Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Cultural and humanitarian cooperation between Uzbekistan and Germany is an important component of bilateral relations. This is of particular importance, given that several thousand Germans have been living in our country for 150 years. Most of them arrived in the 40s of the last century, but they still retain their originality and cultural characteristics.

This, first of all, is facilitated by the peace-loving policy pursued by Uzbekistan, including to ensure ethnic tolerance. All this allowed the representatives of the German nationality to integrate into the Uzbek society, to become its integral part.

Historical facts serve as an example of fraternal relations between Uzbeks and Germans. Thus, on the territory of Khorezm and Tashkent, the Mennonite Germans once found shelter, who in the 19th century began to move to Central Asia due to the oppressive policy of Tsarist Russia. By the end of the 1870s, they settled in the village of Zirabulak, and fully integrated into the life of the indigenous people. The Mennonites were engaged in agriculture, cattle breeding and trade and, more surprisingly, they turned out to be skilled carpenters. Thanks to the joint work of Uzbeks and Germans, the Nurullabai Palace in Khiva acquired unique carved doors and windows.

In memory of the life of the Mennonites, in 2019 it was decided to create a tourist facility in the village of Ak-mosque, recreating the lifestyle of the German population.

Today, the Republican Cultural Center of the Germans of Uzbekistan “Wiedergeburt” (“Revival”), founded in 1990, contributes to the preservation of originality. Thanks to him, the national culture of Germany continues to exist and develop in the country. The youth organization "Jugendstern" ("Star of Youth") works under him, which helps in carrying out social work, cultural and educational events. In 2016, she presented an excerpt from the play "Widows" by Stanislav Mrozek, which won1st place at the VIII theater festival in Tashkent.

In addition, in 1995 An Intergovernmental Uzbek-German Commission on the Issues of Germans Living in the Republic was created. Its last meeting was held in 2022.

Another important and influential cultural project of Germany in Uzbekistan is the Tashkent branch of the Goethe Institute.

Today it represents a whole community of people who not only learn German, but also have the opportunity to get to know German culture better. The institute has a large library, days of German cinema and theater, exhibitions, discussions on literature and art, and musical evenings.

Thanks to the visit of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan to Germany on May 2-3, the cultural cooperation of the countries acquires new facets.

So, Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Frank-Walter Steinmeier opened the first exhibition of its kind “Archaeological Treasures of Uzbekistan. From Alexander the Great to the Kushan Empire”, which has been taking place since May 4 at the James Simon Gallery in Berlin. Its opening after 4 years of careful preparation has become another important event on the path of expanding cultural exchange between the two countries.

It is worth noting that this gallery stores the most famous historical and archaeological sites and is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Placing the exhibition in one of the authoritative museums in Germany will make it a center of attraction for thousands of tourists, introduce the rich cultural heritage of Uzbekistan.

As the German journalist B. Wetzel noted during the conference “Uzbekistan-Germany: New Horizons of Cooperation”, held in April, Tashkent has deep, sometimes unknown to the general public, cultural ties that require development. Thus, the German chronicler Johann Schiltberger served at the court of Amir Temur, thanks to whose memoirs Europe was able to gain knowledge about the personality of Temur and his entourage.

Returning to Munich in 1423. He published the book Johann Schildberger’s Journey through Europe and Asia. Subsequently, the German composer Georg Handel, who is one of the most innovative composers of the Baroque period, staged the opera Tamerlane, including on the basis of this book. In my opinion, its production on the stage of Tashkent theaters could arouse great interest among the population of the country.

Germany and Uzbekistan are actively cooperating in the tourism sector.

Since 2019, citizens of Germany have been granted a visa-free regime for up to 30 days, allowing tourists to visit all the main attractions of the country, taste delicious dishes and get acquainted with the natural landscape.

In the German edition of Der Spiegel, you can find a colorful brochure describing the tourism potential of Uzbekistan. In 2022 Germany took the 7th place among the countries supplying tourists to Uzbekistan, ahead of India, the USA and China.

Partnerships have been established between the cities of Tashkent and Berlin, Bukhara and Bonn, within which, in addition to sustainable development projects, fruitful cultural and humanitarian exchanges are carried out.

In general, it can be said with confidence that the development of relations between Uzbekistan and Germany in terms of cultural cooperation has great prospects, and given the active dialogue between countries, culture can become as important a link between states as economy and politics.

Sabirova Kamila,

Leading Researcher at ISMI

under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan