Visiting the Nuratau Mountains & Beyond

The Nuratau Mountains stretch over a distance of approximately 180 km in the east-west direction. The highest peak is 2169 metres above sea level. It is located north of Samarkand and south of Lake Aydar. The mountains are the last refuge of the highly endangered Severtzov’s wild sheep (Ovis Ammon Severtzovi). This fact indicates the international significance of this territory. The Nuratau Nature Reserve was created in the mid-1970s in order to protect Severtsov’s Argali.

The Reserve is located in the heart of the Nuratau Mountains and is inaccessible to visitors as it is a protected area. A Biosphere Reserve has been planned covering not only the Nuratau Mountains but also parts of the Kyzylkum semi-desert and the large Lake Aydar system. However, the Biosphere Reserve status has not been legalised yet. The area includes several landscape types such as rocky mountains, lush green fertile valleys, flat dry semi-desert, rolling desert dunes, and extensive wetlands, which are typical for Central Asia.

The Biosphere Reserve is a new category for protected areas in Uzbekistan. It is intended to combine wildlife conservation with sustainable rural development and the preservation of culture. Due to the geographic location and habitat variety, the Nuratau–Kyzylkum area has a high biodiversity, and each landscape type has its own specific beauty.

Eski Forish village has 1110 inhabitants. The village has a health post with a nurse and the secondary school. In the village, there are three small shops and a few home vendors, where basic groceries, as well as biscuits, sweets, mineral water, beer, wine, and cigarettes, can be obtained. All the houses in the village are connected to the electricity network.

The name Eski Forish means old Forish. Eski Forish is called Porasht in the Tajik language. The word Porasht has its roots in the Sogdian language and means “place surrounding a fortress”. The ancient village of Porasht was situated higher up in the valley. The ruins of houses, mosques, and ancient mills can still be seen. The old village was abandoned in the 17th century.

In the 16th century, the surroundings of present-day Eski Forish were covered by reeds. Passing the area, the Khan of Bukhara, Sheybonid Abdullah, was attracted by the place and chose to rest here with his troops and finally established a village (1558-1598). The local people, who lived higher up in the valley (Qishloqi), moved down to the new settlement and mixed with the new settlers from Bukhara (Qorovulbegi).

Asraf is a very small village located between Eski Forish and Uhum. There are 18 families living in the village at the present. It has its own small elementary school. After fourth-grade children have to go to school in the village of Uhum.

Asraf is located very close to the Nuratau Nature Reserve, which unfortunately is not accessible to the public, but there are good hiking paths at the edges of the reserve. In the village, there are two rivers the Arsaf and the Xushrud, which are fed by two springs the Chashmai Azizmurod and the Chashmai Abdulloi Naymon.

Like all the villages of the Nuratau mountain range, Asraf has a long history. Ancient rock paintings in the mountains prove that people have lived here for more than two thousand years. Elements of the Sogd language can still be found in the Tajik spoken today. These witnesses say that in the 4th century BC, Sogds, who originated from the Zarafshan and Istrafshan valleys, settled in the Nuratau Mountains to escape from the troops of Alexander the Great. Until today many of the customs practised here are more closely related to the ones in the Zarafshan area than the ones of the Samarkand and Bukhara Tajiks.

Uhum village has two schools and a new technical college built-in 2009. There are several small shops where basic groceries as well as biscuits, sweets, mineral water, beer, wine, and cigarettes can be obtained. On Sunday, a village bazaar is held, where vendors from the region offer their products. Uhum has a health post with a doctor and a nurse. There are seven cemeteries in Uhum, some of them are ancient. In the village, there are five electric and three water-driven mills for grinding grain. Uhum has a hairdresser near the bus station. In the Uhum valley, there is no mobile phone reception. All the houses in Uhum are connected to an electricity network.

Uhum is one of the biggest villages in the Nuratau Mountains. The valley stretches out for 15 km. The name Uhum originates from the Sogdian word Axm, which means « fearless warrior».

On the way to Uhum, you pass two small settlements: Sirtikon, which means “near the mine” and Mula, which means “remote place”. These villages have only developed recently. However, in Sirtikon, remnants of an old copper mine, dating back to Mongolian times have been found. Entering Uhum village you can see the remains of a stone wall, called “Shaxi Ali”, which defended the village from attacks of the nomads from the Kyzylkum steppe. The exact date when it was built is not known.

In the village Uhum there are five ancient mosques and seven old cemeteries (Chilgazato, Guji G’ozi, Xazrati Bibi, Shoxidon, Azizon, Xisorato, Xazrati Eshonbobo). Other interesting historical sites are the ruins of the ancient Xonkeldi fortress in Uhum and the ruins of Korg’on fortress in Upper Uhum and a small petroglyphs site.

Hayat has 650 inhabitants. The village has an elementary school. A new technical college was built down in the valley in Uhum in 2009. There is a shop where basic groceries as well as biscuits, sweets, mineral water, beer, wine, and cigarettes can be obtained. The village has its own cemetery. In the village, there are mills for grinding grain.

There are several legends about how the village came into being. According to one of them, there was a long-lasting drought in the area. In search of water, a farmer came to the valley and saw fog and clouds, and concluded that there must be water in the area. He told other villagers and they decided that this must be a good place to settle. Hence, they moved there and named the village Hayat, which means life. Another legend says that during a severe drought, all springs and wells in the neighbouring villages dried up, but the spring in Hayat still produced water. That is why people called it the spring of life (hayat).

In Hayat village, there was a fortress called Shaxi Korgon that was located on a hill making it difficult for enemies to conquer. 10-15 people could defend it against 500 enemies. The ruins of the fortress can be visited.

Sentob village has two secondary schools and a health post with a doctor and a nurse. There are five small shops where basic groceries as well as biscuits, sweets, mineral water, soft drinks, beer, wine, and cigarettes can be obtained. Near the minibus stop, there is a hairdresser. There are three watermills and one electric mill for grinding grain. Only in some parts of the village, there is cellphone reception. All the houses in Sentob are connected to the electricity network.
Like other villages of the Nuratau mountain range, Sentob has a long history.

Sentob is the biggest and most ancient among other villages of the Nuratau Mountain range. There are many legends about the origin of the name of the village. One day, when a caravan passed the village, the soldiers asked a local shepherd about the name of the place. The shepherd answered “Sen top”, which means “guess yourself” in Uzbek. Since then people have called the village Sentob or Sentob. Another legend says that the original name of the village was “Simtob”, which means “shining like silver” in the local language. The water of the springs and rivers in the village looks like silver when it reflects in the sun.