Turkic Khaganate
In 563–567, the territory of modern Uzbekistan became part of the Turkic Khaganate.[7] In 630 and 658, the Eastern and Western Turkic Khaganate were conquered by the Tang Dynasty of China.
During the era of the Western Turkic Khaganate (603-658), the political influence of the Turks in Sogd increased. The process of settling the Turks in the oases of Central Asia led to the development of the ancient Turkic writing and monetary relations. Some Turkic rulers of Bukhara, Chach and Fergana issued their own coins.[8][9] Part of the Bukhara Turks adopted Christianity. The Turks from other regions adopted Buddhism and Zoroastrianism. The first steps for the official introduction of Buddhism into the religious practice of the Turks were made by Mukan Kağan (553-572). However, only Taspar Kağan (572-580) gave the Buddhist mission a scope that could provide the followers of this religion with cultural and political priority in the Kagan headquarters.[10] Most of the Turkic population retained their religion. The sources mention the following Turkic deities: Tengri (Sky), Umay (Mother Goddess), Yer-sub (Earth-Water) and Erklig (Lord of Hell), among which Tengri, the ruler of the Upper World, held a dominant position.[11]
Early Islamic period
The conquest of Central Asia by Muslim Arabs, which was completed in the eighth century AD, brought to the region a new religion that continues to be dominant. The Arabs first invaded Transoxiana in the middle of the seventh century through sporadic raids during their conquest of Persia. Available sources on the Arab conquest suggest that the Soghdians and other Iranian peoples of Central Asia were unable to defend their land against the Arabs because of internal divisions and the lack of strong indigenous leadership. The Arabs, on the other hand, were led by a brilliant general, Qutaybah ibn Muslim, and were also highly motivated by the desire to spread their new faith (the official beginning of which was in AD 622). Because of these factors, the population of Transoxiana was easily subdued. The new religion brought by the Arabs spread gradually into the region. The native religious identities, which in some respects were already being displaced by Persian influences before the Arabs arrived, were further displaced in the ensuing centuries. Nevertheless, the destiny of Central Asia as an Islamic region was firmly established by the Arab victory over the Chinese armies in 750 in a battle at the Talas River.[12][full citation needed]
Despite brief Arab rule, Central Asia successfully retained much of its Iranian characteristic, remaining an important center of culture and trade for centuries after the adoption of the new religion. Transoxiana continued to be an important political player in regional affairs, as it had been under various Persian dynasties. In fact, the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled the Arab world for five centuries beginning in 750, was established thanks in great part to assistance from Central Asian supporters in their struggle against the then-ruling Umayyad Caliphate.[12]
During the height of the Abbasid Caliphate in the eighth and the ninth centuries, Central Asia and Transoxiana experienced a truly golden age. Bukhara became one of the lea
leading centers of learning, culture, and art in the Muslim world, its magnificence rivaling contemporaneous cultural centers such as Baghdad, Cairo, and Cordoba. Some of the greatest historians, scientists, and geographers in the history of Islamic culture were natives of the region including al-Bukhari, Al-Tirmidhi, al Khwarizmi, al-Biruni, Avicenna and Omar Khayyam.[12]
As the Abbasid Caliphate began to weaken and local Islamic Iranian states emerged as the rulers of Iran and Central Asia, the Persian language continued its preeminent role in the region as the language of literature and government. The rulers of the eastern section of Iran and of Transoxiana were Persians. Under the Samanids and the Buyids, the rich Perso-Islamic culture of Transoxiana continued to flourish.[12]
- Klyashtornyy S.G., Savinov D.G. Stepnyye imperii drevney Yevrazii. SPb.: Filologicheskiy fakul’tet Sankt Petersburg, 2005
- ^ Smirnova O. I., Svodnyy katalog sogdiyskikh monet. Moscow, 1981, p.59.
- ^ Baratova L.S. Drevnetyurkskiye monety Sredney Azii VI-IX vv. (tipologiya, ikonografiya, istoricheskaya interpretatsiya). Avtoref. diss. kand. ist. nauk. Tashkent, 1995.
- ^ Klyashtornyy S.G., Livshits V.A. Sogdiyskaya nadpis’ iz Buguta. // Strany i narody Vostoka. issue 10. Moscow, 1971, pp. 132-133
- ^ Stebleva I.V. K rekonstruktsii drevnetyurkskoy religiozno-mifologicheskoy sistemy. // Tyurklogicheskiy sbornik 1971 goda.- Moskva, 1972, p. 213-214
- ^ Jump up to:a b c d Lubin, Nancy. “Early Islamic period”. In Curtis. Link : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Uzbekistan
