Dushanbe, << doo SHAHN buh >> (pop. 595,000), is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. It lies in a cotton-growing valley at the foot of the Gissar Range of the Tian Shan mountains. Dushanbe is Tajikistan’s scientific, cultural, and educational center. Much of the region’s industry is centered there. Dushanbe’s products include machinery, processed foods, silk, and textiles. Nearby hydroelectric stations supply power to the city and to metals and chemical plants in the area.
Dushanbe was established in 1926 by the merger of three small villages. After Tajikistan became a republic of the Soviet Union in 1929, the Soviet government changed the city’s name to Stalinabad in honor of the Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. During the “destalinization” campaign of 1961, the name was changed back to Dushanbe. The Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991, and Tajikistan became independent.
