Urbanization and Spatial Transformation of Cities in the Bukhara Region in Uzbekistan
Sergeyeva A. Dan’Shin A. Akbar I. Usmonov A. Ergashev A.
1 September 2025World Scientific
Chinese Journal of Urban and Environmental Studies
2025#13Issue 3
This paper analyzes the spatial transformation of small and medium-sized cities in the Bukhara region of Uzbekistan within the context of post-Soviet urbanization and institutional restructuring. The study employs an interdisciplinary methodology combining remote sensing, GIS analysis, the calculation of morphometric indices (UEI, CI, FC, etc.), and clustering of urbanization trajectories. Based on satellite data and official statistics, four distinct models of spatial development are identified: agglomerative growth, compact expansion, fragmented development, and stagnation. The findings reveal a high degree of morphological and functional differentiation among cities, reflecting uneven infrastructure access, institutional inertia, and demographic polarization. Particular attention is paid to vulnerable settlements exhibiting depopulation and spatial fragmentation. The study concludes with scenario modeling of urban dynamics through 2035 and provides recommendations for adaptive planning aimed at sustainability and territorial equity. The results may serve as a foundation for the formulation of sub-regional strategies and indicative models for managing urban growth in peripheral regions of Central Asia.
Bukhara region , small cities , spatial planning , Urbanization , Uzbekistan
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Department of Geography and Tourism, K. Zhubanov Aktobe Regional University, 34 Moldagulova Avenue, Aktobe, 030000, Kazakhstan
Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Lomonosov Moscow State University, GSP-1 Leninskie Gory, Moscow, 119991, Russian Federation
Department of Recreational Geography and Tourism, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, 71 Al-Farabi Avenue, Almaty, 050040, Kazakhstan
Department of Socio-economic Geography, Samarkand State University, 15 University Avenue, Samarkand, 140110, Uzbekistan
Department of Geography, Bukhara State Pedagogical Institute, 21 M. Iqbol Avenue, Bukhara, 200100, Uzbekistan
Department of Geography and Tourism
Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia
Department of Recreational Geography and Tourism
Department of Socio-economic Geography
Department of Geography
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