Samarkand has been officially designated the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World, according to a statement from Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Culture.
The symbolic flag and statuette were presented to Uzbekistan’s Minister of Culture, Ozodbek Nazarbekov, and Samarkand regional governor Adiz Boboev by Dr. Salim bin Mohammed AlMalik, Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO).
The handover ceremony took place in Samarkand as part of the forum “Cultural Heritage and Expressions of the Islamic World: Calligraphy, Music, Poetry, and Solidarity.”
During his visit to Uzbekistan, AlMalik also toured the Center of Islamic Civilization (CIC) in Tashkent, where he was introduced to ongoing research and preservation work on the country’s cultural heritage. The center’s director, Firdaus Abdukhalikov, presented him with a facsimile edition of the Kattalangar Quran.
Kazan, Russia, is set to take over as the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World in 2026.
