Uzbeks 32240 226088153 2008-07-16T19:45:56Z Kingturtle 8780 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/UzbekKhan|UzbekKhan]] ([[User talk:UzbekKhan|talk]]) to last version by Facialhair {{about|Uzbeks as an ethnic group|information about citizens of [[Uzbekistan]]|Demographics of Uzbekistan}} {{Infobox Ethnic group |group = Uzbeks<br/>''O‘zbeklar'' |image = [[Image:Uzbeki girl.jpg|250px]] |caption = ''An Uzbek girl'' |population = 21 to 27 million |region1 = {{flag|Uzbekistan}} |pop1 = 21.48 million |ref1 = {{lower|<ref>D. Carlson, ''"Uzbekistan: Ethnic Composition and Discriminations"'', [[Harvard University]], August 2003</ref>}}<br/>{{lower|0.95em|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/uz.html CIA factbook 2005 - Uzbekistan]</ref>}} |region2 = {{flag|Afghanistan}} |pop2 = 2.7 million |ref2 = {{lower|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/af.html CIA factbook 2005 - Afghanistan]</ref>}} |region3 = {{flag|Tajikistan}} |pop3 = 1.12 million |ref3 = {{lower|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ti.html CIA factbook 2005 - Tajikistan]</ref>}} |region4 = {{flag|Kyrgyzstan}} |pop4 = 711,000 |ref4 = {{lower|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/kg.html CIA factbook 2005 - Kyrgyzstan]</ref>}} |region5 = {{flag|Turkmenistan}} |pop5 = 450,000 |ref5 = {{lower|<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tx.html CIA factbook 2005 - Turkmenistan]</ref>}} |region6 = {{flag|Kazakhstan}} |pop6 = 371,000 |ref6 = <ref>[http://www.ide.go.jp/English/Publish/Mes/pdf/51_cap1_2.pdf]</ref> |region7 = {{flag|Russia}} |pop7 = 126,000 |ref7 = <ref>[http://www.perepis2002.ru/content.html?id=11&docid=10715289081463]</ref> |region8 = {{flag|Pakistan}} |pop8 = 80,000 |ref8 = {{fact|date=June 2008}} |region9 = {{flag|China}} |pop9 = 14,800 |ref9 = <ref>[http://www.paulnoll.com/China/Minorities/China-Nationalities.html]</ref> |region10 = {{flag|Ukraine}} |pop10 = 13,000 |ref10 = <ref>[http://www.ukrcensus.gov.ua/eng/results/nationality_population/nationality_1/s5/?botton=cens_db&box=5.1W&k_t=00&p=100&rz=1_1&rz_b=2_1%20&n_page=6]</ref> |languages = [[Uzbek language|Uzbek]]<br/>{{smaller|(western and eastern dialects)}} |religions = [[Sunni Islam]] }} The '''Uzbeks''' (Self designation sg. ''O‘zbek'', pl. ''O‘zbeklar'') are a [[Turkic peoples|Turkic people]] of [[Central Asia]]. They comprise the majority population of [[Uzbekistan]], and large populations can also be found in [[Afghanistan]], [[Tajikstan]], [[Kyrgyzstan]], [[Turkmenistan]], [[Kazakhstan]], [[Russia]] and the [[Xinjiang]] [[Uyghur]] Autonomous Region of [[China]]. Smaller diaspora populations of Uzbeks from Central Asia are also found in [[Iran]], [[Turkey]], [[Pakistan]], [[North America]] and [[Western Europe]]. == Name == The origin of the name ''Uzbek'' remains disputed. One view holds that it is eponymously named after [[Uzbeg Khan]], although the nomadic Uzbeks were never entirely subject to him {{fact|date=June 2008}}. An etymological argument states that the name means ''independent'' or the ''lord itself'', from '''O'z''' (self) and '''Bek''' (a noble title of leadership) <ref>Calum MacLeod, Bradley Mayhew “Uzbekistan. Golden Road to Samarkand” - Page 31</ref>. ==Origins== Although [[Altaic]] infiltration into Central Asia had started early,<ref>“Irano-Turkish Relations in the Late Sasanian Period,” in Camb. Hist. Iran III/1, 1983, pp. 613-24</ref> as late as the 13th century AD when [[Turkic languages|Turkic-speaking]] and [[Mongol]] armies finally conquered the entire region, the majority of Central Asia's peoples were [[Iranian peoples|Iranic peoples]] such as [[Sogdians]], [[Bactrians]] and, more ancient, the [[Saka]]–[[Massagetae]] tribes. It is generally believed that these ancient [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European-speaking]] peoples were linguistically assimilated by smaller but dominant Turkic-speaking groups while the sedentary population finally adopted the [[Persian language]], the traditional ''[[lingua franca]]'' of the eastern Islamic lands.<ref name="Iranica">Richard H. Rowland, Richard N. Frye, C. Edmund Bosworth, Bertold Spuler, Robert D. McChesney, Yuri Bregel, Abbas Amanat, Edward Allworth, Peter B. Golden, Robert D. McChesney, Ian Matley, Ivan M. Steblin-Kamenskij, Gerhard Doerfer, Keith Hitchins, Walter Feldman. ''Central Asia'', in [[Encyclopaedia Iranica]], v., Online Edition, 2007, ([http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v5f2/v5f2a017.html LINK])</ref> The language-shift from [[Middle Iranian]] to Turkic and New Persian was predominantly the result of an ''elite dominance'' process.<ref>A. H. Nauta, “Der Lautwandel von a > o and von a > ä in der özbekischen Schriftsprache,” Central Asiatic Journal 16, 1972, pp. 104-­18.</ref><ref>A. Raun, Basic course in Uzbek, Bloomington, 1969.</ref> This process was dramatically boosted during the [[Mongol Empire|Mongol conquest]] when millions were either killed or pushed further south to the [[Pamir]] region. The modern [[Uzbek language]] is largely derived from the [[Chagatai language|Chagatai language]], an Eastern Turkic language which gained prominence in the Mongol [[Timurid dynasty|Timurid Empire]]. The position of Chagatai (and later Uzbek) was further strengthened after the fall of the [[Persianate society|highly Persianized]] Timurids and the rise of the [[Muhammad Shaybani|Shaybanid Uzbek Khaqanate]] that finally shaped the Turkic language and identity of modern Uzbeks, while the unique grammatical<ref>A. von Gabain, "Özbekische Gram­matik", Leipzig and Vienna, 1945</ref> and phonetical features of the Uzbek language as well as the modern Uzbek culture reflect the more ancient Iranic roots of the Uzbek people.<ref name="Iranica" /><ref>J. Bečka, “Tajik Literature from the 16th Century to the Present,” in Rypka, Hist. Iran. Lit., pp. 520-605</ref><ref>A. Jung, ''Quellen der klassischen Musiktradition Mittelasiens: Die usbekisch-­tadshikischen maqom-Zyklen und ihre Beziehung zu anderen regionalen maqam-Traditionen im Vorderen and Mittleren Orient'', Ph.D. dissertation, Berlin, 1983.</ref><ref>T. Levin, The Music and Tradition of the Bukharan Shashmaqam in Soviet Uzbekistan, Ph.D. dissertation, Princeton, 1984</ref> ==History== {{unreferencedsection|date=June 2008}} ===Ancient History=== In ancient times, various Altaic-speaking tribes began to move to the area between the [[Amu Darya]] (Oxus in Greek) and [[Syr Darya]] (Jaxartes in Greek) rivers. Some of these early tribes included the [[Huns]] who eventually occupied this region around the 3rd century BC and continued their conquests further south and west. ===13th-16th Century=== Following Arab incursions into the region, Islam supplanted Buddhism and other religions in Central Asia, while local Iranian languages survived into the 2nd millennium {{fact|date=June 2008}}. What drastically changed the demographics of Central Asia was the invasion of the [[Mongols]] led by [[Genghis Khan]] in the 13th century. Numerous native populations were wiped out by the Mongols and a process of population replacement began in earnest. During this period numerous Turkic tribes began to migrate and ultimately replace many of the Iranian peoples who were largely killed, absorbed by larger Turco-Mongolian groups{{Fact|date=December 2007}}, and/or pushed further south and Central Asia came to be known as [[Turkestan]]. Much of modern Uzbekistan took shape during the reign of [[Tamerlane]], a prominent Turkic conqueror who reigned over a vast empire from his capital at [[Samarkand]] {{fact|date=June 2008}}. Later, between the 15th and 16th centuries, various nomadic tribes arrived from the steppes including the Kipchaks, Naymans, Kanglis, Kungrats, [[Manghit|Manġit]]s and others and these tribes were led by [[Muhammad Shaybani]] who was the [[Khan (title)|Khan]] of the Uzbeks. This period marked the beginnings of the modern Uzbek nationality and formation of an Uzbek state in what is today Uzbekistan {{fact|date=June 2008}}, as these tribes were the first to use the name 'Uzbek' {{fact|date=June 2008}}. This early Uzbek state challenged the [[Safavids]] and [[Mughals]], for control over the land that is now modern Afghanistan.[[Image:Mirza Abdulhuq and Rustom Beg in 1841.jpg|thumb|200px|Uzbeks of [[Afghanistan]] in 1841.]] === 19th and early 20th century === Within a few generations of Shaybani Khan's death, the Uzbek state broke up into three major khanates based in Bukhara, Khiva, and Kokand until the early 19th century. The [[Russian Empire]] eventually infiltrated Central Asia and the Khanates were annexed to the empire during the mid to late 19th century. Until 1924, the bulk of the settled Turkic population of [[Russian Turkestan]], who were of very heterogeneous descent, were known as [[Sart]]s by the colonial authorities, and only those groups speaking [[Kipchak]] dialects who had arrived in the region with Muhammad Shaybani Khan were called 'Uzbeks'. In 1924, when the new [[Uzbek SSR]] was created, the Soviets abolished the term 'Sart' and decreed that all settled Turkic speakers would henceforth be known as Uzbeks. Uzbekistan, under Russian and then later Soviet administration, became multi-ethnic as populations from throughout the former Soviet Union moved (or were exiled) to Central Asia. Now, people of Uzbek nationality can be found with different characteristics, from light skinned to dark toned skin colors, from blue eyes to black eyes, from blonds to brunettes. == Language == {{unreferencedsection|date=June 2008}} The [[Uzbek language]] is an [[Altaic]] language and is part of Karluk group of [[Turkic languages]]. Modern Uzbek bears the closest resemblance to [[Uyghur language|Uyghur]], slightly less to [[Turkmen language|Turkmen]] and to [[Turkish language|Turkish]]. Modern Uzbek is written in wide variety of scripts including [[Arabic]], [[Latin]], and [[Cyrillic]]. After the independence of Uzbekistan from the former [[Soviet Union]], the government decided to replace the Cyrillic script with a modified Latin alphabet, specifically for Turkic languages. Modern Uzbek has also absorbed a considerable vocabulary and - to a much lesser degree - certain grammatical elements from non-Turk languages, most of all from [[Persian language|Persian]] as well as [[Arabic]] and [[Russian language|Russian]] among others. == Religion == {{unreferencedsection|date=June 2008}} Uzbeks come from a predominantly [[Sunni Muslim]] background, usually of the [[Hanafi]] school, but variations exist between northern and southern Uzbeks. The majority of Uzbeks from the former [[USSR]] came to practice religion with a more liberal interpretation due to the official Soviet policy of atheism, while Uzbeks in Afghanistan and other countries to the south have remained more conservative adherents of Islam. However, with Uzbek independence in 1991 came an Islamic revival amongst 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]] and [[Buddhism]]. The Arab victory over the Chinese in [[751]], at the [[Battle of Talas]], ensured the future dominance of Islam in Central Asia. ==Genetic origins== [[Image:UzbekStudents.jpg|200px|thumb|Students of Uzbekistan]] The modern Uzbek population represents varying degrees of diversity derived from the high traffic invasion routes through Central Asia. Once populated by [[Iranian people|Iranian]] tribes and other [[Indo-European people]], Central Asia experienced numerous invasions emanating out of [[Mongolia]] that would drastically impact the region. According to recent [[Genetic genealogy]] testing from a University of Chicago study, the Uzbeks cluster somewhere between the [[Mongols]] and the [[Iranian peoples]]. <blockquote>From the 3d century B.C., Central Asia experienced nomadic expansions of Altaic-speaking East Asian-looking people, and their incursions continued for hundreds of years, beginning with the Hsiung-Nu (who may be ancestors of the Huns), in 300 B.C., and followed by the Turks, in the 1st millennium A.D., and the Mongol expansions of the 13th century. High levels of haplogroup 10 and its derivative, haplogroup 36, are found in most of the Altaic-speaking populations and are a good indicator of the genetic impact of these nomadic groups. The expanding waves of Altaic-speaking nomads involved not only eastern Central Asia, where their genetic contribution is strong, as is shown in figure 7d but also regions farther west, like Iran, Iraq, Anatolia, and the Caucasus, as well as Europe, which was reached by both the Huns and the Mongols. In these western regions, however, the genetic contribution is low or undetectable (Wells ''et al.'' 2001), even though the power of these invaders was sometimes strong enough to impose a language replacement, as in Turkey and Azerbaijan (Cavalli-Sforza ''et al.'' 1994). The difference could be due to the population density of the different geographical areas. Eastern regions of Central Asia must have had a low population density at the time, so an external contribution could have had a great genetic impact. In contrast, the western regions were more densely inhabited, and it is likely that the existing populations were more numerous than the conquering nomads, therefore leading to only a small genetic impact. Thus, the admixture estimate from northeast Asia is high in the east, but is barely detectable west of Uzbekistan. <ref>[http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJHG/journal/issues/v71n3/023927/023927.html?erFrom=-6182819269366451666Guest]</ref></blockquote> [[Image:Uzbekistani_old_man_in_2005.jpg|thumb|175px|A Tajik man (as evidenced by his Tajik toqi) from Uzbekistan.]] The Uzbek population, according to this study, shows substantial [[Caucasoid]] admixture. The Uzbeks display a much closer genetic relationship with [[Turkic]] roots traits than with Iranic populations to the south and west. Another study out of Uzbekistan corroborates this genetic evidence as to the origins of the modern Uzbeks and other regional Turk peoples: <blockquote>These migrations are reflected in the DNA, too, and it is clear that despite the majority of modern Central Asians speaking Turk languages, they derive much of their genetic heritage from the Turkic conquering hero [[Tamerlane]]. <ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/1502189.stm]</ref></blockquote> The [[Turkic people]] as a whole share common languages and many common cultural traits, but do not have common origins. The Uzbeks are descended to a large degree from Turkic invaders whose invasions span literally millennia from the first millennium CE with the early migrations of the [[Göktürks]] to later invasions by the Uzbeks themselves during the early and mid period of the 2nd millennium. Throughout the centuries, these migrating [[Altaic]] peoples began to outnumber the native Iranian people of Central Asia and appear to have assimilated the vast majority through intermarriage, while mainly the [[Tajiks]] survived albeit with some Turk intermingling as well. Thus, in the case of Uzbekistan and most other Central Asian states, it was not only a process of language replacement, such as what took place in Turkey and Azerbaijan, but also a mass migration and population replacement that helped to shape the modern Turk people of Uzbekistan and other Central Asian states. == Notes == {{reflist}} == References == * [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0817987320 Allworth, Edward. ''The Modern Uzbeks: From the 14th Century to the Present'', Hoover Institution Press (July, 1990).] * Calum MacLeod, Bradley Mayhew “Uzbekistan. Golden Road to Samarkand” page31. * [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0813384036 Critchlow, James. ''Nationalism in Uzbekistan: Soviet Republic's Road to Sovereignty'', Westview Press (October, 1991).] * [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/1502189.stm Noble, Ivan. BBC News, ''DNA analysis tracks Silk Road forbears''] * [http://www.amazon.com/dp/1856491323 Rashid, Ahmad. ''The Resurgence of Central Asia : Islam or Nationalism?'' Zed Books (April 15, 1995)] * [http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/AJHG/journal/issues/v71n3/023927/023927.html?erFrom=-6182819269366451666Guest Zerjal, Tatiana, et. al. ''A Genetic Landscape Reshaped by Recent Events: Y-Chromosomal Insights into Central Asia'', Am. J. Hum. Genet., 71:466-482, 2002.] * ''[[Great Soviet Encyclopedia]]'', Part 9, pages 483-489 * [http://uzbek.zxq.net Uzbek Diaspora] ==See also== * [[Sarts]] * [[Uzbek language]] * [[Turkic peoples]] * [[Timurid dynasty]] * [[Mongol invasion of Central Asia]] ==External links== {{commons2|Uzbeks}} {{Turkic topics}} {{Ethnic groups in China}} <!--Categories--> [[Category:Turkic peoples]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Uzbekistan]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Afghanistan]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Tajikistan]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Kazakhstan]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Kyrgyzstan]] [[Category:Ethnic groups in Turkmenistan]] [[Category:Muslim communities]] [[Category:Uzbekistani people|*]] <!--Other languages--> [[ar:أوزبك]] [[de:Usbeken]] [[es:Uzbeko (etnia)]] [[fa:ازبک]] [[fr:Ouzbeks]] [[ko:우즈벡족]] [[id:Uzbek]] [[it:Uzbeki]] [[ka:უზბეკები]] [[lt:Uzbekai]] [[mk:Узбези]] [[nl:Oezbeken]] [[ja:ウズベク]] [[no:Usbekere]] [[uz:O`zbeklar]] [[pl:Uzbecy]] [[ru:Узбеки]] [[sr:Узбеци]] [[fi:Uzbekit]] [[zh:乌兹别克族]]