Uzbeks (O'zbek, Pl. O'zbeklar) are a Central Asian ethnic group of Turkic people found primarily in Uzbekistan, along with large populations also living in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and the Xinjiang province of China. Smaller refugees populations of Uzbeks from Afghanistan are also found in Iran and Pakistan. The Uzbeks are a combination of Mongoloid and Caucasoid groups derived from a fusion of Turkic tribes (that migrated into the area from the Eurasian steppes) that mixed with Mongols and various Iranian peoples, primarily including eastern Persians (see Tajiks, for further details) to form the modern Uzbek population. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Turkic peoples are Northern and Central Eurasian peoples who speak languages belonging to the Turkic family, and who, in varying degrees, share certain cultural and historical traits. ... The Republic of Tajikistan (Тоҷикистон), formerly known as the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic, is a country in Central Asia. ... Xinjiang (Chinese: æ–°ç–†; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hsin1-chiang1; Postal Pinyin: Sinkiang; literal meaning: New Frontier; Uyghur: (Shinjang)), full name Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, is an autonomous region of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ... Representation of Genghis Khan and soldiers; this portrayal depicts steppe riders who have Northern Asiatic physical features, resembling that of North or Central Asians, and Koreans. ... Typical Caucasoid Skull Caucasoid is a racial classification usually used as part of a system also including Australoid, Mongoloid, Negroid, and sometimes others such as Capoid. ... The term Eurasian refers to the cultural ties and linkages between those in a wider view of the Eurasian continent, centering on the Silk Road, and Central Asia. ... This article needs copyediting (checking for proper English spelling, grammar, usage, tone, style, and voice). ... Iranian people are those who speak an Iranian language. ... The Persians of Iran (officially named Persia by West until 1935 while still referred to as Persia by some) are an Iranian people who speak Persian (locally named Fârsi by native speakers) and often refer to themselves as ethnic Iranians as well. ... The Tajiks are one of the principal ethnic groups of Central Asia, and are primarily found in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran, Pakistan, and the Xinjiang province of China. ...

An Uzbek woman standing by the entrance to her yurt, ca. 1910

Uzbeks are predominantly Sunni Muslims, albeit the majority of Uzbeks came to practice religion with a more liberal interpretation due to the official atheism of the former Soviet Union, while Uzbeks in Afghanistan and other countries to the south of tend to be more conservative. However, with Uzbek independence in 1991 came an Islamic revival amongst some segments of the population. People living in the area of modern Uzbekistan were first converted to Islam as early as the 8th century AD, as Arab troops invaded the area, displacing the earlier faiths of Zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Nestorian Christianity. Arab victory over the Chinese in 751, at the Battle of Talas, ensured the future dominance of Islam in Central Asia. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Sunni Islam (Arabic سنّة) is the largest denomination of Islam. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... Islām is described as a dÄ«n, meaning way of life and/or guidance. Six articles of belief There are six basic beliefs shared by all Muslims: 1. ... The Arabs ((Arabic: عرب Ê»arab) are a large ethnic group widespread in the Middle East and North Africa, originating in the Arabian Peninsula of southwest Asia. ... Faravahar (or Ferohar), the depiction of the human soul before birth and after death. ... The term Buddha is a word in ancient Indian languages including Pāli and Sanskrit which means one who has awakened. It is derived from the verbal root budh, meaning to awaken or to be enlightened, and to comprehend. It is written in devanagari script as Hindi: and pronounced as... The Assyrian Church of the East is a church that traces its origins to the See of Babylon, said to be founded by Saint Thomas the Apostle. ... Events Pippin the Short is elected as king of the Franks by the Frankish nobility, marking the end of the Merovingian and beginning of the Carolingian dynasty. ... The Battle of Talas in AD 751 was a conflict between the Arab Ummayad Caliphate and the Chinese Tang Dynasty over the control of Central Asia. ...

The Uzbek language is a Turkic language, related to Uyghur, Kazakh, Turkmen, and more distantly, to Turkish. Uzbek (Ozbek tili in Latin script, Ўзбек in Cyrillic script) is a Turkic language spoken by the Uzbeks in Uzbekistan and elsewhere in Central Asia. ... The Turkic languages are a group of closely related languages that are spoken by a variety of people distributed across a vast area from Eastern Europe to Siberia and Western China. ... Uyghur (in Uyghur: ئۇيغۇرچه, new spelling: Uyƣurqə or ئۇيغۇر تىلى, Uyƣur tili; in Chinese: 维吾尔语 Wéiwúěryǔ) is a Turkic language spoken by the Uyghur people in Xinjiang (also called East Turkestan or Uyghuristan), China. ... Kazak, also Kazakh and Qazaq (Қазақ тілі, Qazaq tilî) is a Turkic language with ISO 639 codes of kaz and kk. ...

History

The Uzbeks began as a group of tribes affiliated with the Golden Horde. In 1422, a group of nomadic clans east of the Lower Volga, including Qangli, Qunggirat, Mahnghit, seceded from the central authority of the khan at Sarai (near modern Volgograd). They called themselves Uzbeks, after the Horde's most famous ruler, Uzbeg Khan. Their first leader, Barak, ravaged the lower Volga area between Sarai and Astrakhan, but he was murdered in 1428. This article refers to the Mongol state in what is now Russia. ... For other meanings of the word Volga see Volga (disambiguation) Волга Length 3,690 km Elevation of the source 225 m Average discharge  ? m³/s Area watershed 1. ... Sarai Batu (Old Sarai, Sarai-al-Maqrus) was a capital city of the Golden Horde. ... Volgograd â–¶(?) (Russian: Волгогра́д) (population: 1,012,000), formerly called Tsaritsyn â–¶(?) (Цари́цын, Caricyn) (1598–1925) and Stalingrad â–¶(?) (Сталингра́д) (1925–1961) is a city on the west bank of Volga river in southwestern Volgograd Oblast (province), Northern Caucasus district, Russia. ... Under the rule of Uzbeg Khan (1312-1341) the Golden Horde reached its zenith. ... Astrakhan coat of arms features the Khans crown and a sabre Astrakhan (А́страхань; Tatar: Ästerxan), a major city in southern European Russia and the administrative center of Astrakhan Oblast. ...

Barak was succeeded by Abul Khayr, a descendant of Batu's brother Shiban. The ruling house was therefore known as the Shibanids. In 1431, Abul Khayr moved to the central Kazakh steppe. In 1446, however, he changed his policy. The tribes moved south towards the Aral Sea and the Syr Darya to resume contacts with the sedentarists in Transoxania. Batu Khan (c. ... Kazakh may refer to An ethnic group: the Kazakhs The Kazakh language The Culture of Kazakhstan Suhbat. ... Map of area around the Aral Sea. ... Syr Darya (also known as Syrdarya or Sirdaryo) is a river in Central Asia. ... Transoxiana (sometimes also spelled Transoxania) is the now-largely obsolete name used for the portion of Central Asia corresponding approximately with modern-day Uzbekistan and southwest Kazakhstan. ...

Some clan chiefs revolted against this new policy in 1456, forming a new secession of nomads, including Qangli, Qunggirat and Jalayir, and calling themselves the Kazakhs. In 1457, there was another nomadic secession by the Oirats. A Kazakh and his camel The Kazakhs (also spelled Kazak or Qazaq), (in Kazakh: Қазақ [qɑzɑq]; in Russian: Казах; English term is the transliteration from Russian) are a Turkic-Mongol people of the northern parts of Central Asia (largely Kazakhstan, but also found in parts of Russia and China). ... Events University of Freiburg founded. ... The Oyirad (also spelled Oirat) is an alliance of the western Mongols. ...

Abul Khayr's grandson, Muhammad Shaybani, who led the tribes from 1496 to 1510, continued the conquest of Transoxania. He captured Samarkand in 1501, and Khiva in 1505. Shaybani fought with the Persian Safavid Shah Ismail I in 1510, but was killed by Persian artillery. But the Shah was defeated by Ubaydullah, Shaybani's nephew, in 1512. Abu I-Fath Muhammad Shaybani Khan (c. ... A minaret in Samarkand. ... Khiva (alternative names include Khorasam, Khoresm, Khwarezm, Khwarizm, Khwarazm, Chiwa and Chorezm) is the former capital of Khwarezmia, which lies in the present-day Khorezm Province of Uzbekistan. ... The Safavid Empire at its 1512 borders. ... Shah Ismail I, the founder of the Safavid State. ...

The Uzbeks established themselves in Bukhara. Abdullah II became khan of Bukhara in 1582, founding the khanate. This was later conquered by the Russians in the 19th century. Bukhara (Buxoro or Бухоро in Uzbek (the Cyrillic alphabet was officially phased out for Uzbek after independence); بُخارا /Bukhârâ/ in Persian, Buhe/Puhe Tang Chinese, Бухара in Russian; also Boxara in Tatar) is one of... Events January 15 - Russia cedes Livonia and Estonia to Poland February 24 - Pope Gregory XIII implements the Gregorian Calendar. ...