Bāburnāma (Chagatai/Persian: بابر نامہ; literally: "Book of Babur" or "Letters of Babur") are the memoirs of Zāhir ud-Dīn Mohammad Bābur (1483-1530), the founder of the Mughal Empire and a great-great-great-grandson of Timur. It is an autobiographical work, originally written in the Chagatai language, known to Babur as "Turki" (meaning Turkish), the spoken language of the Andijan-Timurids. It also contains many phrases and smaller poems in Persian. The Chagatai language is an extinct Turkic language which was once widely spoken in Central Asia. ... Farsi redirects here. ... Zāhir ud-DÄ«n Mohammad, commonly known as Bābur (February 14, 1483 – December 26, 1530) (Chaghatay/Persian: ; also spelled ), was a Muslim Emperor from Central Asia who founded the Mughal dynasty of India. ... Events The São Tomé settlement is founded. ... June 25 - Augsburg confession presented to Charles V of Holy Roman Empire. ... Capital Delhi / Agra Language(s) Persian (initially also Chagatai, Turkish; later also Urdu) Government Monarchy Emperor  - 1526-1530 Babur  - 1530–1539 and after restoration 1555–1556 Humayun  - 1556–1605 Akbar  - 1605–1627 Jahangir  - 1628–1658 Shah Jahan  - 1659–1707 Aurangzeb History  - Established April 21, 1526  - Ended September 21, 1857 Area... For the chess engine Tamerlane, see Tamerlane. ... The Chagatai language is an extinct Turkic language which was once widely spoken in Central Asia. ... Turki, strictly speaking, is an Arabic or Persian adjective formed from the noun Turk, used by European writers in two rather different senses. ... Andijan is the capital of the Andijon province, which includes the Ferghana Valley Andijan (Andijon in Uzbek; also Andizhan, Andizan, Андижан) is the fourth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and the capital of the Andijan Province. ... Timurid can refer to several entities, related to Timur: Timurid Dynasty Timurid Empire Timurid Emirates This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Bābur was a highly educated Central Asian Muslim and his observations and comments in his memoirs reflect an interest in nature, society, politics and economics. His vivid account of events covers not just his life, but the history and geography of the areas he lived in, and their flora and fauna, as well as the people with whom he came into contact. Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... There is also a collection of Hadith called Sahih Muslim A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Persian: Mosalman or Mosalmon Urdu: مسلمان, Turkish: Müslüman, Albanian: Mysliman, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of the religion of Islam. ... This article is about the study of the past in human terms. ... In Botany a Flora (or Floræ) is a collective term for plant life and can also refer to a descriptive catalogue of the plants of any geographical area, geological period, etc. ... Fauna is a collective term for animal life. ...

The Bāburnāma begins with these plain words:

After some background, Bābur describes his fluctuating fortunes as a minor ruler in Central Asia - in which he took and lost Samarkand twice - and his move to Kabul in 1504. The Fergana Valley or Farghana Valley (Uzbek: , Kyrgyz: Фергана өрөөнү, Tajik: водии Фaрғонa, Russian: , Persian: ) is a region in the Tian Shan mountain ranges of Central Asia spreading across eastern Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. ... 1494 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Samarkand (Tajik: Самарқанд, Persian: ‎ , Uzbek: , Russian: ), population 412,300 in 2005, is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province. ...

There is a break in the manuscript between 1508 and 1519. By the latter date Bābur is established in Kabul, now in Afghanistan, and is campaigning in northwestern India. The final section of the Bāburnāma covers the years 1525 to 1529 and the establishment of the Mughal empire in South Asia, which Bābur's descendants would rule for three centuries. 1508 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Events March 4 - Hernán Cortés lands in Mexico. ... For other places with the same name, see Kabul (disambiguation). ... Events January 21 - The Swiss Anabaptist Movement was born when Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, and about a dozen others baptized each other in the home of Manzs mother on Neustadt-Gasse, Zürich, breaking a thousand-year tradition of church-state union. ... Events April 22 - Treaty of Saragossa divides the eastern hemisphere between Spain and Portugal, stipulating that the dividing line should lie 297. ... Capital Delhi / Agra Language(s) Persian (initially also Chagatai, Turkish; later also Urdu) Government Monarchy Emperor  - 1526-1530 Babur  - 1530–1539 and after restoration 1555–1556 Humayun  - 1556–1605 Akbar  - 1605–1627 Jahangir  - 1628–1658 Shah Jahan  - 1659–1707 Aurangzeb History  - Established April 21, 1526  - Ended September 21, 1857 Area... Map of South Asia (see note on Kashmir). ...

Babur also writes about his homeland, Fergana:

He also wrote:

The Bāburnāma is widely translated and is part of text books in no less than 25 countries mostly in Central, Western, and Southern Asia. It was first translated into English by the British orientalist scholar Annette Akroyd. Orientalism is the study of Near and Far Eastern societies and cultures, by Westerners. ... Annette Susannah Akroyd Beveridge (popular historically as Annette Akroyd) (1844-1929), an educationalist, social reformer and orientalist, is remembered primarily for her early efforts at women’s education in India. ...

Further reading

• The Baburnama: Memoirs of Babur, Prince and Emperor, Zahir-ud-din Mohammad Babur, Translated, edited and annotated by Wheeler M. Thackston. 2002 Modern Library Paperback Edition, New York. ISBN 0-375-76137-3
• Babur Nama: Journal of Emperor Babur, Zahir Uddin Muhammad Babur, Translated from Chagatai Turkic by Annette Susannah Beveridge, Abridged, edited and introduced by Dilip Hiro. (ISBN-13) ISBN 978-0-14-400149-1; (ISBN-10) ISBN 0-14-400149-7. - online version