Thread by @UZAmbassador

THREAD: In the UK we are currently celebrating #SouthAsianHeritageMonth so I thought I’d highlight some of the historic & cultural ties between Uzbekistan & South Asia. There are lots for me to choose from! /1

The Graeco-Bactrian Kingdom covered much of Central & South Asia. Their coins, statuary & urban planning are found in archeological sites across the region, demonstrating the movement of people, ideas, & goods. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 2/

Buddhism travelled to Central Asia from India & thrived in Uzbekistan from the 1st c BC. Some linguists think the name Bukhara comes from the Sanskrit Vihara (Buddhist monastery). Termez was a major Buddhist centre, with monasteries, temples, & stupas. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 3/

Zoroastrianism was a major faith in Uzbekistan 2,000 years ago. It spread to India in the Sassanian period. Parsis can visit the dakhmo funerary tower at Chilpyk & there are ruins of a fire temple within the Magok-i-Attari Mosque in Bukhara. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 4/

Many people know Al Khwarizmi as the founder of algebra. He was also responsible for spreading the Hindu-Arabic numeral system to the Middle East & Europe. Al Khwarizmi came from Khorezm, the area around Khiva, hence his name. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 5/

The 9-10th c Samanid Mausoleum in Bukhara is the oldest surviving monument of Islamic architecture in Central Asia & may be the first example of a Sunni mausoleum. Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s Mazar-e-Quaid in Karachi, Pakistan is modelled after this building #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 6/

Samarkand’s @unesco Bibi Khanym Mosque was paid for with the loot from Timur's attack on Delhi. He brought 95 Indian elephants to do the heavy lifting during construction, & decorated the walls with papier mâché, a handicraft from Kashmir. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 7/

Timur’s mausoleum, the Gur-i Amir in Samarkand, was the model for Mughal garden tombs. These include Babur’s Tomb in Kabul, Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi, & the Taj Mahal in Agra. All four monuments are @unesco World Heritage Sites or on the Tentative List. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 8/

The Naqshbandi order of Sufis takes it name from Bahauddin Naqshband, a 14th c Sayyid from Bukhara. His memorial complex remains a place of pilgrimage; there’s a khanqah, mosque, madrassa & the necropolis where the saint is buried. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 9/

Babur, the 1st Mughal Emperor, was born in the Fergana Valley. He wanted to reclaim Timur’s capital, Samarkand, but failed & turned his attention south to Afghanistan & then India. @DalrympleWill wrote about Babur’s homeland: on.ft.com/3zpQzPC #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 10/

I wrote my undergrad dissertation on Mughal miniatures, which were heavily influenced by the ateliers in Bukhara & Samarkand. @UNESCO has a fantastic PDF about the arts of the book, painting & calligraphy: bit.ly/36RT2WD #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 11/

One of my favourite museums in Ladakh is the Munshi Aziz Bhat Museum of Central Asian Trade Artefacts in Kargil. It tells the story of overland trade between India & C Asia before international borders closed in the 1940s. kargilmuseum.org #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 12/

Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin brokered the Tashkent Agreement, the peace treaty which ended the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War, at Hotel Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan still plays a diplomatic role today, including in the Afghan peace process bit.ly/3eJvcRl #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 13/

Bollywood films were hugely popular in the USSR. Alibaba Aur 40 Chor - a blockbuster hit in 1980 - was filmed in Uzbekistan. More recently, HoiChoi Unlimited (2018) starring Dev was a joint Indian-Uzbek project. #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 14/

The Central Asia - South Asia Connectivity Summit took place in Tashkent this month. The focus was on economy, security, & culture, topics with a long history & which are critical for the region's shared future: bit.ly/3wXjjxi #SouthAsianHeritageMonth 15/

Lastly: There are direct flights to Uzbekistan from Afghanistan, India & Pakistan, as well as from the UAE & other major hubs. Indian nationals can get an evisa for $20 & @uzbekmfa has announced Pakistani nationals will be added to the evisa list soon! /end

*father of algebra!