Osh

For other uses, see OSH (disambiguation).

Osh Ош
Panoramic view of Osh
Seal
Osh Location in Kyrgyzstan
Coordinates: 40°31′48″N 72°48′0″E / 40.53°N 72.8°E / 40.53; 72.8
Country	Kyrgyzstan
Province	Osh Province
Population (2003)
- Total	220,000

A Soviet-era Lenin statue still stands at a square in Osh.

Sunday market.

Osh (Kyrgyz: Ош) 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. The city has an ethnically mixed population of about 220,000 (in 2003), comprising Kyrgyz, Uzbeks, Russians, Tajiks, and other smaller ethnic groups.

Overview

Osh is a lively place, with the largest and most crowded outdoor market in all of Central Asia. The city's industrial base, established during the Soviet period, largely collapsed after the break-up of the Soviet Union and has started to revive only gradually. The proximity of the Uzbek border, which cuts through historically linked territories and settlements, deprives Osh of much of its former hinterland and presents a serious obstacle to trade and economic development. Daily flights link Osh - and hence the southern part of Kyrgyzstan - to Bishkek and the north, and the recent upgrading of the long and arduous road through the mountains to Bishkek has greatly improved communications.

The city has several monuments, including one to the southern Kyrgyz "queen" Kurmanjan Datka and one of the few remaining statues of Lenin. A Russian Orthodox church, reopened after the demise of the Soviet Union, the largest mosque in the country (situated beside the bazaar), and the 16th-century Rabat Abdul Khan Mosque can be found here. The only World Heritage Site in Kyrgyzstan, the Sulayman Mountain, offers a splendid view of Osh and its environs. A cave in the mountain is the site of a museum containing a collection of archaeological, geological and historical finds and information about local flora and fauna.

Its first western-style supermarket Narodnyj opened in March of 2007. ^[1]

Population

Osh is the second largest city of Kyrgyzstan after the capital city of Bishkek. According to census of 2009 the city population amounted to 232.8 thousand.^[2] The population of the city with its suburbs is estimated at about 500.000 inhabitants (for 2008).^[3]

The city's population comprises 43 % Kyrgyz, 48 % Uzbeks, 3 % Russians, 2 % Turks and 1 % Tatars.

Ethnic composition of Osh city in 1926: Uzbeks 70.1% Russians 5.6% Kyrgyz 20% Others 3.3%

Ethnic composition of Osh city in 1989: Uzbeks 40.9% Russians 18.4% Kyrgyz 29.1% Others 11.6%

Ethnic composition of Osh city in 2009: Uzbeks 48.3% Russians 2.7% Kyrgyz 43.0% Others 6.0%

History

Early history

The city is among the oldest settlements in Central Asia. Osh was known as early as the 8th century as a center for silk production along the Silk Road. The famous trading route crossed Alay Mountains to reach Kashgar to the east. In modern times, Osh has become also the starting point of the Pamir Highway crossing the Pamir Mountains to end in Khorog, Tajikistan.

Babur, founder of the Mughal dynasty of Indian emperors and descendant of Timurlane, was born in nearby Andijan (Uzbekistan) in the Fergana Valley and set out from there on his conquest of northern India. He allegedly pondered his future on Sulayman Mountain, concluding that the confines of the Fergana would cramp his aspirations as a descendant of famous conquering warrior princes. He wrote of the city:

"There are many sayings about the excellence of Osh. On the southeastern side of the Osh fortress is a well-proportioned mountain called Bara-Koh, where, on its summit, Sultan Mahmud Khan built a pavilion. Farther down, on a spur of the same mountain, I had a porticoed pavilion built in 902 (1496-7)" ^[4]

Russian and Soviet rule

The city was occupied and annexed by the Russian Empire in 1876 when Russia overwhelmed the Central Asian khanates during the so-called "Great Game", the contest between Britain and Russia for dominance in Central Asia.

The Kara-Kyrgyz Autonomous Oblast was created within the Russian SFSR of the newly formed Soviet Union in 1919, with Osh as a part.

1990 and 2010 riots

Main article: Osh riots (1990)

Main article: 2010 South Kyrgyzstan riots

In 1990, shortly before the end of Soviet power in Central Asia, Osh and its environs experienced bloody ethnic clashes between Kyrgyz and Uzbeks, causing on the order of 1,000 deaths.

In 2010, after riots in Bishkek and other major Kyrgyz cities, President Kurmanbek Bakiyev took refuge in the city to hide from protesters denouncing his government and its response to the nation's struggling economy. On May 13, 2010, Bakiyev supporters took over government buildings in Osh, and also seized the airport, preventing interim government officials from landing.^[5] The protesters demanded Bakiev's return, and forced the provincial governor to flee. The former Osh provincial governor Mamasadyk Bakirov was reinstated.

On June 10, 2010, riots erupted in Osh, killing at least 400 and injuring thousands of others.^[6] Local media reported that gangs of young men armed with sticks and stones smashed shop windows and set cars aflame in the city center. Several buildings and homes across the city were also set on fire. The city's police force proved incapable of restoring order resulting in a state of emergency being declared and the army being mobilised. ^[7] The Kyrgyz intelligence agency claimed that the 2010 violence was initiated by the just-deposed president, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who is said to have made a deal with foreign narco-jihadist gangs: jihadists take over southern Kyrgyzstan and initiate a shariah state in exchange for the Bakiyev family's being returned to controlling Bishkek.[1] However, to the day no serious proof has been presented to the public and media. According to various sources, up to 100,000 ethnic Uzbek refugees fled to Uzbekistan. Many refugee camps have been organized in the Andijan, Fergana and Namangan regions of Uzbekistan for citizens of Kyrgyzstan who cross the border seeking safety.

Sister cities

• Istanbul, Turkey
• Saint Petersburg, Russia
• Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

References

1. ^ In Osh opened a supermarket "Narodnyj".
2. ^ National Statistical Committee of Kyrgyz Republic. National Census 2009. Vol. III(tables). Regions of Kyrgyzstan. Osh City.
3. ^ World Bank supports ifrastructure improving project for Bishkek and Osh cities
4. ^ The Babur-nama Ed. & trans. Wheeler M. Thackston (New York) 2002 pp4-5
5. ^ "Former Kyrgyz President's Supporters Take Over Government Buildings In South". Radio Free Europe. 13 May 2010. http://www.rferl.org/content/Bakiev_Supporters_Take_Over_Government_Building_In_Osh/2040630.html. Retrieved 13 May 2010. 
6. ^ google.com 12 June 2010
7. ^ "Twelve killed in new wave of unrest in Kyrgyzstan". Associated Press. 10 June 2010. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gS-xs7sBguewttUyAhxKUWRgnRzAD9G8RUS80. Retrieved 10 June 2010. 

External links

• Info on Osh On Osh State University's Medical Institute's website (English)
• Official website of Medical Institute, Osh State University
• City of Osh Official website (in Russian)
• The Spektator - Society, culture and travel articles on Kyrgyzstan and the Central Asian region
• Open Street Map

Coordinates: 40°32′N 72°48′E / 40.53°N 72.8°E / 40.53; 72.8