Page 60 - The Stans of Central Asia: Turkmenistan & Uzbekistan

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impressive irrigation system along Uzbekistan’s major rivers. This innovation improved
agricultural output and increased trade in the region. Over time, cities began to appear and
some, such as Bukhara and Samarkand, became prosperous centers of government and culture.

By the third century BC, China was engaged in an extensive trade relationship with the greater
Mediterranean world. Its trade empire included Central Asia, Afghanistan, Iran, Northern
Africa, and parts of Europe. In order to facilitate trade across such a vast area, a complex
network of trade routes developed between China and the West. Collectively, these trade routes
are referred to as the Silk Road, so named for the lucrative silk trade that emerged during the
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spices, medicines, jewels, and slaves were all traded as well. Along with material goods, the
Silk Road also helped to transport knowledge and culture. The trade routes of the Silk Road
spread new ideas and technologies. They also helped to spread religion and philosophy.

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constant stream of wealth and knowledge. Cites such as Bukhara, Samarkand, and Khiva
quickly became centers of trade. At times, the Mawarannahr region in which these prosperous
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however, trade along its routes continued to a certain extent for centuries to come.

The Persian Empire

The Persian Empire came into existence in 539 BC after Cyrus the Great’s defeat of the
Neo-Babylonian Empire. This powerful empire of antiquity originated in modern-day Iran,
but eventually spread to include a substantial part of the known world. Though the empire
grew most noticeably under the rule of Cyrus the Great, it continued to expand under such
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Empire stretched as far west as Libya and as far east as India. This time period during which
the empire was ruled by Cyrus the Great and his successors is referred to as the Achaemenid
Dynasty. Uzbekistan, then divided into the Persian provinces of Sogdiana and Bactria, formed a
considerable part of the Achaemenid Empire. The Achaemenids governed the area now known
as Uzbekistan until 327 BC, when Alexander the Great conquered Central Asia.

Alexander the Great’s Conquest

The province of Sogdiana, centered around the present-day city of Samarkand, was one of
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obvious target for Alexander the Great’s conquest. Although he encountered tremendous
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BC when he married Roxana, the daughter of a local Bactrian chieftain. Bactria, the province
immediately to the south of Sogdiana, was the last Persian province to fall to Alexander the
Great. In order to maintain control of the region, Alexander set up a number of military
outposts, which he manned with veteran Macedonian soldiers.

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