rate of 13.2% in 2008 and 13.3% in 2009.''Socio-economic situation of the Sughd oblast'', Statistics Committee of Sughd oblast, Khujand: January–March 2010 (in Tajik and Russian) In 2009, farming, trade and industrial production contributed 28.2%, 25.8% and 14.0% to the GRP (gross regional product) of Sughd, respectively. Since 2000, the output of industrial production increased two-fold, at an average annual growth rate of 5–8%. A

free economic zone A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re- exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subjec ...

has been established in the region called

Sughd Free Economic Zone {{Multiple issues, {{Unreferenced, date=September 2022 {{Update, date=September 2022 Sughd free economic zone (Sughd FEZ) is an industrial-innovative type, which was established in 2009 according to the Decree of the Government of the Republic of ...

Demographics

Districts

The province is divided into 10

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

(, '' nohiya'' or , ''raion'') and 8 district-level cities. Furthermore, several cities (''shahr'') also cover other towns (''shahrak'') and rural localities. These are listed under "city districts".

Districts of Sughd

Asht District Asht District or Nohiya-i Asht (; ) is a Districts of Tajikistan, district in the northernmost tip of Sughd Region, Tajikistan, bordering on Uzbekistan to the north, the east, and the south. Its capital is the town Shaydon. The population of the d ...

Ayni District Ayni District, also ''Aini District'' (; , ''Nohiyayi Aynī''), is a Districts of Tajikistan, district in the southern part of Sughd Region, Tajikistan, straddling the middle course of the river Zeravshan (river), Zeravshan. Its capital is the tow ...

Devashtich District Devashtich District (; ; before 2016 ''Ghonchi District'') is a Districts of Tajikistan, district in the center of Sughd Region, Tajikistan, located south of the regional capital, Khujand and bordering Kyrgyzstan to the east. Its capital is Ghonch ...

Ghafurov District Ghafurov District (; ) is a district in the northern part of Sughd Region, Tajikistan. Its capital is Ghafurov, a town in the south of the district. The district surrounds, but does not include the cities Khujand Khujand, sometimes spelled Kh ...

Kuhistoni Mastchoh District Kuhistoni Mastchoh District or Nohiya-i Kuhistoni Mastchoh (), also known as the Gorno-Matchinsky Region () is a district in Sughd Region, Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Du ...

Mastchoh District Mastchoh District or Nohiya-i Mastchoh (, ''Nohiya‘i Mastçoh/Nohijaji Mastcoh'') is a district in Sughd Region, Tajikistan. It is located at the extreme north of the country, between Ghafurov district and the border with Uzbekistan , image ...

Spitamen District Spitamen District (; ) is a district in north-central Sughd, Tajikistan, stretching across the province's narrow part from the border with Uzbekistan to the border with Kyrgyzstan. Population 141,600 (2020 est.). Formerly called Nau District () or ...

Jabbor Rasulov District Jabbor Rasulov District ( ''Nohiyai Jabbor Rasulov'') is a district in Sughd Region, Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous ...

Shahriston District Shahriston District (; ''Nohiyai Shahriston'') is a district in Sughd Region, Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. ...

* Zafarobod District

City districts

Sughd province counts the following 8 district-level cities (with population estimate as of 2020): *

(Leninabad) (183,600) * Buston (Chkalovsk) (34,000) * Guliston (Kayrakkum) (18,000) *

Istiqlol 220px, Old Istiqlol Istiqlol (; , formerly Taboshar) is a city in Tajikistan, located in Sughd Region. Istiqlol is a city of regional subordination, administratively subordinated to the regional capital of Khujand. The first Soviet uranium mi ...

(Taboshar) (17,600) *

Isfara Isfara (; ) is a city in Sughd Region in northern Tajikistan, situated on the border with Kyrgyzstan. The city was the seat of the former Isfara District. There are currently territorial disputes between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan over the area ...

(51,700) *

Istaravshan Istaravshan (; ) is a city in Sughd Province in Tajikistan. In 2000, the Tajik government changed the name of the city from Uroteppa (; ''Ura-Tyube'', ). The city lies in the northern foothills of the Turkistan mountain range, 78 kilometers so ...

(Ura-Tyube) (65,600) *

Konibodom Konibodom (, ; ) is a city in the Sughd Region of northern Tajikistan, in western Fergana Valley. It has a population of 54,400 (2022 est.). Etymology The city was mentioned in Sogdian documents recovered from the Qal'a-yi Mugh archaeologic ...

(52,500) *

Panjakent Panjakent () or Penjikent () is a city in the Sughd province of Tajikistan on the river Zeravshan (river), Zeravshan, with a population of 52,500 (2020 estimate). It was once an ancient town in Sogdiana. The ruins of the old town are on the outsk ...

(43,300)

Notable people

Ruslan Ablayev Ruslan Zudiyevich Ablayev (; born 29 June 1972) is a Russian professional football coach and a former player. He works as a goalkeeping coach with FC Fakel Voronezh. Club career He played one season in the Russian Premier League in 1992 for FC ...

(born 1972), Russian professional football coach and former player *

Lex Fridman Alexei "Lex" Fridman (; born 15 August 1983) is an American computer scientist and podcaster. Since 2018, he has hosted the ''Lex Fridman Podcast'', where he interviews notable figures from various fields such as science, technology, sports, and ...

, Host of the Lex Fridman podcast and Youtube series, researcher at MIT

Notes

References

External links

citypopulation.de

Official Website of the Free Economic Zone of Sughd
{{Authority control Sughd Region Regions of Tajikistan