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Karakalpakstan
Ben’s Place of The Week

Karakalpakstan

Coordinates: 43 0 N 58 0 E

Population: 1,400,000 (2006 est.)

While it’s more than a little unlikely that he will inspire as many people to actually visit the glorious nation of Kazakhstan, one can hope that a percentage of the millions who’ve already rushed to see Sasha Baron Cohen’s movie will be inspired to learn something about Central Asia. Compelled under Stalin to adopt a single Soviet identity, the population of this massive expanse of harsh geography is far from homogenous, and includes Tartars, Uygurs, and Karakalpaks in addition to Uzbeks, Tajiks, and Kazakhs.

The Karakalpaks, an ethnic minority within Uzbekistan, occupy an eponymous republic in the westernmost part of that country, due south of the shrinking Aral Sea. Located atop numerous large mineral deposits, Karakalpakstan is also bordered by two deserts and the arid Ustyurt Plateau and thus lacks an equivalent wealth in resources above ground.

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Ben Keene is the editor of Oxford Atlas of the World. Check out some of his previous places of the week.

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