Editing Samarkand (section)

====Shia Muslims====
The [[Samarqand Region|Samarqand Vilayat]] is one of the two regions of Uzbekistan (along with [[Buxoro Region|Bukhara Vilayat]]) that are home to a large number of Shiites. The total population of the Samarkand Vilayat is more than 3,720,000 people (2019).

There are no exact data on the number of Shiites in the city of Samarkand, but the city has several Shiite mosques and madrasas. The largest of these are the Punjabi Mosque, the Punjabi Madrassah, and the Mausoleum of Mourad Avliya. Every year, the Shiites of Samarkand celebrate [[Ashura]], as well as other memorable Shiite dates and holidays.

Shiites in Samarkand are mostly [[:ru:Среднеазиатские иранцы|Samarkandian Iranians]], who call themselves ''Irani''. Their ancestors began to arrive in Samarkand in the 18th century. Some migrated there
in search of a better life, others were sold as [[slavery|slaves]] there by [[Turkmens|Turkmen]] captors, and others were soldiers who were posted to Samarkand. Mostly they came from [[Khorasan Province|Khorasan]], [[Mashhad]], [[Sabzevar]], [[Nishapur]], and [[Merv]]; and secondarily from [[Iranian Azerbaijan]], [[Zanjan, Iran|Zanjan]], [[Tabriz]], and [[Ardabil]]. Samarkandian Shiites also include [[Azerbaijanis]], as well as small numbers of Tajiks and Uzbeks.

While there are no official data on the total number of Shiites in Uzbekistan, they are estimated to be "several hundred thousand." According to [[United States diplomatic cables leak|leaked diplomatic cables]], in 2007–2008, the [[United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom|US Ambassador for International Religious Freedom]] held a series of meetings with Sunni [[mullah]]s and Shiite [[imam]]s in Uzbekistan. During one of the talks, the imam of the Shiite mosque in [[Bukhara]] said that about 300,000 Shiites live in the Bukhara Vilayat and 1&nbsp;million in the Samarkand Vilayat. The Ambassador slightly doubted the authenticity of these figures, emphasizing in his report that data on the numbers of religious and ethnic minorities provided by the government of Uzbekistan were considered a very "delicate topic" due to their potential to provoke interethnic and interreligious conflicts. All the ambassadors of the ambassador tried to emphasize that traditional Islam, especially [[Sufism]] and [[Sunnism]], in the regions of Bukhara and Samarkand is characterized by great religious tolerance toward other religions and sects, including Shiism.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.islamsng.com/uzb/pastfuture/5570 |title=Шииты в Узбекистане |work=www.islamsng.com |access-date=April 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171003214455/http://www.islamsng.com/uzb/pastfuture/5570 |archive-date=October 3, 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dn.kz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1545:2013-11-29-08-08-10&catid=2:2011-10-23-11-43-45&Itemid=17 |title=Ташкент озабочен делами шиитов |work=www.dn.kz |access-date=April 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403133434/http://www.dn.kz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1545:2013-11-29-08-08-10&catid=2:2011-10-23-11-43-45&Itemid=17 |archive-date=2019-04-03 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://catoday.org/centrasia/uzbekistan-irancy-shiity-stalkivayutsya-c-problemami-s-pravoohranitelnymi-organami-iran |title=Узбекистан: Иранцы-шииты сталкиваются c проблемами с правоохранительными органами |work=catoday.org |access-date=April 3, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905092804/http://catoday.org/centrasia/uzbekistan-irancy-shiity-stalkivayutsya-c-problemami-s-pravoohranitelnymi-organami-iran |archive-date=September 5, 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Panjab Shia Mosque in Samarkand.jpg|[[:ru:Панджоб (мечеть)|Panjab Shia Mosque]]
File:Panjab Madrasa in Samarkand.jpg|[[:ru:Медресе Панджоб|Panjab Shia Madrasa]]
File:Murad Avliya Mausoleum and Courtyard.jpg|[[:ru:Мавзолей Мурад Авлия|Murad Avliya Shrine]]
</gallery>