KHIVA: A CONSERVED HERITAGE WITHIN THE SANDS - Tourism in Central Asia: Cultural Potential and Challenges - page 95

Afghanistan in the second half of second thousand years B.C. (Frumkin,
1970).
As for religions in Khorezm, old Khorezmians have adopted Zoroas-
trianism, Christianity (Melchites denomination) and Judaism before Islam
(Togan, 1951). Tolstov reports that even Khazar Turks adopted Judaism
due to their good relations with Khorezmians (Esin, 1997).
Khorezmians regained their independence after Achaemenids, before
Alexander the Great (336-323 B.C.)'s army arrival. While Alexander was
in Bactria, Khorezmian king Pharasman visited him with his 1500 person
court, and proposed to guide him in his conquests, as his lands spread to
the Blacksea shores. But they only signed a friendship agreement when
Alexander replied that he was not planning to go north. (Togan, 1951).
Tolstov attributes the post-Achaemenid and pre-Kushan period (4th cen-
tury B.C.-1st century A.D.) to the “Kangha (or Kanghui)” tribe whose
country was lying between the Tien-shan Mountains and the Caspian Sea.
This period shows a high progress in Khorezm city settlements (new cit-
ies like Kalaly Gyr, Janbazkala and Koy-Kyrylgan-Kala), handcrafts, and
irrigation. The Kangha people mentioned by Tolstov was a Turkic tribe
corresponding to the Kangar in Turkish. In the period between 1st-3rd
century A.D., Kushan sovereignty was put on display in cities like Koy-
Kyrylgan-Kala and Toprak-Kala (Frumkin, 1970).
According to Khorezm narratives reported by Al-Biruni (?-1048), the
local dynasty Afrighids ruled Khorezm starting from the 3rd century A.D.
The 6th century was the start of the Turkic sovereignty period, beginning
with the Ephtalites (“White Huns”) and followed by the Western Turks. It
lasted until the Arabic invasion, but Turks kept the local Khorezm dynasty
in administration. When Khorezm was conquered by Arabs in 717, they
left only one of the two titles of the Khorezm rulers, which is “Khorezm-
shah” (Togan, 1951). Muhammed ibn Musa Al-Kharezmi (?-850), the
founder of algebra, was born and got his first education in Khorezm. He
wrote his important topics on mathematics, astronomy and geography
when he was working in the famous Beytu'l-Hikme (House of wisdom)
in Bagdad under Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma'mun (813-833) patronage. Ibn
Fadlan, who was sent to Volga Bulgar Turks as an ambassador of Abbasid
Caliph Al-Muqtadir (908-932), reports in his travel book from the 10th
century that Khorezmshah Muhammed ibn Irak was a vassal of Samanids
and was helping them to propagate Islam especially among Khazar Turks
(Şeşen, 2010).