Kokand city, located in the western part of the Fergana Valley, is one of the most ancient cities of Uzbekistan

­Kokand
Kokand city, located in the western part of the Fergana Valley, is one of the most ancient cities of Uzbekistan. The first written records about the city Hukande, Havokande (old names of the city) were found in the chronicles of the 10th century. The town was important trade center on the Silk Road and in the 13th century, like most Central Asian cities, was destroyed by the Mongols.
The world fame came to the city in the 18th century, when it became the capital of the richest and the most developed Kokand Khanate. In the first half of 18th century near the current city (the territory of Bukhara Khanate that time), the founder of the Kokand Khans’ Dynasty laid the fortress of Eski-Kurgan (1732), which actually gave birth to new Kokand. Soon it has got its former name – “Khuk-kand" (“Boar city"). Originally it was a small possession, isolated from the Bukhara Emirate, but gradually it has expanded geographically.
The Khanate reached its power in the first half of the nineteenth century, when its territory included the major part of present-day Uzbekistan, part of southern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and China. The Kokand Khanate also included Tashkent and Shymkent. It was a big, powerful state, prosperous trading and religious center. Only in Kokand there were over 300 mosques and dozens of madrassahs. Over the history the Kokand Khanate changed 29 governors, the most famous khan was the last one - Khudayar Khan, who became notorious for his cruelty and greed. During the reign he four times lost his throne and again won it back. He made a lot to beautify the city: guzars, mosques, madrasahs were built during his reign.
In the second half of the 19th century Bukhara, Khiva and Kokand Khanates started the struggle for power in Central Asia. Taking this opportunity, Tsar Russia has begun campaign of conquest to Central Asia. In 1868, pursuant to the contract the Kokand Khan was equated with their rights to a vassal of the Russian Empire. It was the end of the history of the Kokand Khanate, which had existed almost 170 years.
After Kokand became the part of Russia, the Khan's palace was turned into a fortress, and new highways were laid through resident quarters – mahallas, along which buildings of European architecture were constructed. The city quickly became a major center of capitalist activity in Turkestan, surpassing even Tashkent in number of banks.
All monuments of the khan period, dating from 18-19th centuries preserved perfectly in today Kokand.

(is a city in Fergana Region in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southwestern edge of the Fergana Valley. Administratively, Kokand is a district-level city, that includes the urban-type settlement Muqimiy. The population of Kokand as of 2022 was approximately 259,700.^[1] The city lies 228 km (142 mi) southeast of Tashkent, 115 km (71 mi) west of Andijan, and 88 km (55 mi) west of Fergana. It is nicknamed "City of Winds". In 1877 when the first ethnographic works were done under the new imperial Russian administration, Khoqand/Kokand was reported and visually depicted on their maps as Tajik inhabited oasis (C.E de Ujfalvy (“Carte Ethnographique du Ferghanah, 1877”). The city and the entire eastern 3/4 of the Fergana Valley were including in Uzbekistan in the 1920s and Stalin's dictates of political borders.

Kokand is at the crossroads of the two main ancient trade routes into the Fergana Valley, one leading northwest over the mountains to Tashkent, and the other west through Khujand. As a result, Kokand is the main transportation junction in the Fergana Valley.
tymology[edit]
The city's name is in conformity with other Central Asian cities that sport the element "kand/kent/qand/jand", meaning a city in Sogdian as well as other Iranic languages. The Khwarazmian version was "kath", that is still found in the name of the old city of Akhsikath/Akhsikat in the Fergana Valley of Uzbekistan. The prefix "khu/hu" is Iranic for "good." (modern Tajik khub. Together, the name stands for "Good City."
A Turkic derivation is untenable chronologically, but states as such: "Kokand's name derives from the well-known tribal family group of "Kokan" who belong to the Kongrat tribe of Uzbeks. "
History[edit]
The town of Kokand is one of the oldest towns in Uzbekistan and is situated in the western part of Fergana Valley. In the chronicles of the 10th century, the first written documents concerning town of Hukande, Havokande (old names of the town). In the 13th century, like most of Central Asian towns, the Mongols ruined the city. The town is a significant hub for trading on the Silk Route.[1]^[4]
Kokand has existed since at least the 10th century, under the name of Khavakand, and was frequently mentioned in traveler's accounts of the caravan route between South Asia and East Asia. The Han Dynasty of China conquered the entire city in the 1st Century B.C. Later, the Arabs conquered the region from Tang Empire. The Mongols destroyed Kokand in the 13th century.
The present city began as a fort in 1732 on the site of another older fortress called Eski-Kurgan. In 1740, it became the capital of an Uzbek kingdom, the Khanate of Kokand, which reached as far as Kyzylorda to the west and Bishkek to the northeast. Kokand was also the major religious center of the Fergana Valley, boasting more than 300 mosques.
Imperial forces of Russian Empire under Mikhail Skobelev captured the city in 1883 which then became part of Russian Turkistan. During World War I, two revolutions happened in the Russian Empire. it was the capital of the short-lived (72 days) (1917–18) anti-Bolshevik Provisional Government of Autonomous Turkistan (also known as Kokand Autonomy).^[5] They sought co-operation from Ataman Dutov and Alash Orda. However, their emissary to the Amir of Bukhara achieved little.
International Handicrafters Festival Kokand[edit]
The First International Handicrafters Festival took place in the city Kokand, Fergana Region, Uzbekistan, on September 10-15th 2019 year. The First International Handicrafters Festival was held in ancient city Kokand, 10-15th of September, 2019. This International Handicrafters Festival gathered more than 600 artisans who came from more than 70 countries and more than 120 representatives of various Handicraft Organizations. The festival also included scientific-practical conference. The conference was dedicated to develop and prospect to handcraftsmanship.
The Second International Handicrafters Festival will be held in the city of Kokand on September 2022. A corresponding resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan “On measures for organizing and holding the Second International Handicrafters Festival in the city of Kokand” was adopted. The government approved the composition of the organizing committee and the roadmap for holding the festival. Several exhibitions and shows will be organized to attract talented artists to the competition.
Main sights[edit]