Dedicated to the memory of our mentor Saburdzhana Yusupov, who with his interesting stories and tales taught us to love the motherland, native nature, our favorite city Khiva

Dishan Qala - rabad

Dishan Qala (the outer area of the city or the suburbs of craft) emerged around the fortress walls of Ichan Kala at the first quarter of the XIX century. In Dishan Qala poor craftsmen, artisans and small traders lived. Names of streets and mahallas of Dishan Qala, like tailors (tikuvchilik), calico-printer (chitgarlar), potters (kulollar), sieve manufacturers (elakchilar), milk-churners (zhuvozchilar), coppersmiths (misgarlar), plumbers (tunukachilar) streets, and other names are preserved until now. The territory of Dishan Qala in 1842 was surrounded by a high wall; the construction of fortifications had attracted more than 200 thousand inhabitants of the Khanate as begar (universal compulsory conscription for the residents of Khanate, on which every resident of the Khanate was obliged to work at public expense 12 days a year for free). Thus, after obtaining a sort of national hashar (general social assistance), as a result, the fortress walls were built within one month. Agehi, historian and writer, wrote the following: "... in the same 1258 hijra (1842) led by Mohammed Yakub mihtar and Atamurat kushbegi on the eighth day of the month of Rajab, on the second day of the week construction (fortress) of the wall of Khiva began and was completed within thirty days. "

The length of the walls surrounding the Dishan Qala was 6250 meters, in which there were ten gates: Khazarasp Darvaza (Coy Darvaza that is, the sheep gate) Pishkanik, Angarik, Shikhlar, Tazabag, Shahimardan, Dashyak, Gadaylar (beggars), Kosha -darvaza (double gate) and Gandimyan. In Dishan Qala, in addition to homes, the summer residence of Khan, three gardens - Rafanik, Nurullabek and Nurullabay are located. After the construction of the fortress walls of Dishan – Qala, the town was divided into two parts and the area of the city had increased by several tens of times.
Complex of mosque Sayyid Shalykarbay


The building was constructed by Sayyid Niyaz Shalykarbay, a rich merchant of Khiva in 1842. The granddaughter of Sayyid Niyaz Shalykarbay Pasha Ana (granny) talking about his grandfather from her father Khudaibergen ata`s (grandpa) words recalls the following: "Our grandfather, Sayyid Niyaz Shalykar, was called dapmachi - rice burnisher. His father was a wealthy merchant, after his death, all the wealth devolved to Sayyid Niazi". It expanded the production even more. He expanded the production even more. One day Sayyid Niaz with his friend Eshmatbay, a merchant from Bukhara having loaded variety of goods on the camels, departed with a caravan for Iran. They were lucky to sell out in a short while all the goods they brought there and having made friends with the local merchants stayed in Iran for a few months. All the money (except for the initial capital) that they have earned from trade was shirked with the friends; they ate, drank, had fun and they spent almost al the money completely. However in the view of the fact that Sayyid Shalykar Bai was a person with open heart and generous man he could not leave the company of his friends. When it was time to go home to homeland his friend Eshmatbay said: - "What shall we do now, what are we going to do next?" - Sayyid Niyaz responded: - "Right now we will go to the market and for the money left about us (capital) we’ll buy as many goods as we can, load them on the camels and will return home». When the friends came to the market the money they had was not enough to buy good products. For this reason wandering through the market they turned out near a young guy who despite his young age was sitting in a corner, hunched over like an old men with overgrown beard and mustache, dressed in tattered clothes and all in rags, who was selling white chewing gum or sulfur of "Bukhari" variety. Saying that the remaining money can buy nothing but the white cud and the days of the Muslim holiday (Eid - Khayit) were coming close and probably trade with this good was going to be fairly well they bought up the guy’s all the white chewing sulfur (Oq sakich). Overjoyed beyond the measure money remained at them they gave away to that young man as a gift. Then they loaded all their goods on camels and Eshmatbay went to Bukhara and Sayyid Niyaz to Khiva. Having arrived to Khiva Sayyid Niaz crushed a piece of cud and could not believe his eyes - from pieces of chewing sulfur gold coins (Tilla), pearls and precious stones tumbled out. Sayyid Niaz hid half of his of wealth in the a known place, to be on the safe side, instructed his wife that if he never returned back those treasures will last for their seven generations, tied in his belt the remaining wealth and went to the Khan. After receiving permission he came to the Khan`s audience and said: - "If there be the highest order, give me permission to build a mosque on the money earned fairly». Then Sayyid Niyaz Shalykar putting his wealth brought there before the Khan told him the storey that had happened to them. The Khan plunged into a long thought and then said: - "I give you permission to build a mosque, but you must also send the owner his share». Thus to the east from the gates of Palvan darvaza of Ichan-Qala (on the site of Dishan-Qala) had started construction of the mosque. Among the people there were rumors that in the construction of the mosque only one master worked and the remaining work were carried out by children. To each of children who had brought one brick one walnut was given. In order to gather more nuts children brought bricks running and the construction of the mosque progressed rapidly. After completion of the construction believers started making a prayer in the mosque. During the Muslim holiday Khayit the Khan and his entourage went to commit Khayit namaz (prayers to honor the Eid) in the mosque Namazgah located outside the gates of Gandimyan-Darvaza in Dishan Qala. Having seen Sayyid Niyaz Shalykarbay who stiffened in welcome bow before the mosque Khan greeted him with words - "Madrasah Mubarak" ("Blessed be the madrasah") and passed by with his entourage. Sayyid Niyaz was surprised and he said to himself - "Why the Khan said this!" Then having thought he said - "let the words uttered by the Khan won't be ignored", saying these words he started construction of madrasah on the east side of the mosque.
Construction of the mosque falls on the reign of the Khan of Khiva Alla Quli Khan. The requirements set forth before the architect for construction of the mosque were as follows: - it should be covered premises which must place many people at a time and inside the courtyard there must be a cool place for believers to rest (in hot weather). Exactly the same conditions are present in Sayyid Shalykarbay mosque nowadays. General ensemble Sayyid Shalykarbay consists of winter and summer mosques, a two-storied madrasah, minaret and two courtyards. The winter mosque is a monumental structure with nine calottes supported by four massive columns. On the three sides of the winter mosque there are three doors, the main entrance to the mosque is from the door set in the wall on the north side of the aivan. In the aivan of the summer mosque there are three wooden pillars on which the best traditions of Khivan woodcarving are displayed. On the columns of the aivan among the patterned coils the date of 1212 Hijra (1797) is written in Arabic script. Aivan of the summer mosque traditionally faces the north. On the walls of aivan of a summer mosque the figured patterned panels are made by ganch carving. The madrasah is attached from the north-eastern side of the mosque. The madrasah is two-storied, on its first floor there are five hujras and six hujras on the second.
The minaret towering to the top in the form of a vertical a cone gives us an idea about the basic techniques of town-planning art of Khiva. It is located to the left of the main entrance to the mosque and is very peculiar and midget, rich in Khivan patterns. At the top of the minaret, under the pattern of "sharaf» of the cornice, the arched niche is embedded. A spiral staircase inside the minaret leads to the top of it which is seen from all points of the city. The height of the minaret is 24 meters, the diameter in its foundation is 4.5 meters. At present the mosque operates as a cathedral (Jami) Mosque for Khiva and vicinity. There is also a branch of the Religious Board of Muslims of Uzbekistan is located.