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Uzbeks (O'zbek, Pl. O'zbeklar) are a Turkic ethnic group found primarily in Uzbekistan, but large populations are also found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and Xinjiang province of China.

The Uzbeks predominatly follow Islam (mainly Sunni Islam) in a form that became weakened under the rule of the Soviet Union; however, Uzbek independence saw a revival in Islamic interest after 1991. Conversion to Islam of people living in the area of modern Uzbekistan came as early as the 8th Century AD as Arab troops invaded the area, displacing Zoroastrianism, Buddhism and Nestorian Christianity. Victory of the Arabs over the Chinese at the Battle of Talas (north east of modern Tashkent - now called Dzhambul in Kazakhstan) in 751 ensured the future dominance of Islam in Turkic Central Asia.

The Uzbeks form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China.

The Uzbek language is a Turkic language, related to Uighur, Kazakh, and more distantly to Turkish.

History

The Uzbeks bigan as a nomad secession from the Golden Horde. In 1422, a group of nomad clans east of the Lower Volga, which included Qangli, Qunggirat, Mahnghit, seceded from the central authority of the Khan at Sarai. They called themselves Uzbeks. Their first leader, Barak, ravaged the lower Volga area between Sarai and Astrakhan, but he was murdered in 1428.

Barak was suceeded by Abul Khayr, a descendant of Batu's brother Shiban. The ruling house therefore known a the Shibanids. In 1431, Abul Khayr moved to the central Kazakh steppe. In 1446, however, he changed his policy. The tribes moved south towards the Aral and the Syr Darya to resume contacts with the sedentarists in Transoxania. Some clan chiefs revolted againt this new policy in 1456, forming a new nomad secession, including Qangli. Qunggirat and Jalayir, calling themselves the Kazakhs. In 1457, another nomad secesion by the Oirats took place.

Abul Khayr's grandson, Muhammed Shibani, who led the tribes 1496 to 1510, continued conquest of Transoxania. He captured Samarkand in 1501 and Khiva in 1505. Muhammed Shibani fought with the Persian Safavid Shah Ismail in 1510 to be killed by Persian artillery. But the Persian Shah was defeated by Ubaydullah, nephew of Shibani, in 1512. The Uzbeks established themselves in Bokhara. Abdullah II became khan of Bokhara in 1582, founding the khanate, which was to be conquered by the Russians in the 19th century.

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