Naryn ( ; ) is the regional administrative center of

Naryn Region Naryn Region is the largest region of Kyrgyzstan. It is located in the east of the country and borders with Chüy Region in the north, Issyk-Kul Region in the northeast, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China in the southeast, Osh Region i ...

in central

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 ...

. Its area is , and its estimated population was 41,178 as of January 2021. The town was established as a fortress on the caravan route in 1868. It is situated on both banks of the river

Naryn Naryn ( ; ) is the regional administrative center of Naryn Region in central Kyrgyzstan. Its area is , and its estimated population was 41,178 as of January 2021. The town was established as a fortress on the caravan route in 1868. It is situated ...

(one of the main headwaters of 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 ...

), which cuts a picturesque gorge through the town. The city has two regional museums and some hotels, but is otherwise residential.

History

Naryn was established as a fortress on the important caravan route between

Kashgar Kashgar () or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is a city in the Tarim Basin region of southern Xinjiang, China. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, located near the country's border with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. For over 2,000 years, Kashgar ...

and

Zhetysu Jetisu ( ) or Semirechye ( rus, Семиречье, p=sʲɪmʲɪˈrʲetɕje) or Heptopotamia is a historical region in Central Asia corresponding to the southeastern part of modern Kazakhstan. Name Jetisu is also transcribed Jeti-Suu (, ), Zh ...

(Semirechye) at the direction of the first Governor-General of Russian Turkestan Konstantin Petrovich von Kaufmann in 1868.

Overview

From Naryn, the main road (one of the branches of the ancient

Silk Road The Silk Road was a network of Asian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over , it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the ...

) runs south through the sparsely settled central Kyrgyz highlands to the

Torugart Pass Torugart Pass (, , ; ; ) is a mountain pass in the Tian Shan mountain range near the border between the Naryn Region of Kyrgyzstan and the Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China. It is one of two border crossings between Kyrgyzstan and China, the o ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. At present, this is the main transport link from Kyrgyzstan to China. Naryn hosts one of three

campus A campus traditionally refers to the land and buildings of a college or university. This will often include libraries, lecture halls, student centers and, for residential universities, residence halls and dining halls. By extension, a corp ...

es of the

University of Central Asia The University of Central Asia (UCA) ''() i''s a Secularity, secular, Nonprofit organization, non-profit, research university in Central Asia. It was founded by an international charter between the governments of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakh ...

(UCA)
/small>. The

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

was founded in 2000 by the governments of

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, the

Kyrgyz Republic Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the capital and largest city. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to t ...

and

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 ...

, and His Highness the Aga Khan. It is the world's first internationally chartered institution of higher education. The UCA currently operates a School of Professional and Continuing Education (SPCE)
/small>, with a School of Undergraduate Studies and a Graduate School of Development in the process of being established. Undergraduate classes at the

’s (UCA) Naryn, Kyrgyz Republic campus commenced on 5 September 2016. The city has a

bandy Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two team sport, teams wearing Ice skates#Bandy skates, ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. The playin ...

club.Info on www.canadabandy.ca
File:Naryn buildings.jpg, Apartment buildings in Naryn file:Naryn statue.jpg, Statue in the main square of Naryn file:Naryncountryside.jpg, Countryside around Naryn.

Demographics

Naryn is the tenth largest city by population in Kyrgyzstan. Its resident population, according to the Population and Housing Census of 2009, was 34,822. According to the National Statistical Committee the population of Naryn amounted to 41,178 as of January 2021.

Economics

The economy of the Province is dominated by animal husbandry such as horse, sheep and yak, and wool and meat being the main products. Today, the district is the poorest region in the country. The mineral mines developed during the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

period were largely abandoned after the fall of communism as they were not profitable.

Climate

Naryn has a

cold semi-arid climate Cold is the presence of low temperature, especially in the atmosphere. In common usage, cold is often a subjective perception. A lower bound to temperature is absolute zero, defined as 0.00K on the Kelvin scale, an absolute thermodynamic ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''BSk'') with strong

continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' (album), an album by Saint Etienne * Continen ...

tendencies.

References

External links

Celestial Mountains Travel Encyclopedia of Kyrgyzstan
nglishbr>Photos from Naryn
nglish {{Authority control Populated places in Naryn Region Populated places along the Silk Road Populated places established in 1868 1868 establishments in the Russian Empire