The name Uzbek may mean "master of himself." Their love of freedom and a general restlessness often caused conflict with the waves of invaders who conquered the country over the centuries. The Uzbeks are descended from a mixture of mostly Turkic tribes that include some Mongolian and Iranian traits. Northern Uzbek is a major Uzbek dialect.
Alexander the Great’s army swept through Central Asia (the home of the Uzbeks) in the fourth century. Arabs and Turks, followed by Genghis Khan and the Mongols, overran all of Central Asia from the seventh to the fourteenth centuries. Not long after Tamerlane's conquest came the last and perhaps finest period of culture and learning to the Uzbek. Tamerlane's influence was followed by a long period of decline in the 1500s. By the time the Russians subdued the country between 1860 and the 1880s, Tajikistan had disintegrated into several warring principalities.
When the Russians formed the USSR, they engulfed surrounding Turkic peoples such as the Uzbeks and Tajiks. These became some of the “Soviet Socialist Republics” that made up the USSR. 1929 was a key year for this process. It was common for ethnic groups from one to settle in another. Thus, Uzbeks from Uzbekistan could settle in Tajikistan. The percentage of Uzbeks living in Tajikistan has drastically dropped since the two countries gained independence in 1991. Those who remain are in the Ferghana Valley and the Khatlon region.
Now that a high percentage of ethnic Uzbeks have left Tajikistan, they have less political power in that country. The forced cooperation from the days of the USSR have been replaced with ethnic rivalries. There are occasionally border tensions between the two countries. Uzbeks who speak out for minority ethnic groups sometimes face repercussions from the Tajikistan government. Uzbek children are getting used to learning in Tajik rather than in Uzbek as Tajikistan is trying to have their trade language become Tajik. University studies are moving towards Tajik and not offering lectures in Uzbek. Sometimes job applicants with an Uzbek ethnic background face discrimination. Uzbeks in Tajikistan are learning to adjust by switching to the Tajik language.
Although most Uzbeks still follow traditional farming and nomadic shepherd lifestyles, many who migrated to the city have become merchants or skilled craftsmen. Uzbeks are especially talented bazaar artisans, working with silver, gold, leather and wood. They also make elaborate carpets.
Uzbek dwellers in urban areas generally prefer European style clothing, but traditional dress is still common. This includes a long turban cloth (sometimes as long as three meters or more); a slipover, long-tailed cotton shirt; baggy trousers with a wide waist and held with a drawstring; a colorful waistcoat or vest; and boots of various types. Village women wear a chadar (head shawl) made of white or colorful red and white cotton floral prints; baggy trousers with calf length shirts, or high yoked dresses with full skirts reaching almost to the ankles.
The traditional Northern Uzbek family unit is based on kinship ties. Marriage of children is most often a contractual arrangement that is sealed with a bride price and the bride then lives with the groom's family. Marriages are celebrated with feasting, competitions and other rituals. Women continue to do much of the household work and handle many of the less skilled and manual jobs. Because of their Muslim culture women are often segregated from the men.
Most Uzbek homes in Tajikistan are built of mud bricks and often have domed roofs. Another style is an oblong, rectangular hut with rooms leading off a long covered porch and located inside a walled compound. Most nomadic groups who follow the seasonal migration of their herds live in the distinctive central Asian yurt (a circular, portable tent). Today, crowded modern housing, especially in urban areas, prevents generations from living together and discourages large families. These factors, along with increased educational opportunities, mean more Uzbeks are finding work away from their home areas.
The majority of the Uzbeks are Sunni Muslims. The others are Shia Muslims or belong to various Sufi Muslim orders. The numerous holy places of pilgrimage in Tajikistan play a less significant role in the revival of Islam than in other central Asia areas where tribal structures are still strong.
Pre-Islamic shamanism (belief that there is an unseen world of many gods, demons and ancestral spirits) survives with a veneer of Islam. Today the shaman (priest or medicine man) is a practicing Muslim who combines shamanistic trances with reciting Islamic prayers, fasts and other Islamic practices.
Because of the communist and Russian influences, many Uzbeks in Tajikistan are atheistic.
The JESUS Film and Christian broadcasts are available in Uzbeki. The New Testament has been translated into their language along with audio tools. They need easy access to these.
Pray for his kingdom to come and his will to be done among the Uzbek people in Tajikistan.
Pray for a movement of Uzbek households to study the Bible and accept the blessings of Christ.
Pray for a spiritual hunger that will drive the Uzbek people to the arms of Jesus.
Pray for workers who are filled with the fruit and the power of the Holy Spirit to go to the Uzbek people.
Scripture Prayers for the Uzbek, Northern in Tajikistan.
https://minorityrights.org/communities/uzbeks-3/
https://iwpr.net/global-voices/uzbeks-face-obstacles-increasingly-tajik-state
| Profile Source: Joshua Project |
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