Osh City
The city of Osh is the most authentic and oldest city in the country. In its more than 3000-year history, this city has seen the flourishing of great empires, numerous caravans of the Great Silk Road, crowds of pilgrims, many different peoples and cultures, and despite all this, it has managed to preserve its unique spirit of the Muslim East. How many cities do you know that have a mountain in their centre that is considered one of the most important Muslim shrines? Would you like to get to know the colourful oriental bazaars and the life in the Uzbek quarters, unchanged for centuries? Then welcome to Osh, the southern capital of Kyrgyzstan.
Osh is one of the oldest cities in Central Asia, the city where you can feel the real oriental colour and come into contact with two very different and closely related cultures: the traditional nomadic Kyrgyz culture and the sedentary southern agrarian culture of the Fergana Valley, the cradle of civilisation in Central Asia.
The entire historical significance of Osh is centred on Mount Sulaiman-Too, around which this ancient city is situated. Its name is associated with a legendary prophet and King Solomon, who, according to legend, prayed on the top of the mountain. The mosque at the top of Sulaiman-Too was built by the great Babur, founder of the Mughal Empire. There are many historical buildings at the foot of the mountain: medieval mosques and mausoleums, and in the caves of the mountain itself there is a unique historical museum built during the Soviet era. Sulaiman-Too is the most important Muslim shrine in Central Asia.
For many centuries, Osh was an important part of the Great Silk Road, so another amazing aspect of the city is the famous Osh Bazaar, which has existed for more than two thousand years and is located on both sides of the Ak-Buura River. Trade has always been brisk here, and even today you can experience the unique spirit of the oriental bazaar, which is considered the most authentic bazaar in Central Asia. Osh also has a museum dedicated to the city and the Great Silk Road, in which the city played an important role.
