1. Geography Of Tajikistan
Location
Landscapes
Rivers
People
Climate
Resources
Waqar Ahmad Khattak
(Ex Pakistan Marine Academy Cadet)
Bachelors in Nautical sciences
MSc in International Relations
National Defence University Islamabad Pakistan

2. Location
• Tajikistan is smallest In size in all of central Asian countries, lies in the
heart of central Asia.
• Bordered by:
North → Kyrgyzstan
East → China
South → Afghanistan
West → Uzbekistan

3. Landscapes, rivers and Glaciers
• Whole area of Tajikistan is covered by land(exceeding 90%) and is marked by mountains. (Landlocked)
• Mountains which include the towering ranges of Pamir(stands to the southeast of Tajikistan) and Tien Shan
containing peaks ranging between 300 m to 7,495 m in elevation.
•
• The geography at Tajikistan also includes within its borders 947 rivers stretching over 10 km. The longest among
these are the Amu Darya, the Syr-Darya , the Zeravshan besides the Vakhsh and the Panj.
• Tajikistan also contains numerous lakes, among which the biggest is Lake Karakul (in Eastern Pamir), with salty
water, having a total area of 380 square km. Lake Sarez (in Western Pamir) is the deepest (490 meters) with an
area of 86.5 sq. m. It is a fresh water lake.
• The Tajikistan mountains are noted for their glaciers, probably the largest in Asia. Fedchenko Glacier ( 77 km
long and 1,700 - 3,100 m broad) is the largest in the Pamir. Zeravshan Glacier is another one. The Hissar-Alay
(Southern Tien Shan) ridges are central to Tajikistan geography, with numerous mountains exceeding 5,000 m in
height. Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan is situated in the Hissar Valley at the foothills of the Hissar Mountains.
• In northwestern Tajikistan, you will find several other mountain ridges. The Turkestani (the snow-line here begins
at 3,500-4,000 m), the Zeravshan and the Hissar figure among these.
• The north of the country is occupied by the Fergana Hollow, fenced in by the Kuramin Ridge, the Vakhsh
and Hissar plains and Golodnaya (Hungry) steppe.

4. People and Climate
 The area’s population is ethnically mixed(more than three-fifths of the population is ethnically
Tajik).
 On the basis of language, customs, and other traits, the Tajiks can be subdivided into a number of
distinct groups:
Pamir Tajiks: Gorno-Badakhshan region include minority peoples speaking Wakhī, Shughnī, Rōshānī, Khufī,
Yāzgulāmī,all Iranian languages.
Yaghnābīs: Direct descendants of the ancient Sogdians, who live in the Zeravshan River basin.
 Tajiks mixed with neighbouring Uzbeks that the Soviet partition of the area in 1924 failed to
segregate the two nationalities, With nearly one million Tajiks in Uzbekistan and more than one
million Uzbeks in Tajikistan, these nationalities remain in intimate, though not always friendly,
interrelation.
 Other ethnic groups includes Russians, Tatars, Kyrgys,Ukranians, Germans, Jews and Americans.
Climate
 The climate of Tajikistan is sharply continental and changes with altitude
 In the warm-temperate valley areas, summers are hot and dry; the mean temperature in July is 81°
F (27° C) in Khujand (Khojand) and 86° F (30° C) in Kŭlob (Kulyab), farther south.
 In very cold winters, temperatures of −4° F (−20° C) and lower have been recorded.
 Moist air masses move from the west up the valleys, suddenly reaching low-temperature areas and
producing locally heavy precipitation, mainly heavy snow of as much as 30 to 60 inches of annual
accumulation.

5. Culture
 Tajikistan has an ancient culture, and many popular traditions and customs including:
→Costumes worn by both men and women.
→The New Year celebration, known as Nauruz which takes place on March 21, the period of
the vernal equinox.
→ A newer festival celebrates the gathering of the cotton crop, these colourful affairs
incorporate horse races, horsemanship, and wrestling contests.
→ religion was actively persecuted during the Soviet period, Muslims (mostly Sunnite)
continued regular Mosque worship and observed religious holidays where possible. In the late 1980s,
religious persecution abated and religious practices revived.
 The principal language of the republic, Tajik(known to its speakers as Tojiki), with distinct northern and
southern dialect.(close related to dari).
 Tajik was formerly written in a modified Arabic and later in the roman alphabets.
 Writers from this region have made notable contributions to literature since the 10th century AD.
 A number of Tajik poets and novelists achieved fame during the 20th century which include:
→ Abdalrauf Fitrat (Munazra 1909 and Qayamat 1923 are his famous dialogues)
→ Sadridin Ayne (known for his novel Dokhunda (1930; The Mountain Villager)
→Abu- Alqasim ( poem Taj va bayraq (1935; Crown and Banner) and Mirzo
Tursunzade’s Hasani arobakash (1954; Hasan the Cart Driver) respond to the changes of the Soviet era)

6. Resources
 Tajikistan possesses rich mineral deposits. Important metallic ores are:
→ Iron → mercury → Tin → Tungsten
→ lead → gold → zinc → antimony
 Non-metallic minerals include:
→ Common Salt → arsenic → asbestos
And precious and semiprecious stones.
→ carbonates, → fluorite → quartz sand
 Energy resources include sizable coal deposits and smaller reserves of natural
gas and petroleum.
 Some of the fast-flowing mountain streams have been exploited as hydroelectric
power sources.