Turkmenistan — books & literature

The story of Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan's story stretches back to some of the earliest farming settlements in Central Asia, with sites near Anau dating to roughly 4000-3000 BCE. The region passed through the Achaemenid Persian Empire before Oghuz Turkic tribes migrated in from the 8th century CE, forming the ethnic and linguistic base of today's Turkmen people. Along the Silk Road, the oasis city of Merv rose to extraordinary prominence, becoming the capital of the Great Seljuk Empire in the 11th-12th centuries and, by some accounts, briefly one of the largest cities in the world - before it was devastated by Mongol forces in 1221. Turkic-Persian khanates and tribal confederations followed until the Russian Empire annexed the territory in 1881, later absorbing it into the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic in 1925. Turkmenistan declared independence as the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, and in 1995 the United Nations recognized its policy of permanent neutrality, a status still central to its foreign policy today. Since independence, national identity has been built around Silk Road heritage, the Akhal-Teke horse, hand-woven carpets, and the poetry of Makhtumkuli - even as the country's marble-clad capital, Ashgabat, projects a striking, modern face onto one of Central Asia's most closed and least-visited nations.

Timeline — key moments

1. circa 4000-3000 BCE

   Early farming settlements at Anau, near present-day Ashgabat, among the oldest in Central Asia.

2. circa 6th century BCE

   Region absorbed into the Achaemenid Persian Empire.

3. circa 8th century CE

   Oghuz Turkic tribes migrate into the region, forming the ethnic base of the Turkmen people.

4. circa 1100s

   Merv flourishes as capital of the Great Seljuk Empire, one of the great cities of the medieval world.

5. 1221

   Merv is destroyed by Mongol forces during the campaigns of Genghis Khan.

6. 1881

   The Russian Empire annexes Turkmen territory after the Battle of Geok Tepe.

7. 1925

   The Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic is established within the USSR.

8. 1991

   Independence declared on 27 October as the Soviet Union dissolves.

9. 1995

   The United Nations General Assembly recognizes Turkmenistan's permanent neutrality (12 December).

10. 2021

    Weightlifter Polina Guryeva wins Turkmenistan's first-ever Olympic medal at the Tokyo Games.

Top 10 things to know about Turkmenistan

1. Turkmenistan is one of the most sparsely populated countries in Central Asia, largely covered by the Karakum Desert.
2. The Karakum Desert covers around 70% of the country's territory.
3. Ashgabat holds a Guinness World Record for the highest concentration of white marble-clad buildings of any city.
4. The Darvaza gas crater, known as the "Door to Hell," has been burning continuously since 1971.
5. Turkmenistan's policy of permanent neutrality was formally recognized by the United Nations in 1995.
6. The ancient Silk Road city of Merv was once among the largest cities in the world.
7. The Akhal-Teke horse, prized for its speed and metallic sheen, originated in Turkmenistan and appears on the national emblem.
8. Turkmen carpets are a national symbol; Ashgabat's carpet museum displays some of the largest hand-woven carpets on Earth.
9. Turkmenistan holds one of the largest proven natural gas reserves in the world.
10. The Turkmen language, part of the Oghuz Turkic family, has used the Latin alphabet officially since the 1990s.

Famous people from Turkmenistan

Say it in Turkmenistan's language

Did you know?

• ★The Darvaza gas crater has been burning continuously for over 50 years and is nicknamed the "Door to Hell."
• ★Ashgabat holds a Guinness World Record for having the highest density of white marble buildings of any city on Earth.
• ★Turkmenistan's flag features a vertical stripe of carpet "gul" medallions representing the country's five regions.

Turkmenistan culture

• Nowruz, the Persian-Turkic New Year, is celebrated on 21 March as one of the biggest national holidays.
• The Akhal-Teke horse, called the "Golden Horse," is honoured annually on Turkmen Horse Day, the last Sunday of April.
• Turkmen carpets, woven with tribal "gul" medallion patterns, are considered a symbol of the nation's soul and appear on its flag.
• Hospitality is central to Turkmen tradition, with tea (chai) offered as a greeting ritual in nearly every home.

Why read Turkmenistan's books

Turkmen literature is anchored by the 18th-century verse of Makhtumkuli Fragi, whose poems on love, nature, and Turkmen unity are still recited from memory today; reading into Turkmenistan's shelves opens a Silk Road literary tradition shaped by oral epic, Sufi poetry, and a modern nation still writing its story.