Bokhara (also spelled Bukhara Bukhoro or Buxoro) in Uzbekistan was historically one of the great trading cities along the Silk Road. The city center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

On Sanskrit the Bukhara means “abbey”, which was a big commercial center on the Great Silk Road. Bukhara -“The city of museums”, contains more than 140 architectural monuments of the Middle Ages. Such ensembles as Poi – Kalan, Kosh Madras, mausoleum of Ismail Samoni, minaret of Kalyan and others were built 2300 years ago, and today they attract the great attention of tourists. The famous poets like Narshahi, Rudaki Dakiki and others have played the important role in development of Bukhara.

History

Legend of Siavash

According to the legend Bukhara was founded by King Siavash, a legendary Persian prince from the beginnings of the Persian Empire. After the treason of his stepmother Sudabeh, who accused him that he wanted to seduce her and betray his father, Siavash went into exile to Turan. Afrasiab, the King of Samarkand, married his daughter Ferganiza(Farangis) to him and granted him a vassal kingdom in the oasis of Bukhara. Later, Siavash was accused that he wanted to overthrow King Afrasiab and was executed in front of his wife. Siavash’s father sent Rostam, the legendary Persian hero to Turan and Rostam brought Ferganiza (Farangis) and their son Kai Khosrow back to Persia.

Pre-Islamic times

The history of Bukhara can be traced back to the 4th or 5th century AD, the date of the first coins with Sogdian writing in an alphabet derived from Aramaic. There are no reports of a city in the area of Bukhara at the time of Alexander the Great.

From the Arab invasions to the Mongols

At the time of the Arab conquests, Bukhara was ruled by the Sogdian dynasty of the Bokar-kodats. Arab armies first appeared before Bukhara in the caliphate of Moawia, after Obayd-Allāh b. Zīād b. Abīhe crossed the Oxus (53-54/673-74). Bukhara was ruled by a woman, Katun, as regent for her infant son. She had to submit and to pay a tribute of a million dirhams and 4,000 slaves. Permanent Arab control in the city was established by Qotayba b. Moslem Baheli, who after arduous campaigns in Sogdia (87-90/706-09) overcame the resistance of the Bukharans and their Turkish allies and placed an Arab garrison in the city, forcing every home owner to share his residence with Arabs. In 94/712-13 he erected the first mosque in Bukhara within the citadel, on the site of a former Buddhist or Zoroastrian temple. In 166/782, the governor of Khorasan Fażl b. Solayman Ṭusi built walls to protect Bukhara against Turkish attacks.

In the 3rd/9th cent. the notables of Bukhara asked the Samanid ruler of Samarqand and Farḡāna Nasr b.Ahmad for help, who in 260/874 sent his younger brother Ismail to the city. Bukhara enjoyed a period of prosperity lasting for 150 years and under the patronage of the Samanid amirs served as a cultural center for Arabic learning and Persian literature. A passage by Taalebi, the famous scholar of Nisapur, praises Bukhara in the era of the Samanids as “the focus of splendour, the Kaba of the empire, the meeting-place of the unique figures of the age, the rising-place of the stars of the literary men of the world, and the forum for the outstanding per­sonages of the time”. Geographers from the Samanid period mention the division of the city in a citadel (ko­handez), the town proper (sahrestan) and a suburb (rabat). The citadel contained the palace and the original mosque of Qotayba b. Moslem. To its east, dividing it from the sahrestan, was the Rigestan, an open, sandy space, where Amir Naṣr b. Aḥmad (301-33/914-43) built a palace and where the dīvāns of the administration were situated. In this century, an outer wall with eleven gates was built. The city had clearly expanded, though geographers still critize it as an unsanitary and crowded place.

In 389/999 Bukhara was occupied by the Ilak (Ilig) Nasr b. Ali. For the next 150 years it was part of the western Qarakhanid khanate, ruled by descendants of the Ilak Nasr. Under the loose, decentralized rule of the Turkish tribesmen, Bukhara lost its political importance. The reign of Arslan Khan Moḥammad b. Solayman (495-524/1102-30) brought peace to the city. He also rebuilt the citadel and city walls, and erected a new Friday mosque and two new palaces.

After the Mongol invasion

Bukhara was con­quered by Gengiz Khan in 616/1220. All inhabitants were driven out and the city was burned., but in the time of Ögedey Qaan (626-39/1229-41) the city was prosperous again. Ögedey placed the administration of all the settled regions of Central Asia in the hands of a Muslim merchant trusted by the Mongols, who resided in Ḵojand and reported directly to the supreme khan. The revival of prosperity of Bukhara may have been due to his efforts. He was succeeded at Bukhara by his son Masud Beg, who remained in authority until his death in 688/1289, despite feuds among the Mongol successor states and repeated shifts in their borders within Central Asia. Masud Beg was buried in the madrasa that he had built at Bukhara. The skilled craftsmen inhabiting Bukhara were apportioned among the four divi­sions of the Mongol empire), each belonging to one of Gengiz Khan’s sons and his descendants; each division was entitled to revenues from the portion of the population assigned to it.

The Khanate of Bukhara

The Khanate of Bukhara came into existence after the conquest of Samarkand and Bukhara by Muhammad Shaybani. The Shaybanid Dynasty ruled the khanate from 1506 until 1598. Under their rule Bukhara became a center of arts and literature. Bukhara attracted skilled craftsmen of calligraphy and miniature painting , poets and theologians. Abd al-Aziz Jhan (1533-1550) established a library “having no equal”. The khanate of Bukhara reached its greatest influence under Abdullah Khan II, who reigned from 1577 to 1598.

The Khanate of Bukhara was governed by the Janid Dynasty (Astrakhanids) in the 17th and 18th cent. It was conquered by Nadir Shah of Iran in 1740. After his death the khanat was controlled by descendants of the Uzbek emir Khudayar Bi through the position of “ataliq” (prime minister). The khanate became the Emirate of Bukhara in 1785.

Places to visit

• Kalon Minaret. It was built by the Karakhanid ruler Arslan Khanin 1127. According to the legend Arslan Khan killed an imam. The imam asked the khan in a dream to lay the imam’s head on a spot where nobody can tread on it. Thus the tower was built over the imam’s grave. With a height of 47 m it is Bukhara’s landmark. In its ornamental bands the glazed blue tiles were used for the first time in Central Asia. It gets its nickname as the “Tower of Death” because they once executed criminals by taking them to the top and pushing them out, leaving them to fall to their death. This practice stopped in the early 1900s. {GPS N 39.46.32.5 , E 064.24.54.3} no entry at the moment due to renovations [Aug 2012].
• Ark citadel, Registan Square. 9am to 6pm. From the most ancient times the Ark was the fortified residence of the rulers of Bukhara. Everything could be found there – palaces, temples, barracks, offices, the mint, warehouses, workshops, stables, an arsenal, and even a prison. The museum is no longer open. There are some signposts (Russian/English) that explains some of the ark. Currently, the interior of the Ark is used as offices. The part where it faces an overview of old Bukhara is closed.
• Labi-havz. The Labi-havz is considered to be the center of the Old City. Plaza Labi-havz is derived from Persian and means “ensemble near the pool”. The main element of this ensemble is the pool. The ensemble Labi-havz has three monumental structures. These are: * Kukeldash madrassah(16th century) built by Abdullah II was, at the time, the biggest Islamic School in Central Asia. * Nadir Devanbegi Madrassah (16th century) was inteded to be a caravan saray, but according to the order of the ruler Imam Kulimkhan, was reconstructed into a Madrassah. * Nadir Devanbegi Khanaka (winter mosque) was built at the same time as the Labi-havz (16th century).
• Ismoil Somoni (Ismail Samani) Mausoleum. The mausoleum was built during the reign of Ismail Samani, one of the most outstanding members of the Samanids dynasty, who ruled Bukhara from 892 until 907. Originally, the mausoleum was intended for the grave of Ismail Samani’s father, Akhmad, but later became the burial vault of the Samanids. It was completed in 905 and is the oldest Muslim monument in Bukhara. It is considered as a masterpiece of early Islamic architecture. Ismail b. Ahmad b. Asad Samaniwas born in 234/849 and died in 295/907. He was the first member of the Samanid dynasty ruling over all Transoxania and Fargana. He was governor of Bukhara on behalf of his brother Nasr. Ismail had defend Bukhara against attacks by Khwarazmian forces. He twice failed to send the 500,000 dirhams annual tribute to Nasr and had to defend the city against two attacks by Nasr. After Nasr’s death in 279/892 Ismail became ruler of all Transoxania. He transfered the capital to Bukhara and was recognized as governor by caliph al-Motazed (279-89/892-902). In 280/893 he led an expion north into the steppes, capturing Ṭaraz (modern Dzhambul/Kazakhstan), taking an immense booty of animals and Turkish slaves, and converting a Nestorian Christian church into a mosque. Ismail’s greatest achievement was the defeat of Amr b. Layt in a battle near Balk in 287/900. Amr had received from caliph al-Moʿtażed eastern Persia and Transoxania, which entailed deposing Ismail as governor. Amr invaded the upper Oxus (Amu Darya) provinces, but was decisively defeated by Esmaʿīl. The ʿAbbasids at Baghdad were thus relieved of pressure from the aggressive Saffarids, and the caliph formally appointed Ismail governor of Khorasan, Sistan, Ray, Ṭabarestan, and Isfahan, in addition to his Transoxanian provinces. Samanid amirs were, however, able to retain permanent control of Khorasan and Transoxania only. Although he still officially recognized the caliphs’ overlordship in the Friday sermon and on his coins), Ismail took advantage of his distance from Iraq and his new prestige to function as an independent sovereign. There is no evidence that he ever forwarded regular tribute or taxation to Baghdad. He spent his last years witgh battles against the Zaydi Shiite imams in the Caspian provinces, extending Samanid power westward across northern Persia, and repelling a Turkish invasion from the steppes. Ismail launched an offensive against Ṭabarestan and northern Persia and by 287/900 held territory as far west as Ray and Qazvin, though again his successors were not able to hold on to these areas. When Ismail died he was succeeded by his son Ahmad (295-301/907-14). Ismalil became renowned for justice and piety and for serving the caliph and his interests faithfully and is considered as the greatest of the Samanids.
• Kukeldash Medressa. built by Abdullah II., at the time the biggest Islamic school in Central Asia
• Taqi Sarrafon. bazaar of the moneychangers
• Taqi-Telpak Furushon. bazaar of the cap makers

• Taqi-Zaragon. bazaar of the jewellers
• Maghoki Attar Mosque. the oldest surviving mosque in Central Asia, dating back to the 9th cent., reconstructed in the 16th cent.
• Faizullah Khojaev House, Tukaeva. Mon to Sat 9am to 5pm.