Traditions of Bukhara
A caravan city of domed bazaars, carpet weavers and old madrasas, once a main seat of Islamic learning.
Bukhara is a very old trading city, with over a hundred protected monuments in a compact historic centre. Domed bazaars, called toqi, are still used for trading, and its craft traditions include gold embroidery, carpets, metalwork and knife making. It was a centre of Islamic scholarship for centuries.
Bazaar and craft
Zardozi gold embroidery, once made for the emir's court, is stitched on velvet by hand. Craftsmen in Bukhara hammer copper, cut wood, and weave silk ikat. Families keep festival customs for weddings, with a ceremony in which the bride's hair is braided, and a heavy meal of plov follows for hundreds of guests.
At the table
Bukhara plov is made with lamb and yellow carrot. Chai, green or black, is poured into a small bowl, kosa, and the host fills it only partly so it can be refilled warm. Tea houses, chaikhana, around the old pond at Lyab-i-Hauz are places for talk. Sweets include halva and nabat, crystallised sugar.
Signature traditions of Bukhara
Also part of it, and being written: Teahouse (Central Asian tea houses.).
A trail idea for Bukhara
- Lyab-i-Hauz Sit by the pool at dusk in the old teahouse.
- Trading domes Browse for carpets and embroidery.
- Ark of Bukhara A fortress at the heart of the city.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, markets and festival dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
Nothing matches those filters yet. Take one off, or check back: new traditions are written every day.
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Zardozi: Zarood, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ikat: Midori, CC BY 3.0, source