Fergana

Mountains view at Ferghana Pass

The monument of Al – Farghoni in Ferghana city

Ferghana valley is considered as heartland of Uzbekistan, it is the densely populated part of the country with a majority of ethnic Uzbeks. Ferghana is the most fertile part of Uzbekistan, with large agricultural output. The Chatkal range of the Tian Shan in the north surrounds the valley, with the Pamir-Alai in the south from where the Syr Darya River starts flowing through the valley. So the region looks like a huge bowl. Ferghana valley is considered to be a big blossoming oasis of Central Asia. That’s why it is called “The Golden Valley”.
The valley’s best-known son is probably Zaheruddin Mohammad Babur (Timur’s great-great-great grandson), the last Timurid and the first Moghul, the founder of India’s Moghul Empire in the 16th century.

The valley of Ferghana was well-known for its swift and intelligent horses, bred since ancient times. During the reign of emperor Wudi, Chinese are known to have sent several expeditions for acquiring the prized horses. The brisk trading on the Great Silk Road brought Ferghana into the limelight of history. The legions of Alexander the Great skirted the valley in the southern part and after subduing the land, he is said to have founded Alexandria Eskhata. Later on having withstood various ruling dynasties, the most flourishing period of the history of Ferghana opens with the settling of Mongol hordes grouped into various chiefdoms. The Khanate of Kokand became the base of powerful Uzbek clans with control as far as Yarkand in China. From the early 19th century, the Khanate of Kokand expanded far beyond Ferghana into Central Asia’s third power. The powerful Khanate crumbled under the weight of its mismanagement with the Russians giving the final blow when it was incorporated into the territory of Tsarist Russia. The cities of the Ferghana valley were taken by the Tsar’s troops in 1876 with little effort and the Khanate was dissolved. From 1924 it was a part of Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic.
The valley of Ferghana is a home for several historical towns like Marghilan, Rishtan, Andijan and Kokand.

Ferghana Valley Tour FE1 – full-day:

Ferghana CityCity is the administrative centre of Ferghana region. Its territory is 70 square km and the population is 230,000 people.
The history of the city dates back to 1877. It was decided to build a new city 12 km from the old town of Marghilan. Initially it was named as new Marghilan, later Skobelev. In 1924 the city was named as Ferghana. At present Ferghana is an important industrial centre of Uzbekistan. Regarding the capacity of production Ferghana stands on the second place in Uzbekistan after Tashkent.

Marghilan (1st century BC). As legend says the name of Marghilan is linked with the invasion of Alexander the Great to Central Asia in the 4th century BC Alexander the Great had passed the way from Khojand to Uzghen and back. During that campaign he visited twice the settlement that was long after named Marghilan. Local people met Alexander with bread and chicken. He liked the meal and asked the name of it. He received a reply: “Murginon” which meant “chicken and bread”. From that memorable day the town was named as “Marghilan”.
Since old days Marghilan has been famous for its wonderful and fine silk. Via the Great Silk Road traders brought Margilanian silk to Baghdad, Cairo and Athens.
Nowadays the population of Marghilan is 200,000 people with the territory of 50 square km. Marghilan is the silk production center of Uzbekistan.

The souvenir factory “Yodgorlik” is still the only one in Central Asia where original handmade methods of silk production have remained. Silk fabric manufactured here is considered as one of the best in the international market.

Rishton is 50 km to the west of Ferghana City. Since ancient times Rishton was famous for its ceramics. There are deposits of red clay, natural minerals and abundance of mountainous vegetation that is needed for painting process. Rishton artisans became famous all over the world for their technology of ceramic production.

Kokand City is situated in the western part of the Ferghana Valley and it was its capital from 1709 to 1876. The Great Silk Road had played a major role in the development of the city.
The territory of the Kokand Khanate included eastern part of present-day Uzbekistan. There were 29 khans in the history of the Khanate. The most outstanding ruler was its last khan – Khudoyar. From 1845 to1876, just before the annexation of the Kokand Khanate to Russia, Khudoyar-Khan was the ruler of the state. Many mosques and madrasahs were built during Khudoyar-Khan’s reign.

Khudoyar Khan Palace – was built in 1860 -1872 in magnificent style with seven courtyards and 113 rooms. Only two courtyards and 19 rooms have survived. The Palace occupied four hectares.
Tsarist troops blew up its fortifications. At present the palace houses the museum of history.

Narbutabey Madrasah (1799)- the largest religious school in Kokand was closed by the Bolsheviks, reopened again in the years of independence of the republic, instructing nearly 80 students.

Madari Khan Mausoleum – was built on the main cemetery in 1825 for the khan’s mother by the best architects of the Kokand Khanate.

Dakhma-i-Shokhon (Grave of the Kings) – was the family mausoleum of the Kokand khans, built during the rule of Umar Khan (1809-1822) who was also buried here. The mausoleum, as well as a prayer place, is surrounded by a beautiful fence. The entrance doors are decorated with carved inscriptions in Arab, taken from Koran, as well as verses written by Umar Khan himself. For a long time, the mausoleum was dilapidated and turned to ruins. In 1971 it was completely reconstructed by local handicraftsmen.

Ferghana Valley Tour FE2 -full-day

Andijan Andijan is situated in the southeast of the Ferghana Valley and surrounded by high mountains and hills.
The history of the city goes back to the 9th century AD. In ancient times the Great Silk Road passed through this town, which was known as the eastern gate of the Ferghana Valley. In the 10th century Andijan was the part of the Samanids Empire. Andijan’s best-known son is Zaheruddin Mohammad Babur, the founder of India’s Moghul Empire in the 16th century. In 1483 Zaheruddin Babur was born here, and Andijan became the capital of the Ferghana State and its major Silk Road trading center. Later Babur had to go to Afghanistan and he ruled Kabul for two decades, then in 1526 he marched into Delhi and founded the Great Moghul Empire in India. The dynasty of the Babur’s had ruled India for more than 300 years.

Juma Mosque & Madrasah – built in the 19th century, is said to be the only building survived the 1902 earthquake. It is also a regional museum with historical exhibits on display.

Namangan is the third-largest city in the country and it’s a capital of Namangan region. Situated in the northern edge of Ferghana Valley and in the north-eastern part of Uzbekistan. Namangan is about 300 km east of Tashkent, about 65 km west of Andijan, and about 75 km north of Ferghana. The rivers Qoradaryo and Noryn join together to form the Syr Darya just outside the southern edge of the city.

Namangan region has got interesting places to visit like Akhsykent ruins – 1st century settlement located 25 km west of Namangan city, on the Syr-Darya River Formerly capital of Fergana Valley, abandoned in the 17th century for Namangan after an earthquake. Mullo Kyrgyz Madrasseh – built in 1910; Mosque of Ota Valikhan Tur – built in 1915; Namangan Natural History Museum – housing local archaeological discoveries ; Hadja Amin Kabri Architectural Complex – 18th to 19th century