The Geography of Uzbekistan: At the Crossroads of the Silk Road

Preface
Acknowledgments
Contents
1: Introduction
	1.1	 The Gem of Central Asia
		1.1.1	 Contributions to Science
	1.2	 Central Asia and Uzbekistan in the Works of Ancient Authors
	1.3	 Location
	1.4	 Nature
		1.4.1	 Climate
		1.4.2	 Temperature
		1.4.3	 Solar Radiation
		1.4.4	 Precipitation
		1.4.5	 Climate Change
		1.4.6	 Flora and Fauna
		1.4.7	 Flora
		1.4.8	 Fauna
	1.5	 History
	1.6	 The Revival of the Great Silk Route
	1.7	 Common Resources, History, and Future
	References
2: Historical Geography
	2.1	 State Building
		2.1.1	 Ancient History
		2.1.2	 Medieval Development
		2.1.3	 Colonization
		2.1.4	 The Soviet Period
		2.1.5	 Independence
	2.2	 Governance
		2.2.1	 Government
		2.2.2	 The Electoral System
		2.2.3	 After Karimov
	2.3	 Cultural Geography
		2.3.1	 Historical Roots
		2.3.2	 Cultural Life
		2.3.3	 Religion
		2.3.4	 Gender Issues
		2.3.5	 Education
		2.3.6	 Music
		2.3.7	 Theater
		2.3.8	 Literature
		2.3.9	 Newspapers and Magazines
	2.4	 Architecture
		2.4.1	 Ancient Monuments
		2.4.2	 Modern Architecture
	2.5	 Food
		2.5.1	 Bread Is Sacred
		2.5.2	 The Tea Ceremony
		2.5.3	 Uzbek Cuisine
		2.5.4	 Fruit and Vegetables
	2.6	 Clothing
	2.7	 Traditions and Rituals
		2.7.1	 Weddings
		2.7.2	 The Birth of a Child
		2.7.3	 Consecration of the Mother
	2.8	 Holidays
		2.8.1	 New Year
		2.8.2	 Navruz
		2.8.3	 Religious Holidays
	2.9	 Arts and Crafts
		2.9.1	 Cold Steel from Fergana
		2.9.2	 Gold Embroidery
		2.9.3	 Carpet Weaving
		2.9.4	 Embroidery
		2.9.5	 Ceramics
		2.9.6	 Silk Fabrics
		2.9.7	 Copper Embossing
		2.9.8	 Wood Carving
	References
3: Geography of Resources
	3.1	 Global Geological Processes and Geology of Uzbekistan
		3.1.1	 Geological Evolution of Asia
		3.1.2	 Geological Evolution of Uzbekistan
		3.1.3	 Earthquakes
	3.2	 Mineral Resources
		3.2.1	 Gas and Oil
		3.2.2	 Coal
		3.2.3	 Gold
		3.2.4	 Silver
		3.2.5	 Uranium
		3.2.6	 Ferrous Metals
		3.2.7	 Nonferrous Metals
		3.2.8	 Groundwater
		3.2.9	 Loess
		3.2.10	 Gemstones
		3.2.11	 Oil Shale
	3.3	 Energy Resources
		3.3.1	 Coal Industry
		3.3.2	 Gas and Oil Industry
		3.3.3	 Hydropower and Thermal Energy
		3.3.4	 Alternative Energy Sources
	3.4	 Land Resources
		3.4.1	 Soils
		3.4.2	 Agricultural Land Resources and Food
	3.5	 Water Resources
		3.5.1	 Rivers
		3.5.2	 Glaciers
		3.5.3	 Lakes and Reservoirs
			Aral Sea
		3.5.4	 Environmental Hazards
	References
4: Economic Geography
	4.1	 Regional Developments and the Economy
	4.2	 Inequality of Income Distribution
	4.3	 Employment
	4.4	 Labor Migration
	4.5	 The Economy
	4.6	 Agriculture
	4.7	 Industry
		4.7.1	 The Chemical Industry
		4.7.2	Electric Power
		4.7.3	 Light Industry
		4.7.4	 Production and Processing of Fruit and Vegetable Products
		4.7.5	 Food
		4.7.6	 The Electrical Engineering Industry
		4.7.7	 Construction Material Production
		4.7.8	 The Automobile Industry
		4.7.9	 Metallurgy and Mechanical Engineering
		4.7.10	 Information and Communication Technology
	4.8	 Trade
	4.9	 Transportation Systems and Networks
	4.10	 Spatial Distribution of the Economy
	4.11	 Prospects for Future Development
	References
5: Human Geography
	5.1	 Geography of the Population
		5.1.1	 Demography
		5.1.2	 Spatial Distribution
		5.1.3	 Ethnicity
	5.2	 Urbanization
	5.3	 Urban Development
		5.3.1	 Multifunctional Cities and Agglomerations
		5.3.2	 Industrial Cities
		5.3.3	 Agrarian Cities
	5.4	 The Fergana Valley
	References
6: Environmental Geography: Nature and Human Interaction
	6.1	 The Geography of the Regions
		6.1.1	 Physical Geography
			Tectonics
			Geomorphology
		6.1.2	 Geographic Subregions
			The Delta of the Amu Darya River Subregion
			The Kyzylkum Subregion
			The Zerafshan Subregion
			The Kashkadarya Subregion
			The Surkhandarya Subregion
			The Mirzachul Subregion
			The Chirchiq–Ahangaran Subregion
			The Fergana Subregion
			The Ustyurt Subregion
	References
Index