1990 Dushanbe riots

Dushanbe is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. As of January 2022, Dushanbe had a population of 1,201,800 and that population was largely Tajik. Until 1929, the city was known in Russian as Dyushambe, and from 1929 to 1961 as Stalinabad, after Joseph Stalin. Dushanbe is located in the Gissar Valley, bounded by the Gissar Range in the north and east and the Babatag, Aktau, Rangontau and Karatau mountains in the south, and has an elevation of 750–930 m. The city is divided into four districts, all named after Persian historical figures: Ismail Samani, Avicenna, Ferdowsi, and Shah Mansur. In ancient times, what is now or is close to modern Dushanbe was settled by various empires and peoples, including Mousterian tool-users, various neolithic cultures, the Achaemenid Empire, Greco-Bactria, the Kushan Empire, Hephthalites. In the Middle Ages, more settlements began near modern-day Dushanbe such as Hulbuk and its famous palace. From the 17th to early 20th century, Dushanbe grew into a market village controlled at times by the Beg of Hisor, Balkh, and finally Bukhara, before being conquered by the Russian Empire. Dushanbe was captured by the Bolsheviks in 1922, and the town was made the capital of the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in 1924, which commenced Dushanbe's development and rapid population growth that continued until the Tajik Civil War. After the war, the city became capital of an independent Tajikistan and continued its growth and development into a modern city, today home to many international conferences. Much of Dushanbe's education system dates from Soviet times and has a legacy of state control; today the largest university in Dushanbe, the Tajik National University, is funded by the government. Dushanbe International Airport is the primary airport serving the city. Other forms of transport include the trolleybus system dating from 1955, the small rail system, and the roads that traverse the city. Dushanbe's electricity is primarily hydroelectric, produced by the Nurek Dam, and the aging water system dates from 1932. Tajikistan's healthcare system is concentrated in Dushanbe, meaning that the major hospitals of the country are in the city. The city makes up 20% of Tajikistan's GDP and has large industrial, financial, retail, and tourism sectors. Parks and main sights of the city include Victory Park, Rudaki Park, the Tajikistan National Museum, the Dushanbe Flagpole, and the Tajikistan National Museum of Antiquities.

Hisar (also Gissar, Gisar, Hissar, or Hisor) Valley in Tajikistan runs east–west along the southern slopes of Hisar Range and on the northern border of Khatlon Province. It is about 100 km long and up to 20 km wide in the middle, stretching from Vahdat district in the east to Tursunzoda district on the border with Uzbekistan in the west, with the capital Dushanbe and Hisar district at its center. The elevations in the valley range from 700 meters (2,300 ft) to 1,000 meters (3,300 ft). The valley is irrigated by Kofarnihon River in its upper and middle course. Warm temperatures (29 °C in the summer, 0 °C to – 1 °C in the winter) and abundant water for irrigation make the Hisar Valley one of the prime cotton growing areas in Tajikistan.

The Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic, also commonly known as Soviet Tajikistan, the Tajik SSR, or simply Tajikistan, was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union which existed from 1929 to 1991 located in Central Asia. The Tajik Republic was created on 5 December 1929 as a national entity for the Tajik people within the Soviet Union. It succeeded the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Tajik SSR), which had been created on 14 October 1924 as a part of the predominantly Turkic Uzbek SSR in the process of national delimitation in Soviet Central Asia. On 24 August 1990, the Tajik SSR declared sovereignty in its borders. The republic was renamed the Republic of Tajikistan on 31 August 1991 and declared its independence from the disintegrating Soviet Union on 9 September 1991; thus modern Tajikistan is its direct legal successor state. Geographically, at 143,100 km2 (55,300 sq mi), it was bordered by Afghanistan to the south, China to the east, Pakistan to the south, separated by the narrow Wakhan Corridor, as well as internally by fellow Soviet republics of Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north. Notably, the Tajik SSR was the only republic of the Soviet Union to be separated from the Russian SFSR by more than one other republic.

The SCNS Higher School, officially known as the Higher School of the State Committee for National Security (Tajik: Мактаби олии Кумитаи амнияти миллии Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон) is a Tajik public institution under the Government of Tajikistan. Based in Dushanbe, it trains officers for the agency, which serves to maintain national security and gather intelligence for Tajikistan.

Tajik State University of Commerce (Russian: Таджикский государственный университет коммерции) is an economics university located in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

Technological University of Tajikistan (Tajik: Донишгоҳи технологии Тоҷикистон; Russian: технологический университет Таджикистана, ТУТ) is a Tajik university in Dushanbe (Str. Negmat Karabaev 63/3), with a focus on light and food industries, information technology and economics: specifically in marketing and international economic relations. It was established on the basis of the Tajik Higher College of Technology, organized by the Council of Ministers of the Republic on September 20, 1990.

The National Museum of Tajikistan (Russian: Национальный музей Таджикистана; Tajik: Осорхонаи миллии Тоҷикистон, romanized: Osorkhonai Millii Tojikiston) is a museum in Dushanbe, the capital city of Tajikistan.

Tajik National University (Russian: Таджикский национальный университет; Tajik: Донишгоҳи Миллии Тоҷикистон, romanized: Donishgohi Millii Tojikiston) is the first and largest university in Tajikistan. It enrolls 23,000 students per year in 18 different academic disciplines. The head office of the university is located in the capital city of Tajikistan. Tajik National University prepares extensive human resources for the economy of Tajikistan, from journalists to finance professionals and managers. President Emomali Rahmon and the former chairman of the National Bank of Tajikistan Murodali Alimardon are alumni.

Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan incorporates 20 research institutes and three territorial groupings: the Pamir Branch in the eastern part of the country (with 2 institutes), the Khujand Scientific Center in the north, and the Khatlon Scientific Center in the south-west. The Academy is organized in three thematic divisions: physico-mathematical, chemical, and geological sciences; biological and medical sciences; humanities and social sciences. The incumbent president is Academician M.I. Ilolov, elected in 2005. Originally a part of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, the Tajik Academy of Sciences was established in 1951 as the Academy of Sciences of Tajik SSR, designated the highest scientific body in Tajik SSR and since 1991 in the Republic of Tajikistan.

Ayni Opera and Ballet Theatre, formerly known as the Tajik Musical Theatre, is a historic building and musical theatre in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The building was named after Tajik poet Sadriddin Ayni.

The National Library of Tajikistan (NLT; Tajik: Китобхонаи миллии Тоҷикистон, КМТ; Russian: Национальная библиотека Таджикистана) located in Dushanbe, Tajikistan is the main library of the country, specializing in preserving cultural heritage of the peoples of the Republic of Tajikistan. While the original library state library in Dushanbe was founded in 1933 and named after Persian author Ferdowsi, the new national library building opened in March, 2012 alongside its new official name. The new nine-story building features 15 reading halls as well as over 20 departments. Access to the library is free to any Tajik citizen with a Passport.

Rossiya (Russian and Tajik: Россия, also Kolkhozi Rossiya; formerly: Qushteppa) is a jamoat in Tajikistan. It is located in Rudaki District, one of the Districts of Republican Subordination. The jamoat has a total population of 31,030 (2015).