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Samarkand - Quiz
Contributed by: Casey
  • 1. What country is Samarkand located in?
A) Kazakhstan
B) Uzbekistan
C) Kyrgyzstan
D) Tajikistan
  • 2. Samarkand is part of which historical trade route?
A) Silk Road
B) Incense Route
C) Spice Route
D) Amber Road
  • 3. Which empire did Samarkand serve as a capital for?
A) Timurid Empire
B) Mongol Empire
C) Ottoman Empire
D) Persian Empire
  • 4. What is the famous mausoleum located in Samarkand?
A) Mausoleum of Augustus
B) Pyramids of Giza
C) Taj Mahal
D) Gur-e-Amir
  • 5. Which river is Samarkand near?
A) Amu Darya
B) Oxus River
C) Zarafshan River
D) Syr Darya
  • 6. Which tapestry technique is associated with Samarkand?
A) Kilims
B) Suzani
C) Aubusson
D) Gobelin
  • 7. What was Samarkand known as in ancient times?
A) Sogdiana
B) Nisa
C) Bactra
D) Maracanda
  • 8. Who was the famous astronomer associated with Samarkand?
A) Copernicus
B) Ulugh Beg
C) Kepler
D) Ptolemy
  • 9. What is the population of Samarkand as of 2021?
A) 650,000 inhabitants
B) 600,000 inhabitants
C) 551,700 inhabitants
D) 500,000 inhabitants
  • 10. What region is Samarkand the capital of?
A) Fergana Region
B) Surxondaryo Region
C) Tashkent Region
D) Samarkand Region
  • 11. Who conquered Samarkand in 1220?
A) Cyrus the Great
B) Genghis Khan
C) Alexander the Great
D) Timur
  • 12. What was Samarkand known as when Alexander the Great conquered it in 329 BC?
A) Merv
B) Bukhara
C) Khiva
D) Markanda
  • 13. Who made Samarkand the capital of his empire in the 14th century?
A) Genghis Khan
B) Cyrus the Great
C) Timur
D) Alexander the Great
  • 14. What is one of Samarkand's most notable landmarks rebuilt during the Soviet era?
A) Registan Square
B) Shah-i-Zinda
C) Bibi-Khanym Mosque
D) Gur-e Amir Mausoleum
  • 15. What is Samarkand's ancient centre known for?
A) Bibi-Khanym Mosque
B) Shah-i-Zinda
C) Gur-e Amir Mausoleum
D) Registan square
  • 16. In which year was Samarkand added to UNESCO's World Heritage List?
A) 2010
B) 2003
C) 2001
D) 1999
  • 17. What are the two parts of modern Samarkand called?
A) historic quarter and modern sector
B) eastern district and western district
C) old city and new city
D) central zone and peripheral zone
  • 18. Which languages are widely used in Samarkand?
A) Kazakh, Uyghur, and Kyrgyz
B) Uzbek, Russian, and Tajik
C) Turkmen, Pashto, and Dari
D) Azerbaijani, Armenian, and Georgian
  • 19. What significant event did Samarkand host in 2022?
A) COP26 climate conference
B) SCO summit
C) Olympic Games
D) World Economic Forum
  • 20. Who captured Marakanda in 329 BC?
A) Alexander the Great
B) Genghis Khan
C) Timur
D) Cyrus the Great
  • 21. What does 'samarkand' likely mean according to some sources?
A) 'Golden city'
B) 'Stone, rock fort, town'
C) 'Fat city'
D) 'Water city'
  • 22. Which language's term for 'stone' is similar in meaning to the name of Samarkand?
A) Persian
B) Greek
C) Sogdian
D) Turkic
  • 23. What was Samarkand known as in Karakhanid Turkic according to Mahmud al-Kashghari?
A) 'Bukhara'
B) 'Tashkent'
C) 'Marakanda'
D) 'Sämizkänd' or 'Sämerkänd'
  • 24. Which Mughal emperor mentioned Samarkand as a 'fat city'?
A) Shah Jahan
B) Akbar
C) Humayun
D) Babur
  • 25. What is the French spelling of Samarkand?
A) 'Semerkant'
B) 'Samarcande'
C) 'Samarkanda'
D) 'Samarqand'
  • 26. What period does the earliest evidence of human activity in Samarkand date back to?
A) 'Neolithic'
B) 'Iron Age'
C) 'Mesolithic'
D) 'Upper Paleolithic'
  • 27. Which dynasty made Samarkand the capital of the Sogdian satrapy?
A) 'Timurid Empire'
B) 'Achaemenid dynasty of Persia'
C) 'Mongol Empire'
D) 'Umayyad Caliphate'
  • 28. What is the Italian spelling of Samarkand?
A) 'Semerkant'
B) 'Samarcanda'
C) 'Samarkanda'
D) 'Samarqand'
  • 29. Who became ruler of Samarkand as a gift from Alexander the Great?
A) Bessus
B) Orepius
C) Seleucus I Nicator
D) Darius III
  • 30. Which culture heavily influenced local artisans in Samarkand after Alexander's conquests?
A) Persian
B) Indian
C) Classical Greek
D) Chinese
  • 31. Which empire did Samarkand become part of after the death of Alexander the Great and before the Kushan Empire?
A) Greco-Bactrian Kingdom
B) Macedonian Empire
C) Parthian Empire
D) Roman Empire
  • 32. When did Samarkand go into decline as a center of power?
A) 5th century BC
B) 9th century AD
C) 7th century AD
D) 3rd century AD
  • 33. Who conquered Samarkand around 260 AD?
A) The Persian Sasanians
B) The Turkic Khaganate
C) Alexander the Great
D) The Hephthalites
  • 34. What religion became essential in Samarkand under Sasanian rule?
A) Manichaeism
B) Zoroastrianism
C) Christianity
D) Buddhism
  • 35. Which nomadic tribes conquered Samarkand between AD 350 and 375?
A) Xionites
B) Huns
C) Scythians
D) Mongols
  • 36. Who controlled Samarkand after the Hephthalites until around 560 AD?
A) The Umayyad Caliphate
B) The Göktürks, in alliance with Sassanid Persians
C) The Byzantine Empire
D) The Roman Empire
  • 37. Which religion's metropolitanate was established in Samarkand at the beginning of the 8th century?
A) Nestorian Christianity
B) Manichaeism
C) Zoroastrianism
D) Islam
  • 38. Who established family relations with the ruler of Samarkand during the Western Turkic Khaganate?
A) Shapur II
B) Tong Yabghu Qaghan
C) Attila the Hun
D) Chinggis Khan
  • 39. Which religion was most followed in Samarkand before the Islamic era?
A) Zoroastrianism
B) Hinduism
C) Manichaeism
D) Buddhism
  • 40. Who ruled Samarkand after the Abbasids lost control?
A) The Karakhanids
B) The Samanids
C) The Seljuqs
D) The Umayyads
  • 41. Which Turkic tribe overthrew the Samanids around 999?
A) The Seljuqs
B) The Khwarazmshahs
C) The Abbasids
D) The Karakhanids
  • 42. Which dynasty ruled over Samarkand after the fall of the Samanids state in 999?
A) The Chagatai Khanate
B) The Qarakhanid State
C) The Timurid Dynasty
D) The Mongol Empire
  • 43. Which memorial complex was founded by the rulers of the Karakhanid dynasty in the 11th century?
A) Registan Square
B) Gur-e-Amir
C) Bibi-Khanym Mosque
D) Shah-i-Zinda
  • 44. Who described Samarkand as 'a very large and splendid city' in the late 13th century?
A) Ibn Battuta
B) Marco Polo
C) Al-Biruni
D) Xuanzang
  • 45. Which religious institutions were allowed to be established in the khanate after the Mongol conquest?
A) Buddhist monasteries
B) Jewish synagogues
C) Christian bishoprics
D) Hindu temples
  • 46. Who visited Samarkand in 1333 and described it as 'one of the greatest and finest of cities'?
A) Timur
B) Ruy Gonzalez de Clavijo
C) Ulugh Beg
D) Ibn Battuta
  • 47. What was used to supply water to the orchards in Samarkand during Ibn Battuta's visit?
A) Aqueducts
B) Wells
C) Canals
D) Norias
  • 48. In which year did Timur make Samarkand his capital?
A) 1417
B) 1370
C) 1365
D) 1409
  • 49. What was the approximate population of Samarkang during Timur's rule?
A) 150,000
B) 200,000
C) 100,000
D) 50,000
  • 50. Who visited Samarkand between 8 September and 20 November 1404?
A) Timur
B) Ibn Battuta
C) Ulugh Beg
D) Ruy Gonzalez de Clavijo
  • 51. What was the main interest of Ulugh Beg in science?
A) Mathematics
B) Physics
C) Chemistry
D) Astronomy
  • 52. In which year did Ulugh Beg construct an observatory in Samarkand?
A) 1409
B) 1428
C) 1417
D) 1435
  • 53. What was the name of the main instrument at Ulugh Beg's observatory?
A) Fakhri Sextant
B) Ulugh Quadrant
C) Samarkand Telescope
D) Timur Wall
  • 54. What was the radius of the Fakhri Sextant?
A) 20 meters
B) 40 meters
C) 30 meters
D) 50 meters
  • 55. What was the circumference of the walls that separated Samarkand from its neighbors?
A) 12 km (7.5 mi)
B) 6 km (3.75 mi)
C) 8 km (5 mi)
D) 10 km (6 mi)
  • 56. Which uprising occurred in Samarkand in 1365?
A) Clavijo revolt
B) Battuta insurrection
C) Timurid rebellion
D) Sarbadar uprising
  • 57. What was a notable feature of the city during Timur's rule?
A) Economic decline
B) Constant construction
C) Stability and peace
D) Lack of artistic development
  • 58. What state did Samarkand become part of after being taken by Muhammad Shaybani?
A) The Safavid Empire
B) The Bukhara Khanate
C) The Timurid Empire
D) The Mughal Empire
  • 59. What did Muhammad Shaybani Khan order to be built in Samarkand?
A) A palace
B) A fortress
C) A large madrasa
D) A market
  • 60. When is the first dated news about the Shaybani Khan madrasa recorded?
A) 1530
B) 1510
C) 1525
D) 1504
  • 61. Who wrote that Sheibani Khan built a madrasa to perpetuate the memory of his brother?
A) Abdulatif Khan
B) Fazlallah ibn Ruzbihan
C) Zayn ad-din Vasifi
D) Muhammad Salikh
  • 62. Who visited the Sheibani-khan madrasa several years after it was built?
A) Zayn ad-din Vasifi
B) Muhammad Salikh
C) Fazlallah ibn Ruzbihan
D) Abdulatif Khan
  • 63. Under what literary pseudonym did Abdulatif Khan write poetry?
A) Saadi
B) Rumi
C) Hafiz
D) Khush
  • 64. In what year did Samarkand come under Russian rule?
A) 1888
B) 1756
C) 1868
D) 1886
  • 65. Who led the force that took the citadel of Samarkand for Russia?
A) Muhammad Rakhimbiy
B) Abdul Malik Tura
C) Colonel Konstantin Petrovich von Kaufman
D) Alexander Abramov
  • 66. When did the Trans-Caspian railway reach Samarkand?
A) 1868
B) 1886
C) 1758
D) 1888
  • 67. In which year did Samarkand become the capital of the Uzbek SSR?
A) 1970
B) 1925
C) 1942
D) 1930
  • 68. Who was responsible for initiating the celebrations of the 2500th anniversary of Samarkand in 1970?
A) Academician I. Muminov
B) N. Veselovsky
C) V. Bartold
D) Sharaf Rashidov
  • 69. What climate classification does Samarkand have?
A) Desert
B) Cold semi-arid (BSk)
C) Humid subtropical
D) Mediterranean
  • 70. What major event did Samarkand host for the first time in 2022?
A) Olympics
B) Full marathon
C) Carnival
D) World Cup
  • 71. Which city is about 270 km away from Samarkand via Road M39?
A) Bukhara
B) Qarshi
C) Dushanbe
D) Tashkent
  • 72. Which ethnic group is especially concentrated in the eastern part of Samarkand?
A) Russians
B) Uzbeks
C) Tajiks
D) Armenians
  • 73. What was a significant change in ethnic registration noted during the 1926 census in Samarkand?
A) Tajik numbers increased substantially.
B) More Russians were registered than before.
C) Many Tajiks were registered as Uzbeks.
D) Uzbek numbers decreased significantly.
  • 74. What is the name of the river that connects Samarkand to Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan?
A) Syrdar'ya
B) Amu Darya
C) Zarefshan River
D) M39
  • 75. Which ethnic group was deported to Samarkand from Merv in the late 18th century?
A) Russians
B) Tajiks
C) Iranis
D) Uzbeks
  • 76. Which ethnic group in Samarkand primarily speaks the Parya language?
A) Uzbeks
B) Central Asian 'Gypsies'
C) Tajiks
D) Russians
  • 77. Which is the most popular Russian-language newspaper published in Samarkand?
A) Durdonai Sharq
B) Samarqand News
C) Ovozi Samarqand
D) Samarkandskiy vestnik
  • 78. Which famous Persian poet lived or visited Samarkand?
A) Abulqasem Ferdowsi
B) Leo Tolstoy
C) Charles Dickens
D) William Shakespeare
  • 79. What percentage of residents in Samarkand speak Uzbek as a native tongue?
A) 50%
B) 90%
C) 70%
D) About 30%
  • 80. What is the name of the newspaper published in Tajiki in Samarkand?
A) Samarqand Herald
B) Ovozi Samarqand
C) Durdonai Sharq
D) Samarkandskiy vestnik
  • 81. Which language is spoken by a very small percentage of Samarkandian Arabs?
A) Tajik
B) Uzbek
C) Arabic
D) Russian
  • 82. Which religious group primarily inhabited Samarkand before Islam?
A) Zoroastrians
B) Hindus
C) Christians
D) Jews
  • 83. Who authored the hadith collection known as Sahih al-Bukhari?
A) Rumi
B) Al-Ghazali
C) Imam Bukhari
D) Ibn Khaldun
  • 84. What percentage of Muslims in Samarkand are Sunni?
A) Approximately 80–85%
B) 30-35%
C) 50-55%
D) 95-100%
  • 85. Which Islamic school do most Sunnis in Samarkand follow?
A) Ja'fari
B) Shia
C) Hanafi
D) Maliki
  • 86. Who is the founder of Maturidism, whose shrine is in Samarkand?
A) Imam Maturidi
B) Al-Ghazali
C) Rumi
D) Ibn Taymiyyah
  • 87. Which religious figure revered in Islam, Judaism, and Christianity has a mausoleum in Samarkand?
A) Muhammad
B) The Prophet Daniel
C) Jesus Christ
D) Moses
  • 88. Which Sufi leader from the 15th century has descendants known as a sacred lineage in Samarkand?
A) Khodja Akhror Wali
B) Rumi
C) Al-Hallaj
D) Ibn Arabi
  • 89. Who was the president that implemented a liberal policy affecting religious identity in Samarkand?
A) Nursultan Nazarbayev
B) President Shavkat Mirziyoyev
C) Emomali Rahmon
D) Islam Karimov
  • 90. What is the term used by Samarkandian Iranians to refer to themselves?
A) Azerbaijani
B) Tajiki
C) Uzbeki
D) Irani
  • 91. From which region did many ancestors of Samarkandian Shiites originate in the 18th century?
A) Tashkent Region
B) Fergana Valley
C) Khiva
D) Khorasan
  • 92. What event do Shiites in Samarkand commemorate annually?
A) Eid al-Fitr
B) Hajj
C) Ashura
D) Ramadan
  • 93. Which of the following is a secondary region from which Samarkandian Shiites originate?
A) Kyrgyzstan
B) Turkmenistan
C) Kazakhstan
D) Iranian Azerbaijan
  • 94. What was the US Ambassador for International Religious Freedom's view on the figures provided by a Shiite imam in Bukhara?
A) Confirmed their accuracy
B) Slightly doubted their authenticity
C) Fully trusted them
D) Ignored them completely
  • 95. Which ethnic group, besides Iranians, is part of the Samarkandian Shiite community?
A) Kazakhs
B) Azerbaijanis
C) Turkmen
D) Kyrgyz
  • 96. Which Christian denomination became a center in Samarkand during its early history?
A) Russian Orthodoxy
B) Armenian Apostolic Church
C) Nestorianism
D) Roman Catholicism
  • 97. What happened to Catholicism in Samarkand after its initial establishment?
A) It was completely supplanted by Islam.
B) It merged with Nestorianism.
C) It remained unchanged.
D) It became the dominant religion.
  • 98. Which church in Samarkand was built at the beginning of the 20th century?
A) St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.
B) Church of Surb Astvatsatsin
C) Church of St. George Pobedonosets
D) Cathedral of St. Alexiy Moscowskiy
  • 99. Which Christian sect is the third largest in Samarkand?
A) Armenian Apostolic Church.
B) Catholicism
C) Russian Orthodox Church
D) Protestantism
  • 100. When did the Silk Road Samarkand complex open?
A) Early 2022
B) 2019
C) 2021
D) 2020
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