Central Asia
Central Asia is a subregion of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the southwest and Eastern Europe in the northwest to Western China and Mongolia in the east,[4] and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.[5] The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian suffix "-stan" (meaning "land of") in both respective native languages and most other languages.[6]
Not to be confused with Soviet Central Asia.Area
4,003,451 km2 (1,545,741 sq mi)
17.43/km2 (45.1/sq mi)
$1.25 trillion (2023)[3]
$446 billion (2023)[3]
0.779 (high)
Central Asian
- UTC+05:00:
- Standard: Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan
- UTC+06:00:
- Standard: Kyrgyzstan
In the pre-Islamic and early Islamic eras (c. 1000 and earlier) Central Asia was inhabited predominantly by Iranian people,[7][8] populated by Eastern Iranian-speaking Bactrians, Sogdians, Chorasmians, and the semi-nomadic Scythians and Dahae. After expansion by Turkic people, Central Asia also became the homeland for the Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Tatars, Turkmens, Kyrgyz, and Uyghurs; Turkic languages largely replaced the Iranian languages spoken in the area, with the exception of Tajikistan and areas where Tajik is spoken.
The Silk Road trade routes crossed through Central Asia, leading to the rise of prosperous trade cities.[9][10] acting as a crossroads for the movement of people, goods, and ideas between Europe and the Far East.[11][12][13] Most countries in Central Asia are still integral to parts of the world economy.[14]
From the mid-19th century until almost the end of the 20th century, Central Asia was colonised by the Russians, and incorporated into the Russian Empire, and later the Soviet Union, which led to Russians and other Slavs emigrating into the area. Modern-day Central Asia is home to a large population of European settlers, who mostly live in Kazakhstan; 7 million Russians, 500,000 Ukrainians,[15][16][17] and about 170,000 Germans.[18] Stalinist-era forced deportation policies also mean that over 300,000 Koreans live there.[19]
Central Asia has a population of about 72 million, in five countries: Kazakhstan (19 million), Kyrgyzstan (7 million), Tajikistan (10 million), Turkmenistan (6 million), and Uzbekistan (35 million).[20]
Central Asia is a region of varied geography, including high passes and mountains (Tian Shan), vast deserts (Kyzyl Kum, Taklamakan), and especially treeless, grassy steppes. The vast steppe areas of Central Asia are considered together with the steppes of Eastern Europe as a homogeneous geographical zone known as the Eurasian Steppe.
Much of the land of Central Asia is too dry or too rugged for farming. The Gobi desert extends from the foot of the Pamirs, 77° E, to the Great Khingan (Da Hinggan) Mountains, 116°–118° E.
Central Asia has the following geographic extremes:
A majority of the people earn a living by herding livestock. Industrial activity centers in the region's cities.
Major rivers of the region include the Amu Darya, the Syr Darya, Irtysh, the Hari River and the Murghab River. Major bodies of water include the Aral Sea and Lake Balkhash, both of which are part of the huge west-central Asian endorheic basin that also includes the Caspian Sea.
Both of these bodies of water have shrunk significantly in recent decades due to the diversion of water from rivers that feed them for irrigation and industrial purposes. Water is an extremely valuable resource in arid Central Asia and can lead to rather significant international disputes.