Shymkent is a city in the south of Kazakhstan, one of three
cities in the country with the status of a city of republican
significance; is a separate administrative-territorial unit (the
17th region of the republic), not part of the surrounding
region.
Shymkent is the third most populous and the
largest city in Kazakhstan by area, one of its largest
industrial, commercial and cultural centers; forms the second
most populous agglomeration in the country.
Until June
19, 2018, the administrative center of the former South
Kazakhstan (now Turkestan) region. Shymkent was declared the
cultural capital of the CIS in 2020 as part of the
implementation of the interstate program "Cultural Capitals of
the Commonwealth".
Before becoming part of the Russian Empire (before 1864), the city
consisted of a chaotic interweaving of winding streets around the
citadel of the ancient settlement of Shymkent (the so-called "Old
City"). But after it became the district town of the Syrdarya region in
1867, the "New City" gradually began to be built to the north of the
"Old City" - a district with a regular rectangular-block layout of
streets. It was bordered by Nikolaevskaya (now Kazybek-bi), Stepnaya
(Kunaev Boulevard), Sadovaya (Tauke Khan Avenue) and Meshchanskaya (now
Turkestanskaya) streets. Currently, there are 1964 streets in the city,
the total length of all streets and highways is 2135 km.
Kazybek
bi street
Kazybek bi street is one of the oldest in Shymkent, founded
in the second half of the 19th century.
During its existence, the
street changed its name three times: in the Russian Empire it was called
Nikolaevskaya, then in the Soviet Union it was Sovetskaya and now in
independent Kazakhstan it is Kazybek-bi.
At the end of the 19th
century, the Cathedral Garden (now the Ken Baba Park) and the Public
City Garden (currently the Central Park) were laid out at the
intersection of Nikolaevskaya and Sadovaya. The Nikolsky Cathedral was
erected in the Cathedral Garden (now the Puppet Theater in the Ken Baba
Park).
Nikolaevskaya street began not far from the citadel of the
ancient settlement in the Old City area near the Bazarnaya Square (now
the Ordabasy Square) and continued into the newly constructed area. It
became the central street of the "New City".
Currently, some of
the oldest buildings in the city are located on Kazybek bi street. Thus,
in 1875, the building now known as School-Gymnasium No. 8 was built with
the personal funds of priest Dmitry Voznesensky. Initially, it housed a
public school.
In 1886, the Church of St. Sergius of Radonezh was
built at Nikolaevskaya 9 according to the design of architect V. S.
Geintselman. After the establishment of Soviet power, its domes were
dismantled, and the building was transformed into a philharmonic
society. In 2009, as part of the "reconstruction", the old building of
the philharmonic society was demolished, and a completely new building
was built in its place. It is noteworthy that it was in the old building
that the composer Shamshi Kaldayakov wrote the song "Menin Kazakhstanym"
("My Kazakhstan"), which later became the anthem of modern Kazakhstan.
A military hospital was built on this same street in the second half
of the 19th century, which was later transformed into the Regional
Clinical Hospital.
Along Kazybek bi street, where it is crossed
by Gani Ilyaev street and Ordabasy square, there are other old buildings
(the former city akimat, the building of the local history museum and
the Union of Advocates of Kazakhstan, and others).
In 1885, during the construction of the "New City", the district
mayor issued a decree stating:
"... when planning the central
streets, two blocks should be allocated for a public city garden... The
construction of the garden should be carried out with the knowledge and
under the supervision of the city architect..."
Thus, by 1890,
two public gardens appeared in the city along Nikolaevskaya street - the
Cathedral and the Public City Garden. At the moment, there are 9 parks
in Shymkent (Ken Baba Ethnopark, Central Park, Victory Park,
Metallurgists Park, Abay Park, Independence Park, Fantasy World
Technopark, Zoo, Dendropark).
Ken Baba Park
This park
(formerly Cathedral Garden, Nikolsky Church Park, Children's Park) is
one of the oldest in the city, located on Kazybek Bi Street at the
intersection with Tauke-Khan Avenue. In 1908, according to the design of
the architect Matsevich, the Nikolsky Cathedral was laid here, which was
opened in the fall of 1914. This three-story building is considered one
of the best examples of religious construction in the "red brick style".
During the Soviet years, it was transformed into a regional library,
later - into a Palace of Pioneers, now it is the Regional Puppet
Theater.
The park still has valuable trees (mainly oaks), planted
here in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Currently, there are
numerous children's attractions and catering establishments here. The
water from the spring source is directed into artificial waterfalls that
flow into decorative ponds, then the water is redistributed through
canals. Waterfowl (swans, ducks, etc.) are inhabited, and there are
ornamental fish in the water.
Central Park
This park (formerly
the Public City Garden) is also located on Kazybek Bi Street, not far
from Ken Baba Park. It was also founded at the end of the 19th century,
almost simultaneously with the Cathedral Garden.
The Old Town began to appear thanks to artisans and farmers who began
to settle at the foot of the citadel of the ancient settlement of
Shymkent as early as the 16th century.
Today, the streets of the
Old Town repeat the outlines of the streets of past centuries. But to
date, only two architectural objects from the century before last have
survived - the Koshkar Ata mosque and the house of the district chief.
In the late Soviet period, a plan was created to preserve the Old Town
as an open-air museum with special requirements for newly erected
buildings in order to combine historical and modern architectural
styles. But the plan was never adopted.
Ordabasy Square
In the
19th century, the eastern border of the city passed here, and here were
also the fortress gates leading to Sairam and Taraz. At that time, there
was a bazaar nearby, so this square was called "Bazaar"; the street that
started from this square received the same name.
Currently, three
streets named after the great biys of the Kazakh people - Tole bi,
Kazybek bi, Aiteke bi - converge on Ordabasy Square. Right in the center
of the square, a monument was erected - "Otan Ana". The monument has
three sides, 34 meters high, on each side are carved famous sayings of
the three great biys. The top of the monument is crowned by a figure of
a young woman who releases seven swallows into the sky.
The
Koshkar Ata River flows under the square; fountain complexes are
installed right in it in close proximity to the monument.
Ordabasy Square is connected to Independence Park via a 104-meter-long
bridge.
Koshkar Ata Mosque
The mosque was built in 1850-1856.
It was built by Fergana masters in the style of quarterly mosques of
frontal composition. Initially, the building was built of adobe bricks,
but due to flooding by the river, it eventually collapsed. Therefore, in
1891-1893, the mosque building was rebuilt from baked bricks. The main
façade was made in the form of a three-arched structure, the building
had a right and left wing. In 2009, the left wing was destroyed despite
the fact that the mosque is protected by law as an architectural
monument.
House of the district chief
The house of the
district chief was built shortly after the city was annexed to the
Russian Empire. Many famous people who visited Shymkent stayed here (for
example, the world-famous orientalist Vasily Bartold). The building is
famous for the fact that Akhmet Kenesarin, the son of the last khan of
three Kazakh zhuzes, Kenesary Kasymov, worked there.
Upper Market
The oldest trading place on the territory of modern Shymkent. The first
documented mention of it dates back to the beginning of the last
century, and according to the elders, trade has been going on at this
place for over 300 years. Today, Kyrgy Bazar is not only a place of
attraction for local residents, but also for tourists.
The Shymkent State Zoo was organized in 1979 and is an important
landmark of the city and the entire region. The official birthday of the
zoo is considered to be April 29, 1980. The total area is 54 hectares.
On 34 hectares of exhibition space, a beautiful park has been laid out,
in which about 3.5 thousand ornamental and 50 species of fruit trees, 10
species of hybrid tea rose bushes are planted. The first collection of
the zoo included 75 species and 350 units of animals and birds. Deer,
argali, ponies, tiger pythons, lions and other animals regularly breed
here.
Today, the Shymkent State Zoo is a unique and original
corner of wildlife. Since July 2010, they have been part of the Eurasian
Regional Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
One of the main
missions of the zoo is the preservation and breeding of rare animals
listed in the Red Book of Kazakhstan. Also, the zoo staff conducts
excursions, radio lectures, and talks for visitors, during which
biologists and leading specialists share their knowledge about animals.
The zoo is one of the most popular recreation areas for residents and
guests of Shymkent. More than 300,000 people visit the zoo annually.
The Shymkent Arboretum was established in 1979 on the site of a
former city dump. In its heyday, it occupied 151 hectares and had 500
thousand trees and 1,360 species of shrubs, many rare and exotic species
that grow nowhere else in Kazakhstan. The collection turned out to be
valuable material for conducting scientific research in dendrology, for
studying the adaptability of individual plant species to local climatic
conditions. Here, for the first time in Kazakhstan, it was possible to
grow a tulip tree, whose homeland is North America.
The park has
a special alley of trees planted by such famous people as Dinmukhamed
Konayev, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Mukhtar Auezov, Asanbay Askarov, Suleimen
Demirel and others.
An extensive reconstruction of the arboretum
began in 2008. The reconstruction consisted of improving the access road
to the park and the areas intended for visitors. A new entrance arch
appeared, which became a kind of calling card of the park. The
irrigation system and lake were also restored, alleys, gazebos, bridges,
and new architectural forms were arranged. Sculptural objects were
restored.
Today, the area of the arboretum occupies 120.5
hectares. It contains more than 600 species of trees and shrubs of
herbaceous plants, representing the flora of various geographical zones
of the world. After the reconstruction, the Shymkent arboretum received
the status of a specially protected area of regional significance. It
was named after Asanbay Askarov.
The arboretum is one of the
favorite places of recreation for city residents and guests of the city,
a real "oxygen workshop" of Shymkent, a wonderful object of mass tourism
and wedding festivities.
There is a park in the city of Shymkent that immortalizes the
exploits of those who fought on the fields of the Great Patriotic War,
those who did not return from battle, and those who stood firm in the
rear.
Victory Park was opened in 1945 in honor of the victory in
that war, its current name is Zhenis. The territory of the park, located
at the intersection of Tauke Khan Avenue and Elshibek Batyr Street, is
small - only 2 hectares. There are 70-year-old trees of various species
growing here, and more than 1,500 rose bushes are planted along the
paths. In the center of the park there is a fountain in the shape of a
star and a granite stele dedicated to the memory of fallen soldiers. The
park was restored in 2012, and since then its entrance has been
decorated with a copper statue of the hero of the Great Patriotic War -
"Iron General" Sabyr Rakhimov. The opening of the first and so far the
only monument to the Hero of the Soviet Union S. Rakhimov in the country
was timed to coincide with the 110th anniversary of his birth.
The park also has the Erlik Museum, which exhibits items from the Great
Patriotic War, archives and photographs. The museum, which includes four
exhibition halls and a gallery, was opened in December 2012. In the
first hall, "Heroism and Courage", the materials are dedicated to the
South Kazakhstanis who participated in the Great Patriotic War.
The theme of the second hall is "The Labor Feat of the South
Kazakhstanis". The third hall of the exhibition is dedicated to the war
in Afghanistan. The library contains books - documentary and fiction,
dedicated to military topics, among which the "Book of Memory" occupies
a special place. Visitors to the museum can work with this literature
right here.
Alley of Glory. Opened in 2010 in the city park named after Abay for
the anniversary of the Victory. The composition includes a granite
circle with the carved names of the Heroes of the Soviet Union and
holders of the Order of Glory, as well as two marble steles on which the
names of 140 thousand soldiers called up for the Great Patriotic War are
immortalized. The memorial is crowned by an airplane, which previously
stood on Ordabasy Square (former Kuibyshev Square).
Monument to
Zhamalbek Shaimerdenov. Installed in January 2013.
Monument to Sabyr
Rakhimov. Installed in September 2012.
Monument to Baidibek bi.
Opened in October 2012. The tallest monument in the country.
Monument
to Bakhyt Alpysbayev. Installed in October 2011. Monument to Bauyrzhan
Momyshuly.
Monument to "Baidibek bi"
Baidibek Karashauly
(1356-1419) - biy and batyr of the Kazakh people, the legendary ancestor
of many Kazakh clans of the Senior Zhuz.
The monument is a
sculpture of Baidibek, standing on a high pedestal and stretching his
arms to the place of sunrise. The opening of the monument to Baidibek bi
in the city of Shymkent took place in the fall of 2012 and was timed to
coincide with the 80th anniversary of the South Kazakhstan region
celebrated that year. This is the highest monument in the country. One
of the highest points in the northern part of Shymkent was chosen for
the installation of the monument - 220 meters. A four-meter embankment
and a 9-meter pedestal were added to this mark. The height of the figure
itself is 10 meters, taking into account the height of the embankment,
the pedestal and the monument itself, the monument rises to 23 meters.
The figure, weighing a total of 9 tons, was made of forged copper in
20 days.
Approximately three hundred meters south of the
monument, down the slope, there is a fifteen-meter monument dedicated to
the 550th anniversary of the Kazakh Khanate. The monument is formed by
two overlapping tent arches. Their intersection forms a symbolic
shanyrak - a symbol of home, hearth, and procreation. The monument is
part of the ethno-historical complex "Kazyna", which in total occupies
an area of 76.4 hectares.
The museum began its work in 1920 as the Shymkent Pedagogical Museum
and Pedagogical Laboratory of the Syr Darya Regional Department of
Public Education. In 1977, the museum staff created an exhibition of the
region's nature and history in a specially constructed new building.
In 1984, the Shymkent Museum carried out its first independent field
work on the excavations of the Altyn-Tobe settlement, and in 1988, the
study of the Zhuantobe settlement began.
In 2014, the President
of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev opened a new building.
The
total area of the museum is 2.5 thousand m². The museum consists of
four halls: "Nature, paleontology, archeology", "Ethnography", "Kazakh
Khanate and the New Century", "Independent Kazakhstan". The museum and
its branches have more than 109 thousand exhibits.
Opened in 2013, Nauryz Square is a venue for cultural events and public festivities. The main entertainment attraction of the ensemble is the park area "Zhailaukol", and the main "calling card" is the Ferris wheel "Shymkent Altyn Eye".
The idea of the composition is associated with the Kazakh national worldview of the unity of nature and man. In the spring, the tulip season begins in Shymkent. At this time, more than a million flowers are planted.
One of the oldest theaters in the country. The theater was named after the Kazakh director, playwright, one of the founders of the Kazakh professional theater art Zhumat Shanin. In 2014, the theater moved to a new building - a three-story structure, erected in a combination of classical and modern styles, the main facade is decorated with four columns.
Kasiret Memorial Complex was built in memory of the victims of
political repression in a ravine known as Fox's Gully, which was the
site of mass executions in 1937-1938.
Broken marble blocks inside
two metal cages and a crying eye embedded in the wall behind the bars.
Nearby, a large bare slab covers the grave where the victims are buried.
At the top of the hill stands a statue of a mother holding her child.
The exhibition and premises were created by Kendebay Karabdalov, who
recreated more than 10 musical instruments, various clay household
utensils and jugs. Kyluet is partially located underground, being a kind
of khilvet - an ancient underground structure with prayer rooms.
Art Gallery "Altyn Orda" of the Beisbekov Family
Founded by the
creative dynasty of Beisbekov.
"Shymkent Circus" is the third stationary circus in Kazakhstan, built in 2011.
The memorial consists of a number of monuments connected to each
other in a single composition, the beginning of which was laid in the
late 1970s. It begins with the "Eternal Flame Obelisk" - these are two
high steles, one supporting the other, meaning "the unity of the front
and the rear." The composition continues with the Alley of Glory, on
both sides of which are 200-meter slabs on which more than 140,000 names
are carved. Here are immortalized the names of the South Kazakhstanis
who were mobilized for the war.
The Circle of Heroes is 51 Heroes
of the Soviet Union, 8 full Cavaliers of the Order of Glory and tens of
thousands of ordinary soldiers and officers.
On the territory of
the Memorial Complex of Glory there is a monument - a combat aircraft.
The museum is dedicated to the memory of people who suffered from political persecution and repression in 1937-1938. It was opened in November 2001. The museum building was erected according to the design of the honored architect of Kazakhstan Amanzhol Naimanbay. The museum exposition occupies two halls - a hall with exhibits and a hall of sorrow. In the middle of the museum there is a sculpture "Repression".
One of the first theaters opened in Kazakhstan. In 1949, the theater moved to Uralsk, but soon returned to Shymkent as a musical comedy theater. The second birth of the theater is considered to be 1958, when the Shymkent troupe was formed. On September 17 of the same year, a decision was made to approve the project for the construction of a new theater building in the city of Shymkent. Construction began in March 1965 and was completed in October 1967. In the early 2000s, the theater building was reconstructed.
For a long time it was named after V. I. Lenin, now it is named after
the thinker and philosopher Al-Farabi.
"AK MEShiT" named after
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan
The Central Mosque is one of the
religious landmarks of the city of Shymkent. It was opened in May 2013
on the initiative of Nazarbayev with the support of the President of the
UAE Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Take a walk in the parks
Shymkent has many types of transport: rail, air and road.
By
plane
Shymkent has an international airport
By train
Railway transport is the most common type of transport in Kazakhstan.
You can get to Shymkent from almost anywhere in the country by rail.
Shymkent station, ul. Anarov, 9 (south of the center). Very modest
for a city of this size, the station is also half ticket offices, and
the waiting room on the second floor is frankly small and does not
accommodate everyone. In good weather, everyone sits on benches on the
platform, there are also a number of food stalls (although there are a
couple of small buffets inside the station), the prices are inflated.
By bus
Buses are also a common type of transportation in
Kazakhstan. In the city itself, you can get to all the main sites by
bus, and you can get to the city itself by bus from nearby cities. If
you need to go out of town, the bus will also help you. At bus stations
you can find a route to many villages. The bus can help you out in many
situations if you are without a car.
Buses
The most common form of public transport. It is represented
by about 90 routes, which are served by about 10 transport companies.
The fare is fixed and currently amounts to 100 tenge (since 2021).
Payment is made in cash directly on the bus - to the conductor. At
the moment, there have been several attempts by city authorities to
revive the provision of passengers with tickets, but so far this has not
taken root. Tickets are available from the conductor, but, as a rule,
they are issued to passengers only when another inspection of the
activities of transport companies is carried out. Tickets are not
available for sale.
The Tolem card was introduced after the
Covid-19 pandemic.
Minibuses
A fairly common form of
transport. The cost and payment for travel are the same as on buses. If
previously a minibus could be stopped "on demand" anywhere, then since
2014 the requirements have been tightened and minibus drivers stop only
at bus stops.
Trolleybuses
Since 1979, trolleybus transport
operated in Shymkent, represented by about 10 routes. In the early
2000s, the city administration recognized this type of transport as
unprofitable and abolished it. However, the memory of it remained in the
name of the stop - Trolleybus Park.
Taxi
The average cost of a
taxi service in the city ranges from 200 to 1,500 tenge (2014) and
depends on the distance. Taxi services usually have a fixed rate - it
starts from 500-600 tenge (transfer to the airport - 1,500 tenge),
private taxis are usually lower. In any case, the cost from the city to
the airport can be 1,500-2,000 tenge. If a private taxi driver asks for
more, you can safely bargain with him. To do this, it is enough to know
at least the names of numerals in the Kazakh language. Local taxi
drivers mostly speak Kazakh and Russian. Transfers from the airport to
the city are usually a little more expensive. This is most likely due to
the fact that a traveler who has arrived at Shymkent airport has few
alternative options, since the only bus route #12 runs on average every
30-40 minutes, starts at 8 am and ends at 7:30 pm, maximum at 8 pm.
A crowd of taxi drivers will meet you at the railway station, ready
to take you to any point in the city for a "crazy" price. Taxi drivers
also offer delivery to Chernyaevka - a border point with Uzbekistan -
for those traveling to Tashkent. And also delivery to the local resort
of Mankent (approximately 20 km from the city of Shymkent).
Any goods can be bought at the Alash, Bekzhan, Avtonur, Verkhniy, Aina, and Krityi Bazaars.
Five stars
Rixos Khadisha Shymkent
Hotel "Kainar"
Four
stars
Hotel DoubleTree by Hilton Shymkent
Hotel "Sapar Standart"
Hotel ORDABASY
Three stars
Hotel Shymkent
Once you arrive at the airport and train stations, you can buy a SIM card in local shops.
The modern name of the city of Shymkent consists of two parts: the
term "kent" (in Iranian languages - a city, village, area) and the
definition "chim/shym". The component "shym/shym" historically also had
the variants "chem", "chemengen", "chimin", "chimingen" and meant
"meadow, grass" in Iranian languages.
According to V.V. Bartold
and E.M. Murzaev, the name of the city should be interpreted from the
Sogdian "chimin/chemen" (meadow, meadow, flowering valley in the
floodplain of the river) with the addition of the ending "kent".
V.V.
Radlov interprets "chaman/chimen" (Ottoman from Persian) as a meadow,
turf, God's grass, Greek hay.
V.V. Bartold also cites "chaman" from
Arabic as "grove".
The traveler G. N. Potanin also attested to the
form “ket” (“Chimket”) in 1830.
E. M. Murzaev in 1984 (with
references to L. I. Rozova 1973 and V. I. Savina 1972) explains
“chamen/chemen” as “turf, the upper layer of soil, densely intertwined
with herbaceous vegetation.”
A settlement on the territory of modern Shymkent already existed at
the turn of the 3rd-2nd centuries BC. This is evidenced by the found
artifacts, which have analogues among the materials of the Afrosiab
(Samarkand) settlement. The date of 2200 years was recognized after an
examination at the 48th UNESCO conference in November 2019. The
celebration of the 2200th anniversary of the city was included in the
UNESCO calendar dates of 2020.
In written sources that have come
down to our time, Shymkent was first mentioned by the Central Asian
historian Sharaf ad-din Yazdi (1425) in the book "Zafar Nameh" ("Book of
Victories") when describing Timur's military campaigns. Chimkent
(Shymkent), as a city-settlement already existed in the 6th century AD,
associating it with the famous ambassador-traveler Xuan-Tsian, who
mentioned Isfidzhab - Sairam in his notes, and on this basis believing
that Chimkent as a suburb of Isfidzhab should have existed. An attempt
to substantiate the emergence of a settlement on the site of the city of
Chimkent in the 5th-7th centuries AD based on the analysis of the
toponym Chim - (Shym -) Kent, or the materials of excavations of burial
mounds of the Scythian-Sarmatian period in the area of the phosphorus
plant, on the right bank of the Badam River, which date back to the 3rd
century BC - 1st-2nd centuries AD, as well as the assumption that
Chimkent is more than 1300 years old, based on the presence of burial
mounds located at the end of Al-Farabi Street (1st-5th centuries AD),
are naive and cannot serve as a basis for resolving this issue. It
should be remembered that burial mounds and even the construction of
medieval mazars-tombs over the graves of noble secular and clerical
persons were often carried out in the open steppe. It is widely believed
that the city existed in the 12th century. This data is taken from the
book by A. Dobrosmyslov "Cities of the Syr-Darya Region", where he
reports the following: "The name of the city of Chimkent comes from the
words chim - turf and kent - city ... The aborigines of Chimkent date
its origin to the 12th century, citing the fact that the grave of Saint
Baba Dervish, a contemporary of Khoja Akhmet Yasawi, is located here."
There is no written evidence confirming this fact. Finally, the first
known mention of the city is found in the book "Zafar-Name" - a book by
the historian of the Timur and Timurids era, Sharafadin Iezdi, who
reported that in 1365-1366 according to the modern chronology, Timur,
setting off on a campaign to Mogolistan, found his convoys not far from
Sairam, in the village of Chimkent. This is the first specific mention
of Chimkent in written sources. Traces of ancient human presence on the
territory of modern Chimkent were discovered in the form of random finds
of ceramic vessels of the Bronze Age - 2nd millennium BC, related to the
so-called Andronovo culture, found in the area of the oil and fat
plant. A random find of a Scythian-Saka bronze dagger - Akinak in the
area of the chemical and pharmaceutical plant also dates back to the
1st millennium BC. In 1888, a member of the Turkestan circle of
archeology enthusiasts, N. Ostroumov, conducted small excavations near
the city, on the right bank of the Badam River, on the Alva-Kent hill,
where he discovered clay burial vessels-ossuaries with human bone
remains, the excavations are dated to the 8th-10th centuries. Finds of
ceramics from the 10th-12th centuries were noted in a number of areas of
the city. Excavations carried out by the Chimkent Pedagogical Institute
in 1970-1980 on the territory of the old fortress on the citadel and in
the area of the old city, yielded materials dating back to the
15th-18th centuries. The year of birth of the city is 1365-1366, taking
into account the difference in the lunar Muslim and solar calendars.
Over the centuries, the city often passed from one conqueror to another.
At the beginning of the 13th century, the troops of Genghis Khan entered
Maverannahr through the Sairam oasis, after which it became part of the
conqueror's possessions. At the beginning of the 16th century, Shymkent
became part of the Kazakh Khanate, then during the 17th-18th centuries
it became the object of invasions of the Dzungar conquerors. Despite
countless wars and civil strife, which had a detrimental effect on the
life of the population, the Sairam oasis remained a region of developed
agriculture, gardening and crafts. At the end of the 18th century and
the first half of the 19th century, the Kokand and Bukhara khanates
fought for the possession of Shymkent. In 1810-1864, the city was a
military camp-fortress under the authority of Kokand with a large army
and the residence of the khan's viceroy. In 1821, the Kazakh Sultan
Tentek-tore led an uprising against the Kokand Khanate. The rebel troops
stormed Sairam and Chimkent, but large forces arrived from Kokand and
suppressed the uprising after several battles.
In 1864, during a
military operation, Russian troops managed to recapture Chimkent from
the Kokand people. The future Turkestan Governor-General, then Colonel
Chernyaev, began his task with very limited forces. Chernyaev's small
detachment captured the fortress of Aulie-Ata, after which in July 1864
he took Chimkent, which was considered impregnable. The troops entered
the fortress through a water conduit, through an arched opening in the
fortress wall, and the garrison was so surprised by the sudden
appearance of the enemy inside the city fence that they offered almost
no resistance. For the capture of Chimkent, Chernyaev was awarded the
Order of St. George, 3rd degree.
From that time on, the city
became an important transit point connecting the European part of Russia
and Western Siberia with Central Asia.
In the summer of 1883, on
the southern outskirts of the city, along the bank of the Badam River
and next to the road to Tashkent, merchants Nikolai Ivanovich Ivanov and
Nikifor Prokofievich Savinkov (son-in-law of N. I. Ivanov) began
construction of the first pharmaceutical enterprise in Central Asia at
that time - a santonin plant (partnership "Santonin" or "Santonin plant
of Savinkov and Nikitin"), which already in the fall of 1885 produced
the first 189 tons of santonin. On its basis, one of the largest
pharmaceutical plants in the USSR was later organized, before Kazakhstan
gained independence, it bore the name of F. E. Dzerzhinsky (since June
5, 1925) - now JSC "Khimfarm". Currently, the enterprise is part of the
Polpharma group of companies (Poland). In 1914, in honor of the 50th
anniversary of Chimkent's entry into the Russian Empire, the city was
named Chernyaev, but in 1924 the Soviet authorities returned its
previous name.
In the 1930s, a lead plant was built in Chimkent.
It accounted for 70% of the total lead produced in the USSR. An oil and
fat plant (OFP), a hosiery factory, and a mirror factory were put into
operation. In 1932, an agricultural aviation base was created, which
marked the beginning of the creation and development of the city
airport.
During the Great Patriotic War, Chimkent became one of
the cities of the USSR, where a number of industrial enterprises of the
country were evacuated. 17 plants and factories were relocated here from
the frontline zone. The city produced spare parts for tanks, shells,
metal, lead, optical devices and other products. Two of the three
bullets fired at the fascists were made of Shymkent lead. Seven Shymkent
residents were awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
The
post-war 1950s and 1960s were marked by rapid economic growth in the
city. Along with industrial and economic growth, the city also saw an
increase in crime, the presence of a fairly large percentage of people
with a criminal past among the city's population led to an increase in
speculation and theft, and the development of drug trafficking took
place - Shymkent became one of the largest drug trafficking centers in
the country. At the same time, there was an increase in corruption in
the police environment, this was mentioned, in particular, in his
memoirs by the then head of the Shymkent regional committee V. A.
Liventsov.
From June 13 to 14, 1967, mass riots broke out in the
city - about a thousand people destroyed the buildings of the city's
security forces, on the wave of rumors about the murder of the driver
Ostroukhov by police officers. Mass riots in Chimkent were the largest
unrest in the USSR during the entire period of Brezhnev's rule.
On September 8, 1992, the city received its current name: the Russian
transcription of the word "Chimkent" (Uzbek language) was changed to
"Shymkent".
The city's population estimate as of January 1, 2024 was 1,222,055
people.
The period of Kazakhstan's independence was marked by a
significant increase in the population of Shymkent. Thus, by 2011, the
city's population had grown by 44.5% compared to 2000 (629.1 thousand
and 435.3 thousand people, respectively). The annual population growth
for the period 2000-2011 was 3.5%.
Historically, the city was
multinational, which is reflected in the current proportions of teaching
in public secondary schools in Kazakh, Uzbek and Russian: out of 83
public schools, 28 schools (33.7%) teach subjects in Kazakh, 38 schools
(45.7%) teach in Kazakh and Russian, 7 schools (8.4%) teach in Kazakh,
Russian and Uzbek, 9 schools (10.8%) teach in Uzbek and Kazakh, and 1
school (1.2%) teach in Russian.
There are disproportions in the
representation of nationalities living in the city among civil servants:
in government bodies in Shymkent, out of a total of 466 civil servants,
438 (94.0%) are Kazakhs, the representation of other nationalities
living in the city is 5-6 times lower than their share in the total
population: 13 (2.8%) civil servants are Uzbeks, 12 (2.6%) are Russians,
3 (0.6%) are representatives of other nationalities. By the beginning of
2015, the territories of adjacent districts were annexed to Shymkent
(see below). In connection with this, the population of the city within
the new borders increased to 858,147 people by the beginning of 2015. By
that time, 711,783 people lived within the previous borders of Shymkent.
After the expansion of the city's area, the population density also
changed significantly: if within the previous borders it was about 1825
people/km², then within the new borders it is 733 people/km². The
population density varies greatly between individual districts.
With the annexation of territories, the ethnic composition of the
population also changed. For example, the number of Uzbeks almost
doubled from 86,180 to 161,222 people, which increased the percentage of
this ethnic group to the total population from 13.70% to 18.78%.
On February 19, 2013, a decision was made to begin the process of
annexing part of the territories of the Sairam, Tolebi and Ordabasy
districts to Shymkent. The population of the lands that are to become
part of the city by the end of the first half of 2013 is about 120
thousand people.
The expansion of the territory of Shymkent was
provided for in the general plan of the city, which was approved by the
Decree of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 1134 dated
September 3, 2012. The previous expansion of the city's territory was
carried out on the basis of the previous general plan from 2004, while
the process of actual transfer of land dragged on for 3 years and was
completed only in 2007, while there were numerous violations of the land
legislation of Kazakhstan in relation to the land plots transferred to
Shymkent.
In order to avoid a repetition of such a situation
during the implementation of the city's general plan from 2012, the Akim
of the South Kazakhstan region gave an order, on the basis of which the
regional akimat adopted Resolution No. 305 dated November 24, 2012 on
measures to establish new boundaries of the city of Shymkent.
In
accordance with the law of Kazakhstan "On the administrative-territorial
structure of the Republic of Kazakhstan", conferences and explanatory
work among the population were held in the Sairam, Tolebi and Ordabasy
districts. In the period from December 2012 to January 2013, decisions
were made by the maslikhats of these districts and resolutions of the
district akimats, which approved the transfer of land to the city of
Shymkent. On February 19, 2013, an extraordinary 17th session of the
Shymkent city maslikhat was held, where the project was reviewed and a
resolution was adopted "On making a proposal to change the boundaries of
the city of Shymkent".
However, according to the current
procedure, the adoption of this resolution does not yet mean the
transfer of the territories of three districts of the South Kazakhstan
region to Shymkent. It is necessary to send the decisions of the
maslikhats of these districts and the resolutions of the district
akimats, as well as the decision of the Shymkent city maslikhat to the
regional maslikhat and the regional akimat, which must submit proposals
to the government of the Republic of Kazakhstan on changing the
boundaries of the city of Shymkent. Only after receiving approval from
the government of Kazakhstan will it be possible to implement the
adoption of a joint decision of the maslikhat of the South Kazakhstan
region, after which the boundaries of the city of Shymkent will be
approved by a resolution of the regional akimat.
Only after the
regional akimat approves the borders of the city of Shymkent, the lands
annexed to Shymkent will be transferred in accordance with the act of
acceptance and transfer.
On August 28, 2013, the Government of
the Republic of Kazakhstan voted to approve the general plan of
Shymkent. According to the approved document, the expansion of the
territory of Shymkent will occur in two stages: by 2015, 29 settlements
of the Sairam district with a population of 103,840 people will be
transferred to the city, and at the second stage, the estimated date of
which is set for 2025, another 7 settlements (2 from the Ordabasy
district and 5 from the Tolebi district) with a population of 13,098
people will be transferred to Shymkent.
Average annual air temperature +13.0 °C
Relative air humidity 57%
Average wind speed 2.2 m/s
Shymkent is located in a unique natural landscape zone. In the
geographical description of the Soviet Union, the location of the city
was described as follows:
To the south of Temirlanovka, from the high
bank of the Badam River, a panorama of the garden city of Shymkent opens
up. On its outskirts, the chimneys of factories and plants smoke, and
through the crowns of trees, roofs of buildings are visible here and
there. Around the city stretches a foothill hilly plain, gradually
descending to the west, toward the Syr Darya. Vineyards, fields with
wheat and cotton crops and dark green islands of surrounding villages
approach Shymkent…
…The main mass of the city territory lies in the
valley of the shallow Sairam, which stretches within Shymkent from east
to west parallel to Badam. The smaller, mainly industrial, part of the
city is located on the watershed of these rivers.
In the eastern part of the horizon, a fairly extended mountain landscape opens up to the view, which is part of the Western Tien Shan mountain system. In the southern part of the mountain range is Mount Kazygurt (peak height 1768 meters, length 20 km), located 40 km southeast of Shymkent. To the north of Mount Kazygurt, a view of the Karzhantau mountain range opens up (the highest point (peak Mingbulak) 2823 m, the length of the chain is 90 km). Behind this mountain is the Ugam Range (the highest point (Sairam Peak) is 4299 m, the length is 115 km), which extends further to the north, emerging from under the overlap of the Karzhantau Range. Most of the year the peaks are covered with snow. The Ugam Range and the Karzhantau Range are located on the territory of two countries - Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Shymkent is characterized by a high standing of groundwater, which
determines the presence of several spring sources right in the center of
the city (the source of the Koshkarata River).
Koshkarata River
The Koshkarata River originates in the center of Shymkent from
underground water sources, which open up in numerous springs in the area
of the railway station. Along the source and the riverbed itself, a
recreation area is organized, squares are laid out, the embankment is
landscaped. There are specially designated places for swimming.
Koshkarata has a special cultural and historical significance. Situated
on the Great Silk Road, it was of great importance for passing caravans
in ancient times. The fact that Koshkarata is a source of pure spring
water predetermined the development of a city in the immediate vicinity
back in the Middle Ages. The river is a place of pilgrimage due to the
Koshkar-ata mausoleum located on its banks. In 2010, it received the
status of a specially protected area of local importance.
Starting near the railway station, Koshkarata flows from east to west;
crosses Ordabasy Square, after which it divides into two channels. One
of them, skirting Al-Farabi Square from the eastern edge, flows north,
the other goes further east into the industrial sector of the Abay
District. Koshkarata hobbles along the "Old City", crosses Zhangildin
Street, and Republic Avenue.
Badam River
The Badam River
originates from the northwestern slope of Mount Karzhantau. It flows
along the southern outskirts of Shymkent, mainly in its industrial part.
From 2013 to 2014 within the city, work was carried out to improve the
river embankment. It is planned to create infrastructure for a rowing
sports complex.
Despite the shutdown of large industrial plants in Shymkent
(Phosphorus and Lead Plants) and the reduction in production capacity of
other enterprises, the environmental situation in the city has worsened
in recent years. Thus, in 2011, Shymkent took second place in the rating
of cities in Kazakhstan for air pollution. The environmental situation
began to deteriorate sharply when the number of cars in the city
exceeded the threshold of 300 thousand units. The share of motor
vehicles in air pollution was about 80% of the total gross emissions.
Formaldehyde was the main air pollutant in Shymkent: according to the
research conducted, its content in the air in the city on average was 4
times higher than the maximum permissible concentration.
At the
beginning of June 2018, in the ranking of cities in the world that
pollute the atmosphere with carbon dioxide (as part of the Global
Gridded Carbon Footprint Model (GGMCF) project), Shymkent was ranked
298th with carbon dioxide emissions of 7.3 megatons per year. This list
also included Almaty (95th place or 25.2 megatons per year), Astana
(178th place or 12.9 megatons) and Aktobe (421st place or 5.3 megatons).