Turkmen language and literature. According to localtimezone, the language of the Turkmenistan belongs, like the Turkic, to the southwest group of the Turkic languages. The modern written language and today’s state language of Turkmenistan emerged in the 1920s on the basis of the Yomud dialects (with a core area on the southeastern shore of the Caspian Sea) and Teke dialects (core area in central Turkmenistan and around Mary); it was first written in Arabic script, from 1928 to 1940 in Reformed Latin script, then in Cyrillic script and, since 1993, gradually in another modified Latin script. The Khorasan Turkish spoken in Iran is closely related to Turkmen. The peculiarities of Turkmen, e.g. B. the preserved Old Turkish vowel lengths, make it an important research subject for historical Turkology.
Literature: The oldest literary monuments (14th to 15th centuries) are of a religious nature. In the 18th century, extensive epic works of Destan poetry (eg “Schasenem and Garib”) were created. The connection between folk and art poetry was made by Machtumkuly (Turkmen Magtymguly, 18th century), which is celebrated today as a classic of his people’s literature. This tradition was further developed by Mollanepes (* around 1810, † 1862). One of the founders of Turkmen Soviet literature was B. M. Kerbabaev. Durdy Gylytsch (* 1886, † 1950) was one of the traditional folk singers. In the literature of sovereign Turkmenistan, patriotic themes are in the foreground.
Culture
A land of ancient nomadic traditions and the object of conquest by many great leaders, from Alexander the Great to Genghis Khān, Turkmenistan is today a country of great charm, despite the troubled socio-political events of which it was the protagonist, especially after independence. The artistic expressions and customs that still characterize the Turkmen, especially those inserted in rural contexts, must be traced back to that past and to the religious component of Sunni Islam. Tradition still lives on in yurts scattered along the desert steppes, in the clothes that, in some cases, are an emblem of the social status of the person (girls with braids and with a scarf are single), in the craftsmanship of carpets and goldsmithing, in the breeding of horses and in the disciplines that are linked to these animals (from hunting to sport), in folk dances, in dishes such as the diorama, made of bread, meat and onions. The literary tradition of poems and popular songs, handed down orally, and, only in the twentieth century, transformed into written works is also of ancient origin. The most important Turkmen poet is considered to be Magtymguly Pyragy (1733-1783). He was followed by less important figures, such as Berdi Kerbabayev (1894-1974), but, at the turn of the millennium, the cumbersome hand of the former president rested on literature, as well as on the whole culture and on Turkmen society. Niyazov life, who monopolized them under his own sign. Fortunately in museums and bazaars there remain precious works of art and popular culture that the president’s delirium of omnipotence has not canceled. Three UNESCO World Heritage Sites are located in Turkmenistan: the National Historical and Cultural Park of Ancient Merv (1999), an ancient city on the Kunya Urgench Silk Road (2005) and the Parthian fortress of Nisa (2007).
Main Cities
Turkmenabad
Turkmenabad to 1999 Tschardschou, Čardžou, [t ʃ ɑ r d ʒ ɔ u], Turkmen Tschärjew, Čärjev [t ʃ – ] until 1940 Tschardschui, regional center in Turkmenistan, the Amu Darya (2004) 256,000 residents.
Pedagogical College; chemical and petrochemical industry (phosphate, petroleum refinery), reinforced concrete plant, textile (cotton processing, silk production), shoe and food industry, processing of karakul skins; Railway junction on the Trans-Caspian Railway, river port, important junction for natural gas and oil pipelines.
Turkmenabad was built in the 1880s as a Russian fortress on the territory of the Bukhara Khanate; city since 1886.
Daschchowus
Daschchowus, Dašhovuz, Russian Taschaus, Tašauz [- ʃ -], regional capital in the north of Turkmenistan, near the lower Amu Darya, connected to it by the Schawat irrigation channel, (2004) 210 000 residents.
Cotton processing, carpet weaving, clothing, leather and food industries.
Mary
Mary, until 1937 Merw, Merv, regional capital in Turkmenistan, in the Karakum desert on the Murgab and Karakum Canal, (2004) 159,000 residents.
Oasis city with processing of cotton grown in the surrounding irrigation areas, clothing, leather and food industries, phosphate factory; natural gas production in the region; Railway junction on the Trans-Caspian Railway. – 30 km east of Mary are the ruins of the ancient city of Merw.
Mary was established in 1884 as the administrative center and military camp of the Merw Oasis.
Balkan bath
Balkanabad, formerly Nebit-Dag, city in the Balkan region, Turkmenistan, in the desert coastal strip east of the Caspian Sea, (2004) 139,000 residents.
Center of an oil and gas production area, oil refinery, junction of natural gas pipelines; Station on the Trans-Caspian Railway.
Turkmenbashi
Turkmenbashi, until 1993 Krasnowodsk, regional capital in Turkmenistan, on the Turkmenbashi Bay of the Caspian Sea, in a desert area, (2004) 86 800 residents.
Oil processing (refinery), food industry, shipyard; Seawater desalination plant; Oil and ferry port, starting point of the Trans Caspian Railway, railway ferry connection with Baku (Azerbaijan), airport.
Turkmenbashi was founded in 1869 as a military base.
