From the Glory of Persian to Its Decline in Uzbekistan

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Department of Regional Studies, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Tehran, Iran.

10.22059/jices.2026.106913

Abstract

With its profound historical roots and civilizational role, the Persian language has long served as the official and cultural language for vast populations across the ancient continent. Among these regions, Transoxiana—particularly the cities of Bukhara and Samarkand—has held a prominent place in the historical and geographical landscape of Persian. For the past two millennia, these cities have not only been part of the Persian domain but have at times served as its cultural and literary epicenters. This study focuses on Persian-speaking cities in Uzbekistan and examines the factors behind the rise and decline of the Persian language in this region. Over the past thousand years, Bukhara and Samarkand, as the mother cities of Transoxiana, have withstood four major waves of invasion (Arab, Mongol, Turkic, and Russian), acting as guardians of the Persian language. The central question of this paper is: How did Persian in Uzbekistan descend from its peak of glory to a state of marginalization and decline? The current status of Persian is also analyzed in comparison with other prevalent languages in the region, along with efforts made toward its revival. Relying on library sources and employing a historical method, this study describes and analyzes events within the framework of constructivist theory to explore the multifaceted transformation of Persian’s status from the Samanid era to the present day in Uzbekistan.

Keywords

Journal of Iran and Regional Studies

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 16 May 2026

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