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Very, very few people in America have learned or speak Turkmen. The growing importance of Central Asia has created a real shortage of experts in Turkmen politics, economics, and society. Those who study Turkmen can find careers in a variety of fields including translation and interpreting, academia, consulting, foreign service and intelligence, journalism, and many others. 2. Turkmen is spoken not just in Turkmenistan, but also in Afghanistan and even more widely in Iran, where the Turkmen are an important ethnic minority. Turkmen can also be a gateway language to accessing the Turkic languages spoken by millions of people in the former Soviet Union, China, and the Caucasus, including Azerbaijani, Uzbek, Turkish, Kazakh, Tatar, and Uyghur. These regions are of vital strategic importance in the world today! 3. Turkmenistan is one of the largest countries in Central Asia and possesses the worlds fourth largest reserves of natural gas and substantial oil resources. The United States is considered to be Turkmenistans most prominent trade partner. Pipelines from Turkmenistan across the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan and Turkey are considered major strategic highways. As business partnerships with Turkmenistan and the USA grow, this creates a demand for educated Americans who are fluent in Turkmen. 4. Turkmenistan is a region of numerous archeological sites of great interest. The Turkmen cities of Nisa, Anau, and Merv have been declared as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO and were once part of the ancient Bronze Age Bactria-Margian Archeological Complex and later the Scythian, Greek, Persian, and Arab empires.
5. Learning Turkmen is fun! The grammar of Turkmen is consistent and the spelling is phonetic. Yes, learning Turkmen can be challenging, but dont forget the points you wont have to worry about: noun gender, adjectives agreement, or irregular verbs. Best of all, by learning Turkmen you will get to know the Turkmen people, immerse yourself in their rich cultural heritage, and experience their way of life and the values they share.
Uzbeks are the most numerous Turkic people in Central Asia. They predominantly mostly live in Uzbekistan, a landlocked country of Central Asia that shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south. Many Uzbeks can also be found in Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.
As were other nomadic cultures of Central Asia, Turkmen culture was violently transformed by Soviet collectivization policies and the accompanying laws that limited the freedom of movement and restricted nomadism. However, the Turkmen still retained much of their distinctive culture. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, many aspects of traditional culture have been revived. One important art form of the Turkmen is carpet-weaving. World-famous Turkmen rugs and carpets are known in the West as Bukhara rugs. Turkmen carpets are usually made of sheep or camel wool and are hand-woven. They stand out for their rich colors, original patterns, high quality and durability. Traditionally, Turkmen people are a family and community oriented society. Each individual is usually identified with reference to his or her family and lineage. Similar to other Central Asian societies, many Turkmen live in extended families, and it is not surprising to see two or three generations living under the same roof. Within families, age is the most important determinant of a persons status. The elderly are highly respected and it is customary to consult with them before making important decisions.