The main city of Karakalpakstan. Karakalpaks are a peaceful and hardworking people

Autonomous Republic Karakalpakstan, part of the Independent Republic of Uzbekistan, located in the north-west of the country, has an area of ​​165 thousand square meters. km, which is 40% of the area of ​​the entire state. To the north and east it is bordered by Republic of Kazakhstan, and in the south Republic of Turkmenistan.
Population- about 1.5 million people, mostly Karakalpaks and Uzbeks.
Karakalpaks- representatives of the Central Asian racial group with a strong Mongoloid admixture.
Religion: Islam. Religion: Sunni Muslims.
official languages- Uzbek and Karakalpak.
Capital of Karakalpakstan - Nukus city(262 thousand people).

Almost the entire territory of the autonomy is occupied by a mysterious Ustyurt plateau, irrevocably drying Aral And Kyzylkum desert.
Climate: sharply continental with cold winter and very hot summer, which Lately exacerbated by drying Aral Sea.
Settlement of the territory of Karakalpakstan, located in the Khorezm oasis And lower reaches of the Amu Darya, began long ago, at the end of the 4th - beginning of the 2nd millennium BC, as evidenced by numerous archaeological finds. At this time, irrigated agriculture, cattle breeding, and fishing began to develop. Semi-nomadic tribes from the steppe zone of Eurasia settle.

In general, the history of the current autonomy, as part of the once powerful Khorezm civilization, is replete with facts of falls and rises, flourishing and fading.
In the middle of the 5th century BC. Khorezm conquer Achaemenids, a wide cultural exchange begins. At the turn of the V-IV centuries BC Khorezm acquires independence, its own artistic culture arises, formed by a synthesis of local and borrowed elements. In the VIII century, after the conquest by the Arabs, the way of life, art and culture began to increasingly acquire features characteristic of all countries of the Caliphate. Then an era Great Khorezm Shahs and the conquest by the Mongols in the 13th century. At that time Urgench- the capital of Khorezm lying at the intersection of caravan trails Great Silk Road, becomes one of the largest craft and cultural centers Central Asia .

From the middle of the 16th to the 18th centuries. nomadic tribes of ethnic Karakalpaks who inhabited the steppe regions come and remain in these places Syr Darya And Aral Sea, by the 19th century. this process is completed. Tribes become sedentary, permanent dwellings are built, agriculture, animal husbandry and fishing develop.
Thus, ancient and medieval civilizations contributed to the emergence of an original culture and art, the confirmation of which is the archaeological monuments that have survived to this day, which have become witnesses of history of Karakalpakstan, dating back many centuries.
Today's Karakalpakstan is a sovereign state Republic of Uzbekistan. It has its own flag, emblem, anthem. It includes 15 districts, 12 cities, 16 settlements and 112 auls.

Karakalpakstan rich in minerals, in its bowels there are huge deposits of gas, iron, kaolin clay, Glauber's salts, marble and granite.
the basics state economy are: agriculture, including cotton growing, rice growing, production of melons, vegetables and licorice, as well as industrial astrakhan breeding and industry, represented by energy, metalworking, food and textile industries.

Administrative, political and cultural center of Karapaklstan - its capital, Nukus city. Established in 1932 on the site of a small village, Nukus, due to its favorable location, already in 1939 became the capital of the autonomy. Modern Nukus, having an area of ​​more than 200 sq. km, built on the site of an ancient settlement Shurcha, which arose back in the 4th century BC. and lasted almost eight centuries. Today the capital Karakalpakstan- a modern city with a well-established infrastructure, in which about 300 thousand inhabitants live. IN Nukus there are theaters, sports and entertainment facilities, hotels, restaurants, shops and markets. High technologies are being introduced into all spheres of life, the inalienable attributes of our time: high-speed Internet, satellite TV, cellular communication with roaming around the world. But for tourists, the main interest in the city, along with historical monuments, are, of course, museums.

Few museums countries can boast such a rich collection of paintings by Russian artists, and such popularity in the world community as Nukus Art Museum Savitsky. Museum bears the name of the Moscow artist I.V. Savitsky who came to Nukus in the 50s of the last century, and in 1966 he was appointed director of the museum. Igor Vitalievich begins to collect a collection of works of modern art, mainly avant-garde artists, whose paintings were banned by the existing regime. As a result, the collection was replenished with 50,000 units of paintings of the avant-garde and post-avant-garde period, and it was here in the distant Nukus, one could see what had been persecuted in the USSR for so long.

Modern exposition of the Nukus Museum of Art has more than 90,000 exhibition items, including: a collection of Russian avant-garde, paintings by Uzbek artists, exhibits of folk and applied art of Karakalpakstan, the art of ancient Khorezm, a number of paintings - wonderfully made copies of famous paintings of the Louvre.

According to experts, the collected collection is best art collection Asian region And second largest in the world and volume of the Russian avant-garde collection.

Also of undoubted interest is one of the oldest museums in Uzbekistan - Republican Museum of Local Lore of Karakalpakstan, located on the ground floor of the building occupied by art museum. Founded in 1929, over the years of its existence, it has expanded its collection to 56 thousand copies. Museum consists of three expositions: nature, archeology And ethnography. The Department new history, which is dedicated to the achievements of autonomy over the years of independence, also deserves attention. Of particular interest to visitors are models of ancient settlements and household items found during excavations. In the halls of ethnography, attention is drawn to an old women's costume with intricate hand-embroidered ornaments and rich jewelry. Household items, kitchen utensils and everything that a nomad's yurt could accommodate are also exhibited here.

The Department of Nature boasts meticulously executed dioramas of landscapes Ustyurt plateau, Kyzylkum And Aral Sea.
In Nukus and surroundings a great variety unique sights, wonderful archeological monuments, stories And culture.

Archaeological monuments of history and culture of Karakalpakstan.

Muynak

Muynak is a real tragedy city, dying along with the Aral Sea losing its waters and significance. Previously, Muynak was one of the two main fishing ports of the Aral Sea, now it lies 40 km away. from water. What remains of Muynak's fishing fleet is now rusting in the sand near the basins, marking the city's futile attempts to keep open the shipping channels leading to the sea that is losing its waters. Following ...

Toprak - kala (I-IV centuries AD)

Toprak - kala - soil fortress, as the local population dubbed it, the ruins of a once majestic building. The settlement is located on the territory of the Ellikalinsky district, excavations began in 1940. The district received its name (ellik - fifty, kala - fortress) because of the many fortresses concentrated not far from each other. Now destroyed by time, the fortress is a rectangular …

Kyzyl-kala (I-XIII c)

The fortress stands on a plain 27 km north of the city of Biruni. The structure is oriented to the cardinal points and has an almost square shape, 65x63m in size. Most likely, the fortress was built as a defensive structure and was part of the chain of border fortifications created to protect the northeastern borders of ancient Khorezm. The outer wall speaks about the military purpose of the structure ...

Complex Ayaz - kala (IV-II century BC)

Complex consists of two fortresses - Big and Small. The large fortress is located on a hill with a relatively flat surface. The fortress has a rectangular shape, with dimensions of 152x182m. On the outer side of the perimeter, the wall is surrounded by 35 unfinished towers in the shape of a semicircle. The surviving fragments of two-row outer walls have a little more than 2 meters at the base, between them …

Big Guldursun (IV-III century BC)

A large border fortress of ancient Khorezm, located 26 km northeast of the city of Turtkul. According to the plan, this is a trapezoidal structure 350x230 m in size, the corners of which are oriented to the cardinal points. To this day, the external walls made of clay and large-format bricks are relatively well preserved. The corners, together with the observation semicircular towers, protrude from the walls by almost 18 ...

Mizdakhkan settlement (IX century)

The Mizdakhkan mountain range is located near the city of Khodjeyli, not far from Nukus. It is located on an area of ​​200 hectares and consists of the fortified fortress Gyaur - kala (fortress of the "infidels"), which was founded on the site of a settlement dating back to the 4th century BC. BC, the necropolis with the mausoleums of Shamun Nabi, Mazlumkhan Sulu, Halfa Erezhep and Caravanserai. On the territory of the fortress are…

Mausoleum of Mazlumkhan Sulu (XIII-XIV c)

A semi-underground mausoleum, which is very unusual in composition and design, is located in the northern part of the Mizdahkan necropolis. According to legend, it was originally the palace of the Khan's daughter Muzlum-Sulu (the Beautiful Martyr). When the city was captured by the "infidels", their leader, blinded by the beauty of the girl, fell in love with her, the unfortunate woman reciprocated, the angry father killed Muzlum-Sulu ...

Chilpyk (II-IVc)

It is located 43 km from Nukus to the south and is, presumably, a ritual building of pre-Islamic culture. Built on a pyramidal volcanic hill. The construction material is clay taken from the sediments of the Amu Darya and raw brick made from the same clay. The building is a round structure with a diameter of 70 m and a height of about 15 m. According to archaeologists, Chilpyk is …

Janpyk-kala (IX-XIV centuries)

Dzhanpyk-kala settlement is one of the most picturesque monuments on the right bank of the Amu Darya. Once in the Middle Ages, it was a port city with extensive trade links with various countries East and West. The settlement is located 6 km southeast of the village of Karatau in the spurs of the Sultanuizdag ridge. The date of the last settlement of Dzhanpyk-kala is dated by scientists to 1345-1346. Based on the findings...

Koykrylgan - kala (IV century BC - IV century AD)

A religious building, in the center of which there is a round two-story building with a diameter of 44.5 m, surrounded by a defensive wall with nine towers. The design of the building and the location of the windows allowed scientists to reliably establish that the construction of the structure was specifically aimed at using this object for astrology and observing starry sky. Also indirectly...

The Karakalpaks are a Turkic people and belong to the Kypchak subgroup. The name translates as "black cap". This nation was related to the Khazars, Pechenegs and Uzes, they lived next to the Russians, not far from the Bashkirs and the ancient Bulgars, populating the left bank of the Volga. In total, about 825,000 Karakalpaks live in the world.

There is a legend among the Karakalpaks that they once lived in the territory of Central Asia, and they came to their real places of residence from the former Kazan Khanate, from where they were expelled by the Nogai. They were forced to roam the steppes for a long time, fighting the Kirghiz-Kaisaks. After the nation split into three parts. Some settled in the delta of the Amudarya river, the second - on the lower Syrdarya and Yenidarya, the third in the Zeravshan valley. In the 18th century, one of the parts of the Karakalpaks took Russian citizenship, but then came under the protection of Khiva and part of Bukhara, since the Russians could not protect it from the Kirghiz. In 1873, the territory of the right bank of the Amu Darya, where the Karakalpaks lived, became part of Russia.

Where live

The main area of ​​​​residence of the people is Karakalpakstan, the Republic of Karakalpakstan, located on the territory of Uzbekistan in the delta of the Amudarya River. A small number of representatives of this nationality live in the Fergana Valley and the Khiva oasis, in Kazakhstan, mainly in the Maniut region, Turkmenistan, Moscow, Moscow, Volgograd, Saratov, Astrakhan and Orenburg regions.

Language

The Karakalpak language is one of the languages ​​of the Turkic family and belongs to the Nogai-Kypchak subgroup. December 1 is the official day of the Karakalpak language.

There are two dialects in Karakalpak:

1. southwestern
2. northeastern

In Soviet times, the literary Karakalpak language was formed on the basis of northern dialects. The writing of the Karakalpak language is based on the Latin alphabet, until 1996 it was based on the Cyrillic alphabet. The Karakalpak language is taught in primary and secondary schools, some disciplines are read at the Karakalpak State University named after Berdakh.

A life

The main activity of the Karakalpaks is cattle breeding. Breed mainly cattle, sheep and poultry. They are engaged in fishing and farming. From folk crafts, embossing on leather, wood carving, carpet weaving, embroidery, weaving and jewelry craft, felting, mat weaving and tailoring are common.

Wheat, barley and millet were sown in the fields, the earth was plowed on bulls. The Karakalpaks skillfully used lakes and streams to irrigate fields. Until now, traces of fields and the remains of special irrigation facilities of the 18th century have been preserved in the lower reaches of the Syrdarya River. For the winter, to feed the cattle, they stocked up hay and reeds. The Karakalpaks mined lead, saltpeter and red copper, from which bullets and gunpowder were made. They received weapons from Bukhara.

They moved along the river and transported goods in boats and carts, horseback riding is also common among the people. For fishing they used a boat "kayik".

dwelling

The Karakalpaks are a semi-sedentary people, they had a large number of temporary dwellings, which differed in building material, construction method and layout. Basically, everything depended on the natural and economic conditions. The only stable and permanent dwellings that did not depend on the terrain and natural conditions are the yurt and the adobe, adobe house "there". They lived in yurts in winter and summer. When it was necessary to defend against nomadic neighbors, Kazakhs and Turkmens, especially in winter, the Karakalpaks gathered in auls and set up their yurts in the fortifications of the “tsal”. They were surrounded by walls or surrounded by an earthen rampart surrounded by a moat.

The house was built in a rectangular shape, with a flat roof. It had one or two living quarters. Under the same roof with the house, they often arranged a hearth, a barn, storerooms and a covered courtyard in which a yurt was placed. The entrance to the house was closed with large wooden gates. They lived in the tama mainly in winter, in summer they preferred to move to a yurt.

They built Karakalpaks and clay huts, semi-dugouts and dugouts. Large feudal bais had castles-estates, which were built from pakhsa and surrounded by walls. Today, dwelling houses are also common in the settlements of the Karakalpak, but there are many traditional dwellings.

Religion

The Karakalpaks profess Islam and are Sunni Muslims.

Food

In the national original cuisine of the Karakalpaks there are elements of neighboring peoples: Uzbeks, Kazakhs and Turkmens. Meat dishes are prepared mainly from beef and lamb, horse meat, camel meat and poultry are eaten. Pork is not eaten for religious reasons. They eat a lot of potatoes, vegetables, first and second courses are prepared from cereals and legumes: rice, millet, mung bean, dzhugara, beans, sorghum.

Dishes are mostly fried and boiled. The combination of boiled dough and meat is widespread in the kitchen. The most common Karakalpak dishes are pilaf, lagman, gurtik, shavlya, manpar, samsa, manti, shorpa, dumplings, broth-based noodle soup, and mashaba soup. Almost all dishes at the table are served with cakes made from wheat flour. Dumplings are made from jugar flour. One of the favorite dishes of the Karakalpaks is turama - finely cut meat with dumplings.

Drink black and green tea with milk. This custom spread among the people only in the 19th century. From fermented milk products they make koumiss, ayran, curd sour mass suzma, fermented milk drink from boiled milk katyk and kurut - dried balls of suzma with pepper and salt.

Appearance

The clothes of the Karakalpaks consist of a shirt for release, trousers that were tucked into boots, a dressing gown - shapan, belted with a scarf or sash. Dressing gowns were sewn from dark fabrics in small stripes, under them they put on a quilted camisole - beshpent. In winter, they wore a sheepskin coat with wool inside, as a headdress - a black sheepskin hat. In ancient times, they wore high black felt hats of a conical shape “kalpak-takyya”, which served as the basis for the name of the people.

Women wore a shirt-dress, pants and a robe. Instead of a camisole, a sleeveless jacket was often worn. Women of this nationality love clothes of bright colors, especially red and blue. There is a lot of embroidery and metal jewelry on their clothes. Instead of a burqa, they put on a robe-like cape zhegdu, which did not cover the face. Often a long scarf was worn on the head, it was tied over a skullcap, like a turban.

The women's headdress saukele is a work of art of the Karakalpaks and is created by skilled jewelers. It is a helmet made of felt and covered with red cloth. The dress is richly decorated with metal plaques, patterns, pendants, colored beads and stones, mostly coral. Cuff - the upper part of the helmet - is crossed with a black wide cross made of sewn fabric strips. A heavy silver badge of jyga descends on the forehead. Two silver plaques with turquoise or carnelian kyran inserts are attached to the headphones. The shape of the plaques is similar to an eagle or hunting birds. A long strip of fabric (halaka) decorated with embroidery is attached to the back of the saukele.

culture

The folklore of the Karakalpak people consists of various directions:

• ritual-everyday and lyrical songs
• legends
• fairy tales
• heroic epic
• dancing

All works were performed before the people by storytellers and singers. Of the folk musical instruments, the Karakalpaks used the bow kobuz, the plucked dutar, the wind instruments surnai and nai, and the tambourine dep.

Traditions

The people have certain strict rules and customs of behavior during meals. Traditionally, Karakalpaks eat food sitting on the floor around a tablecloth. Broths are served in bowls or cups, thick foods are eaten with the hands. Usually eat three times a day. Before you start a meal, you need to pour water on your hands, which must completely drain. It is impossible to shake it off your hands so that the splashes do not get into the food. The eldest in position or age begins to eat first. If a guest comes to the house, they are sure to treat him with ayran, sour milk or cook katybylamyk stew.

At the birth of a child, rituals are performed that should protect the newborn from all misfortunes and troubles. Much attention is paid to the name, the most respected member of society, the elder or spiritual leader chooses it. Often names are given in honor of great-grandfathers and great-grandmothers. The most common names with a root among the Karakalpaks -nur, for example, Nursultan, Nuratdin.

40 days after the birth of a child, beshik-tui is arranged. The child is bathed, swaddled for the first time and placed in a brightly colored rocking bed (beshik), which is brought by the relatives of the young mother. Together with her they bring cakes wrapped in a tablecloth, toys and sweets.

It is customary for a child to put an onion, knife and pepper under the pillow in a beshik so that the child is merciless with the enemy, a large grindstone and bread, so that the head is like a hard stone, the mind is great, and the eyes are sharp-sighted. A mirror is placed under the legs so that the face is beautiful and open, and life is bright. Various amulets are sewn to the clothes of young children so that troubles do not touch them in life. After that, the bride is held, and each guest presents a gift to the newborn.

The wedding of the Karakalpaks consists of several stages, the main ones are the following:

• collusion;
• a small feast in the house of the bride "patia toi";
• wedding day (a feast in the house of the bride and in the house of the groom).

The conspiracy is usually held in the bride's house, the groom's parents give gifts to the bride's parents. Elders who give permission for marriage must necessarily take part in the collusion. The groom's relatives give white things and agree on the size of the kalym.

After an agreement, the parents of the bride and groom arrange a “kenes toy”, invite relatives, relatives and neighbors to it. At this event, they all decide the issues of the wedding. Then a “party toi” is held, the costs of which are paid by the groom. He gives the bride, her parents and relatives gifts. After a small feast, the bride's parents come to the groom's parents and give them gifts.

The crying of the bride "sonsu" is an integral part of the wedding ceremony. He expresses the sadness of a girl who leaves her father's house. When the bride arrives at the groom's house, his mother showers her with sweets to make life sweet for the young wife. After that, the girl is taken to a room closed with a patterned screen shymyldyk. She must be there until the start of the most important ceremony of revealing the face - bet ashar. Then the bride greets each guest and bows to him. This ceremony is called kelin salom.

Famous people

There are among the representatives of the people and famous people who became famous for their talent and outstanding work:

1. poet Musaev Ayapbergen
2. poet Dabylov Abbaz
3. poet and playwright Aimurzaev Jolmurza
4. Academician Nurmukhamedov Marat
5. folk writer and statesman Kaipbergenov Tulepbergen
6. theater actress, People's Artist of the USSR Shamuratova Aimkhan.

Uzbekistan is one of those countries of the post-Soviet space where, in addition to traditional regions, national autonomy has also crept in: the Republic of Karakalpakstan, the most extensive (166 thousand square kilometers, that is, almost 1/3 of the country) and one of the most sparsely populated (1.7 million inhabitants, that is, 10 people per kilometer) region, the square "head" of Uzbekistan, clearly visible on the map. Uzbeks (32%), Karakalpaks (30%) and Kazakhs (26%) live here approximately equally, the former more in the oases of Elik-Kala, the latter in the lower reaches of the Amu Darya, and the third in the remote steppes near the borders. We are in Karakalpakstan, in it there are ancient fortresses of the type, but Khiva, the story of which we have finished, is already a tiny, but comparable in population Khorezm region with a center in.

The center of Karakalpakstan is Nukus, along with Bukhara, the 5-6th largest (275 thousand inhabitants, and with satellite cities and under half a million) Uzbek city, about which I can hardly say something good. Therefore, so that the post does not come out completely in the style of Varlamov, here I will tell you about the Karakalpaks as a people.

That the Karakalpaks are not Uzbeks can be seen with the naked eye. Rather, they can be confused with the Kazakhs, of whom there are also many here, and although in the ethnographic literature the Karakalpak appearance is characterized as "transitional from Caucasoid to Mongoloid with a predominance of Mongoloid features, less than that of the Kazakhs, but greater than that of the Uzbeks," the Karakalpaks outwardly reminded me not even Kazakhs, but Buryats and. Maybe, however, it’s not only about appearance, but also about some special mood: the Karakalpaks are the people of the steppe ...

2. This and the following shots were taken not in Nukus, but in other cities of Karakalpakstan.

The name "Karaka-Kalpaks" from most Turkic languages ​​is translated as "black hats", and here it is difficult not to remember the people of "black hoods" - "tamed" Kiev princes the Pechenegs, who received a lot near to protect Kiev from the new steppe scourge - the Polovtsy ... but most likely this is just a consonance, and "those" Karakalpaks had no direct relation to the current ones. A more likely Karakalpak ancestor is the Nogais, nomads of the Golden Horde (I wrote more about them), who lived from the Don to the Emba and after its fall. In the 1530s, the Altyul Horde, or the Horde of Six Sons, stood out from the Nogai Horde, named either in honor of the six heirs of the Khan Sheikh-Mamai who founded it, or in honor of the six clans to which the Karakalpaks rank themselves (Muyten, Kongraty, Kytai, Kypshak , Keneges and Mangyts - here I will explain that the "grids" of clans and peoples in the Steppe do not coincide, all these clans are among the Kazakhs and Uzbeks, and it was the Uzbek Kungrats and Mangyts who were the khans of Khiva and the Bukhara emirs). It is more likely, as it often happened in the steppe, that all hypotheses are true, and the Karakalpaks are equally descendants of the Oghuz-Pechenegs and Kipchaks-Nogais - just century after century the steppe nomads clung to the mountains and seas, a certain part of them settled there, layer by layer other peoples were formed: in Eastern Europe - on the Tien Shan, and near the Aral Sea and the dead deltas of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya - the Karakalpaks.

Reliably, the history of the Karakalpaks can be traced back to very recent times: in the 18th century they migrated to Zhanadarya (the southern branch of the Syrdarya), possibly fleeing from the Dzungars, not taking into account that these were the possessions of the Khiva Khanate, over which it temporarily lost power due to unrest. In 1811, Khan Mohammed Rakhim II regained control over the Syr Darya delta, and of course, he could not help but rejoice at such a "gift". The Karakalpaks near Khiva moved from the eastern shores of the Aral to the southern, to the very lower reaches of the Amu Darya, and, unlike the Turkmens, they were always loyal to the Khiva khan. When the Khorezm People's Soviet Republic replaced the khanate in 1920, three autonomous regions were formed in its composition - Uzbek (Khiva), Turkmen (Tashauz) and Kirghiz-Karakalpak (Khojeyli), in 1924 diverged between Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan respectively. The right bank of the Amu Darya, the former Amudadi department of the Syrdarya region with a center in Turtkul (Petro-Aleksandrovsk), was added to the KKAO, which until 1933 became the first center of Karakalpakstan. Initially, it was an autonomous region within the Kazakh SSR, in 1930-36 - directly within the RSFSR, and only then, cut off from it by Kazakhstan, which separated into a separate Union Republic, became part of the Uzbek SSR, where it remained. Today, the Republic of Karakalpakstan is listed as a "sovereign state within Uzbekistan" with official bilingualism and its own parliament, Jokargy-Kenes, in Nukus.

Now there are about 600 thousand Karakalpaks - of which half a million are in Uzbekistan and fifty thousand each in Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. That is, there are a lot of them - about the same as the Buryats and more than the Yakuts, Komi or Kalmyks. But at the same time, the Karakalpaks are perhaps the most compactly settled people of Central Asia: even in their native Karakalpakstan, their range is, God forbid, if a third of the republic, in the same Elik-Kala, according to local Uzbeks, they are not, but mostly they live in the delta Amu Darya and on the southern coast of the former Aral, from Nukus to Muynak, to the edge of the Ustyurt desert. The Karakalpak cultural landscape is very different from the Uzbek one: they are not ancient peasants, but yesterday's nomads, and their auls and outskirts of cities are more like Kazakhstan, if it were much poorer: functional faceless houses, dusty streets, tall sad pillars...

You hear Karakalpak speech in these parts more often than Uzbek (all the more it is noticeably different to the ear - harder and sharper), and some people consider the language itself almost a dialect of Kazakh, but when I read the signs, I saw no more roots familiar from Kazakhstan than in Uzbek. In addition, both languages ​​now have two alphabets (Karakalpak was also unsuccessfully translated into Latin in 1996), and any local name can be written in as many as 4 variants: "Qaraqalpaqstan Respublikasi", Karakalpakstan Respublikasi, Qoraqalpog`iston Respublikasi, Korakalpoqiston Respublikasi" or "No'kis, Nokis, Nukus, Nukus". I also remember that if the white color in most Turkic languages ​​is "ak", then in Uzbek it is "ok", and in Karakalpak - "khak". In signboards, bilingualism is maintained here more thoroughly than in most republics of Russia, at the level of the same Bashkiria.I did not try to talk to the Karakalpaks on the topics of politics and national relations, but offhand the president is scolded in a whisper just like the Uzbeks, and they do not complain about their position and relations with the Uzbeks. it seems that they are not really oppressed here, at least I have not heard arguments on the topic "I hope one day the Russians will return" from them, as from Uzbek Tajiks or Persians.

In general, the way of life differs here, and in any guidebook they will write that you should not walk around Nukus and other Karakalpak cities at night - like the Kazakhs or the Kyrgyz, the Karakalpaks have enough dashing youth, which alcohol has a bad effect on, but the Uzbek homeliness, mahallism - somehow not. But I got some personal impression about the Karakalpaks as a people: people are like people, friendly and hospitable, with reactions and conversations well known throughout Central Asia. Let me just say that they don’t have an over-the-top Kazakh arrogance, most of all they reminded me, perhaps, of the Kalmyks.

If we talk about the national color and traditional culture, then as you can see, not much is noticeable in everyday life: well, older women here dress and cover their heads a little differently (moreover, closer to the Kazakhs than to the Uzbeks), but the national costume has not been preserved here, black hats (papakhas) are worth looking for in the souvenir ruins of Khiva, and I didn’t even see yurts in the steppe in Karakalpakia (as in the same one) - although I don’t presume to say that they are not there: the steppe is big. I was somehow unlucky with the national cuisine, which seems to have been preserved among the Karakalpaks from traditional life the best of all is, for example, turama (finely chopped meat with dumplings), gurtuk (a local analogue of beshbarmak), dishes made from jugar flour (the same dumplings), and in Kungrad and Muynak there are signs "balyk kuurdak" in some places, that is traditional Central Asian roast with onions and potatoes, but not from meat, but from fish. However, I never found a single cafe where all this would be available - mostly ordinary plov-shurpa-lagman-samsa. The only thing is that here in some places they pour camel shubat and probably mare koumiss, which are not typical for the cuisine of Uzbek farmers.

In the original version of this post, I did not even have photographs of traditional culture from museums - why, I will explain later, and this will be a bold stone in the garden of Nukus. Let me just say that in the old days the Karakalpaks had very beautiful women's jewelry in the best traditions of the jewelers of Khorezm (see here), including gilded headdresses. Another popular art was embroidery (which the Khorezmians, on the contrary, did not have), including on the skin - the latter was a purely masculine craft. For example, women's robes-capes - at the top - zhepak-zhegde (young woman), at the bottom - ak-zhegde (old woman):

8.

9.

And of course, all sorts of carpets and decoration of the yurt - black and red geometric Karkalpak ornaments, gloomy in the eyes of a stranger, cannot be confused with anything:

Yes, and the very life of the Karakalpaks in the old days was very interesting: some scientists call them "nomadic farmers", constantly moving along the changeable Amu Darya delta, and in a new place not only setting up yurts, but also digging in well, building a small fortress from clay. Winter auls usually included a cemetery with a mausoleum of the patron saint and a small madrasah, and the largest Karakalpak settlement proper was the commercial Chimbay on the "Russian" shore of the delta. The Karakalpaks had thought out and varied transport - several types of arba ("Mongolian" telegen-arba and "Khorezm" tat-arba), kayuki boats. The yurt in Karakalpak was called tsaran-uy, its dome was shatsarats and shangarak (consonant with the "shanyrak" among the Kazakhs), and in general the design of the yurt was quite Turkic (see), but it was more distinguished by decorations - I don’t remember such patterns and palettes nowhere else among the peoples of the Steppe.

Carpets and carved furniture of the yurt:

11.

A detail of the decoration of the "akbaskur" yurt and samples of Karakalpak ceramics are all the same unique scales:

12.

And in general, the proximity of Khiva and the general end of the century of great steppe wars took their toll: the Karakalpaks were cultural nomads, and their art ceased to be purely applied long before the Soviet regime. For example, already in the 19th century, Karakalpak literature took shape, the founders of which are the poets Ajiniyaz and Berdakh. The latter was also the first Karakalpak historian, and is now considered the main luminary of national culture: the name Berdakh is very popular among the Karakalpaks, and the Berdakh Museum is one of two or three beautiful buildings in the whole of Nukus:

Today's Karakalpakstan has all the necessary attributes - its own Academy of Sciences (the famous Karakalpak scientist - Soviet microbiologist Charjoy Abdirov), a university, a theater, or, for example, the Karakalpakfilm studio with the Berdakh cinema. But the embarrassingly charming girls in the foreground are volleyball players from Andijan with a coach: I managed to come to Nukus exactly during the All-Uzbek Spartakiad.

Therefore, there were no places in the hotels: for the whole city, though only on the second attempt, I found only one free room, and I had to bargain hard for it: the room cost $ 75 at the official rate (then it was 2500 soums per dollar) , but I managed to bring down the price by the same 75 in two nights, but already at the market rate (then it was 4300 soums per dollar), that is, approximately 1800 rubles for each of the two nights - a lot even by Russian standards, what can we say about Central Asia. In general, having told about the Karakalpaks, I begin the story about their capital. Alas, this wonderful people was categorically unlucky with the capital.

To be honest, I can't think of a city that I didn't like SO much. Longtime readers know that I usually try to reveal any city without emotions, to see something interesting and original in it, and to treat shortcomings according to the principle "this is not a bug, this is a feature." It's called "I usually remember faces, but I'll make an exception for you." In short: Nukus is a hole, and given its hefty size (it's the country's largest city west of Samarkand), a big hole.

Why is Nukus so bad? First of all, it is dull, as dull as a fairly large city can be in principle. Yes, of course, his history is nothing - the village has been known since 1862, and the city status was received in 1932, when the center of the Karakalpak autonomy was transferred here from the flooded Amu Darya ... but I know many cities that are even younger, but they look like- it's more interesting. Nukus, on the other hand, is kind of faceless, shapeless, without obvious dominants and memorable "chips", so after driving half the city, you don't really understand what has changed. Of course, I understand that many here see "almost every post-Soviet city" like this, but it’s not like that for me, I saw a unique face in Syktyvkar and Surgut, and, and, but here - even crack, I don’t see anything. Except perhaps just as boring, but they are somehow more comfortable.

Somewhere closer to the center there are similarities of mahallas, although it is rather an ordinary private sector, in which I really wanted to see the signs of an old trading village:

In some places this “pseudo-district” architecture, characteristic of Khorezm, is found, it is clearly new everywhere:

But I don’t remember buildings older than low-rise stalinoks here ... yes, here you can appreciate the Belarusian well-groomedness - there are a lot of sleek places in Nukus, although they are located absolutely haphazardly:

However, in general, Nukus is simply very uncomfortable, and its houses and quarters resemble not so much an urban fabric as a hastily built-up wasteland, like somewhere in the Far North:

Here is a deserted, dusty, sun-scorched courtyard typical of Nukus, which, unlike many other similar courtyards, is at least a little brightened up by a clean new building:

There are also new buildings in Nukus, wide and front streets characteristic of Uzbekistan, built up in a "volley":

But most of the city is various variations of five-story buildings, sometimes decorated with some kind of pattern of balcony bars. Also pay attention to the pipes sticking out of the windows - before I saw this only in some remote villages of Kazakhstan, and most likely this means that Nukus survived the collapse of the housing and communal services network and stoves in apartments, replaced by gas boilers as life stabilized.

Among all this, mostly modern (or modernized) public buildings are poked - all sorts of colleges, gyms, frighteningly pretentious government bodies of the republic:

On the very outskirts there is a railway station, which has not yet been reconstructed with demolition, like most stations in large cities of Uzbekistan (). The Chardzhou-Kungrad railway came here in 1955, but the building is clearly 10-20 years younger. And - again, one of the saddest in the country:

And behind the tracks, on the very edge of the Kyzyl Kum, there is also an unexpectedly beautiful bus station, perhaps, in principle, one of the best examples of the genre that I have seen .... I just saw it only in a glimpse from the "collective taxi" and never managed to film. The photo is not mine, and now it is a different color. Let's just say - I have seen Stalinist bus stations, but no national-style bus stations. I find it difficult to even guess when it could have been built:

27a. from here.

Well, you can still go around the circle in the center of Nukus, which, although very conditional, looks a little more lively than the rest of the city. Let's start on the main street connecting the Central Bazaar with the exit to "mainland" Uzbekistan, and as a starting point we will take the House with the Devil - that's how I called this late Soviet building with a sculpture on a concrete wall. This, by the way, is not something, but the Karakalpak Academy of Sciences:

On the other hand, there are a couple of dominants of the Nukus center: the high-rise of the Tashkent Hotel and the Karakalpak Musical Theater named after Berdakh, of course:

The hotel has very pleasant mosaics, such a direct glimpse in the grayness of Nukus:

The theater, on the other hand, was reconstructed quite recently, having acquired a “face” on the facade, and has been operating since 1930, founded in Turtkul, and for some reason was named after Stanislavsky in Soviet times. The Soviet building of the 1960s is very bulky, but it has been decorated as needed:

There is also a House of Communications nearby:

On one of the streets near it, I turned right. Here I will make a lyrical digression about another Nukus shortcoming - here, especially by the standards of satisfying Uzbekistan, there is a completely ugly public catering: I went around a dozen cafes, but in all there was only a standard set of a couple of dishes, uncomfortable emptiness in the morning, in the evening - on the contrary, crowded and aggressive. I came across, in fairness, and a couple of very pleasant-looking cafes - but they were more likely some kind of confectionery or ice cream parlors that did not interest me. It ended up that at the bazaar in the eatery (and not empty, that is, by local standards, it is quite suitable) I took a kuurdak ... and could not eat a single piece, it was so disgustingly made. So I bought myself dinner at a grocery store with half-empty shelves in the evening and no change from the saleswoman.

Meanwhile, the street where I turned turned out to be notable for a whole stalin (in the frame above), and rested on the White House - the parliament (Zhokargy-Kenes) and the cabinet of ministers of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, at the base, it seems, was also a stalin. Alas, here, too, a typical renovation in Turkic style, khokimiyats-towers in regional centers (like or) were built much more interesting. Monument - Berdakh: the heyday of the Karakalpaks fell on those times when the formidable khans and hordes remained in the deep past, and their hero is not a batyr, but a poet.

Almost the opposite... Wow, a real stalin of the 1950s, and even with decor, not hardened! It looks like a baroque palace in a polar village. Pay attention to the torn off sign - the streets in Nukus were renamed more than once, and for example, the one on which my hotel stood was now listed as Ata-Yuli ("Father's Way"? sounds!), And on the business card of the hotel it had an even more sonorous name" PoluNiyazov Street" (in fact, Paluniyazov, of course, you shouldn't joke about the surname - the street is named after the deceased soldier of the Great Patriotic War). The same house originally housed the Savitsky Museum, which I will talk about a little later.

Further on is the wide square of Druzhby Narodov Boulevard (this street itself, by the way, is called Doslyk Avenue, i.e. Friendship - and this name is Karakalpak, in Uzbek it would be Dustlik). The White House with a dome in the background - the local registry office:

And high-rise buildings have very beautiful mosaics on the entrances, each one is different:

On the bench, a mother with small children spotted me and said (not in Russian, of course, but everything is clear): "Look, baby, there is a foreign uncle! Let's say hello to him! Hello! Hellooooo!" - Having returned from Muynak, I heard this sound probably for the hundredth time in a day and therefore disappointed them with deaf silence.

Well, from here it’s a stone’s throw to the only (usually I write “the only official”, but here it’s just the only) attraction of Nukus - the Museum of Arts of Karakalpakstan named after Igor Savitsky. The huge museum complex is under construction, and so far only the building on the left with a brown pattern on the facade is open. In fact, I went here first thing, only after checking into a hotel - after all, they won’t call anything “Hermitage in the Desert”!

The artist Igor Savitsky was born in 1915 in Kiev, but grew up already in Moscow, for health reasons he avoided mobilization for the front and spent the war together with the Surikov Art Institute (where he studied then) in evacuation in Samarkand. Later, he returned to Central Asia with archeologists, including the largest researcher of Khorezm, Sergei Tolstov, but here he became interested not so much in archeology as in ethnography. In 1950, he moved to Nukus permanently - according to one version, he fell out of favor with some circles in the capital for his work and, in fact, found himself in exile here, and according to another, quite deliberately closer to the places of his research. Be that as it may, Igor Vitalyevich took root here, and although every Karakalpak in the farthest yurt knew that a Russian "junk dealer" was wandering the deserts and was interested in old necklaces or felt mats, Savitsky was perhaps more actively collecting paintings. Soviet Central Asia turned out to be simply surprisingly rich in artists, mostly Russians (in the broad sense, that is, including Germans, Jews and all kinds of deportees), but there were quite a few worthy ones among Uzbeks with Karakalpaks: apparently, just the juiciness and surrealism of the local landscape well awaken this talent . Savitsky was especially interested in the Russian avant-garde, in line with which he himself worked, and through his efforts this unloved Soviet power art flocked to Nukus not only from Central Asia. All this was patronized by Sharaf Rashidov himself, then head of the Uzbek SSR, and finally, in 1966, an art museum of an unexpected scale for Central Asia was opened in Nukus.

In general, the "Hermitage", despite the fact that "in the desert" - this is of course loudly said, but - the solid level of the best local history museums in the regional centers of Russia, maybe not Yekaterinburg or Kazan, but close. Here is a luxurious collection of Karakalpak ethnography (including stunningly beautiful jewelry and a full-length yurt), many antiquities from the ancient settlements of Khorezm (Khivan museums were not nearby), a whole hall of copies of various masterpieces of art (sculptures, paintings, architectural elements) of Europe and Asia, and of course, a whole floor of the same painting - I heard somewhere that this is the second largest collection of Russian avant-garde, and certainly the best collection of paintings in Central Asia. The most famous of them is "Bull" by the Tashkent artist Vasily Lysenko:

39.

But the whole impression turned out to be spoiled by one single detail: they ask for 120,000 soums for photography, that is, about 1,500 rubles - this is several times (!) More than in any other museum I know. Moreover, here you don’t, the camera must be handed over to the storage room. From such rules, I had an acute desire to pay for photography, take a picture of each exhibit with three different angles and put it on the Internet at least in 5 different places ... but the overpayment for the hotel somewhat cooled this ardor.

40.

In the original version of the post, written in 2015, there were no photographs from the Hermitage Desert at all. But then luck happened - a year later in Moscow I got to the exhibition of the Nukus Museum in the Moscow Museum of Fine Arts named after Pushkin. They brought there, frankly, not much, but it could be photographed absolutely free of charge!

41.

The main wealth of the museum, as already mentioned, is the paintings, and here I will not even try to show them at least in full. Rather, just a couple of examples: at the top, Nikolai Karakhan, "Laying a water supply system in Bukhara", at the bottom - Alexei Morgunov, Kemerovo Chemical Plant:

42.

From left to right: Leningrader Alisa Poret, "Dark Girl"; Nikolai Karakhan, "Two girls at the house", but by the third I forgot to re-photograph the signature.

43.

In addition to paintings and ethnography (frames No. 8-9 and 11-12), Savitsky, despite being a friend of Tolstov, did not bypass antiquity. Faces of Khorezm at the beginning of our era:

44.

Khorezm is not a cheerful Sogdiana, it has always been severe and full of fatalism:

44a.

Where on the possible homeland of Zoroaster without ossuaries? Sculpture is also not an idol, but an ossuary, personifying the person whose bones, carefully taken out by the untouchable from the flesh carried to the towers of silence, he placed.

45.

But the most beautiful is this one, painted. It is not for nothing that Khorezm is called the Central Asian Egypt:

46.

These are no longer assuaries, but jugs. Clay is about 1000 years old, bronze - about 2000:

47.

But how many treasures of the "Hermitage in the Desert" were not presented at this exhibition!
In Nukus, after wandering around the halls for a couple of hours, I went to the "general" museum of local lore, which turned out to be hidden in the courtyard of the school next door. There I hoped to still photograph at least something from local ethnography with archeology. But getting into the museum turned out to be not so easy - while they were looking for some head teacher who would accompany me through the school corridor, some tomboy broke the glass in the foyer, and everyone was suddenly not up to me. Finally, after about twenty minutes of waiting, I went to the museum of local lore, but there were only a couple of dark rooms, and if my memory serves me, they asked for about 400 rubles (in sums, of course), and they argued this with deadly iron: "A Have you been to the Savitsky Museum? Have you seen the prices there? Are we worse or something?!" In general, alas, more photos
From here I went to the bazaar - it is on the same street where the hotel and the theater are. However, let's face it, this is not a bazaar, but a market - that is, without any flavor and oriental drive:

From here I went to Khodjeyli with a transfer through something called Old city, however, no signs of antiquity (at least the 1930s) in which I did not notice. This is how the local minibus looks like - pay attention to the stool for the grandmother. Until 2007, Nukus had its own trolleybus, which was launched in 1991, but now only taxis and Korean minibuses remain - a typical situation in Central Asia in general.

A couple of views from the bus window. Nukus stands on the Amu Darya, its right (under the tsar - "Russian") bank, but the Amu Darya is extremely conditional here. First, it is dispersed into several small ducts:

Secondly, its main channel looks shallow, so in general it is well understood why the Aral Sea is drying up. The Nukus hydroelectric power station, built in the 1950s just above the city, finishes the Great River (now its dam connects Nukus with the satellite city of Takhiatash, where there is also a state district power station) - it not only generates energy, but regulates the flow of water into irrigation canals, the most important of which - the Main Turkmen Canal leading to the Caspian Sea "based on" the ancient Uzboy - was never built. In general, I thought, Nukus gives some idea of ​​how all these Elista or Saransk, Yoshkar-Ola or Syktyvkar looked like in Soviet times, artificially molded on the knee (more often, however, from county towns) centers of national autonomy, only in post-Soviet times taking on a face.

53.

. Top views, crafts, details.
. Palaces of Ichan-Kala.
. Along the walls of Ichan-Kala.
. Itchan-Kala, Pahlavan-Mahmud street.
. Itchan-Kala, back streets and madrasahs.
. Dishan-Kala, or Outer City.
. Outskirts palaces.
Karakalpakstan.
Nukus. Capital of Karakalpakstan.
Mizdakhan. At the world clock.
Muynak. By the dry sea...

Unfamiliar words and incomprehensible situations - see the links below.

Karakalpakstan - ancient state, which is part of modern Uzbekistan. More than half of the republic's territory is occupied by dune-type deserts (horseshoe-shaped sand dunes). Karakalpakstan is a place where there are many sights of various kinds.

As the archaeological excavations on the territory of modern Karakalpakstan show, the first human settlements appeared here more than 6 thousand years ago. How the state of Karakalpakstan began to form in the XIV century. new era on the territory of the Golden Horde that ceased to exist. But due to the constant raids of enemy tribes, the state did not have clear boundaries.

The Karakalpak Khanate was formed in the 18th century. new era.

At present, Karakalpakstan is the most major region Republic of Uzbekistan (occupies 28% of the area of ​​all lands of the republic). The area of ​​Karakalpakstan is 166600 square meters. km. The population of the Karakalpak region is 1 million 842 thousand people.

The majority of the population is:

• Karakalpaks;
• Uzbeks;
• Turkmens;
• Kazakhs.

Since ancient times, the nomadic population of the state was engaged in animal husbandry and the cultivation of cultivated plants. The peak of the development of the republic falls on the Soviet period. The territory of Karakalpakstan becomes one of the most important regions of agriculture in the USSR.

In addition, the development of oil and gas fields begins. Large cities, enterprises, higher educational establishments and hospitals, formed Administrative division.

The most famous cities are:

• Nukus is the capital of the state;
• Kungrad;
• Chimbay;
• Khodjeili;
• Turtkul;
• Beruni.

Karakalpakstan is located in a unique historical zone, where there are several hundred historical monuments belonging to different eras. Karakalpakstan today is a sovereign state with its own cabinet of ministers, but is part of a larger major state.

Karakalpakstan is completely located in the zone of the largest ecological disaster modern world- the disappearance of the Aral Sea.

Where is Karakalpakstan

Karakalpakstan is located in the west of Uzbekistan. In the north and west, the region has common borders with Kazakhstan, in the south it borders on Turkmenistan.

Coordinates extreme points republics:

1. The northernmost point is located at 46°N. sh. and 57° E. d.
2. The southern tip is at 41°N. sh. and 62° E. d.
3. The westernmost point is at 42°N. sh. and 56° E. d.
4. The eastern tip is located at 41.5°N. sh. and 62.5° E. d.

You can get to Karakalpakstan from Russia by railroads and highways going through Kazakhstan, as well as by air transport.

Railway stations and bus stations are located in the following cities of the state:

• Kungrad;
• Jaslyk;
• Akshalak;
• Beruni;
• Chimbay;
• Muynak;
• Khodjeili;
• Nukus;
• Miskin;
• Turtkul.

There are 4 air harbors on the territory of Karakalpakstan:

• airport of the city of Kungrad;
• Muynak airport;
• international airport of the city of Nukus;
• Tuley airport, located near the village of Jaslyk.

Weather in Karakalpakstan, the best time to travel

Karakalpakstan is located in the desert zone of the temperate zone. The climate of the region is generally warm and arid. The winter season in Karakalpakstan begins in mid-December and ends in mid-February. Air temperatures at this time can drop to -10°C. Precipitation for the entire season falls no more than 25 mm.

In spring, daily air temperatures exceed +15°С (at night air temperature is above +6°С), and at the end of the season they exceed 30°С. Precipitation per season is about 20 mm.

Karakalpakstan has a warm climate. In spring, daily air temperatures exceed +15°С, and at the end of the season they exceed 30°С.

Summer on the territory of the desert republic is very hot, dry and long: according to weather conditions, summer in the region lasts from mid-May to the end of September. Air temperatures in the summer season exceed 30°C. August is considered the warmest month, in this month the air temperature is above + 40 ° С. Precipitation is almost completely absent.

In October, the air temperature is not higher than +20°C, in November - up to +10°C, frosts are possible at night. Precipitation in the autumn season is about 20 mm. The number of sunny days in a year in Karakalpakstan is 266. The best time to travel: March, April, September.

Sights of Karakalpakstan

The small but historically rich state of Karakalpakstan has many interesting places to visit.

Religious buildings of the republic

The Mizdakhan necropolis is located next to the ruins of an ancient fortress, whose inhabitants professed Zoroastrianism. The cemetery was located outside the fortress. The inhabitants of the ancient fort left the dead on the top of the tower. After the birds ate soft tissues, the bone remains were placed in special vessels and buried.

One of the local legends tells that the grave of the first man, Adam, was found on the territory of Mizdakhan. A mausoleum was erected on the site of the alleged grave, which was called the "Apocalypse Clock": the building is gradually being destroyed and when the mausoleum turns into ruins, the end of the world will come.

The architectural complex is a museum. It is located in the vicinity of the city of Khodjeyli (4 km to the south).

The Sultan Uwais Mosque was built in the 12th century in honor of an Islamic preacher. The building was destroyed by Genghis Khan and rebuilt several centuries later. Further, several times it was destroyed and rebuilt again.

The restored building is a whole complex, which has a historical part (mosque, cemetery) and a service part (shops, cafes, a hotel). The mosque is not only one of the most revered places, but also a museum. It is located in the middle of the desert in the Beruni region of the state. Koykrylgan-kala is a religious building erected 2500 years ago.

It was dedicated to the star Fomalhaut. The object is a round building with a diameter of 80 m. In the center there was a two-story building from which observations were made. The design of the building was focused on the location of the stars in the sky. Currently it is a museum. The attraction is located in the middle of the desert in the Ellikkala region of Karakalpakstan (the eastern part of the region).

Museums of the Republic

State Art Museum. I. V. Savitsky was founded in 1966 by the Soviet artist and restorer Igor Savitsky. For many years, the art historian has been collecting a collection for the museum, consisting of paintings by Soviet artists and art objects of the inhabitants of the republic.

To date, the museum's collection includes more than 90 thousand of various exhibits. Museum. IV Savitsky has the richest art collection in Asia. The museum is located in the city of Nukus on K. Rzaev street, no. The ticket price is about 200 rubles.

The State Museum of Local Lore, located in the capital of Karakalpakstan, was opened about 80 years ago. The total exposition of the museum includes 57 thousand exhibits.

The museum collection is divided into themed rooms the following areas:

• nature and the world;
• archeology of the republic;
• ethnography of the republic;
• folk art.

The most interesting exhibits of the museum are:

• stuffed animals of extinct animals living thousands of years ago in the region;
• national musical instruments;
• national jewelry;
• layouts ancient cities states;
• Karakalpak yurt.

Museum address: Nukus, st. Karakalpakstan 2. Reduced ticket price: about 20 rubles. The house-museum of the Shamuratovs was opened in 1998 in the family home of the Karakalpak writer-translator Amet Shamuratov and the famous Karakalpak theater actress Shamuratova Ayimkhan.

The museum exposition includes:

• personal belongings of family members;
• concert paraphernalia;
• photographs and paintings;
• books and documents;
• jewelry;
• household items of the local population;
• hand-woven carpets.

The museum is located in the city of Nukus on N. Saraev street, 29. Ticket price: 130 rubles.

Architectural buildings and monuments in Karakalpakstan

Kyzyl-Kala is a defensive fortress built about 2000 years ago. It is located in the desert 27 km north of the city of Biruni. The fortress was opened in 1938. It is located architectural monument on flat terrain. The dimensions of the fortress: 65 m by 63 m. The corners of the structure are oriented exactly along the sides of the horizon. There are 2 tiers of loopholes on the outer wall.

The fortress of Kyzyl-Kala was part of the defensive fortifications of the ancient state of Khorezm.

In addition, the fortress served as the center of the agricultural district and was the intersection of caravan routes. The ruins of the Janbas-Kala fortress are located on the territory of the Karakalpak part of the Kyzylkum desert. The fortress was built 2500 years ago as a defensive structure. Dimensions of the structure: 200 m by 170 m. The protective walls rose by 10 m, there were no observation towers.

The approach to the main gate was protected by a narrow corridor. Niches for archers were located in the walls. Outside the walls of the fortress there was a large settlement where the Zoroastrians lived. The fortress fell after the assault of nomads about 2000 years ago. The building has never been restored. Gyaur-Kala is one of the most ancient cities of Karakalpakstan.

The city was completely destroyed during the Tatar-Mongol invasion in the 13th century. The city had 2 citadels. One of them was a protective structure, the other - the ruler's palace. The walls of the living quarters of the ruler's palace were decorated with bas-reliefs and paintings.

One of the branches of the legendary Silk Road passed through the Gyaur-Kala fortress. The oldest architectural complex is located in the vicinity of the city of Khodjeyli.

Natural attractions of Karakalpakstan

The Ustyurt Plateau is located in the zone of the mouth of the Amudarya River. The plateau is a gypsum-clay desert, where the destructive forces of wind and water have formed canyons and gorges over many millennia, where you can study the geology of the area. Also on the Ustyurt plateau is the Barsa Kelmes basin, where huge salt reserves are located.

The depression is periodically filled with water and turns into a large lake (length - 70 km, width - 40 km). The attraction can be visited independently, access to the facility is free. The Badai-Tugay protected area is located in the Beruni and Kegeyli regions of Karakalpakstan (the south of the region).

The reserve was organized about 50 years ago to preserve unique animals of the following species:

The park is located on a huge natural area in the lower reaches of the Amudarya River, where the natural zone is a desert. The visit is free. The Aral Sea is a natural reservoir located in the north of the region. Even 50 years ago, the Aral Sea was a unique largest salt lake located in the depths of the continent.

Pond fed 2 major rivers: Syr Darya and Amu Darya. In the 60s. 20th century water from the rivers feeding the sea began to be used to irrigate cotton fields. The reservoir was not fed for a long time, which led to the irreversible drying of the Aral Sea.

Currently, only ¼ of the original area of ​​the reservoir has been preserved. You can visit the coast of the Aral Sea on your own. Excursions to the Aral Sea from the city of Nukus cost from 1500 rubles.

Rest in Karakalpakstan

Karakalpakstan is located in an interesting and colorful region where you can buy many gifts of oriental themes or visit places to entertain the whole family.

Shopping in Karakalpakstan

The largest gift and souvenir shop in Karakalpakstan is located in the city of Nukus, st. Kayipbergenova, 23. In the store, customers can purchase a variety of Central Asian souvenirs, make an individual order. Wholesale purchase of souvenirs is possible. Prices are low: from 200 rubles. The Eastern Bazaar in Nukus is located in the city center on Yernazar Alakoz Street.

The territory of the bazaar is divided into several parts. Each part of the oriental bazaar has its own type of products sold. Vegetables, fruits, spices, oriental sweets, national dishes are on the shelves in huge containers. Everything here is free to try. It is customary to bargain at the oriental bazaar. Prices are much lower than in stores.

You can buy clothes, shoes, jewelry and much more in the shopping center of Nukus. Prices for goods are low, a lot of exclusive products. The shopping center is located in the central area of ​​the city of Nukus.

Interesting places to stay with children

City Amusement Park. Emir Timur is located in the city of Nukus at the intersection of Y. Kurbanov and T. Yeschanov streets.

The park provides for the entertainment of visitors the following:

• carousels for children of all ages;
• travel by mini-train;
• pools;
• inflatable trampolines for children;
• garden walks.

Prices in the city park. Emir Timur medium. The Amudarya River in the summer is not full-flowing due to constant water intake. Due to the lack of water in the riverbed, small warm lakes are formed. The gentle banks of the Amudarya River in the cities of Nukus and Turtkul are suitable for a beach holiday with children. The visit is free.

Nukus zoo is located in the capital of the republic. The zoo will introduce visitors to the animals and birds of Central Asia, as well as some species of exotic fauna. Prices for visiting: from 400 rubles.

Active rest in Karakalpakstan

Excursions in Karakalpakstan

To get acquainted with the republic, tourists are offered several excursion one-day routes.

Excursion program No. 1:

• architectural historical complex Mizdakhan;
• caravanserai or parking for travelers;
• fortress Gyaur-Kala.

Excursion program No. 2:

• coast of the Aral Sea;
• the city of Muynak;
• coast of the Amudarya river;
• forests located in the floodplain of the Amudarya River.

Excursion program to the ancient fortresses of Khorezm:

Any excursion route can be secured via the Internet. The point of departure for each of the above excursions is the city of Nukus. Prices for excursions: from 2000 rubles.

Route for exploring Karakalpakstan on your own

Plan independent travel for Karakalpakstan:

Hotels in Karakalpakstan

Hotel table:

Hotel name	Room classes	Cost of living per day	Services	Location of the hotel
Dosliq	Standard	3200 rub. (breakfast included)	Free car parking, free Wi-Fi, luggage storage, restaurant	Nukus, st. I. Karimova 173
Tashkent Hotel	Junior Suite	3500 rub. (breakfast included)	Free parking and internet, fully equipped rooms, catering, currency exchange	Nukus city center
Guest house Nika	Standard	1400 rub.	Car parking, Wi-Fi, fully equipped room	Nukus, st. Shanarak, 2 A
Asem Hotel	Junior Suite	4000 rub. (breakfast included)	Fully equipped spacious room, air conditioning, kitchenware, cable TV	Nukus, st. Nurmukhamedova, 8
Hotel Jipek Joli	Junior Suite	5000 rub. (breakfast included)	Spacious room with a full set of furniture and household appliances, currency exchange, Wi-Fi, luggage storage	Nukus, st. Tatibaeva, 50

How to get around Karakalpakstan

You can move around Karakalpakstan using the following modes of transport:

A two-hour trip on a regular bus will cost 200 rubles, on an intercity train - 300 rubles. The fare for a city taxi starts from 35 rubles. It is most convenient to use a rented car, the rental price per day starts from 1500 rubles, and it is worth considering the additional fuel costs.

Karakalpakstan is a mysterious ancient state located in the places where the famous caravan routes pass. The republic offers the most diverse recreation. Prices for accommodation in state hotels and excursions are low. Before planning a trip to Karakalpakstan, it is recommended to study the seasonal climate map of the region.

Article formatting: Lozinsky Oleg

Video about Karakalpakstan

Karakalpakstan. Through the sands of time

The Republic of Karakalpakstan occupies almost a third of the territory of Uzbekistan in the west of the country. The vast expanses of the republic are rather poorly populated, the inhabited central part is squeezed by the Karakum and Kyzylkum deserts, in total, more than 80% of the country's area has been conquered by deserts. As a result of the ill-conceived projects of the Soviet era, Karakalpakstan became the epicenter of an environmental catastrophe on a global scale. The waters of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya, aimed at irrigating the desert regions of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, no longer reach the Aral Sea. The best place to realize the scale of the problem is the former fishing port of Muynak, now a hundred kilometers from the coast. Despite the extremely low standard of living, the Karakalpak people have retained their rich customs and traditions; the achievements of local craftsmen in wood carving with inlay, leather embossing, weaving and embroidery are widely known. In addition, Karakalpakstan is considered an open-air archaeological reserve. To date, there are more than 300 archaeological sites, mostly left over from the Khorezm civilization.

Discover the fairy tale of the East! We will organize for you any tour according to your wishes Guarantee of the best price and quality, from tour operator No. 1 in the market of Uzbekistan.

Tours per person! Book online!

How to get there

The most convenient and fastest way to get to the Republic of Karakalpakstan is by air. Various airlines offer direct flights from Russia to Nukus, the capital of Karakalpakstan. Nukus Airport is located 4 km from the city center, you can leave the airport by public transport or taxi.

You can get to the capital by railway. Nukus is served by 11 trains that depart from several Russian cities: Volgograd, Saratov, St. Petersburg, Tula, Kaluga. You will get from the Northern capital to Karakalpakstan in a little more than 3 days (tickets cost from 9600 RUB), and from Tula and Kaluga - in 2.5 days.

Prices on the page are for November 2019.

Search for air tickets to Tashkent city (nearest airport to Karakalpakstan)

History and geography

Karakalpakstan is a republic within Uzbekistan, located on the Turan lowland. The uniqueness of the region lies in the fact that it is surrounded on both sides by the great Central Asian deserts of Kara-Kum and Kyzyl-Kum. In addition, due to the continued drying of the Aral Sea, another desert is being formed here, the saline Aral-Kum. Thus, 80% of the territory of Karakalpakstan is covered with deserts, and their shape is very peculiar - these are dune sands. Do you remember the song of the group "Yalla" about Kara-Kum? These are the typical oriental landscapes, unusual for our eyes, that Karakalpakstan offers you. This is how you see a camel caravan loaded with exotic goods somewhere in the distance. Once this territory was called Khorezm and was, without exaggeration, a real cradle of the most powerful and original culture. It’s hard for us to believe it, but civilization in the old days came from the east, not from the west, and these places are evidence of this. It is no coincidence that Karakalpakstan is called the "archaeological reserve": here is a real expanse for lovers of antiquities. Those who are interested in the Middle Ages will also find a field for applying their activity, because until the 9th-13th centuries, until the troops of Genghis Khan invaded here, Khorezm was the center of irrigated agriculture, education, science and art. Many monuments from this period have survived to this day.

What to ride

Buses and fixed-route taxis run around Nukus. Buses run strictly according to the schedule and stop only at bus stops. Therefore, citizens prefer to use minibuses that stop anywhere on demand.

Taxi fare - from 3000 UZS. Despite the fact that the fare is calculated by mileage, it is advisable to discuss it with the driver at the time of boarding.

Kitchen

Naturally, the national Uzbek cuisine prevails in the region, calling card which is a delicious pilaf. Local residents claim that they cook it best of all in Central Asia, and having tried it, I immediately want to agree with this. The Karakalpak feast necessarily includes lavash, meat, vegetables and fruits. Juicy, fresh, fragrant vegetables are the pride of Uzbekistan, the same should be said about the famous melons. By the way, they are well stored, and it is quite possible to bring them home as a gift.

Archaeological sights of Karakalpakstan

Tourists traveling around Karakalpakstan will discover not only amazing natural landscapes, but also priceless ruins of ancient and medieval monuments. The entire space between Nukus and the Amu Darya is simply dotted with ancient fortresses - the ruins of different centuries, the last witnesses of a civilization that has almost disappeared without a trace.

Toprak-kala earthen fortress is on the list of must-sees. The insignificant remnants of the once formidable and majestic structure have come down to us. The preserved southeastern corner of the fortress allows us to imagine the grandiose scale of the ancient building. Also here you can see partially preserved wall paintings and the ruins of several buildings, presumably temple buildings.

Another attraction that is interesting from the point of view of the history and culture of Karakalpakstan is the Ayaz-kala complex, consisting of the Big and Small fortresses. The large fortress is surrounded by 35 unfinished towers arranged in the shape of a semicircle, and the Small one, when viewed from the north, resembles a shoe. Fortresses Kyzyl-Kala, Janbas-Kala and Big Guldursun. 1st-13th centuries - real ancient strongholds, rebuilt during the time of the Khorezmshahs, retaining their ancient appearance.

According to legend, the ruler Ayaz Khan, who had the nickname Charyk Khan, which means "shoe for the poor", deliberately built this tower to look like a shoe.

Chilpyk is located almost 40 km from Nukus - a pyramid-shaped structure, presumably for ritual purposes. It is believed that those who left for the other world were left in it to cleanse the bones from the flesh. Later, Chilpyk was used as an observation tower and a prison.

Archaeological monuments of Karakalpakstan can be described indefinitely. The fortress of Kyzyl-kala, the border fortress of Big Guldursun, the ancient settlement of Mizdakhkan, the mausoleum of Mazlumkhan, the ancient settlement of Dzhanpyk-kala, Koykrylgan-kala - the richness of the culture of Karakalpakstan inspires respect.

The mausoleum of Mazluhman Sulu is remarkable, which is half in the ground. Down through the vaulted corridor, a staircase leads from the portal to a small intermediate cult building. The mausoleum is considered an example of the architecture of the Golden Horde Khorezm.

Mizdakhan (Gyaur-Kala Khodjeylinskaya) is an archaeological and architectural complex of the 4th-14th centuries, located on three hills, which includes extremely interesting monuments - the Gyaur-Kara fortress, three mausoleums and a large Caravanserai. During excavations, unique burials, coins, household utensils, glass, and gold jewelry were found here.

Nukus and Muynak

The cities of Nukus (the capital of Karakalpakia) and Muynak, once located on the shores of the Aral Sea, deserve special attention. Now it is a monument to what can be done with nature by its "crown" - man. Due to the need to solve the food problem in 1954, the Soviet leadership decided to develop virgin and fallow lands. Since the level of precipitation in these latitudes is low, agriculture here can only be irrigated. Where to get water from? Of course, nature, because its riches, as it seems to some, are limitless. The full-flowing rivers Amudarya and Syrdarya, which carried their waters to the Aral Sea for millions of years, were "pulled away" for irrigation facilities and irrigation systems. As a result, they simply stopped flowing into the sea, the channels are now stuck somewhere in the sands. And the sea dries up rapidly, forming a saline desert, because the water there, as you know, is salty. Dry winds blow salt from the bottom of the former sea and carry it around. Dead ships in the sands of Muynak, once standing in the roadstead in the water, are a real warning to us, people. Nevertheless, the Aral Sea region is a visited tourist attraction, just as horror films are always popular. Nukus is the largest city of Karakalpakstan, it is sometimes called " northern capital» republics. The city is relatively young, but in ancient times there was a city of Shurchi, a rich settlement, on its territory.

What else to see in Karakalpakstan

Most art historians agree that the main attraction of Karakalpakstan is the State Museum of Arts named after I.V. Savitsky, one of the few large collections of Russian art of the 20-30s. 20th century. There are also many finds from the Zoroastrian era: figurines of gods, cult items and even household items of fire worshipers. It also stores the values ​​of a completely different cultural layer, we are talking about a unique collection of Russian avant-garde paintings of the first half of the 20th century, thanks to which the museum has gained worldwide fame.

The Republican Museum of Local Lore of Karakalpakstan is considered the oldest museum in Uzbekistan. There are three expositions in its collection: nature, archeology and ethnography. A visit to the Berdakh Museum will be informative, the exhibits of which reflect the historical path traversed by the Uzbek people from ancient times to the present day.