Termiz

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Termez is a small city in the southernmost part of Uzbekistan near the Hairatan border crossing of Afghanistan. It is the hottest point of Uzbekistan. It has a population of 140,404 (1 January 2005), and is the capital of Surxondaryo Province.

Origin of name

The modern name of the city came through the Sogdian Language Tarmiδ dating back to an ancient Iranian language tara-maiθa , which means "a place of transition" (tara-crossing, crossing; maiθa-place). In ancient times there was an important crossing on the Amu Darya river.

Some link the name of the city to Greek thermos "hot", tracing its name back to Alexander the Great.[1] Others suggest that it came from Sanskrit taramato , meaning "on the river bank".[2]

History

Date of the founding of the city of Old Termez which is located a few kilometers east of the modern city, is not known. In April 2002 there was a celebration of the 2,500th anniversary of the city of Termez.[2]

In the 6th century BC Achaemenids already called the city ancient city. In 329 BC Alexander the Great conquered the Termez. Later founder of Greco-Bactrian kingdom named Demetrius Demetris city. As part of the Kushan Empire (1st to 3rd century BC) The city was called Ta-li-mi (in the Chinese Tu-mi, Tami. During this period, the city became an important center of Buddhism.

In the 5th and 6th centuries the city was ruled by Hephthalites, Sassanids.

In the 7th century the city was ruled by native Termez shah dynasty.

In 705 the city was captured by the Arabs and it became one of centers of Islam during the Abbadids and Samanids Empire.

From the 9th through the 12th centuries Termez was a big city and a cultural center. It was popular for shopping and crafts. At this time the length of the fortifications of the city was 10 miles, there were nine gates. During this period Termez was a part of the Ghaznavids, Seljuk and Karakhanids. In 1206 the town became part of the state Khorezmshahs.

In 1220 after a two-day siege, the city was destroyed by the troops of Genghis Khan.

In the second half of the 13th century Termez was restored to the east, on the right bank of Surxondaryo River, was part of the Timurid empire, then Shaybanids. By the second half of the 18th century the city was abandoned. The only inhabited villages were Salavat and Pattakesar (Pattagissar) in the vicinity of the ancient city.

External links

References

  1. E. M. Pospelov, Geograficheskie nazvaniya mira (Moscow, 1998), p. 415: "here in fact is found the hottest place in Central Asia (in June 1914 a temperature of 49.5 C was recorded in Termez.
  2. Sh. Kamaliddinov, Istoricheskaya geografiya Sogda i Toharistana.