The Cultural Space of the Boysun District

　　Proclamation: 2001
Member State(s): Uzbekistan
Region: Asia-Pacific
Associated themes: Cultural spaces

　　
Boysun, which today has 82,000 inhabitants, is one of the oldest inhabited sites in the world. Located on the route from Asia Minor to India, this region has preserved vestiges of an archaic culture and traces of numerous religions. These include Zoroastrism, Buddhism (artistic examples of which exist in the region) and Islam, which arrived in the eighth century, as well as pre-Islamic beliefs such as shamanism and totemism. Numerous traditional rituals are still alive: on the eve of Navruz, the spring festival, there is the sowing ritual with offerings of food. The rite, which invokes the god of rain (derived from Zoroastrian beliefs), involves making a doll which is then soaked in water. Family rites also persist: 40 days after a birth, the evil spirits are chased away with fire and ashes, then the baby is circumcised, which is an occasion for goat fights and various games. There are also wedding ceremonies, funeral rites, and shamanist rituals to cure the sick.