Osh Province
Encyclopedia
Osh Province is a province
(oblast
) of Kyrgyzstan
. Its capital is Osh
. It is bounded by (clockwise) Jalal-Abad Province
, Naryn Province
, Xinjiang
, China, Tajikistan
, Batken Province
and Uzbekistan
.
, drops into the Alay Valley
and rises to the Trans-Alai Range which forms the border with Tajikistan. In the east, the land rises to the Ferghana Range which is roughly parallel to the Naryn border. This area is drained by the Kara Darya
which flows northwest to join the Naryn River
to form the Syr Darya
in the Ferghana Valley.
Highway M41 goes south over the mountains from Osh to the Tajik border. At Sary-Tash
a branch goes east to the Chinese border crossing at Irkeshtam
. The other main road goes west through the flat country to Batken Province.
, Uzgen
, and Kara-Suu
), 2 urban-type settlement
and 474 villages. Its de facto population, according to the Population and Housing Census of 2009, was 999,576. Of them, 82,841 people live in urban areas, and 916,735 in rural ones.
More than half of all Kyrgyzstan's Uzbeks
live in Osh Province. They are 33% of the provincial population as opposed to 14,5% in Kyrgyzstan as a whole.
within Uzbekistan is administratively part of Osh Province (Kara-Suu District). This is the tiny village of Barak (population 627) in the Fergana
valley, located on the road from Osh
(Kyrgyzstan) to Khodjaabad (Uzbekistan) about 4 km north-west from the Kyrgyz–Uzbek border in the direction of Andijan
.
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
(oblast
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
) of Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
. Its capital is Osh
Osh
Osh is the second largest city in Kyrgyzstan, located in the Fergana Valley in the south of the country and often referred to as the "capital of the south". The city is at least 3,000 years old, and has served as the administrative center of Osh Province since 1939...
. It is bounded by (clockwise) Jalal-Abad Province
Jalal-Abad Province
Jalal-Abad Province, also known as Jalalabat , is a province of Kyrgyzstan. Its capital is the city of the same name, Jalal-Abad. It is surrounded by Talas Province, Chui Province, Naryn Province, Osh Province and Uzbekistan. The Jalal-Abad Province was established on November 21, 1939...
, Naryn Province
Naryn Province
Naryn Province is the largest province of Kyrgyzstan. Its capital is Naryn. The province was established on November 21, 1939 as Tien-Shan Province. On December 20, 1962 the province was dissolved, but on December 11, 1970 re-established again...
, Xinjiang
Xinjiang
Xinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. It is the largest Chinese administrative division and spans over 1.6 million km2...
, China, Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
, Batken Province
Batken Province
Batken Province is a province of Kyrgyzstan. Its capital is Batken. It is bounded on the east by Osh Province, on the south, west and north by Tajikistan and on the northeast by Uzbekistan. The northern part of the province is part of the flat, agricultural Ferghana Valley...
and Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
.
Geography
Most of the population lives in the flat northern part of the Oblast, on the edge of the Ferghana Valley. The land gradually rises southward to the crest of the Alay MountainsAlay Mountains
The Alay or Alai Mountains is a mountain range that extends from the Tien Shan mountain range in Kyrgyzstan west into Tajikistan. It is part of the Pamir-Alay mountain system. The range runs approximately east to west. Its highest summit is Pik Tandykul , 5544 m. The southern slopes of the range...
, drops into the Alay Valley
Alay Valley
The Alay Valley is a broad, dry valley running east-west across most of southern Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan. . It is about 180km east-west and about 40km north-south and 2500-3500m in altitude. The north side is the Alay Mountains which slope down to the Ferghana Valley...
and rises to the Trans-Alai Range which forms the border with Tajikistan. In the east, the land rises to the Ferghana Range which is roughly parallel to the Naryn border. This area is drained by the Kara Darya
Kara Darya
The Kara Darya or Qaradaryo is a tributary of the Syr Darya in Kyrgyzstan and eastern Uzbekistan. The river is formed by the confluence of Kara-Kulja River and Tar River. There are more than 200 known tributaries of Kara Darya; the largest are Jazy River, Kara Unkur River, Kegart River, Kurshab...
which flows northwest to join the Naryn River
Naryn River
The Naryn River rises in the Tian Shan mountains in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia, flowing west through the Fergana Valley into Uzbekistan. Here it merges with the Kara Darya River to form the Syr Darya...
to form the Syr Darya
Syr Darya
The Syr Darya , also transliterated Syrdarya or Sirdaryo, is a river in Central Asia, sometimes known as the Jaxartes or Yaxartes from its Ancient Greek name . The Greek name is derived from Old Persian, Yakhsha Arta , a reference to the color of the river's water...
in the Ferghana Valley.
Highway M41 goes south over the mountains from Osh to the Tajik border. At Sary-Tash
Sary-Tash
Sary-Tash is a minor village and major crossroads in the Alay Valley of Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan. Nearby towns and villages to the north include Akbosaga , Shumkar and Chagyr ....
a branch goes east to the Chinese border crossing at Irkeshtam
Irkeshtam
Irkeshtam is a village east of the Alay Valley in southern Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan. It is one of the two main border crossings between Kyrgyzstan and Xinjiang, China, the other being Torugart, some to the northeast...
. The other main road goes west through the flat country to Batken Province.
Demographics
As of 2009, Osh Province (excluding Osh) comprised 3 towns (NookatNookat
Nookat , also Eski-Nookat, Iski-Naukat or Naukat, is a village in the Osh Province of Kyrgyzstan. It is the seat of Nookat District....
, Uzgen
Uzgen
Uzgen is a town in Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan. It is the capital of Uzgen District.-Geography:...
, and Kara-Suu
Kara-Suu
Kara-Suu is a town, river and valley in Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan, in the Fergana Valley. The town is 23km northeast of Osh and is the capital of Kara-Suu District....
), 2 urban-type settlement
Urban-type settlement
Urban-type settlement ; , selyshche mis'koho typu ) is an official designation for a type of locality used in some of the countries of the former Soviet Union...
and 474 villages. Its de facto population, according to the Population and Housing Census of 2009, was 999,576. Of them, 82,841 people live in urban areas, and 916,735 in rural ones.
More than half of all Kyrgyzstan's Uzbeks
Uzbeks
The Uzbeks are a Turkic ethnic group in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Pakistan, Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China...
live in Osh Province. They are 33% of the provincial population as opposed to 14,5% in Kyrgyzstan as a whole.
Ethnic composition
According to the 2009 Census, the ethnic composition of the Osh Province (de jure population) was:| Ethnic group | Population | Proportion of Uzgen District population |
|---|---|---|
| Kyrgyzs | 68.6% | Uzbeks Uzbeks The Uzbeks are a Turkic ethnic group in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Pakistan, Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China... |
28.0% | Uygurs | 1% | Turks | 1% | Tadjiks | 0.6% | Azerbaijanis | 0.3% | Russians Russians The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries.... |
0.1% | Tatars Tatars Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,... |
0.1% | Dungans | 0.1% | other groups | 0.2% |
Districts of Osh Province
Osh province is divided administratively into 7 districts (listed counter-clockwise):| District | Capital | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Uzgen District Uzgen District Uzgen or Özgön is a raion of Osh Province in south-western Kyrgyzstan. The capital lies at Uzgen. :-Demographics:As of 2009, Uzgen District included 1 town, and 99 villages. Its population, according to the Population and Housing Census of 2009, was 201,922... |
Uzgen Uzgen Uzgen is a town in Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan. It is the capital of Uzgen District.-Geography:... |
North1 |
| Kara-Suu District Kara-Suu District Kara-Suu is a raion of Osh Province in south-western Kyrgyzstan. The capital lies at Kara-Suu.:-Towns, rural communities, and villages:... |
Kara-Suu Kara-Suu Kara-Suu is a town, river and valley in Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan, in the Fergana Valley. The town is 23km northeast of Osh and is the capital of Kara-Suu District.... |
North2 |
| Aravan District Aravan District Aravan is a raion of Osh Province in south-western Kyrgyzstan. The capital lies at Aravan.The population in 2009 is 106,134 .Aravan district's area 1340 km.sq. The smallest district in Osh Province:... |
Aravan Aravan, Kyrgyzstan Aravan is a town in the Ferghana Valley, in the Aravan District of Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia about 25 km west of Osh. It is the capital of the Aravan District.Located on the Silk Road. Nearby are the Celestial Horses of Aravan, carved on a cliff face perhaps in the 1st century BC... |
North3 |
| Nookat District Nookat District Nookat is a raion of Osh Province in south-western Kyrgyzstan. The capital lies at Nookat.:-Demographics:As of 2009, Nookat District included 1 town, 1 urban-type settlements, and 74 villages. Its population, according to the Population and Housing Census of 2009, was 214,995... |
Eski-Nookat | West |
| Chong-Alay District Chong-Alay District Chong-Alay District is a raion of Osh Province in far south-western Kyrgyzstan. The capital lies at Daroot-Korgon. The Chong-Alay District include 3 rural communities : Chong-Alay, Kashka-Suu, and Jekendi.-Geography:... |
Daroot-Korgon Daroot-Korgon Daroot-Korgon is a town in the western Alay Valley of Osh Province, Kyrgyzstan. It is the capital of Chong-Alay District. It is about 90km west of Sary-Tash on the Kyzyl-Suu River... |
Southwest |
| Alay District Alay District Alay is a raion of Osh Province in south-western Kyrgyzstan. The capital lies at Gul'cha.. The Alay District borders with China in the east, Tajikistan in the south, Chong-Alay District in the west, Nookat District in the north-west, Kara-Suu District and Uzgen District in the north, and... |
Gul'cha Gul'cha Gulcha is a mountain town in the Osh Province of Kyrgyzstan. It is the capital of Alay District. The M41 highway leading south from Osh to the Alay Valley and eastern Tajikistan passes through Gulcha. The 2402m Chyrchyk Pass separates Gulcha from Osh, and the 3615m Taldyk Pass separates Gulcha... |
Southeast |
| Kara-Kulja District | Kara-Kulja Kara-Kulja Kara-Kulja is a town in the Osh Province of Kyrgyzstan. In the mountain valley of the Kara Darya river, southeast and upstream from Uzgen, it is the capital of Kara-Kulja District.... |
East |
Enclaves and exclaves
Kyrgyzstan's only exclaveEnclave and exclave
In political geography, an enclave is a territory whose geographical boundaries lie entirely within the boundaries of another territory.An exclave, on the other hand, is a territory legally or politically attached to another territory with which it is not physically contiguous.These are two...
within Uzbekistan is administratively part of Osh Province (Kara-Suu District). This is the tiny village of Barak (population 627) in the Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...
valley, located on the road from Osh
Osh
Osh is the second largest city in Kyrgyzstan, located in the Fergana Valley in the south of the country and often referred to as the "capital of the south". The city is at least 3,000 years old, and has served as the administrative center of Osh Province since 1939...
(Kyrgyzstan) to Khodjaabad (Uzbekistan) about 4 km north-west from the Kyrgyz–Uzbek border in the direction of Andijan
Andijan
Andijan or Andizhan is the fourth-largest city in Uzbekistan, and the capital of the Andijan Province. It is located in the east of the country, at , in the Fergana Valley, near the border with Kyrgyzstan on the Andijan-Say River...
.