:Tajikistan

{{anchor|Etymology}}

{{Main|Tajik people}}

The term "Tajik" itself ultimately derives from the Middle Persian Tāzīk, the Turkic rendition of the Arabic ethnonym Ṭayyi’, denoting a Qahtanite Arab tribe who emigrated to the Transoxiana region of Central Asia in the 7th century AD.Ali Shir Nava'i Muhakamat al-lughatain tr. & ed. Robert Devereaux (Leiden: Brill) 1966 p6 Tajikistan appeared as Tadjikistan or Tadzhikistan in English prior to 1991. This is due to a transliteration from the {{langx|ru|"Таджикистан"}}. In Russian, there is no single letter "j" to represent the phoneme {{ipa|/d͡ʒ/}}, and therefore {{script|Cyrl|дж}}, or dzh, is used. Tadzhikistan is the alternate spelling and is used in English literature derived from Russian sources.{{cite book |last1=Gleason |first1=Gregory W. |title=The Central Asian States: Discovering Independence |date=8 October 2018 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-96532-6 |page=xv |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9_7EDwAAQBAJ |language=en}}

While the Library of Congress's 1997 Country Study of Tajikistan found it difficult to definitively state the origins of the word "Tajik" because the term is "embroiled in twentieth-century political disputes about whether Turkic or Iranic peoples were the original inhabitants of Central Asia,"[https://lccn.loc.gov/97005110 A Country Study: Tajikistan, Ethnic Background] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200517164239/https://catalog.loc.gov/vwebv/search?searchCode=LCCN&searchArg=97005110&searchType=1&permalink=y |date=17 May 2020 }}. Library of Congress Call Number DK851. K34 (1997) scholars concluded that contemporary Tajiks are the descendants of the Eastern Iranic inhabitants of Central Asia, in particular, the Sogdians and the Bactrians and possibly other groups.[https://www.loc.gov/item/97005110/ Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan : country studies] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520055121/https://www.loc.gov/item/97005110/ |date=20 May 2021 }} Federal Research Division, Library of Congress, page 206Richard Foltz, A History of the Tajiks: Iranians of the East, London: Bloomsbury, 2019, pp. 33–61.Richard Nelson Frye, "Persien: bis zum Einbruch des Islam" (original English title: "The Heritage Of Persia"), German version, tr. by Paul Baudisch, Kindler Verlag AG, Zürich 1964, pp. 485–498 In later works, Richard Frye expands on the complexity of the historical origins of the Tajiks. In a 1996 publication, Frye explains that "factors must be taken into account in explaining the evolution of the peoples whose remnants are the Tajiks in Central Asia" and that "the peoples of Central Asia, whether Iranic or Turkic speaking, have one culture, one religion, one set of social values and traditions with only language separating them."{{cite book |title=The heritage of Central Asia from antiquity to the Turkish expansion |last=Frye |first=Richard Nelson |author-link=Richard Nelson Frye |year=1996 |publisher=Markus Wiener Publishers |location=Princeton |isbn=1-55876-110-1 |page=4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0RSXSu1x9hwC |access-date=29 May 2020 |archive-date=24 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124200452/https://books.google.com/books?id=0RSXSu1x9hwC |url-status=live }}

Regarding Tajiks, the Encyclopædia Britannica states:{{blockquote|The Tajiks are the direct descendants of the Iranic peoples whose continuous presence in Central Asia and northern Afghanistan is attested from the middle of the first millennium BC. The ancestors of the Tajiks constituted the core of the ancient population of Khwārezm (Khorezm) and Bactria, which formed part of Transoxania (Sogdiana). Over the course of time, the eastern Iranic dialect that was used by the ancient Tajiks eventually gave way to Tajiki.[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/581047/Tajikistan/214553/History Tajikistan: History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101212045237/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/581047/Tajikistan/214553/History |date=12 December 2010 }} Britannica Online Encyclopedia}}

{{Main|History of Tajikistan}}

File:Ambassador from Kumedh (胡密丹), visiting the court of the Tang Dynasty. The Gathering of Kings (王会图) circa 650 CE.jpg, coming from Kumedh ({{lang|zh|胡密丹}}). Wanghuitu circa 650 AD.{{cite book |last1=Xiong |first1=Victor Cunrui |title=Historical Dictionary of Medieval China |date=6 April 2017 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1-4422-7616-1 |page=43 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fCdCDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA43 |language=en |access-date=13 July 2022 |archive-date=24 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124200452/https://books.google.com/books?id=fCdCDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA43 |url-status=live }}Xuanzang calls this region Kiumito which is thought to be Komdei of Ptolemy and Kumadh or Kumedh of Muslim writers (See: Studies in Indian History and Civilization, Agra, p 351; India and the World, 1964, p 71, Dr Buddha Prakash; India and Central Asia, 1955, p 35, P. C. Bagch).]]

Cultures in the region have been dated back to at least the fourth millennium BC, including the Bronze Age Bactria–Margiana Archaeological Complex, the Andronovo cultures and the pro-urban site of Sarazm, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.{{cite web|url=http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1141|title=Proto-urban Site of Sarazm – UNESCO World Heritage Centre|first=UNESCO World Heritage|last=Centre|work=unesco.org|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304033948/http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1141|archive-date=4 March 2016}}

The earliest recorded history of the region dates back to about 500 BC when most, if not all, of Tajikistan was part of the Achaemenid Empire. Some authors have suggested that in the seventh and sixth centuries BC parts of Tajikistan, including territories in the Zeravshan valley, formed part of the Hindu Kambojas tribeScholars have located the Kamboja realm on the southern side of the Hindu Kush ranges in the Kabul, Swat, and Kunar Valleys, and the Parama-Kambojas in the territories on the north side of the Hindu Kush in Pamir and Badakhshan region in Tajikistan. See: Geographical and Economic Studies in the Mahābhārata: Upāyana Parva, 1945, p 11–13, Moti Chandra – India; Geographical Data in the Early Purāṇas: A Critical Study, 1972, p 165/66, M. R. SinghDr Buddha Prakash maintains that, based on the evidence of Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha, Raghu defeated the Hunas on river Vamkshu (Raghu vamsha 4.68), and then he marched against the Kambojas (4.69–70). These Kambojas were of Iranian affinities who lived in Pamirs and Badakshan. Xuanzang calls this region Kiumito which is thought to be Komdei of Ptolemy and Kumadh or Kumedh of Muslim writers (See: Studies in Indian History and Civilization, Agra, p 351; India and the World, 1964, p 71, Dr Buddha Prakash; India and Central Asia, 1955, p 35, P. C. Bagch). before it became part of the Achaemenid Empire.See: The Deeds of Harsha: Being a Cultural Study of Bāṇa's Harshacharita, 1969, p 199, Dr Vasudeva Sharana Agrawala; Proceedings and Transactions of the All-India Oriental Conference, 1930, p 118, Dr J. C. Vidyalankara; Prācīna Kamboja, jana aura janapada =: Ancient Kamboja, people and country, 1981, Dr Jiyālāla Kāmboja, Dr Satyavrat Śāstrī – Kamboja (Pakistan).

After the region's conquest by Alexander the Great it became part of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, a successor state of Alexander's empire. Northern Tajikistan (the cities of Khujand and Panjakent) was part of Sogdia, a collection of city-states which was overrun by Scytho-Siberians and Yuezhi nomadic tribes around 150 BC. The Silk Road passed through the region and following the expedition of Chinese explorer Zhang Qian during the reign of Wudi (141 BC–87 BC) commercial relations between Han Empire and Sogdiana flourished.[http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=18006 C. Michael Hogan, "Silk Road, North China", The Megalithic Portal, ed. Andy Burnham] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002140921/http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=18006 |date=2 October 2013 }}. Megalithic.co.uk. Retrieved on 20 January 2017.Shiji, trans. Burton Watson Sogdians played a role in facilitating trade and worked in other capacities, as farmers, carpetweavers, glassmakers, and woodcarvers.Frances Wood (2002) The Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia. University of California Press. p. 66. {{ISBN|978-0-520-23786-5}}.

The Kushan Empire, a collection of Yuezhi tribes, took control of the region in the first century AD and ruled until the fourth century AD during which time Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity, Zoroastrianism, and Manichaeism were practised in the region.[https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/cs/profiles/Tajikistan.pdf Tajikistan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221014613/https://loc.gov/rr/frd/cs/profiles/Tajikistan.pdf |date=21 December 2016 }}. loc.gov. Later the Hephthalite Empire, a collection of nomadic tribes, moved into the region, and the Arabs disseminated Islam in the eighth century.

File:MansurISamanidPaintingHistoryofIran.jpg ruler Mansur I (961–976)]]

File:Thomas Edward Gordon Lake Victoria, Great Pamir, May 2nd, 1874.png and a local Tajik inhabitant]]

{{Main|Samanid Empire}}

The Samanid Empire, 819 to 999, restored Persian control of the region and enlarged the cities of Samarkand and Bukhara, which became the cultural centers of Iran; the region was known as Khorasan. The empire was centered in Khorasan and Transoxiana; at its greatest extent encompassing Afghanistan, parts of Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, parts of Kazakhstan, and Pakistan.

Four brothers Nuh, Ahmad, Yahya, and Ilyas founded the Samanid state. Each of them ruled territory under Abbasid suzerainty. In 892, Ismail Samani (892–907) united the Samanid state under one ruler, thus putting an end to the feudal system used by the Samanids. It was under him that the Samanids became independent of Abbasid authority.

The Kara-Khanid Khanate conquered Transoxania (which corresponded approximately with what later would be Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, southern Kyrgyzstan, and southwest Kazakhstan) and ruled between 999 and 1211.{{cite web|url=http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9062103|title=Encyclopedia – Britannica Online Encyclopedia|work=eb.com|access-date=2 June 2014|archive-date=2 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202055513/http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9062103|url-status=live}}{{cite book |author=Grousset, Rene |title=The Empire of the Steppes |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-8135-1304-1 }} Their arrival in Transoxania signalled a definitive shift from Iranian to Turkic predominance in Central Asia,{{cite book |title=A history of Inner Asia |author=Svatopluk Soucek |chapter=Chapter 5 – The Qarakhanids |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-521-65704-4 |chapter-url-access=registration |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/historyofinneras00souc }} and gradually the Kara-khanids became assimilated into the Perso-Arab Muslim culture of the region.[http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ilak-khanids ilak-khanids] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150909080737/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ilak-khanids |date=9 September 2015 }}: Iranica. accessed May 2014.

In the 13th century, the Mongol Empire swept through Central Asia, invaded the Khwarezmian Empire and sacked its cities, looting and massacring people. Turco-Mongol conqueror Tamerlane founded the Timurid Empire, becoming the first ruler of the Timurid dynasty in and around what later became Tajikistan and Central Asia.

{{Main|Khanate of Bukhara}}

What later became Tajikistan fell under the rule of the Khanate of Bukhara during the 16th century and, with the empire's collapse in the 18th century, it came under the rule of the Emirate of Bukhara and Khanate of Kokand. The Emirate of Bukhara remained intact until the 20th century.

{{Main|Russian conquest of Turkestan}}

{{Further|Russian Turkestan|The Great Game}}

During the 19th century, for the second time in world history, a European power (the Russian Empire) began to conquer parts of the region.{{Cite web|title=History of Central Asia – Under Russian rule|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Central-Asia|access-date=5 January 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|archive-date=7 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210507015604/https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Central-Asia|url-status=live}} Russian Imperialism led to the Russian Empire's conquest of Central Asia during the 19th century's Imperial Era. Between 1864 and 1885, Russia gradually took control of the entire territory of Russian Turkestan, the Tajikistan portion of which had been controlled by the Emirate of Bukhara and Khanate of Kokand. Russia was interested in gaining access to a supply of cotton and in the 1870s attempted to switch cultivation in the region from grain to cotton (a strategy later copied and expanded by the Soviets).{{cite journal |last1=Whitman |first1=John |title=Turkestan Cotton in Imperial Russia |journal=American Slavic and East European Review |date=1956 |volume=15 |issue=2 |publisher=Association for Slavic and Eurasian Studies |location=Cambridge University |pages=190–205 |doi=10.2307/3000976 |jstor=3000976 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000976 |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=18 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818153542/https://www.jstor.org/stable/3000976 |url-status=live |issn=1049-7544}}

During the 19th century, the Jadidists established themselves as an Islamic social movement throughout the region. While the Jadidists were pro-modernization and not necessarily anti-Russian, the Russians viewed the movement as a threat because the Russian Empire was predominantly Christian.{{cite web |last1=Khalid |first1=Adeeb |title=Jadidism in Central Asia: Origins, Development, and Fate Under the Soviets |url=https://mesbar.org/jadidism-in-central-asia-origins-development-and-fate-under-the-soviets/ |website=Al Mesbar Studies and Research Centre |date=10 April 2018 |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=1 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301165850/https://mesbar.org/jadidism-in-central-asia-origins-development-and-fate-under-the-soviets/ |url-status=live }} Russian troops were required to restore order during uprisings against the Khanate of Kokand between 1910 and 1913. Further violence occurred in July 1916 when demonstrators attacked Russian soldiers in Khujand over the threat of forced conscription during World War I. While Russian troops brought Khujand back under control, clashes continued throughout the year in various locations in Tajikistan.

{{cite web |title=Tajikistan – The Russian Conquest |url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/4.htm |website=Country Studies |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=26 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026092613/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/4.htm |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Basmachi movement|Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic}}

File:Negotiations with basmachs Fergana, 1921.jpg, 1921]]

After the Russian Revolution of 1917 guerrillas throughout Central Asia, known as basmachi, waged a war against Bolshevik armies in an attempt to maintain independence.{{cite news |title=Tajikistan profile – Timeline |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-16201087 |access-date=31 January 2021 |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=31 July 2018 |archive-date=2 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502174022/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-16201087 |url-status=live }} The Bolsheviks prevailed after a four-year war, in which mosques and villages were burned down and the population suppressed.

Between 1928 and 1941, Soviet authorities started an anti-religious campaign of secularization. Practising Christianity, Islam, or Judaism was discouraged and repressed; due to the Soviet anti-religious legislation, several churches, mosques, and synagogues were closed.{{cite journal|last1=Pipes|first1=Richard|title=Muslims of Soviet Central Asia: Trends and Prospects (Part I)|journal=Middle East Journal|date=1955|volume=9|issue=2|pages=149–150|jstor=4322692}} As a consequence of the conflict and Soviet agriculture policies, Central Asia, Tajikistan included, underwent a famine that claimed lives.{{cite web|title=A Country Study: Tajikistan, Impact of the Civil War|url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/6.htm |website=Country Studies US |publisher=U.S. Library of Congress|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304210235/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/6.htm|archive-date=4 March 2016}}

In 1924, the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was created as a part of Uzbekistan, and in 1929 the Tajikistan Soviet Socialist Republic (Tajikistan SSR, Таджикская ССР) was made a separate constituent republic; the predominantly ethnic Tajik cities of Samarkand and Bukhara remained in the Uzbek SSR. Between 1927 and 1934, collectivization of agriculture and an expansion of cotton production took place, especially in the southern region.{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/9.htm|title=Tajikistan – Collectivization|work=Country Studies US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014202805/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/9.htm|archive-date=14 October 2012}} Soviet collectivization policy brought violence against farmers and peasants, classified as anti-Soviet categories of "enemies of the people", and forced resettlement occurred throughout Tajikistan. Consequently, some peasants fought collectivization and revived the Basmachi movement. Some industrial development occurred during this time along with the expansion of irrigation infrastructure.

File:Hammond Slides Central Asia Unlabeled 15.jpg

Two rounds of Stalin's purges (1927–1934 and 1937–1938) resulted in the expulsion of nearly 10,000 people from all levels of the Communist Party of Tajikistan.{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/10.htm|title=Tajikistan – The Purges|work=Country Studies US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014204552/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/10.htm|archive-date=14 October 2012}} Ethnic Russians were sent in to replace those expelled and subsequently Russians dominated party positions at all levels, including the top position of first secretary. Between 1926 and 1959 the proportion of Russians among Tajikistan's population grew from less than 1% to 13%.{{cite web |url-status=live |url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/23.htm |title=Tajikistan – Ethnic Groups |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207115900/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/23.htm |archive-date=7 December 2010 |agency=U.S. Library of Congress |website=Country Studies US }} Bobojon Ghafurov, First Secretary of the Communist Party of Tajikistan from 1946 to 1956, was the only Tajik politician of significance outside of the republic during the Soviet Era.

Tajiks began to be conscripted into the Red Army in 1939 and during World War II around 260,000 Tajik citizens fought against Nazi Germany, Finland, and the Empire of Japan. Between 60,000 (4%)Kamoludin Abdullaev and Shahram Akbarzaheh (2010) Historical Dictionary of Tajikistan, 2nd ed. p. 383. {{ISBN|0810860619}}. and 120,000 (8%)Vadim Erlikman (2004). Poteri narodonaseleniia v XX veke. Moscow. pp. 23–35. {{ISBN|5-93165-107-1}} of Tajikistan's 1,530,000 citizens were killed during World War II.{{cite web|url=http://ww2db.com/country/tajikistan|title=Tajikistan in World War II|author=C. Peter Chen|work=WW2DB|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726045015/http://ww2db.com/country/tajikistan|archive-date=26 July 2014|access-date=15 June 2014}}

Following the war and the end of Stalin's reign, attempts were made to further expand the agriculture and industry of Tajikistan.{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/11.htm|title=Tajikistan – The Postwar Period|work=Country Studies US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014205135/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/11.htm|archive-date=14 October 2012}} During 1957–58 Nikita Khrushchev's Virgin Lands Campaign focused attention on Tajikistan, where living conditions, education and industry lagged behind the other Soviet Republics. In the 1980s, Tajikistan had the lowest household saving rate in the USSR,Boris Rumer (1989) Soviet Central Asia: A Tragic Experiment, Unwin Hyman, London. p. 126. {{ISBN|0044451466}}. the lowest percentage of households in the two top per capita income groups,Statistical Yearbook of the USSR 1990, Goskomstat, Moscow, 1991, p. 115 {{in lang|ru}}. and the lowest rate of university graduates per 1000 people.Statistical Yearbook of the USSR 1990, Goskomstat, Moscow, 1991, p. 210 {{in lang|ru}}.

By the 1980s Tajik nationalists were calling for increased rights. Real disturbances did not occur within the republic until 1990. The following year, the Soviet Union collapsed, and Tajikistan declared its independence on 9 September 1991, a day which is celebrated as the country's Independence Day.{{cite news |url=https://frontnews.eu/news/en/12776/Tajikistan-celebrates-Independence-Day |title=Tajikistan celebrates Independence Day |work=Front News International |date=9 September 2017 |access-date=7 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180907221425/https://frontnews.eu/news/en/12776/Tajikistan-celebrates-Independence-Day |archive-date=7 September 2018 |url-status=dead }}

{{multiple image

|image1=RIAN archive 699861 Dushanbe riots, February 1990.jpg

|caption1=1990 Dushanbe riots

|image2=RIAN archive 466493 Rally on Ozodi square.jpg

|caption2=Tajik men and women rally on Ozodi square in Dushanbe after independence, 1992.

}}

In February 1990, riots and strikes in Dushanbe and other cities began due to the difficult socio-economic situation, lack of housing, and youth unemployment. The nationalist and democratic opposition and supporters of independence joined the strikes and began to demand the independence of the republic and democratic reforms. Islamists began to hold strikes to demand respect for their rights and independence. The Soviet leadership introduced Internal Troops in Dushanbe to eliminate the unrest.

File:Spetsnaz troopers during the 1992 Tajik war.jpg soldiers during the civil war, 1992]]

Following independence, the nation fell into civil war among factions distinguished by clan loyalties.{{cite web|title=Tajikistan: rising from the ashes of civil war|url=https://www.un.org/events/tenstories/06/story.asp?storyID=600|publisher=United Nations|access-date=10 August 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812220732/http://www.un.org/events/tenstories/06/story.asp?storyID=600|archive-date=12 August 2014}} Regional groups from the Gharm and Gorno-Badakhshan regions of Tajikistan. led by a combination of liberal democratic reformers{{Cite web|last=Dubovitsky|first=Viktor|url=http://www.analitika.org/article.php?story=20060307230526550&mode=print|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411201135/http://www.analitika.org/article.php?story=20060307230526550&mode=print|title=Features of the ethnic and confessional situation in the Republic of Tajikistan|date=February 2003|archive-date=11 April 2008|url-status=usurped|language=ru}} and Islamists, who eventually became the United Tajik Opposition, rose up against the newly formed government of President Rahmon Nabiyev, which was dominated by people from the Khujand and Kulob regions.

The war lasted until 1997. More than 500,000 residents fled during this time because of persecution and increased poverty, seeking better economic opportunities in the West or in other former Soviet republics.{{cite web|title=Human Rights Watch World Report 1994: Tajikistan|url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/1994/WR94/Helsinki-20.htm|publisher=Human Rights Watch|access-date=10 August 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924164340/http://www.hrw.org/reports/1994/WR94/Helsinki-20.htm|archive-date=24 September 2015}} The estimated dead numbered over 100,000. Around 1.2 million people were refugees inside and outside of the country.

Emomali Rahmon came to power in the early part of this conflict in 1992, after Nabiyev was forced at gunpoint on 7 September 1992 to resign from office.{{Cite web|date=17 November 1992|title=Ситуация в Таджикистане|url=https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/30157|access-date=17 May 2021|website=www.kommersant.ru|language=ru}} Rahmon defeated former prime minister Abdumalik Abdullajanov in a November presidential election with 58% of the vote.{{cite web |url=http://www.wrmea.com/backissues/0695/9506053.htm |title=Telling the truth for more than 30 years – Tajikistan After the Elections: Post-Soviet Dictatorship |work=Washington Report on Middle East Affairs |date=June 1995 |access-date=13 September 2013 |archive-date=22 June 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060622035642/http://www.wrmea.com/backissues/0695/9506053.htm |url-status=live }}

In 1997, a ceasefire was reached between Rahmon and opposition parties under the guidance of Gerd D. Merrem, Special Representative to the Secretary General, a result praised as a successful United Nations peacekeeping initiative. The ceasefire guaranteed 30% of ministerial positions would go to the opposition.{{cite web|author1=Jim Nichol|title=Central Asia's Security: Issues and Implications for U.S. Interests|url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL30294.pdf|publisher=Federation of American Scientists|access-date=10 August 2014|page=8|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120520055426/http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL30294.pdf|archive-date=20 May 2012}} Elections were held in 1999 and were criticised by opposition parties and foreign observers as unfair; Rahmon was re-elected with 98% of the vote. Elections in 2006 were again won by Rahmon (with 79% of the vote) and he began his third term in office. Opposition parties boycotted the 2006 election and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) criticised it, while observers from the Commonwealth of Independent States claimed the elections were legal and transparent.{{cite web|title=REPUBLIC OF TAJIKISTAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION|url=http://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/tajikistan/24664?download=true|publisher=Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe|access-date=10 August 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810080751/http://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/tajikistan/24664?download=true|archive-date=10 August 2014}}{{cite web|title=OSCE and CIS Observers Disagree on Presidential Election in Tajikistan|url=http://www.neweurasia.net/politics-and-society/osce-and-cis-observers-disagree-on-presidential-election-in-tajikistan/|website=New Eurasia|access-date=10 August 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150722001344/https://www.neweurasia.net/politics-and-society/osce-and-cis-observers-disagree-on-presidential-election-in-tajikistan/|archive-date=22 July 2015}}

Rahmon's administration came under further criticism from OSCE in October 2010 for its censorship and repression of the media. OSCE claimed that the Tajik Government censored Tajik and foreign websites and instituted tax inspections on independent printing houses that led to the cessation of printing activities for a number of independent newspapers.{{cite news|url=https://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE69H2FD20101018|work=Reuters|title=OSCE urges Tajikistan to stop attacks on free media|date=18 October 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170628001735/http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE69H2FD20101018|archive-date=28 June 2017}}

Russian border troops were stationed along the Tajik–Afghan border until summer 2005. Since the September 11, 2001 attacks, French troops have been stationed at Dushanbe Airport in support of air operations of NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. United States Army and Marine Corps personnel periodically visit Tajikistan to conduct joint training missions of up to several weeks duration. The Government of India rebuilt the Ayni Air Base, a military airport located 15 km southwest of Dushanbe, at a cost of $70 million, completing the repairs in September 2010.{{cite web|last=Kucera|first=Joshua|title=Tajikistan's Ayni airbase opens – but who is using it?|work=The Bug Pit – The military and security in Eurasia|publisher=The Open Society Institute|date=7 September 2010|url=http://www.eurasianet.org/node/61866|access-date=12 September 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130905071620/http://www.eurasianet.org/node/61866|archive-date=5 September 2013}} It is the main base of the Tajikistan air force. There have been talks with Russia concerning use of the Ayni facility,{{cite web|url=http://www.eurasianet.org/node/62187|title=Tajikistan: Dushanbe Dangling Ayni Air Base Before Russia|publisher=EurasiaNet.org|date=19 October 2010|access-date=13 September 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130905123258/http://www.eurasianet.org/node/62187|archive-date=5 September 2013}} and Russia continues to maintain a base on the outskirts of Dushanbe.{{cite web|title=Ratification of Russian military base deal provides Tajikistan with important security guarantees|url=http://www.janes.com/article/27898/ratification-of-russian-military-base-deal-provides-tajikistan-with-important-security-guarantees|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140803133141/http://www.janes.com/article/27898/ratification-of-russian-military-base-deal-provides-tajikistan-with-important-security-guarantees|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 August 2014|website=Jane's|access-date=10 August 2014}}

In 2010, there were concerns among Tajik officials that Islamic militarism in the east of the country was on the rise following the escape of 25 militants from a Tajik prison in August, an ambush that killed 28 Tajik soldiers in the Rasht Valley in September,{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11565443|work=BBC News|title=Tajikistan says restive east is under control|date=18 October 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131115193229/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11565443|archive-date=15 November 2013}} and another ambush in the valley in October that killed 30 soldiers,{{cite news|title=Tajikistan Says Kills Three Suspected Islamist Militants|publisher=Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty|date=18 October 2010|url=http://www.rferl.org/content/Tajikistan_Says_Kills_Three_Suspected_Islamist_Militants/2193377.html|access-date=12 September 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106020716/http://www.rferl.org/content/Tajikistan_Says_Kills_Three_Suspected_Islamist_Militants/2193377.html|archive-date=6 November 2013}} followed by fighting outside Gharm that left three militants dead. The country's Interior Ministry insisted that the central government maintained full control over the country's east, and the military operation in the Rasht Valley was concluded in November 2010.{{cite web|url=http://enews.fergananews.com/news.php?id=1903&mode=snews |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415112458/http://enews.fergananews.com/news.php?id=1903&mode=snews |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 April 2012 |title=Tajikistan: The government withdraws troops from the Rasht valley|publisher=Ferghana Information agency, Moscow|date=3 November 2010|access-date=13 September 2013}}

Fighting erupted again, this time in and around Gorno-Badakhshan, in July 2012.{{cite web|author=Khayrullo Fayz|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-18965366|title=Tajikistan clashes: 'Many dead' in Gorno-Badakhshan|publisher=BBC Uzbek|date=24 July 2012|access-date=13 September 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218140917/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-18965366|archive-date=18 December 2012}}

In 2015, Russia sent more troops to Tajikistan.{{cite web|url=https://www.stratfor.com/analysis/why-russia-will-send-more-troops-central-asia|title=Why Russia Will Send More Troops to Central Asia|work=Stratfor|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927163915/https://www.stratfor.com/analysis/why-russia-will-send-more-troops-central-asia|archive-date=27 September 2015}}

In May 2015, Tajikistan's national security underwent a setback when Colonel Gulmurod Khalimov, commander of the special-purpose police unit (OMON) of the Interior Ministry, defected to the Islamic State.{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-tajikistan-idUSKBN0OD1AP20150528|work=Reuters|title=Commander of elite Tajik police force defects to Islamic State|date=28 May 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016042543/http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/28/us-mideast-crisis-tajikistan-idUSKBN0OD1AP20150528|archive-date=16 October 2015}} Khalimov was allegedly killed on 8 September 2017 during a Russian airstrike near Deir ez-Zor, Syria,{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-russia/russia-says-its-air-strike-kills-several-top-islamic-state-commanders-in-syria-idUSKCN1BJ0KJ|title = Russia says its air strike kills several top Islamic State commanders in Syria|newspaper = Reuters|date = 8 September 2017}} although Tajikistan authorities express doubts whether he has died.

In 2021, following the Fall of Kabul, Tajikistan allegedly got involved in the Panjshir conflict against the Taliban on the side of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan.{{Cite web|date=4 October 2021|title=Afghan resistance has sanctuary in Tajikistan, but fighting Taliban a 'non-viable prospect'|url=https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20211004-afghan-resistance-has-sanctuary-in-tajikistan-but-fighting-taliban-a-non-viable-prospect|access-date=17 December 2021|website=France 24|language=en|archive-date=13 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211013170556/https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20211004-afghan-resistance-has-sanctuary-in-tajikistan-but-fighting-taliban-a-non-viable-prospect|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan diverge on approaches to Afghanistan {{!}} Eurasianet|url=https://eurasianet.org/kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-diverge-on-approaches-to-afghanistan|access-date=17 December 2021|website=eurasianet.org|language=en|archive-date=7 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207155858/https://eurasianet.org/kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-diverge-on-approaches-to-afghanistan|url-status=live}}

In September 2022 armed clashes, including the use of artillery, erupted along most of the border between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.{{cite web |title=Armed clashes erupted all along the border of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, Kyrgyz government sources reported on Sept. 16. |url=https://english.nv.ua/nation/fighting-breaks-out-between-kyrgyzstan-and-tajikistan-central-asia-news-50270517.html |access-date=17 September 2022 |archive-date=24 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124200452/https://english.nv.ua/nation/fighting-breaks-out-between-kyrgyzstan-and-tajikistan-central-asia-news-50270517.html |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Politics of Tajikistan}}

{{See also|Elections in Tajikistan|Foreign relations of Tajikistan|Military of Tajikistan|Human rights in Tajikistan|Tajikistani Civil War|Cabinet of Tajikistan}}

File:Dushanbe Presidential Palace 01.jpg]]

After independence, Tajikistan was plunged into a civil war. Factions were supported by foreign countries including Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Russia. Russia and Iran focused on keeping peace in the warring nation to decrease the chances of U.S. or Turkish involvement. Russia backed the pro-government faction and deployed troops from the Commonwealth of Independent States to guard the Tajikistan-Afghan border.{{Cite web|url=https://www.c-r.org/accord-article/tajik-civil-war-causes-and-dynamics|title=The Tajik civil war: Causes and dynamics|date=30 December 2011|website=Conciliation Resources|language=en|access-date=10 March 2019|archive-date=12 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412223027/https://www.c-r.org/accord-article/tajik-civil-war-causes-and-dynamics|url-status=live}} All but 25,000 of the more than 400,000 ethnic Russians, who were mostly employed in industry, fled to Russia. By 1997, the war had ended after a peace agreement between the government and the Islamist-led opposition, a central government began to take form, with peaceful elections in 1999.{{Cite web|title=How The Tajik President Has Managed To Stay In Power For Nearly Three Decades|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/30884643.html|access-date=5 January 2021|website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty|language=en|archive-date=4 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104055854/https://www.rferl.org/a/30884643.html|url-status=live}}

File:Emomali Rahmonov 2001Nov03.jpg Emomali Rahmon has ruled the country since 1994.]]

"Longtime observers of Tajikistan often characterize the country as profoundly averse to risk and skeptical of promises of reform, a political passivity they trace to the country's ruinous civil war," Ilan Greenberg wrote in a news article in The New York Times before the country's November 2006 presidential election.Greenberg, Ilan, "Media Muzzled and Opponents Jailed, Tajikistan Readies for Vote", The New York Times, 4 November 2006 (article dateline 3 November 2006), page A7, New York edition

File:Tajik Parliament House, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.JPG in Dushanbe.]]

The parliamentary elections of 2005 aroused accusations from opposition parties and international observers that President Emomali Rahmon corruptly manipulates the election process and unemployment. Elections in February 2010 saw the ruling PDPT lose four seats in Parliament, yet still maintain a majority. The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe election observers said the 2010 polling "failed to meet many key OSCE commitments" and that "these elections failed on many basic democratic standards." The government insisted that only minor violations had occurred, which would not affect the will of the Tajik people.{{cite news|title=Change you can't believe in|newspaper=The Economist|date=4 March 2010|url=http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15612447&source=hptextfeature|access-date=5 March 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161230010535/http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15612447&source=hptextfeature|archive-date=30 December 2016}}{{cite news|title=Tajikistan elections criticised by poll watchdog|newspaper=BBC|date=1 March 2010|access-date=5 March 2010|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8543214.stm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304194250/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8543214.stm|archive-date=4 March 2010}}

The Tajik government has reportedly clamped down on facial hair as part of a crackdown on Islamic influence and due to its perceived associations with Islamic extremism, which is evident in bordering Afghanistan.{{cite AV media|title=Dictatorland: Tajikistan|date=20 April 2017|medium=Television production|work=BBC Three}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/07/tajikistans-beard-ban-facial-hair-emomali-rahmon|title=The men evading Tajikistan's de-facto beard ban|website=The Guardian|date=7 September 2015|access-date=22 March 2021|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225034114/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/07/tajikistans-beard-ban-facial-hair-emomali-rahmon|url-status=live}}

File:Vladimir Putin and Emomali Rahmon (2017-02-27) 2.jpg with Russian president Vladimir Putin.]]

The presidential election held on 6 November 2006 was boycotted by "mainline" opposition parties, including the 23,000-member Islamic Renaissance Party. Four remaining opponents "all but endorsed the incumbent", Rahmon.

Freedom of the press is officially guaranteed by the government, and independent press outlets remain restricted, as does an amount of web content.{{Cite web|last=Welle (www.dw.com)|first=Deutsche|title=Press freedom in Tajikistan: Going from bad to worse {{!}} DW {{!}} 5 June 2020|url=https://www.dw.com/en/press-freedom-in-tajikistan-going-from-bad-to-worse/a-53697778|access-date=5 January 2021|website=DW.COM|date=5 June 2020 |language=en-GB|archive-date=15 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200615162514/https://www.dw.com/en/press-freedom-in-tajikistan-from-bad-to-worse/a-53697778|url-status=live}} According to the Institute for War & Peace Reporting, access to local and foreign websites is blocked, and journalists are sometimes obstructed from reporting on some events. In practice, no public criticism of the regime is tolerated and all direct protest is suppressed and denied coverage in the local media.{{cite web|url=http://iwpr.net/report-news/tajik-government%E2%80%99s-fury-over-conflict-reporting|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140926061259/http://iwpr.net/report-news/tajik-government%E2%80%99s-fury-over-conflict-reporting|url-status=dead|archive-date=26 September 2014|title=Tajik Government's Fury Over Conflict Reporting|publisher=Iwpr.net|date=22 October 2010|access-date=14 January 2011}}

In the 2020 Democracy Index by the Economist Intelligence Unit, Tajikistan was ranked 160th, after Saudi Arabia, while receiving the designation of "authoritarian regime".{{Cite news|title=Global democracy has another bad year|newspaper=The Economist|url=https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2020/01/22/global-democracy-has-another-bad-year|access-date=27 July 2020|issn=0013-0613|archive-date=23 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323135217/https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2020/01/22/global-democracy-has-another-bad-year|url-status=live}}

In July 2019, UN ambassadors of 37 countries, including Tajikistan, signed a joint letter to UNHRC defending China's treatment of Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region.{{cite news |title=Which Countries Are For or Against China's Xinjiang Policies? |url=https://thediplomat.com/2019/07/which-countries-are-for-or-against-chinas-xinjiang-policies/ |work=The Diplomat |date=15 July 2019 |access-date=18 July 2019 |archive-date=16 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190716160658/https://thediplomat.com/2019/07/which-countries-are-for-or-against-chinas-xinjiang-policies/ |url-status=live }}

File:Мацква.ру, репортаж с Парада Победы 2023 на Красной площади, фото 21.jpg, Tokayev and other post-Soviet leaders at the 2023 Moscow Victory Day Parade]]

In October 2020, President Emomali Rahmon was re-elected for another seven-year term with 90% of the vote, following a largely ceremonial election.{{Cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/10/12/tajikistan-leader-rakhmon-wins-election-with-over-90-percent|title=Tajikistan re-elects leader Rahmon with overwhelming majority|website=www.aljazeera.com|access-date=3 May 2021|archive-date=20 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120060537/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/10/12/tajikistan-leader-rakhmon-wins-election-with-over-90-percent/|url-status=live}}

In April 2021, a conflict over water with Kyrgyzstan escalated into one of the border clashes between the two countries since independence.{{Cite news|date=29 April 2021|title=Kyrgyz, Tajik security forces clash at border in water dispute|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-border-clashes-idUSL8N2MM5JM|access-date=19 July 2021|archive-date=2 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502053222/https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/kyrgyz-tajik-security-forces-clash-border-water-dispute-2021-04-29/|url-status=live}}{{cite news |title=After Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan Border Conflict, Time For a Human Rights Agenda |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/05/21/after-kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-border-conflict-time-human-rights-agenda |work=Human Rights Watch |date=21 May 2021 |access-date=19 July 2021 |archive-date=21 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521140543/https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/05/21/after-kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-border-conflict-time-human-rights-agenda |url-status=live }}

In July 2021, Tajikistan appealed to members of a Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) of ex-Soviet states for help in dealing with security challenges emerging from neighboring Afghanistan.{{cite news |title=Tajikistan asks Russia-led bloc for help on Afghan border |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/russia-says-afghan-situation-can-swiftly-worsen-pledges-help-if-needed-2021-07-07/ |work=Reuters |date=7 July 2021 |access-date=4 August 2021 |archive-date=4 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210804184603/https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/russia-says-afghan-situation-can-swiftly-worsen-pledges-help-if-needed-2021-07-07/ |url-status=live }} The safety concerns emerged as foreign troops such as the US and British army exited the country, causing over 1,000 Afghan civilians and servicemen to flee to neighboring Tajikistan after Taliban insurgents took control of parts of Afghanistan.{{Cite news|title=Tajikistan Reportedly Calls On Allies For Help With Security Challenges From Afghanistan|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-csto-help-afghanistan/31346198.html|access-date=8 July 2021|newspaper=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty|date=7 July 2021 |language=en|archive-date=22 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211122165303/https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-csto-help-afghanistan/31346198.html|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Geography of Tajikistan}}

File:Tajikistan satellite photo.jpg

File:Koppen-Geiger_Map_TJK_present.svg]]

Tajikistan is landlocked, and is the smallest nation in Central Asia by area. It lies mostly between latitudes 36° and 41° N, and longitudes 67° and 75° E. It is covered by mountains of the Pamir range, and most of the country is over {{convert|3000|m|ft}} above sea level. The areas of lower land are in the north (part of the Fergana Valley), and in the southern Kofarnihon and Vakhsh river valleys, which form the Amu Darya. Dushanbe is located on the southern slopes above the Kofarnihon valley.

The Amu Darya and Panj rivers mark the border with Afghanistan, and the glaciers in Tajikistan's mountains are the source of runoff for the Aral Sea. There are over 900 rivers in Tajikistan longer than 10 kilometres.

{{Main|Regions of Tajikistan|Districts of Tajikistan}}

{{stack|{{Tajikistan Provinces Image Map}}}}

File:Tajik mountains edit.jpg

Tajikistan consists of four administrative divisions. These are the provinces (viloyat) of Sughd and Khatlon, the autonomous province of Gorno-Badakhshan (abbreviated as GBAO), and the Regions of Republican Subordination (RRP – Raiony Respublikanskogo Podchineniya in transliteration from Russian or NTJ – Ноҳияҳои тобеи ҷумҳурӣ [Nohiyahoi tobei jumhurii] in Tajik). Each region is divided into districts ({{langx|tg|Ноҳия}}, nohiya or raion), which in turn are subdivided into jamoats (village-level self-governing units) and then villages (qyshloqs). {{As of|2006}}, there were 58 districts and 367 jamoats in Tajikistan.

Tajikistan contains five terrestrial ecoregions: Alai-Western Tian Shan steppe, Gissaro-Alai open woodlands, Pamir alpine desert and tundra, Badghyz and Karabil semi-desert, and Paropamisus xeric woodlands.{{cite journal|last1=Dinerstein|first1=Eric|last2=Olson|first2=David|last3=Joshi|first3=Anup|last4=Vynne|first4=Carly|last5=Burgess|first5=Neil D.|last6=Wikramanayake|first6=Eric|last7=Hahn|first7=Nathan|last8=Palminteri|first8=Suzanne|last9=Hedao|first9=Prashant|last10=Noss|first10=Reed|last11=Hansen|first11=Matt|last12=Locke|first12=Harvey|last13=Ellis|first13=Erle C|last14=Jones|first14=Benjamin|last15=Barber|first15=Charles Victor|last16=Hayes|first16=Randy|last17=Kormos|first17=Cyril|last18=Martin|first18=Vance|last19=Crist|first19=Eileen|last20=Sechrest|first20=Wes|last21=Price|first21=Lori|last22=Baillie|first22=Jonathan E. M.|last23=Weeden|first23=Don|last24=Suckling|first24=Kierán|last25=Davis|first25=Crystal|last26=Sizer|first26=Nigel|last27=Moore|first27=Rebecca|last28=Thau|first28=David|last29=Birch|first29=Tanya|last30=Potapov|first30=Peter|last31=Turubanova|first31=Svetlana|last32=Tyukavina|first32=Alexandra|last33=de Souza|first33=Nadia|last34=Pintea|first34=Lilian|last35=Brito|first35=José C.|last36=Llewellyn|first36=Othman A.|last37=Miller|first37=Anthony G.|last38=Patzelt|first38=Annette|last39=Ghazanfar|first39=Shahina A.|last40=Timberlake|first40=Jonathan|last41=Klöser|first41=Heinz|last42=Shennan-Farpón|first42=Yara|last43=Kindt|first43=Roeland|last44=Lillesø|first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow|last45=van Breugel|first45=Paulo|last46=Graudal|first46=Lars|last47=Voge|first47=Maianna|last48=Al-Shammari|first48=Khalaf F.|last49=Saleem|first49=Muhammad|display-authors=1|title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm|journal=BioScience|volume=67|issue=6|year=2017|pages=534–545|issn=0006-3568|doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014|pmid=28608869|pmc=5451287|doi-access=free}}

{{Main|Economy of Tajikistan}}

{{See also|Agriculture in Tajikistan}}

File:Young Tajikistani dry fruit seller.jpg

In 2019, nearly 29% of Tajikistan's GDP came from immigrant remittances (mostly from Tajiks working in Russia).[https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.TRF.PWKR.DT.GD.ZS?contextual=max&end=2019&locations=TJ&start=2019&view=bar World Bank Data] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607042053/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.TRF.PWKR.DT.GD.ZS?contextual=max&end=2019&locations=TJ&start=2019&view=bar |date=7 June 2021 }} Accessed 6 June 2021. Link goes to current data."[https://www.economist.com/news/asia/21584999-russia-attempts-draw-tajikistan-and-kyrgyzstan-back-its-orbit-remittance-man Remittance man] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171118154816/https://www.economist.com/news/asia/21584999-russia-attempts-draw-tajikistan-and-kyrgyzstan-back-its-orbit-remittance-man |date=18 November 2017 }}". The Economist. 7 September 2013.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1ey-4PO7fE Tajikistan: Building a Democracy (video)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160411132150/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1ey-4PO7fE |date=11 April 2016 }}, United Nations, March 2014 With foreign revenue precariously dependent upon remittances from migrant workers overseas and exports of aluminium and cotton, the economy is vulnerable to external shocks. In fiscal year 2000, international assistance remained an essential source of support for rehabilitation programs that reintegrated former civil war combatants into the civilian economy, which helped keep the peace. International assistance was necessary to address the second year of drought that resulted in a continued shortfall of food production. On 21 August 2001, the Red Cross announced that a famine was striking Tajikistan, and called for international aid for the country.{{Cite web|title=Spectre of famine over Tajikistan – IFRC|url=https://www.ifrc.org/en/news-and-media/news-stories/europe-central-asia/tajikistan/spectre-of-famine-over-tajikistan/|access-date=5 January 2021|website=www.ifrc.org|archive-date=10 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210410145621/https://www.ifrc.org/en/news-and-media/news-stories/europe-central-asia/tajikistan/spectre-of-famine-over-tajikistan/|url-status=dead}} In January 2012, 680,152 of the people living in Tajikistan were living with food insecurity. Out of those, 676,852 were at risk of Phase 3 (Acute Food and Livelihoods Crisis) food insecurity, and 3,300 were at risk of Phase 4 (Humanitarian Emergency). Those with the highest risk of food insecurity were living in the Murghob District of GBAO.{{cite web|title = Integrated Food Security Phase Classification|url = http://documents.wfp.org/stellent/groups/public/documents/ena/wfp245412.pdf|website = usaid.gov|publisher = USAID|access-date = 9 August 2014|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140810013040/http://documents.wfp.org/stellent/groups/public/documents/ena/wfp245412.pdf|archive-date = 10 August 2014|df = dmy-all}}

The malnutrition rate in Tajikistan will reach 30% in 2023 according to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). As in the rest of Central Asia, soils are deteriorating and water resources are diminishing, particularly as a result of climate change.{{Cite web |date=31 March 2023 |title=Tajikistan {{!}} World Food Programme |url=https://www.wfp.org/countries/tajikistan |access-date= |website=www.wfp.org |language=en |archive-date=11 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231211191847/https://www.wfp.org/countries/tajikistan |url-status=live }}

File:Talco.jpg aluminium smelting plant, in Tursunzoda, is the largest aluminium manufacturing plant in Central Asia, and Tajikistan's chief industrial asset.]]

Tajikistan's economy grew after the war. The GDP of Tajikistan expanded at an average rate of 9.6% over the period of 2000–2007 according to the World Bank data. This "improved" Tajikistan's position among other Central Asian countries (namely Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan), which seem to have degraded economically ever since.{{cite news|url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/guides/456900/456938/html/nn4page1.stm|title = BBC's Guide to Central Asia|work = BBC News|access-date = 1 November 2006|date = 20 June 2005|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061201060041/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/guides/456900/456938/html/nn4page1.stm|archive-date = 1 December 2006|df = dmy-all}} The primary sources of income in Tajikistan are aluminium production, cotton growing and remittances from migrant workers.{{cite web|date=December 2007|title=Background Note: Tajikistan|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5775.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513180616/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5775.htm|archive-date=13 May 2021|access-date=8 March 2008|publisher=US Department of State, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs}} Cotton accounts for 60% of agricultural output, supporting 75% of the rural population, and using 45% of irrigated arable land.{{cite news|url = http://bs-agro.com/index.php/news/other-countries/23909-tajikistan-over-392-5-thousand-tons-of-cotton-picked-in-tajikistan|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131220200124/http://bs-agro.com/index.php/news/other-countries/23909-tajikistan-over-392-5-thousand-tons-of-cotton-picked-in-tajikistan|url-status = usurped|archive-date = 20 December 2013|title = Tajikistan: Over 392.5 thousand tons of cotton picked in Tajikistan|publisher = BS-AGRO|date = 12 December 2013}} The aluminium industry is represented by the state-owned Tajik Aluminum Company – the biggest aluminium plant in Central Asia and one of the biggest in the world.{{cite journal|url=http://www.expert.ru/printissues/kazakhstan/2004/23/23ka-kpov3/|script-title=ru:Алюминий по-таджикски|trans-title=Aluminium in Tajiki|language=ru|journal=Expert Kazakhstan|volume=23|issue=25|date=6 December 2004|access-date=8 March 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111110001253/http://expert.ru/kazakhstan/2004/23/23ka-kpov3_57681/|archive-date=10 November 2011}}

Tajikistan's rivers, such as the Vakhsh and the Panj, have hydropower potential, and the government has focused on attracting investment for projects for internal use and electricity exports. Tajikistan is home to the Nurek Dam, the second highest dam in the world.{{cite web|url=http://npdp.stanford.edu/damhigh.html|title=Highest Dams (World and U.S.)|publisher=ICOLD World Register of Dams|year=1998|access-date=8 March 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080405065705/http://npdp.stanford.edu/damhigh.html |archive-date=5 April 2008}} Russia's RAO UES has been working on the Sangtuda-1 hydroelectric power station (670 MW capacity) commenced operations on 18 January 2008.{{cite web|url=http://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=154107&cid=6|script-title=ru:Первая очередь Сангтудинской ГЭС в Таджикистане будет запущена 18 января|trans-title=First stage of the Sangtuda HPS launched on 18 January|language=ru|publisher=Vesti|date=25 December 2007|access-date=28 February 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303185908/http://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=154107&cid=6|archive-date=3 March 2016}}{{cite web|url = http://www.energytoday.eu/articles/81528.php|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090116041605/http://www.energytoday.eu/articles/81528.php|url-status = dead|archive-date = 16 January 2009|title = Sangtuda-1 HPS launched on January 18, 2008|publisher = Today Energy|date = 5 January 2008|access-date = 8 March 2008}} Other projects at the development stage include Sangtuda-2 by Iran, Zerafshan by the Chinese company SinoHydro, and the Rogun power plant that, at a projected height of {{convert|335|m|ft|0}}, would supersede the Nurek Dam as highest in the world if it is brought to completion.{{cite web|url =http://www2.irna.com/en/news/view/line-18/0704240278195019.htm|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20130428215008/http://www2.irna.com/en/news/view/line-18/0704240278195019.htm|url-status =dead|archive-date =28 April 2013|title = Iran participates in power plant project in Tajikistan|publisher = IRNA|date = 24 April 2007|access-date = 8 March 2008}}{{cite web|url = http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/01/c7eca5d9-67f9-4659-88f9-696875ac873e.html|title = Chinese To Build Tajik Hydroelectric Plant|publisher = Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty|date = 18 January 2007|access-date = 8 March 2008|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080315013838/http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/01/c7eca5d9-67f9-4659-88f9-696875ac873e.html|archive-date = 15 March 2008|df = dmy-all}} A planned project, CASA-1000, will transmit 1000 MW of surplus electricity from Tajikistan to Pakistan with power transit through Afghanistan. The total length of transmission line is 750 km while the project is planned to be on Public-Private Partnership basis with the support of WB, IFC, ADB and IDB. The project cost is estimated to be around US$865 million.{{cite news|url = http://www.satrapia.com/news/article/pakistan-can-end-power-crisis-thru-casa-1000/|title = Pakistan can end power crisis thru CASA-1000|newspaper = The Gazette of Central Asia|publisher = Satrapia|date = 13 August 2011|access-date = 8 June 2012|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140810075442/http://www.satrapia.com/news/article/pakistan-can-end-power-crisis-thru-casa-1000/|archive-date = 10 August 2014|df = dmy-all}} Other energy resources include coal deposits and smaller reserves of natural gas and petroleum.{{Cite web|title=Tajikistan|url=https://www.eu4energy.iea.org/countries/tajikistan|access-date=5 January 2021|website=www.eu4energy.iea.org|archive-date=18 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418054953/https://www.eu4energy.iea.org/countries/tajikistan|url-status=live}}

In 2014 Tajikistan was the world's most remittance-dependent economy with remittances accounting for 49% of GDP and expected to fall by 40% in 2015 due to the economic crisis in the Russian Federation.{{cite web|url=http://www.eurasianet.org/node/73591|title=Tajikistan: Remittances to Plunge 40% – World Bank|work=EurasiaNet.org|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150529055726/http://www.eurasianet.org/node/73591|archive-date=29 May 2015}} Tajik migrant workers abroad, mainly in the Russian Federation, have become the main source of income for millions of Tajikistan's people{{cite web|url = http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EXTDECPROSPECTS/Resources/476882-1157133580628/BriefingNote3.pdf|title = Remittance Trends 2007. Migration and Development Brief 3|author1 = Dilip Ratha|author2 = Sanket Mohapatra|author3 = K. M. Vijayalakshmi|author4 = Zhimei Xu|publisher = World Bank|date = 29 November 2007|access-date = 8 March 2008|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080226203055/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EXTDECPROSPECTS/Resources/476882-1157133580628/BriefingNote3.pdf|archive-date = 26 February 2008|df = dmy-all}} and with the 2014–2015 downturn in the Russian economy the World Bank warned that numbers of Tajik men would return home and face "few" economic prospects.

According to some estimates about 47% of the population lives on less than US$1.25 per day.{{cite web|url = http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDI_2008_EN_Tables.pdf|title = UNDP: Human development indices – Table 3: Human and income poverty (Population living below national poverty line (2000–2007))| date=January 2008 |access-date = 2 October 2009|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081219191319/http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDI_2008_EN_Tables.pdf|archive-date = 19 December 2008|df = dmy-all}} Migration from Tajikistan and the consequent remittances have been unprecedented in their magnitude and economic impact. In 2010, remittances from Tajik labour migrants totalled an estimated $2.1 billion US dollars, an increase from 2009. Tajikistan has achieved transition from a planned to a market economy without "substantial and protracted" recourse to aid, and by purely market-based means, simply by exporting its main commodity of comparative advantage — cheap labour.{{cite web|url = http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2006/wp0602.pdf|title = The Macroeconomics of Remittances: The Case of Tajikistan. IMF Working Paper WP/06/2|author = Alexei Kireyev|publisher = IMF|date = January 2006|access-date = 8 March 2008|url-status = live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080226203044/http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2006/wp0602.pdf|archive-date = 26 February 2008|df = dmy-all}} The World Bank Tajikistan Policy Note 2006 concludes that remittances have played a role as 1 of the drivers of Tajikistan's economic growth during the past years, have increased incomes, and as a result helped reduce poverty.{{cite web|url = http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2006/08/22/000160016_20060822094201/Rendered/PDF/357710TJ.pdf|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001240/http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2006/08/22/000160016_20060822094201/Rendered/PDF/357710TJ.pdf|url-status = dead|archive-date = 4 March 2016|title = Tajikistan Policy Note. Poverty Reduction and Enhancing the Development Impact of Remittances. Report No. 35771-TJ|publisher = World Bank|date = June 2006|access-date = 8 March 2008}}

Drug trafficking is an illegal source of income in Tajikistan[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFVcQ7ZxC1o MEET THE STANS – episodes 3&4: Uzbekistan and Tajikistan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403014008/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFVcQ7ZxC1o |date=3 April 2015 }}, BBC, 2011 as it is a transit country for Afghan narcotics bound for Russian and, to a lesser extent, Western European markets; some opium poppy is raised locally for the domestic market.{{cite web |title=Country Factsheets, Eurasian Narcotics: Tajikistan 2004 |url=http://www.silkroadstudies.org/new/inside/research/narcotics_crime/FactSheet/2004/Tajikistan.pdf |publisher=Silk Road Studies |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102021851/http://www.silkroadstudies.org/new/inside/research/narcotics_crime/FactSheet/2004/Tajikistan.pdf |archive-date=2 November 2013}} With the increasing assistance from international organisations, such as UNODC, and co-operation with the US, Russian, EU and Afghan authorities a level of progress on the fight against illegal drug-trafficking is being achieved.{{cite web

|url = http://www.jamestown.org/publications_details.php?volume_id=414&issue_id=3579&article_id=2370646|title = Dushanbe looks towards Afghanistan to combat drug trafficking|author = Roger McDermott|publisher = Eurasia Daily Monitor|date = 10 January 2006|access-date = 8 March 2008|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080602034307/http://www.jamestown.org/publications_details.php?volume_id=414&issue_id=3579&article_id=2370646|url-status = dead|archive-date = 2 June 2008}} Tajikistan holds third place in the world for heroin and raw opium confiscations (1216.3 kg of heroin and 267.8 kg of raw opium in the first half of 2006).{{cite web |title=Facts and Figures |url=http://www.unodc.org/uzbekistan/en/fact_sheets.html |publisher=Coordination and Analysis Unit of the UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070428171619/http://www.unodc.org/uzbekistan/en/fact_sheets.html |archive-date=28 April 2007}} Drug money corrupts the country's government; according to some experts the personalities that fought on both sides of the civil war and have held the positions in the government after the armistice was signed are involved in the drug trade. UNODC is working with Tajikistan to strengthen border crossings, provide training, and set up joint interdiction teams. It helped to establish Tajikistani Drug Control Agency.{{cite web |title=Fighting Drugs, Crime and Terrorism in the CIS |url=http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/about-unodc/speeches/speech_2007_10_04.html |date=4 October 2007 |publisher=UNODC |access-date=27 May 2020 |archive-date=8 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808020822/http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/about-unodc/speeches/speech_2007_10_04.html |url-status=live }}

Besides Russia, China is one of the economic and trade partners of Dushanbe. Tajikistan belongs to the group of countries associated with Chinese investment within the Belt and Road Initiative.Vakulchuk, Roman and Indra Overland (2019) "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329310641 China's Belt and Road Initiative through the Lens of Central Asia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211024180554/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329310641_China%27s_Belt_and_Road_Initiative_through_the_lens_of_Central_Asia |date=24 October 2021 }}", in Fanny M. Cheung and Ying-yi Hong (eds) Regional Connection under the Belt and Road Initiative. The Prospects for Economic and Financial Cooperation. London: Routledge, pp. 115–133.

{{Main|Transport in Tajikistan}}

As a landlocked country, Tajikistan has no ports and the majority of transportation is via roads, air, and rail. In years Tajikistan has pursued agreements with Iran and Pakistan to gain port access in those countries via Afghanistan. In 2009, an agreement was made between Tajikistan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan to improve and build a {{cvt|1,300|km}} highway and rail system connecting the three countries to Pakistan's ports. The proposed route would go through the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province in the eastern part of the country.{{cite news |title=President Zardari chairs PPP consultative meeting |url=http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=83411&Itemid=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102200343/http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=83411&Itemid=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 January 2014 |publisher=Associated Press of Pakistan |date=10 August 2009 |access-date=11 August 2009}} In 2012, the presidents of Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Iran signed an agreement to construct roads and railways, and oil, gas, and water pipelines to connect the three countries.{{cite news|title=Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan sign agreement on road, railway construction|url=http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/96460-iran-afghanistan-tajikistan-sign-agreement-on-road-railway-construction-|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150406174251/http://www.tehrantimes.com/politics/96460-iran-afghanistan-tajikistan-sign-agreement-on-road-railway-construction-|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 April 2015|newspaper=Tehran Times|access-date=9 August 2014}}

{{Main|Rail transport in Tajikistan}}

The railroad system totals only {{convert|680|km|mi}} of track, all of it {{RailGauge|1520mm}} broad gauge. The principal segments are in the southern region and connect the capital with the industrial areas of the Hisor and Vakhsh valleys and with Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Russia.{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBSardpSH0E|title=Migrant Express Part 1: Good-bye Dushanbe|date=1 September 2009|work=YouTube|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016042543/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBSardpSH0E|archive-date=16 October 2015}} Most international freight traffic is carried by train.{{cite web|url=http://www.tajikistanmission.ch/business-and-investment/infrastructure.html|title=Tajikistan Mission – Infrastructure|author=Administrator|work=tajikistanmission.ch|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531142944/http://www.tajikistanmission.ch/business-and-investment/infrastructure.html|archive-date=31 May 2014}} The Bokhtar–Kulob railway connected the Kulob District with the central area of the country.

In 2009 Tajikistan had 26 airports, 18 of which had paved runways, of which two had runways longer than 3,000 meters.CIA World Factbook. [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/tajikistan/ Tajikistan] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210820040637/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/tajikistan/ |date=20 August 2021 }}

The total length of roads in the country is 27,800 kilometres. Automobiles account for more than 90% of the total volume of passenger transportation and more than 80% of domestic freight transportation.

In 2004 the Tajik–Afghan Friendship Bridge between Afghanistan and Tajikistan was built, improving the country's access to South Asia. The bridge was built by the United States.{{cite web|url=http://www.aed.usace.army.mil/Snapshots.asp?PageNo=2|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403130857/http://www.aed.usace.army.mil/Snapshots.asp?PageNo=2|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 April 2015|title= US Army Corps of Engineer, Afghanistan-Tajikistan Bridge|publisher=US Army Corps of Engineer|access-date=8 March 2008}}

{{As of|2014}} highway and tunnel construction projects are underway or have been completed. Projects include rehabilitation of the Dushanbe – Chanak (Uzbek border), Dushanbe – Kulma (Chinese border), and Kurgan-Tube – Nizhny Pyanj (Afghan border) highways, and construction of tunnels under the mountain passes of Anzob, Shakhristan, Shar-Shar[http://centralasiaonline.com/en_GB/articles/caii/features/2009/09/03/feature-06 Shar-Shar auto tunnel links Tajikistan to China] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531142530/http://centralasiaonline.com/en_GB/articles/caii/features/2009/09/03/feature-06 |date=31 May 2014 }}, The {{convert|2.3|km|0|abbr=on}} Shar-Shar car tunnel linking Tajikistan and China opened to traffic on 30 Aug.., Siyavush Mekhtan, 3 September 2009 and Chormaghzak.Payrav Chorshanbiyev (12 February 2014) [http://news.tj/en/news/chormaghzak-tunnel-renamed-khatlon-tunnel-and-shar-shar-tunnel-renamed-ozodi-tunnel Chormaghzak Tunnel renamed Khatlon Tunnel and Shar-Shar Tunnel renamed Ozodi Tunnel] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531131121/http://news.tj/en/news/chormaghzak-tunnel-renamed-khatlon-tunnel-and-shar-shar-tunnel-renamed-ozodi-tunnel |date=31 May 2014 }}. news.tj These were supported by international donor countries.[http://blogs.fco.gov.uk/leighturner/2013/05/07/trade-tunnels-transit-and-training-in-mountainous-tajikistan/ Trade, tunnels, transit and training in mountainous Tajikistan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130819075855/http://blogs.fco.gov.uk/leighturner/2013/05/07/trade-tunnels-transit-and-training-in-mountainous-tajikistan/ |date=19 August 2013 }}. fco.gov.uk (7 May 2013)

{{Main|Demographics of Tajikistan}}

File:Tajikistan, Trends in the Human Development Index 1970-2010.png

File:Women of Dushanbe .jpg

In 2023, Tajikistan was estimated to have a population of 10,389,799 as per the World Bank data.{{cite web | title=Population, total - Tajikistan | website=Data | date=8 February 2022 | url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=TJ | language=en | access-date=20 September 2022 | archive-date=20 September 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920173042/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=TJ | url-status=live }} The Tajiks who speak Tajik are the main ethnic group, while there are minorities of Uzbeks and Russians, whose numbers are declining due to emigration,[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4420922.stm Russians left behind in Central Asia] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130911080317/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4420922.stm |date=11 September 2013 }}, Robert Greenall, BBC News, 23 November 2005. making Tajikistan the only country in Central Asia to have a minority of Turkic people, and instead a majority of Iranic people.{{cite web | url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/tajikistan/#people-and-society | title=Tajikistan }} The Pamiris of Badakhshan, a population of Yaghnobi people, and a minority of Ismailis are considered to belong to the larger group of Tajiks. Citizens of Tajikistan are called Tajikistanis.

File:Nowruz_and_a_happy_child.jpg celebrations]]

In 1989, ethnic Russians in Tajikistan made up 7.6% of the population; by 1998 the proportion had reduced to approximately 0.5% following the Tajikistani Civil War which had displaced the majority of ethnic Russians. Following the end of the war, Russian emigration continued.[http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/23.htm Tajikistan – Ethnic Groups] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207115900/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/23.htm |date=7 December 2010 }}. Source: U.S. Library of Congress. The ethnic German population of Tajikistan has declined due to emigration: having topped at 38,853 in 1979, it has "almost vanished" since the collapse of the Soviet Union.[http://library.ndsu.edu/grhc/history_culture/history/tajikistan.html Russian-Germans in Tajikistan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090820100426/http://library.ndsu.edu/grhc/history_culture/history/tajikistan.html |date=20 August 2009 }}. Pohl, J. Otto. "Russian-Germans in Tajikistan", Neweurasia, 29 March 2007.

The Tajiks are the principal ethnic group in most of Tajikistan, and in northern and western Afghanistan,{{cite news |title=Why Tajikistan Is Taking a Stand Against the Taliban |url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/10/26/why-tajikistan-is-taking-a-stand-against-the-taliban-a75413 |work=The Moscow Times |date=26 October 2021 |access-date=12 February 2022 |archive-date=12 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212165000/https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/10/26/why-tajikistan-is-taking-a-stand-against-the-taliban-a75413 |url-status=live }} and there are more Tajiks in Afghanistan than in Tajikistan. Tajiks are a minority in Uzbekistan.{{cite news |title=The Tajik Tragedy of Uzbekistan |url=https://thediplomat.com/2016/09/the-tajik-tragedy-of-uzbekistan/ |work=The Diplomat |date=6 September 2016 |access-date=12 February 2022 |archive-date=19 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200619165415/https://thediplomat.com/2016/09/the-tajik-tragedy-of-uzbekistan/ |url-status=live }} About 2.4 million Tajik citizens were officially registered in Russia in 2021.{{cite news |title=Doctor Drain: 'Exodus' Of Tajiks To Russia Seen As Migration Laws Eased |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-russia-exodus-migration-brain-drain/31700293.html |work=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |date=12 February 2022 |access-date=12 February 2022 |archive-date=12 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220212165000/https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-russia-exodus-migration-brain-drain/31700293.html |url-status=live }}

{{main|Languages of Tajikistan|Tajik language|Russian dialects#Tajikistani Russian|l2 = Tajikistani Russian|}}

The official languages of Tajikistan are Tajik as the state language and Russian as the interethnic language, as understood in Article 2 of the Constitution: "The state language of Tajikistan shall be Tajik. Russian shall be the language of international communication."{{cite web |url=http://www.unesco.org/education/edurights/media/docs/ae8c0f7576f3d9f63ff2055592a9cb6b7f95227a.pdf |title=Constitution of Tajikistan |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=8 April 2021 |archive-date=10 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510033938/http://www.unesco.org/education/edurights/media/docs/ae8c0f7576f3d9f63ff2055592a9cb6b7f95227a.pdf |url-status=live }}

The state (national) language ({{langx|tg|забони давлатӣ|zaboni davlatí|links=no}}, {{langx|ru|государственный язык|gosudarstvennyy yazyk}}) of the Republic of Tajikistan is Tajik, which is written in the Tajik Cyrillic alphabet. Millions of native Tajik speakers live in neighboring Uzbekistan and in Russia.{{cite web |title=Tajik language |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Tajik-language |website=Britannica |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=27 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227074700/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Tajik-language |url-status=live }}

According to article 2 of the Constitution of the Republic of Tajikistan, Russian is recognized as the second official language of Tajikistan; the official language of inter-ethnic communication ({{langx|ru|язык межнационального общения}}; {{langx|tg|забони муоширати байни миллатҳо}}) in the country.{{cite web|url=https://ria.ru/culture/20091022/190107839.html|title=The status of the Russian language in Tajikistan remains unchanged – Rahmon|publisher=RIA – RIA.ru|date=22 October 2009|access-date=30 September 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161002141721/https://ria.ru/culture/20091022/190107839.html|archive-date=2 October 2016}}{{cite web|url=http://lenta.ru/news/2011/06/09/russian|title=В Таджикистане русскому языку вернули прежний статус|publisher=Lenta.ru|access-date=13 September 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130905014016/http://lenta.ru/news/2011/06/09/russian/|archive-date=5 September 2013}}

Approximately 90% of the population of Tajikistan speaks Russian at varying levels.{{cite web | url=https://celcar.indiana.edu/materials/language-portal/tajiki/index.html | title=Tajiki | access-date=25 October 2024 | archive-date=12 June 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240612222820/https://celcar.indiana.edu/materials/language-portal/tajiki/index.html | url-status=dead }} The varieties of Russian spoken in Tajikistan are referred to by scholars as Tajik(istani) Russian{{cite web |title=Russian: A Monocentric or Pluricentric Language |url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=739986 |publisher=Colloquia Humanistica |access-date=28 February 2021 |archive-date=17 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417154701/https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=739986 |url-status=live }} and it shares some similarities with Uzbek(istani) Russian, such as morphological differences and lexical differences such as the use of word урюк{{cite web |title=Урюк |url=http://forum.lingvolive.com/thread/l132954/?order=all#comment-96f1bb5a-2004-46a4-85a3-a7e80086b86b |website=Lingvolive |publisher=ABBYY Lingvo |access-date=28 February 2021 }}{{Dead link|date=October 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} for a wild apricot or кислушка for rhubarb.{{cite web |title=Кислушка (ревень) |url=http://forum.lingvolive.com/thread/l131195/?order=all#comment-2c008487-0fcb-480f-9742-a7e80086723c |website=Lingolive |publisher=ABBYY Lingvo |access-date=28 February 2021 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Both Russian and Tajik speakers in the country use the following words in common in addressing unfamiliar people and acquaintances.{{cite web |last1=Карина |first1=Рахим-заде |title=Взаимопроникновение русского и таджикского языков в разговорной речи населения Душанбе |url=https://studentlib.com/chitat/kursovaya_rabota_teoriya-32870-vzaimoproniknovenie_russkogo_i_tadzhikskogo_yazykov_v_razgovornoy_rechi_naseleniya_dushanbe.html |website=Studentlib.com |publisher=ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ ИНСТИТУТ РУССКОГО ЯЗЫКА имени А.С.ПУШКИНА |access-date=28 November 2021 |archive-date=28 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128110606/https://studentlib.com/chitat/kursovaya_rabota_teoriya-32870-vzaimoproniknovenie_russkogo_i_tadzhikskogo_yazykov_v_razgovornoy_rechi_naseleniya_dushanbe.html |url-status=live }}

The "highly educated" part of the population of Tajikistan, and the intelligentsia, prefer to speak Russian and Persian, the pronunciation of which in Tajikistan is called the "Iranian style".{{cite web |url=http://www.rferl.org/content/Tajikistan_Drops_Russian_As_Official_Language/1846118.html |title=Tajikistan Drops Russian As Official Language |publisher=RFE/RL – Rferl.org |date=7 October 2009 |access-date=13 September 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055202/http://www.rferl.org/content/Tajikistan_Drops_Russian_As_Official_Language/1846118.html |archive-date=4 March 2016 }}

Native Uzbek speakers live in the north and west of Tajikistan. In fourth place (after Tajik, Russian and Uzbek) by number of native speakers are Pamir languages, whose native speakers live in Kuhistani Badakshshan Autonomous Region. The majority of Zoroastrians in Tajikistan speak one of the Pamir languages. Native speakers of the Kyrgyz language live in the north of Kuhistani Badakshshan Autonomous Region. Yagnobi language speakers live in the west of the country. The Parya language of local Romani people (Central Asian Gypsies) is spoken in Tajikistan. Tajikistan has communities of native speakers of Persian, Arabic, Pashto, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Tatar, Turkmen, Kazakh, Chinese, and Ukrainian.{{cite web |last1=Sen Nag |first1=Oishimaya |title=What Languages Are Spoken In Tajikistan |url=https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-tajikistan.html |website=World Atlas |date=August 2017 |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=25 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225025005/https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-languages-are-spoken-in-tajikistan.html |url-status=live }}

In 2009 nearly 1 million Tajiks worked abroad (mainly in Russia).[http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=122728&d=21&m=5&y=2009 Deployment of Tajik workers gets green light] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090610144646/http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=122728&d=21&m=5&y=2009 |date=10 June 2009 }}. Arab News. 21 May 2007. More than 70% of the female population lives in traditional villages.{{cite news|last1=Azimova|first1=Aigul|last2=Abazbekova|first2=Nazgul|title=Millennium Development Goals: Saving women's Lives|newspaper=D+C|page=289|date=27 July 2011|url=http://www.dandc.eu/en/article/tough-labour-conditions-central-asias-female-health-workers|access-date=12 September 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140217124220/http://www.dandc.eu/en/article/tough-labour-conditions-central-asias-female-health-workers|archive-date=17 February 2014}}

{{Main|Religion in Tajikistan}}

{{See also|Freedom of religion in Tajikistan|Islam in Tajikistan}}

{{bar box

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{{bar percent|Islam|green|97.5}}

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File:Abdullokhon Mosque Isfara.jpg in Isfara]]

Tajikistan is a secular state with a constitution providing for freedom of religion, but nevertheless it heavily regulates the practices of its Muslim majority.{{Cite web|url=https://thediplomat.com/2015/04/tajikistan-no-hajj-no-hijab-and-shave-your-beard/|title=Tajikistan: No Hajj, No Hijab, and Shave Your Beard|first=Catherine|last=Putz|website=thediplomat.com|access-date=12 September 2021|archive-date=21 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021054613/https://thediplomat.com/2015/04/tajikistan-no-hajj-no-hijab-and-shave-your-beard/|url-status=live}} Sunni Islam of the Hanafi school has been officially recognised by the government since 2009.{{cite web|author=Avaz Yuldashev|url=http://asiaplus.tj/news/16/47964.html|script-title=ru:«Ханафия» объявлена официальным религиозным течением Таджикистана|trans-title="Hanafi" declared the official religious movement in Tajikistan|language=ru|date=5 March 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100825055806/http://asiaplus.tj/news/16/47964.html|archive-date=25 August 2010}} The government has declared two Islamic holidays, Eid ul-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, as state holidays. According to a US State Department release and Pew research group, the population of Tajikistan is 98% Muslim. Approximately 87–95% of them are Sunni and roughly 3% are Shia and roughly 7% are non-denominational Muslims.[http://www.pewforum.org/2012/08/09/the-worlds-muslims-unity-and-diversity-1-religious-affiliation/#identity Pew Forum on Religious & Public life, Chapter 1: Religious Affiliation] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161226113158/http://www.pewforum.org/2012/08/09/the-worlds-muslims-unity-and-diversity-1-religious-affiliation/ |date=26 December 2016 }} retrieved 29 October 2013.{{cite web |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5775.htm |title=Background Note: Tajikistan |publisher=State.gov |access-date=2 October 2009 |archive-date=13 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513180616/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5775.htm |url-status=live }} The Shia part of the population predominantly live in the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region and are followers of the Ismailite branch of Shia Islam.{{Cite web |title=Keeping religion alive: performing Pamiri identity in Central Asia {{!}} IIAS |url=https://www.iias.asia/the-newsletter/article/keeping-religion-alive-performing-pamiri-identity-central-asia |access-date=26 May 2022 |website=www.iias.asia |archive-date=11 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220811135252/https://www.iias.asia/the-newsletter/article/keeping-religion-alive-performing-pamiri-identity-central-asia |url-status=live }} The remaining 2% of the population are followers of Russian Orthodoxy, Protestantism, Zoroastrianism and Buddhism. Muslims fast during Ramadan, while about one third in the countryside and 10% in the cities observe daily prayer and dietary restrictions.{{cite web |title=U.S. Department of State Annual Report on International Religious Freedom for 1999: Tajikistan |url=https://1997-2001.state.gov/global/human_rights/irf/irf_rpt/1999/irf_tajikist99.html |website=U.S. Department of State Archive |publisher=U.S. Department of State |access-date=29 November 2021 |archive-date=29 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211129065456/https://1997-2001.state.gov/global/human_rights/irf/irf_rpt/1999/irf_tajikist99.html |url-status=live }}

Bukharan Jews had lived in Tajikistan since the second century BC. In the 1940s, the Jewish community of Tajikistan numbered nearly 30,000 people. Most were Persian-speaking Bukharan Jews who had lived in the region for millennia along with Ashkenazi Jews from Eastern Europe who resettled there in the Soviet era. As of 2011, the Jewish population was estimated at less than 500, with roughly half living in Dushanbe.{{cite web|url=http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/54896/home-stand|title=Home Stand|work=Tablet Magazine|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151211090933/http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-news-and-politics/54896/home-stand|archive-date=11 December 2015|date=4 January 2011}}

There is a concern for religious institutions becoming active in the political sphere. The Islamic Renaissance Party (IRP), a combatant in the 1992–1997 Civil War and then-proponent of the creation of an Islamic state in Tajikistan, constitutes no more than 30% of the government by statute. Membership in Hizb ut-Tahrir, a militant Islamic party which aims for an overthrow of secular governments and the unification of Tajiks under one Islamic state, is illegal and members are subject to arrest and imprisonment.{{cite news | title =Hizb ut Tahrir | newspaper =BBC News | publisher =BBC | date =27 August 2003 | url =http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/newsnight/3182271.stm | access-date =12 September 2013 | url-status =live | archive-url =http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20130913234029/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/newsnight/3182271.stm | archive-date =13 September 2013 | df =dmy-all }}

By law, religious communities must register by the State Committee on Religious Affairs (SCRA) and with local authorities. Registration with SCRA requires a charter, a list of 10 or more members, and evidence of local government approval prayer site location. Religious groups that do not have a physical structure are not allowed to gather publicly for prayer. Failure to register can result in fines and closure of a place of worship. There are reports that registration on the local level is sometimes difficult to obtain.[http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=190 TAJIKISTAN: Religious freedom survey, November 2003] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613013715/http://forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=190 |date=13 June 2010 }} -Forum 18 News Service, 20 November 2003 People under the age of 18 are barred from public religious practice.{{Cite web|title=U. S. Department of State International Religious Freedom Report for 2013, Executive Summary.|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/religiousfreedom/index.htm#wrapper|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170207121457/https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/religiousfreedom/index.htm#wrapper|archive-date=7 February 2017|access-date=2 August 2014}}

As of January 2016, as part of an "anti-radicalisation campaign", police in the Khatlon region reportedly shaved the beards of 13,000 men and shut down 160 shops selling the hijab. Shaving beards and discouraging women from wearing hijabs is part of a government campaign targeting trends that are deemed "alien and inconsistent with Tajik culture", and "to preserve secular traditions".{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35372754 |title=Tajikistan's battle against beards |access-date=27 January 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160124221542/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35372754 |archive-date=24 January 2016 |work=BBC News |date=21 January 2016 |last1=Sarkorova |first1=Anora }}

Approximately 1.6% of the population in Tajikistan is Christian, mostly Orthodox Christians.[http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/2010/percent/all/ Religious Composition by Country, 2010–2050 | Pew Research Center] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802041823/http://www.pewforum.org/2015/04/02/religious-projection-table/2010/percent/all/ |date=2 August 2017 }}. Pewforum.org (2 April 2015). Retrieved on 20 January 2017.[http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/tajikistan#/?affiliations_religion_id=0&affiliations_year=2010®ion_name=All%20Countries&restrictions_year=2013 Tajikistan – Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures Project] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170209010624/http://www.globalreligiousfutures.org/countries/tajikistan |date=9 February 2017 }}. Globalreligiousfutures.org. Retrieved on 20 January 2017. The territory of Tajikistan is part of the Dushanbe and Tajikistan Diocese of the Central Asian Metropolitan District of the Russian Orthodox Moscow Patriarchate. The country is home to communities of Catholics, Armenian Christians, Protestants, Lutherans, Jehovah's Witnesses, Baptists, Mormons, and Adventists.{{cite web |title=Tajikistan – Religion |url=http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/25.htm |website=Country Studies |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=15 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515173642/http://countrystudies.us/tajikistan/25.htm |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Health in Tajikistan}}

File:Big Hospital.jpg

The state's Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare reported that 104,272 disabled people are registered in Tajikistan (2000). The government of Tajikistan and the World Bank considered activities to support this part of the population described in the World Bank's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper.{{cite web|url=http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/main?pagePK=64193027&piPK=64187937&theSitePK=523679&menuPK=64187510&searchMenuPK=64187283&siteName=WDS&entityID=000094946_02112004011765|title=Tajikistan – Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) and joint assessment|pages=1–0|publisher=World Bank|date=31 October 2002|access-date=1 November 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090526082536/http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/main?pagePK=64193027&piPK=64187937&theSitePK=523679&menuPK=64187510&searchMenuPK=64187283&siteName=WDS&entityID=000094946_02112004011765 |archive-date=26 May 2009}} Public expenditure on health was at 1% of the GDP in 2004.{{cite web|url=http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/data_sheets/cty_ds_TJK.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323145121/http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/data_sheets/cty_ds_TJK.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 March 2010 |title=Human Development Report 2009 – Tajikistan |publisher=Hdrstats.undp.org |access-date=20 June 2010}}

Life expectancy at birth was estimated to be 69 years in 2020.{{Cite web|title=Field Listing :: Life expectancy at birth — The World Factbook – Central Intelligence Agency|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/355.html#TI|access-date=12 July 2020|website=www.cia.gov|archive-date=20 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200620031317/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/355.html#TI|url-status=dead}} The infant mortality rate was approximately 30.42 deaths per 1,000 children in 2018.{{Cite web|url=https://childmortality.org/data/Tajikistan|title=Child Mortality – Tajikistan}}{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} In 2014, there were 2.1 physicians per 1,000 people, higher than any other low-income country after North Korea.{{Cite web|title=Physicians (per 1,000 people) – Tajikistan, Low income {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS?locations=TJ-XM&most_recent_value_desc=true|access-date=12 July 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=12 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200712171537/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS?locations=TJ-XM&most_recent_value_desc=true|url-status=live}}

Tajikistan has experienced a decrease in per capita hospital beds since 1992 following the dissolution of the USSR, while the number remains at 4.8 beds per 1,000 people, above the world average of 2.7.{{Cite web|title=Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) – World, Tajikistan, Low income {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.MED.BEDS.ZS?locations=1W-TJ-XM&most_recent_value_desc=true&view=chart|access-date=12 July 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=12 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200712200520/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.MED.BEDS.ZS?locations=1W-TJ-XM&most_recent_value_desc=true&view=chart|url-status=live}}

According to the World Bank, 96% of births are attended by skilled health staff, rising from 66.6% in 1999.{{Cite web|title=Births attended by skilled health staff (% of total) – Tajikistan, Low income {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.STA.BRTC.ZS?locations=TJ-XM&most_recent_value_desc=true&view=chart|access-date=12 July 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=12 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200712175457/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.STA.BRTC.ZS?locations=TJ-XM&most_recent_value_desc=true&view=chart|url-status=live}}

In 2010, the country experienced an outbreak of polio that caused more than 457 cases of polio in both children and adults and resulted in 29 deaths before being brought under control.{{cite web|url=http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/communicable-diseases/poliomyelitis/news/news/2012/7/2010-polio-outbreak-in-tajikistan-a-reminder-of-the-continued-need-for-vigilance-as-the-region-marks-10-years-of-polio-free-status|title=2010 polio outbreak in Tajikistan: A reminder of the continued need for vigilance as the Region marks 10 years of polio-free status|work=World Health Organization|date=10 July 2012|access-date=28 February 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304062402/http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/communicable-diseases/poliomyelitis/news/news/2012/7/2010-polio-outbreak-in-tajikistan-a-reminder-of-the-continued-need-for-vigilance-as-the-region-marks-10-years-of-polio-free-status|archive-date=4 March 2016}}

In the summer of 2021, coronavirus ravaged the country, and the Tajik president's sister reportedly died in a hospital of COVID-19. According to local media, the president's sister's sons physically assaulted the health minister and a senior doctor.Dixon, Robyn. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/tajik-covid-president-nephews-assault-doctors/2021/07/27/660efdaa-eebb-11eb-ab6f-b41a066381df_story.html After the Tajik president's sister died of covid, her sons beat up the country's top health officials.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210728120859/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/tajik-covid-president-nephews-assault-doctors/2021/07/27/660efdaa-eebb-11eb-ab6f-b41a066381df_story.html |date=28 July 2021 }} Washington Post 27 August 2021.

In 2023, according to the World Health Organization, Tajikistan received its certification, declaring its status as a malaria-free country.{{cite web |title=WHO certifies Azerbaijan and Tajikistan as malaria-free |url=https://www.who.int/news/item/29-03-2023-who-certifies-azerbaijan-and-tajikistan-as-malaria-free |website=www.who.int |language=en}}

{{Main|Education in Tajikistan}}

File:Tajik National University (Main Building).jpg in Dushanbe]]

An estimated 99.8% of the population of Tajikistan have the ability to read and write.

Public education in Tajikistan consists of 11 years of primary and secondary education and the government planned to implement a 12-year system in 2016.{{cite web|url=http://www.scholaro.com/db/Countries/Tajikistan/Education-System|title=Tajikistan Education System|website=www.scholaro.com|access-date=4 August 2024}} There is a number of tertiary education institutions including Khujand State University, which has 76 departments in 15 faculties, Tajikistan State University of Law, Business, & Politics, Khorugh State University, Agricultural University of Tajikistan, Tajik National University, and other institutions. Universities were established during the Soviet Era. {{As of|2008}} tertiary education enrollment was 17%, below the sub-regional average of 37%,[http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/Tajikistan.pdf Education in Tajikistan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106003014/http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/Tajikistan.pdf |date=6 November 2013 }}. unicef.org while higher than any other low-income country after Syria.{{Cite web|title=School enrollment, tertiary (% gross) – Low income {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.TER.ENRR?locations=XM&most_recent_value_desc=true|access-date=27 July 2020|website=data.worldbank.org|archive-date=27 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727191035/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.TER.ENRR?locations=XM&most_recent_value_desc=true|url-status=live}} Tajiks left the education system due to "low" demand in the labour market for people with "extensive" educational training or professional skills.

Public spending on education was relatively constant between 2005–2012 and fluctuated from 3.5% to 4.1% of GDP[http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS/countries/TJ?display=graph Tajikistan, Public spending on education, total (% of GDP)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714214007/http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS/countries/TJ?display=graph |date=14 July 2014 }} World Bank below the OECD average of 6%. The United Nations reported that the level of spending was "severely inadequate to meet the requirements of the country's high-needs education system."

According to a UNICEF-supported survey, about 25% of girls in Tajikistan fail to complete compulsory primary education because of poverty and gender bias,{{cite web | title =Tajikistan hosts education forum | work =News note | publisher =UNICEF | date =9 June 2005 | url =http://www.unicef.org/media/media_27308.html | access-date =12 September 2013 | url-status =live | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20131104204553/http://www.unicef.org/media/media_27308.html | archive-date =4 November 2013 | df =dmy-all }} while literacy is "generally high" in Tajikistan. Estimates of out of school children range from 4.6% to 19.4% with the majority being girls.

In September 2017, the University of Central Asia launched its second campus in Khorog, Tajikistan, offering majors in Earth & Environmental Sciences and Economics.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ucentralasia.org/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161129122624/http://www.ucentralasia.org/|url-status=dead|title=University of Central Asia – University of Central Asia|archive-date=29 November 2016|website=www.ucentralasia.org}} Tajikistan was ranked 107th in the Global Innovation Index in 2024.{{cite book|url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2024/en/|title=Global Innovation Index 2024. Unlocking the Promise of Social Entrepreneurship|access-date=2024-10-22|author=World Intellectual Property Organization|year=2024|isbn=978-92-805-3681-2|doi= 10.34667/tind.50062|website=www.wipo.int|location=Geneva|page=18}}

Science in the territory of Tajikistan achieved "success" in the Middle Ages, and scientific organizations were created in the Soviet period. During the period of independence, the scientific sphere has experienced a "crisis": the annual number of patent applications for inventions decreased in 1994–2011 from 193 to 5.Султанова Л. Ш., Айдинова М. А. Значение канала трансфера новых технологий для Узбекистана // Актуальные вопросы современной науки. — 2014. — № 1 (2,3). — С. 87. A contribution to science is made by universities, where in 2011 6707 researchers worked, of which 2450 had academic degrees.Шарипов М. М. Роль вузов в формировании и развитии инновационной экономики в Республике Таджикистан // Современные проблемы науки и образования. — 2014. — № 6. — С. 627.

{{Main|Culture of Tajikistan}}

{{See also|Music of Tajikistan|Tajik literature|Public holidays in Tajikistan|Tajik cuisine|Telecommunications in Tajikistan}}

File:Одежда жителей Гиссара.JPG

The Tajik language is the mother tongue of around 80% of the citizens of Tajikistan. Urban centers in Tajikistan include Dushanbe (the capital), Khujand, Kulob, Panjakent, Bokhtar, Khorugh and Istaravshan. There are Uzbek, Kyrgyz and Russian minorities.{{cite web |title=Tajikistan – People |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Tajikistan/People |website=Britannica |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=25 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225231634/https://www.britannica.com/place/Tajikistan/People |url-status=live }}

The Yaghnobi people live in areas of northern Tajikistan. The estimated number of Yaghnobis is about 25,000. Forced migrations in the 20th century decimated their numbers. They speak the Yaghnobi language, which is the only direct descendant of the Sogdian language.{{Cite web|title=Award-winning Yaghnobi-Czech dictionary captures dying language|url=http://cuni.cz/UKEN-300.html|access-date=5 January 2021|website=Charles University|language=en|archive-date=11 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411004322/https://cuni.cz/UKEN-300.html|url-status=live}}

Tajikistan artisans created the Dushanbe Tea House, which was presented in 1988 as a gift to the sister city of Boulder, Colorado.[https://web.archive.org/web/20120527123614/http://www.boulder-dushanbe.org/teahouse.html The Dushanbe-Boulder tea house]. boulder-dushanbe.org

In the country, especially among women from the indigenous population, the wearing of traditional national clothing is preserved. The seamstresses and embroiderers of regions of Tajikistan use factory fabrics and local needlework embroidery for home decoration and women's clothing. The practice of Chakan embroidery is preserved among women in certain areas, passing the knowledge down from one generation to the next.{{cite web |title=UNESCO - Chakan, embroidery art in the Republic of Tajikistan |url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/chakan-embroidery-art-in-the-republic-of-tajikistan-01397 |website=Intangible Cultural Heritage |access-date=25 April 2022 |language=en |archive-date=10 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201210130159/https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/chakan-embroidery-art-in-the-republic-of-tajikistan-01397 |url-status=live }}

The national sport of Tajikistan is gushtigiri, a form of wrestling.{{cite book|last1=Ibbotson|first1=Sophie|last2=Lovell-Hoare|first2=Max|title=Tajikistan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Nm9DI7nu6CoC&pg=PA22|year=2013|publisher=Bradt Travel Guides|isbn=978-1-84162-455-6|page=22}}{{Cite web|date=30 June 2016|title=Tajikistan National Sport - Gushtigiri, Then And Now|url=https://www.bjjee.com/articles/tajikistan-national-sport-gushtigiri-then-and-now/|access-date=5 October 2020|website=Bjj Eastern Europe|language=en-US|archive-date=10 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010212916/https://www.bjjee.com/articles/tajikistan-national-sport-gushtigiri-then-and-now/|url-status=live}}

Another sport is buzkashi, a game played on horseback, like polo. Buzkashi may be played as an individual sport and as a team sport. The aim of the game is to grab a 50 kg dead goat, ride clear of the other players, get back to the starting point and drop it in a designated circle. It is played at Nowruz celebrations.{{cite book|last1=Abdullaev|first1=Kamoludin|last2=Akbarzaheh|first2=Shahram|title=Historical Dictionary of Tajikistan|publisher=Scarecrow Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PB5xgFRuYPUC&pg=PA85|isbn=978-0-8108-7379-7|page=85|date=27 April 2010|access-date=8 November 2015|archive-date=24 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230124200453/https://books.google.com/books?id=PB5xgFRuYPUC&pg=PA85|url-status=live}}

File:1982 expedition to Tartu Ülikool 350 (20).jpg.]]

Tajikistan has sent athletes to every Summer Olympic Games and four Winter Olympic Games since gaining independence and has enjoyed limited success.{{efn|Tajikistani athletes competed as part of the Unified Team in 1992.}} The country's best results have come in the hammer throw, with Andrey Abduvaliyev and Dilshod Nazarov each winning gold in the men's event in 1992 and 2016 respectively (albeit with Abduvaliyev participating as part of the Unified Team). Tajikistan's highest medal haul at an Olympic Games came in the 2024 Summer Olympics, where its athletes won three medals.

The Tajikistan Football Federation is the governing body of football in Tajikistan. While neither the men's nor the women's teams have qualified for a World Cup, the men's side qualified for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, in which they unexpectedly reached the quarter finals.{{cite web|title=Segrt: Asian Cup euphoria can spark bright Tajikistan future|url=https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/petar-segrt-interview-tajikistan|website=FIFA|date=13 February 2024|access-date=6 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240909224039/https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/petar-segrt-interview-tajikistan|archive-date=9 September 2024|url-status=live}} The men's team participated in the AFC Challenge Cup on four occasions, winning the inaugural edition in 2006.{{cite web|url=http://www.the-afc.com/en/challenge-cup-previous-competitions/afc-challenge-cup-2006/5657|title=Tajikistan lift inaugural AFC Challenge Cup|website=Asian Football Confederation|date=19 April 2006|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130203153915/http://www.the-afc.com/en/challenge-cup-previous-competitions/afc-challenge-cup-2006/5657|archive-date=3 February 2013|url-status=dead}} The women's side has twice participated in the CAFA Women's Championship, finishing third in the 2018 edition and hosting the tournament in 2022.{{cite web|url=https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/news/uzbekistan_inaugural_cafa_womens_championship_winners.html|title=Uzbekistan inaugural CAFA Women's Championship winners|website=Asian Football Confederation|date=2 December 2018|access-date=6 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250106150312/https://www.the-afc.com/en/more/news/uzbekistan_inaugural_cafa_womens_championship_winners.html|archive-date=6 January 2025|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://turkmenistan.gov.tm/index.php/en/post/64765/turkmen-football-players-tied-team-tajikistan-cafa-2022-championship-dushanbe|title=Turkmen football players tied with the team of Tajikistan at the CAFA-2022 championship in Dushanbe|website=Turkmenistan.gov.tm|date=10 July 2022|access-date=6 January 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250106151301/https://turkmenistan.gov.tm/index.php/en/post/64765/turkmen-football-players-tied-team-tajikistan-cafa-2022-championship-dushanbe|archive-date=6 January 2025|url-status=live}}

The Tajikistan Cricket Federation was formed in 2012 as the governing body for the sport of cricket in Tajikistan. It was granted affiliate membership of the Asian Cricket Council in the same year.{{cite web |title=Cricket in Tajikisyan |url=https://emergingcricket.com/teams/tajikistan/ |website=Emerging Cricket |access-date=5 February 2021 |archive-date=23 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123003712/https://emergingcricket.com/teams/tajikistan/ |url-status=live }}

In 2008, rugby union was officially registered with the Ministry of Justice, and there are three men's clubs.{{Cite web|title=Таъсиси нахустин тими духтаронаи рогбӣ дар Тоҷикистон|trans-title=Establishment of the first girls' rugby team in Tajikistan|url=http://www.bbc.com/tajik/institutional/2012/04/120414_zm_regy_dushanbe.shtml|access-date=5 October 2020|website=BBC Tajik/Persian|language=tg}}{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Khorugh, capital of Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region, is the location of highest altitude where bandy has been played.{{cite web|url=https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&u=http%3A%2F%2Fbandynet.ru%2Fv1%2Fnode%2F14931&prev=search|title=Google Translate|work=google.co.uk|access-date=13 November 2016|archive-date=30 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170130025448/https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&u=http%3A%2F%2Fbandynet.ru%2Fv1%2Fnode%2F14931&prev=search|url-status=live}}

Tajikistan has one ski resort, called Safed Dara (formerly Takob), near the town of Varzob.{{cite web|url=https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Hotel_Review-g811255-d9792233-Reviews-Safed_Dara-Varzob_Karotegin_Province.html|title=Safed Dara|work=Trip Advisor|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170811060158/https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Hotel_Review-g811255-d9792233-Reviews-Safed_Dara-Varzob_Karotegin_Province.html|archive-date=11 August 2017}}

{{Portal|Geography|Tajikistan|Asia}}

{{div col}}

• 2006 Tajikistan earthquake
• Armed Forces of the Republic of Tajikistan
• Central Asian Union
• Dushanbe
• Foreign relations of Tajikistan
• Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province
• Ittihodi Scouthoi Tojikiston
• List of cities in Tajikistan
• LGBT rights in Tajikistan
• Mount Imeon
• Outline of Tajikistan
• Russian Turkistan
• Mass media in Tajikistan
• Yaghnob Valley
• Tajikistani Civil War

{{div col end}}

{{notelist}}

{{CIA World Factbook}}

{{country study|title=Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan : country studies|abbr=tj}}

{{reflist}}

{{See also|Bibliography of the history of Central Asia}}

• Kamoludin Abdullaev and Shahram Akbarzadeh, [https://books.google.com/books?id=OsllDwAAQBAJ Historical Dictionary of Tajikistan], 3rd. ed., Rowman & Littlefield, 2018.
• Shirin Akiner, Mohammad-Reza Djalili and Frederic Grare, eds., Tajikistan: The Trials of Independence, Routledge, 1998.
• Richard Foltz, A History of the Tajiks: Iranians of the East, London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2019.
• Robert Middleton, Huw Thomas and Markus Hauser, Tajikistan and the High Pamirs, Hong Kong: Odyssey Books, 2008 ({{ISBN|978-9-622177-73-4}}).
• Nahaylo, Bohdan and Victor Swoboda. Soviet Disunion: A History of the Nationalities problem in the USSR (1990) [https://www.amazon.com/Soviet-Disunion-Bohdan-Nahaylo/dp/0029224012/ excerpt]
• Kirill Nourdhzanov and Christian Blauer, Tajikistan: A Political and Social History, Canberra: ANU E-Press, 2013.
• Rashid, Ahmed. The Resurgence of Central Asia: Islam or Nationalism? (2017)
• Smith, Graham, ed. The Nationalities Question in the Soviet Union (2nd ed. 1995)
• Monica Whitlock, Land Beyond the River: The Untold Story of Central Asia, New York: St. Martin's Press, 2003.
• Poopak NikTalab. Sarve Samarghand (Cedar of Samarkand), continuous interpretation of Rudaki's poems, Tehran 2020, Faradid Publications {Introduction}
• Sharma, Raj Kumar, "Food Security and Political Stability in Tajikistan", New Delhi, Vij Books, 2018.

{{Sister project links|voy=Tajikistan}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080607085838/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/tajikistan.htm Tajikistan] at UCB Libraries GovPubs
• [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/tajikistan/ Tajikistan]. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
• [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16201032 Tajikistan profile] from the BBC News
• {{wikiatlas|Tajikistan}}
• [http://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=TJ Key Development Forecasts for Tajikistan] from International Futures
• [https://permit2fly.com/region/asia/tajikistan-overflight-permits.html Flight Information Region In Tajikistan]

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