Country: Uzbekistan Number: [phone] Topic

Name: Abdullaev Mirzabek Bakmamatovich

Educational institution: Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies

Country: Uzbekistan

Number: [phone]

Topic: The Great Silk Road is a phenomenon in world history and culture

Address: Khorezm region, Khiva district, Shomakholum village, Chanashik city block, Diyor street 19 - house

Email address: [e-mail]
The Great Silk Road is a phenomenon in world history and culture

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the history of the world, there have been several trade routes that have played an important role in the economic, political, spiritual and cultural life of the people. Examples include the trade route between the ancient Russian and Scandinavian peoples, and the salt route through Africa, mainly through the Sahara Desert. However, the most famous and largest of them is the Great Silk Road. This road connected the countries of the Asian continent from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific coast with the countries of the Mediterranean and the Far East. It was not only a road but also a bridge connecting East and West.

The Great Silk Road appeared in the II century BC. But he was given the title by the German traveler, geographer and scientist Baron Ferdinand Freiherr von Richthofen in 1877 in his book “China”.

What is the role of the Great Silk Road in the development of international social, economic and cultural relations?

The Great Silk Road connected East and West through Central Asia. In this way, it had a great impact not only on the economic life of the peoples, but also on the social and spiritual life. During the Kushan period, Buddhism spread through Central Asia to China, east of it, and rose to the level of a state religion. Christianity came from the West, and the monastic faith spread to Iran and southern Central Asia. Many nations and peoples established diplomatic, trade, and economic ties along this route from China to the northern shores of the Mediterranean.It has become a tradition for kings to send ambassadors to each other and to greet each other with gifts. The influence of Eastern and Western cultures is growing. Many cultural similarities of that period were due to this. If we look at the map, we can see that the ancient civilizations of Central Asia are at the heart of the system of interactions. It is precisely because of this geographical location that important ethnic processes in Central Asia are marked by the migration of Indo-Europeans, Indo-Iranians, and Turks. During this period, a wide range of opportunities was created for the intensification of the interaction of cultures. In Central Asia, including our homeland, Uzbekistan, the growth of cities has led to the development of handicrafts and science.The Great Silk Road was not only a caravan route, but also played an important role in the history of Eurasian civilization, left an indelible mark and served as a great factor in its comprehensive development. According to written sources, in the 3rd and 7th centuries, the Sogdians controlled the Silk Road through Central Asia and the Middle East. By the middle of the eighth century, the western part of the Silk Road came under Arab control. The Great Silk Road not only connected the peoples of Central Asia economically, trade and culturally, but also served as a link between the peoples of the world in terms of peace, tranquility, harmony, neighborliness and friendship. For the first time in the history of civilization, the Great Silk Road was an intercontinental bridge that brought the countries of the East and the West closer together, and was a rare and unique caravan route of great socio-political, economic and cultural significance in human life.. Although silk was a main, but not unique, commodity that was transported on transcontinental road. From Central Asia were exported horses, camels, very estimated in China, military equipments, gold and silver, semiprecious stones and glass wares, leather and worst, carpets and cotton fabrics, gold-embroidery clothes, exotic fruits – watermelons, melons and apricots, fat tail sheep and gun dogs, leopards, lions. From China caravans brought chinaware and iron dishes, furnished wares and cosmetics, tea and rice. In a traveling bag of merchants you could find elephant’s tusk, rhinoceros’s horn, tortoise’s shell, spicier and many other things. As live memory of nations, laid this unique road connected East and West, can serve ancient Uzbek cities like Samarqand, Bukhara, Khiva, Shaxrizabs, Termez, Tashkent with their architectural monuments, that personifies centuries – old history of Great Silk Road.

Also, The Great Silk Road is not only a trade route, but also a diplomatic and cultural one. At various times, Chinese ambassadors and Buddhist monks first traveled to Turkestan and then to other countries. Western ambassadors and missionaries traveled through the Turkestan region to China, Korea, and Japan. From the 8th century onwards, Islamic propagandists followed this path to the East. It is no exaggeration to say how important the Great Silk Road was to world culture and historical past.

In conclusion, the Great Silk Road has served as a bridge between East and West for centuries. It is in this way that the cultural ties and friendly relations of the peoples have been established. International checks were the first to be used in this way. However, over time, and the civil wars and battles that took place along the way, the opening of the sea route in the 15th century, the Great Silk Road, which gradually served as the main trade and diplomatic route for several centuries. However, the work of this path for the modern world and humanity is incomparable. Because it is in this way that the centers of science came into being and shed light on the world. For example, the largest center of science and culture in the East at that time was Baghdad. And we all know that many world-famous scholars came from the “Bayt ul-Hikma”(بيت الحكمة) , which was built in this city in the IX century. For example: Muhammad Al-Khwarizmi, Ahmad Al-Farghani, Abu Ali Ibn Sina, Abu Nasr al-Farabi and others, we should be proud of the contributions of our ancestors, who grew up in Movarounnahr and Khorasan, to world culture and science. Because only the work of our ancestor Muhammad Al-Khwarizmi on mathematics "Al-jabr val-muqabala" (الجبر و المقبل) is still used by the world community. It is no exaggeration to say that this shows the great role of the Great Silk Road in the history of the world and mankind.