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Uzbekistan Lifestyle and Culture

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If you intend to travel to Uzbekistan for either a short vacation or semester, you must be well versed on the culture and lifestyle of Uzbekistanis! RocApply dedicates this guide for your information!

The culture of Uzbekistan is vibrant and unique; it was formed over thousands of years, combining the traditions and customs of the peoples who at various times inhabited the territory of modern Uzbekistan. The ancient Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Chinese, Russians, and nomadic Turkic tribes have all contributed to Uzbek culture, which is considered the epitome of Central Asian, crossroads cultures.

The traditions reflecting the multinational nature of Uzbekistan are present in its music, dance, painting, applied arts, language, cuisine, and clothing.

Each region of Uzbekistan has its own unique shades as well, which are most clearly manifested in national dress and local dialects. To get acquainted with such richness and diversity, you must travel around the whole country, but the festivals of Uzbekistan are great events for those who want to see the whole palette of culture in this country in one place.

The festivals attract creative souls from all regions of the country, and here that you can see the full assortment of Uzbek dances, music applied arts, and many other cultures.

Uzbekistan is home to many cultures. Music is an important part of Uzbek culture. Shashmaqam is a form of classical music similar to classical Persian music. Folk music lives on in religious and family events such as weddings as well as special occasions.

The Uzbek people is well-known for its songs. "Qoshiq" - a household song with a small diapason melody, covering one or two rows of the poetic text. The dancing character of a melody of this genre offers their performance in support of comic dances. Once you are here dancing becomes part of your to-do-list!

Uzbekistan food may not be the world’s best-known fare, but it has some interesting things going for it, such as a lamb and noodle soup popularly known as lagman. Drawing influence from the culinary traditions of Russia, Asia and the Middle East, Uzbekistan’s other culinary portraits include the national dish of plov, shashlik, shurpa, dimlama, and samsa. The country is also a carnivore’s dream as meat is often center stage, although noodle and dumpling dishes are also popular.

The applied art of Uzbekistan has a wide variety when it comes to style, materials and ornamentation. Silk, ceramics and cotton weaving, stone and wood carving, metal engraving, leather stamping, calligraphy and miniature drawing are some genres passed down from ancient times. Embroidery, carpet weaving and miniature painting have also been revived in their traditional form as well as some modern variants.

Today, Uzbek craftsmen still practice ancient jewelry crafting techniques for cutting gemstones, grain filigree, granular work, engraving and enamelling. This country is a hub of art!

Arts and crafts are one of the most popular parts of Uzbek culture, giving tourists a lot of options when choosing souvenirs. Uzbek artisans pass on the secrets of craftsmanship from generation to generation, and their works are of top quality and extraordinary elegance. Blacksmiths, potters, weavers, carvers, and many others create works of art from silk, clay, wood, and metal that are recognizable throughout the world thanks to their smooth crafts, geometrically perfect patterns, and harmony of form.

Etiquette in Uzbekistan

Hospitality has a long history of tradition in Uzbekistan where the guests are treated with deep courtesy and given the best possible treatment from the host. Being proud of this tradition we recommend you to follow some rules that follow:

  • You can greet a man shaking his hand but woman would be enough if you just make a light-bending forward of the head.
  • Better not to get inside the Uzbek’s house with shoes but if the owner makes it you should follow his step. It is necessary to take off your shoes when you are going to enter some specific places like religious.
  • No need to wear special cloth but you should cover some open parts of your body including hands and legs.
  • Ramasan is the special month for Muslims. It is a time of act of abstaining from eating. But in spide of this fact all restorans, bars, cafe are working as usual.
  • In some areas the average visitor may appear extremely wealthy to local people. A lavish display of jewellery, bulging handbags and wallets and a neck full of cameras will make you stand out in a crowd.
  • Be discreet, respectful of local culture and traditions, and carry the minimum of valuables.

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