Daşoguz

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"Dashoguz" redirects here. For the Dashoguz meteorite of 1998, see meteorite falls.

Coordinates: 41°50′N 59°58′E / 41.833, 59.967
Daşoguz formerly known as Tashauz
Daşoguz Location in Turkmenistan
Country	‎ Turkmenistan
Province	Daşoguz Province
Incorporated
Government
- Mayor	Mammetnyyaz Owezovic Nurmammedov^[1]
Elevation	88 m (289 ft)
Population (1999)
- Total	166,500
Postcode

Daşoguz (also Dashkhovuz, Dashhowuz, Dashoguz, Dasoguz, Дашогуз; roughly "stone spring" in Turkmen), formerly known as Tashauz, is a city in northern Turkmenistan and the capital of Daşoguz Province.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 Transportation
5 Miscellaneous
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

[edit] Geography

It is located at latitude 41.833° North, longitude 59.9667° East, at an average of 88 meters above sea level. It is about 76.7 km (49.4 miles) from Nukus, Uzbekistan, and 460 km (289.6 mi) from Ashgabat.

[edit] Demographics

Daşoguz's population of 166,500 (1999 census estimate) is predominately Turkmen and Uzbek, with smaller numbers of Russians, Koreans, Karakalpaks, and Tatars present. A large number of those forcefully displaced by ex-President for Life Saparmurat Niyazov have been resettled in the adjoining lands to the town ^[2].

[edit] History

Early in its history, it was a popular stop on the Silk Road because it had a spring, hence its name^[3]. Founded as a fort in the early 19th century by the Russians, modern Daşoguz is a Soviet-designed city with many monuments and museums acting as a local administrative and cultural center and rail junction.

[edit] Transportation

Daşoguz is also connected with Ashgabat by air on Turkmenistan Airlines.

[edit] Miscellaneous

Daşoguz is the main portal of tourists visiting the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Konya-Urgench. Some of the main agricultural products of the area are cotton and jute, which can be cultivated due to the city's proximity to the Amu Darya river. It is also the location of the football club Turan Dasoguz.

On September 5, 1998, an H5 meteorite weighing approximately 7 kilograms fell in Daşoguz^[4].