About Tajikistan
The Pamir Mountains “the roof of the world”, as they call them, are located in this former Soviet country of Tajikistan. The 3750 meter high Shahristan pass with two long tunnels which connects the southern and northern parts of the country opens up an impressive landscape of this beautiful land. Travelling along Pamir highway is one of the must do things for travelers seeking a little off-beaten tracks in this remote outpost of former Soviet Union. Tajikistan is still considered an undiscovered gem of Central Asian “stans”.
In the remote mountainous villages people retain much of their nomadic roots herding their sheep, cows, goats and yaks in the plains and valleys and their unique culture. The Sogdian language, now considered as dead like Latin, which used to be a lingua franca among caravan traders on the Silk Road for centuries, is still spoken by some in the distant villages of Varzob gorge of Fann Mountains. Alexander the Great and the Greeks came here in the 4th century B.C and founded Alexandria Eskhata (Alexandria the farthest (now Khojand).The Hence, the blue eyed descendents of the Greeks can also be found in the Pamir- Badakhshan area. Lake Iskandarkul and many other high-altitude lakes, numerous stunning mountain ranges and valleys, bustling markets make Tajikistan one of the hottest new destinations of “Stans”.
Quick Tajikistan facts
Area |
144, 100.sq km. |
Capital |
Dushanbe |
Time: |
GMT + 5:00 (Yekaterinburg). |
Country Code: |
+992. |
Languages: |
Tajik, Uzbek, Russian. |
Currency: Somon (TJS) |
US$1 =8,4 Somon (March,2017). |
Population |
8, 31 million |
Phrases |
Hello (Assalomu Alaykum); Thank you (Tashakkur), Good bye (Salomat boshed). |
Ethnic Groups: |
84,3% Tajik, 13,7% Uzbek, 2% others. |