Karakalpakstan
Kayla Woodhouse
Summer, 2015

Introduction
The Aral Sea has been a source of jobs, stability, and nutrition for centuries. But since the time when Uzbekistan was under the control of the Russian government – the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, also known as USSR and the Soviet Union – the region has experienced many difficulties. The Aral Sea was once the fourth largest lake in the world, but it has shrunk in tremendous proportions causing many effects such as pollution, temperature fluctuations, and disease. In this paper, six of the nine thematic concepts of geography are examined in Uzbekistan, and specifically in the region around the Aral Sea, Karakalpakstan. The topics covered are society, politics, environment, economy, culture, and history.
History
The history and story of Uzbekistan is an essential part of Central Asian development. Until the mid-1920s, the region of Uzbekistan and its neighboring countries was called Turkestan.
After the campaigns of Alexander the Great during the 330-320s BC, Uzbekistan (then Turkestan) became a major trade center because of its location and the emergence of the Silk Road. In the 900s, Turkestan became deeply rooted in the Muslim religion. In the second half of the 19th century the Russian empire had conquered much of the region. Cotton became a major crop in both rural and urbanized areas. But many people were dissatisfied with the Russian rule and revolted. By 1916,rebellions – both large and small – began, scattered across the region. The modern country of Uzbekistan was born in 1924, mainly to divide the countries of Turkestan, Bukhara and Khiva into new territories. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s the Soviet Union attempted to reform the culture of the peoples by discouraging many traditional customs, changing the country’s writing system, and stressing russification. Most of the big decisions regarding Uzbekistan were made by the higher officials in the government in Moscow. But in 1991, Uzbekistan became an independent state and broke free of the Soviet Union’s control. In 1992 Uzbekistan joined the United Nations.
During the Soviet Union’s control over Uzbekistan, decisions were made by the government to channel water out of the Syr Dara and the Amu Dara – two primary rivers of Uzbekistan which are fed by melting glaciers and snow up in the mountains in Kyrgyzstan – by numerous irrigation canals. The government thought that by channeling water from these two rivers, they could produce large cotton crops. But the soil and water alone were not producing good, thriving crops and so chemicals were used to enhance the cotton and soil.
The Syr Dara and the Amu Dara flowed into the massive Aral Sea, feeding it from the runoff of melting snow and glaciers. When the water from these two primary rivers was diverted to feed the cotton crops, the Aral Sea’s water levels began diminishing. By the 1980s, there was no longer any water from the Syr Dara and Amu Dara reaching the Aral Sea. By 2001, the Aral Sea had shrunk by 75 percent and divided into three smaller lakes (Pulsipher 2014).
Environment
Post-1950s, the Aral Sea was approximately 68,000 square kilometers (approximately 26,255 square miles). Now the waters of the Aral Sea make up about 3800 square kilometers (approximately 1,467 square miles). Today the Aral Sea is divided into two smaller, primary sections, called lakes, or the Northern Aral Sea and the Southern Aral Sea. The Northern Aral Sea lies in Kazakhstan and the Southern Aral Sea lies between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Uzbekistan is slightly larger than the state of California, covering 172,178 square miles, or 447,400 square kilometers. It is situated in Central Asia, with Kazakhstan to the north and east, Turkmenistan to the west, and Tajikistan to the south. Its capital is Tashkent, located in the Uzbekistan land-arm near Kyrgyzstan.
Central Asia is primarily a desert region, dependent on the water that is fed by melting snow and glaciers. Because of high and extreme temperatures in the recent decades, the glaciers have shrunk. The shrinking glaciers decrease rain and snowfall in the area (Pulsipher 2014). Overall, the shrinking glaciers are stripping the land of many forms of moisture. To add to this phenomena, in Karakalpastan there is a severe lack of water with the shrinking Aral Sea.
The decisions made during the Soviet Union’s control over Uzbekistan and the shrinkage of the Aral Sea has birthed consequences that cut across all aspects of geography. The Aral Sea roughly translates as “Sea of Islands” in old Turkish. It was named this because there used to be over 1500 little Islands which dotted the watery surface (Slobodan 2014). As the Aral Sea diminished, the sea land became dry land. With the increase of dry, salty soil, the land became virtually useless. Because the cotton farmers use harsh chemicals to help the crops, the land in and surrounding Karakalpakstan is polluted.
Society
As the Aral Sea drastically changed and its water levels lowered, much of the sea became a desert-like land. This desert is now covered in salt from the Aral Sea’s water, as well as the chemical pollution which comes from the nearby cotton farms. When the wind blows – as it does almost constantly – these chemicals are taken up into the air. Because of these unhealthy pollution and salts, sickness and deaths ravage Karakalpakstan.
In Uzbekistan, over 60 pecent of the population is aged 25 and under. The population has a declining infant mortality rate, which puzzles many geographers. Over the past 40 years the population growth rates, birth rates, and Total Fertility Rates (FTR) have fluctuated, but each has remained unusually high for Central Asia, despite the sickness and lack of hydration (Hanks 2000). These high demographics vary across the regions within Uzbekistan, but major cities tend to have lower increases in population than rural areas do (2000).
In the past, the country of Uzbekistan was primarily agrarian-based. Most of Karakalpakstan’s population consisted of fishermen. Now in Karakalpakstan, fishing is not a steady option. Though the Northern Aral Sea is being saved by a newly constructed dam (the Kok-Aral Dike) and attempts to restock the lake, the Southern Aral Sea is not considered savable. This poses a poverty and job-loss problem. It is estimated, though, that higher population and employment rates may increase because of the newfound labor-force structure of Uzbekistan’s growing industrial society. The increase of jobs in Uzbekistan may support more employees as the people transition from agrarian-based jobs to industrial-based jobs. Though, there is still a lack of employment for a majority of the population, specifically around Karakalpakstan. (Hanks 2000). About 16 percent of the population lives below the poverty line (UNDP 2013). In Karakalpakstan, this large percentage of poverty is mainly due to the shrinkage of the Aral Sea.
The increase in land makes the temperatures hotter in the summer and lower in the winter by an average of seven to eight degrees Celsius which affects the few crops which grow and makes outdoor activities more dangerous (Slobodan 2014). There is also a lack of medicinal accessibility. HIV and AIDs continue to spread throughout the region and a vast majority of the adults have tuberculosis because of the pollution and dusty air. Over half of those with TB are untreated (Global Health Education 2015). It is estimated that there will be a 23 percent increase of TB cases in the upcoming year (2015). Because of the contaminated air, deficiency of clean water, and undersized sanitation, 69 percent of the population near the southern end of the Aral Sea report having a chronic illness (Pulsipher 2014).
Culture
Despite the sickness which infects the region, Karakalpakstan remains culturally rich and vibrant. The majority of the people in Uzbekistan speak Uzbek and are of Uzbek ethnicity, though there is a good percentage who speak Russian (UNDP 2013). In 2004, ethnic Russians made up approximately 4 percent of the population. 4.6 percent of the Russian population has learned to speak Uzbek (Flynn 269). The primary religion of Uzbekistan is Islam.
After the USSR disbanded in 1991, communities all over Uzbekistan had to redefine their identity as Russians and Uzbeks transitioned from a being under the Russian government to being an independent state (Flynn 268). Even with the transitions the country has gone through, the core culture of Uzbekistan is one of the “brightest and most original cultures of the Orient” according to uzbekembacy.org (2015), with lively dances, unique foods, and unmatched music.
The culture of Karakalpakstan is also rich with tradition. For centuries the people grew wheat, rice, sesame, cotton, and such crops. Cattle was often used to help cultivate the agriculture and crops. The primary occupation of Karakalpakstan was once fishery. Fishermen used special “kayak”s and used reed fences, spears, and nets to catch the fish (Advantor 2015). Now that the Aral Sea has mostly dried up, tradition and culture have changed. The younger generation does not know what it was like to live with water shifting as far as the eye could see. Many men and women who were once fishermen apply any skills they can to find work. On the salty desert sands, people have taken up scrap-metal trades, selling the remains of what were once sunken and harbored ships. People must wear many scarves and coverings to keep the dust out of their faces and eyes. Where once there was a smell of salt sea and fish, there is now an excess of dust and chemicals.
Politics
Uzbekistan is a presidential republic which conducts presidential and parliament elections. The current president is Islam Karimov. The country would like to achieve independent food and energy resources, but since the shrinkage of the Aral Sea, there have been many economic downturns resulting in job losses, increased irrigation and dam costs, etc. But there are a few significant developments that Uzbekistan has achieved in the past few decades. Since the disbandment of the USSR, Uzbekistan has been implementing environmental protection techniques and the prevention of desertification (UNDP 2013). For the most part there are no significant opposing political parties or pressure groups in Uzbekistan and political calamities are scarce (CIA World Fact Book 2015).
After the government’s decisions regarding the Aral Sea during the Soviet Union period, the people in Karakalpakstan experienced severe job losses and poverty. In 2005 the Kok-Aral Dike was built to potentially save the Northern Aral Sea and bring back some of the lost employment and environmental stability. There are also geneticists and fish experts who are giving fish in the Northern Aral Sea hormones which make them set more larvae. Because of this, the fishing industry in northern Karakalpakstan has gotten better, but it is very far from what it used to be. Despite the observations people have made from the severe shrinkage and unemployment in the past fifty-plus years, people are still prone to overuse the water and over-catch the stock, even using illegal nets and fishing equipment. The government needs to make and strengthen regulations for being on the lake so another catastrophe doesn’t happen and the water and fish are not overused. Building the Kok-Aral dam and helping populate the lake is a good first step to a healthier region and a more stable economy. Currently, there is an open public debate on what to do next about the Aral Sea (Pulsipher 2014).
Economy
Overall, Uzbekistan has a growing economy, though the process is slow, hard-coming, and the progress is not apparent in many areas of the region, such as Karakalpakstan. Uzbekistan’s main exports are energy products, cotton, gold, mineral fertilizers, ferrous and nonferrous metals, food products, machinery and automobiles, all of which bring in about 9 billion dollars per year (CIA World Fact Book 2015). About 44 percent of the labor force is in agriculture, about 20 percent in industry, and about 36 percent in services (2015). There are many small and agriculutral businesses within the country which are acknowledged for contributing to Uzbekistan’s economical solidity (Khalmurzaev 2000). Agriculture is once again becoming a focal point for economic strength.
In Karakalpakstan, poverty and debt are common. As the water levels of the Aral Sea lowered, more fishermen and agriculture workers lost their jobs – and many other means of income. In many cases for the most poverty-stricken class, women make shoelaces and other simple commodities from whatever they can find to sell near markets. Others sell homemade milk while the men build small playgrounds or shops out of boat scrap metal and recycle bottles for a living (Brook 2013). For those in the average middle class, life is harsh but mainly due to the sickness and the increased temperatures. Many teachers and full-time workers in the region also work on the cotton farms, which continues to irrigate water from the Syr Darya and Amu Darya (2013). The cotton farms offer jobs for many people. But unemployment continues to cripple much of the population – over two million people.
Recently, there has been a debate on whether or not Karakalpakstan will have an increase in tourism which would undoubtedly boost the economy. The region boasts great archeological and agricultural attractions. But because the region is very rural, there is a lack of hotels, restaurants, and guide businesses.
Conclusion
Overall, life in Karakalpakstan tends to be harsh, but the region continues to improve its economy and environmental safety. As the government and other world-wide health organizations discuss what is to be done about the Aral Sea, medical help is needed for the people who are forced to live with poisonous air and declining employment. Yet, despite the hardships experienced by the many people groups scattered in this semi-rural region, the country continues to thrive culturally and socially, looking forward to a brighter future. It is surprising that this unique and culturally rich region is often overlooked by tourists. Perhaps that will soon change, if the region is able to slightly urbanize without disrupting the agricultural atmosphere.

Bibliography
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