The Samarkand klan (alternatively Samarqand) is an Uzbek clan led by

Ismoil Jurabekov Ismoil is a jamoat in north-west Tajikistan. It is located in Ghafurov District in Sughd Region. The jamoat has a total population of 19,844 (2015).

.Collins, p. 255 The clan is one of two major clans in Uzbekistan; the other, its main rival, is the

Tashkent clan The Tashkent clan is a powerful political clan based in Tashkent, Uzbekistan that controls the Uzbek National Security Service (known as the SNB, or MHH), and since late 2005 the Interior Ministry. The Samarkand clan is its biggest rival for c ...

. To a lesser extent, the Ferghana clan is also a rival.Sengupta, p. 286 Former Uzbek

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Islam Karimov Islam Abduganiyevich Karimov ( uz, Islom Abdugʻaniyevich Karimov / Ислом Абдуғаниевич Каримов, italics=no; russian: link=no, Ислам Абдуганиевич Каримов; 30 January 1938 – 2 September 2016) was t ...

and current President

Shavkat Mirziyoyev Shavkat Miromonovich Mirziyoyev ( Uzbek Latin: ''Shavkat Miromonovich (Miromon o‘g‘li) Mirziyoyev'', Uzbek Cyrillic: Шавкат Миромонович (Миромон ўғли) Мирзиёев ; born 24 July 1957) is an Uzbek politician ...

come from the Samarkand clan.Uzbekistan: Karimov Appears To Have Political Clans Firmly In Hand
RFE/RL. 31 August 2006. Accessed 24 June 2009.

Background

In contemporary Uzbekistan, tribes no longer exist. Modern Uzbek clans either operate at the family level or at the national level. The term "clan" today usually refers to patronage networks created by marriage or friendship.Collins, p. 254 Some prefer to call the groups "factions".Roy, p. 13 The government of Uzbekistan, since the

fall Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September ( Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Sout ...

of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

, has attempted to deny existence of clan politics.Sengupta, p. 285

History

The Samarkand clan came to power in Uzbekistan in 1983 after it replaced the Ferghana Clan.Roy, p. 128

Ismoil Jurabekov Ismoil is a jamoat in north-west Tajikistan. It is located in Ghafurov District in Sughd Region. The jamoat has a total population of 19,844 (2015).

, the head of the Samarkand clan, is known as "the Gray Cardinal" because of his role in bringing

to power. However, by 1993, Karimov began to restrict the power of the Samarkand clan. Karimov's patronage of the Samarkand clan had been causing discontent among the other clans, and he wished to stop this resentment to prevent revolt.Collins, p. 263 In the following years, he continued to weaken the power of all clans in the country. Jurabekov became an adviser to Karimov, but was ousted in 2004 after criminal allegations were made against him, in a move thought to strengthen the rival Tashkent clan. Jurabekov had previously been one of the most powerful men in the country. Interior Minister

Zokir Almatov Zokir Almatov (born 10 October 1949 in Zangiata, Tashkent Region, Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union), sometimes romanized Zakir, was an Uzbek politician who was the interior minister of Uzbekistan until 2005. In 1967 he graduated from high school and immed ...

, from the Samarkand clan, also resigned in late 2005, citing poor health.

References

Bibliography

* * * {{cite book , last = Sengupta , first = Anita , title = The formation of the Uzbek nation-state: a study in transition , publisher = Lexington Books , year = 2003 , url = https://books.google.com/books?id=PC5SZ_NwARgC&pg=PR1 , isbn = 978-0-7391-0618-1 Ethnic groups in Uzbekistan Politics of Uzbekistan Central Asia Clans Shavkat Mirziyoev

Background

History

See also

References

Bibliography