Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

38 results found

Shanghai Cooperation Organization

(Encyclopedia)Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), association of Eurasian nations founded 2001 in Shanghai by China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Under the charter signed in 2002...

Central Asian Republics

(Encyclopedia)Central Asian Republics, the countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Constituent republics of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, they all achieved i...

Akayev, Askar

(Encyclopedia)Akayev, Askar äsˈkär äkäˈyĕv [key], 1944–, Kyrgyzstani political leader. A physicist, he was educated (grad. 1967), and then taught, in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). Returning to Kirghiz SS...

Taraz

(Encyclopedia)Taraz jämbĭlˈ [key], city (1993 est. pop. 317,000), in S Kazakhstan on the border with Kyrgyzstan, on the Taraz (Talas) River and the Turkistan-Siberia RR. Industries include food processing and th...

Alatau

(Encyclopedia)Alatau or Ala-Tau both: äˈlätou [key] [Turkic,=mottled mountains], several ranges of the Tian Shan system in central Asia. The Alatau ranges are the Dzungarian, the Kungei, the Talas, the Terskei, ...

Otunbayeva, Roza

(Encyclopedia)Otunbayeva, Roza, 1950–, Kyrgyz political leader and diplomat, b. Osh. After graduating (1972) from Moscow State Univ. she taught philosophy (1972–78) at Kyrgyz State National Univ. She entered po...

Kashi

(Encyclopedia)Kashi käshˈgär [key], city (1994 est. pop. 190,500), SW Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, on the Kaxgar (Kashgar) River (a tributary of the Tarim). It is the hub of an important commercial d...

Turkistan

(Encyclopedia)Turkistan or Turkestan both: tûrkˌĭstănˈ, –stänˈ [key], historic region of central Asia. Western, or Russian, Turkistan extended from the Caspian Sea in the west to the Chinese frontier in th...

Kazakhstan

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Kazakhstan or Kazakstan käˌzäkstänˈ [key], officially Republic of Kazakhstan, republic (2015 est. pop. 17,750,000), c.1,050,000 sq mi (2,719,500 sq km), central Asia. It borders on Siberia...

Tajikistan

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Tajikistan təjĭkĭstänˈ [key], officially Republic of Tajikistan, republic (2015 est. pop. 8,192,000), 55,251 sq mi (143,100 sq km), central Asia. It borders on China in the east, Afghanist...

Browse by Subject