DEVELOPMENT OF BLACKSMITHING AND IRON CASTING CRAFTS IN 19TH-CENTURY KHOREZM: A STUDY BASED ON ARCHIVAL SOURCES

Аннотация

This article explores the economic and social significance of blacksmithing and artisanal production in Khorezm at the turn of the 20th century. Drawing upon archival documents, local historical records, and Russian sources, the study highlights the role of metalworking in both everyday life and regional commerce. The findings demonstrate how village and urban centers developed specialized workshops that contributed to the broader market economy. Keywords. Khorezm, Karakalpak, blacksmithing, craftsmanship, metallurgy, 19th century, economic history, trade Annotatsiya: Mazkur maqolada XIX asr oxiri – XX asr boshlarida Xorazm hududlarida temirchilik, anjomsozlik va boshqa hunarmandchilik tarmoqlarining rivojlanishi, ular orqali shakllangan ijtimoiy-iqtisodiy munosabatlar tahlil qilinadi. Arxiv hujjatlari, zamonaviy tadqiqotlar hamda rus manbalariga tayanilgan holda, temirsozlik sohasi nafaqat hayotiy ehtiyoj, balki savdo va madaniyatning ajralmas qismi sifatida ko‘rsatiladi. Kalit so‘zlar: Xorazm, Qoraqalpoq, temirchilik, hunarmandchilik, XIX asr, iqtisodiyot, ijtimoiy hayot, bozorshunoslik. Аннотация В статье рассматривается экономическая и социальная значимость кузнечного и ремесленного дела в Хорезме в конце XIX – начале XX веков. На основе архивных документов, полевых исследований и российских источников раскрываются функции и масштабы металлургического производства в деревнях и городах региона, а также его роль в торговле и быте населения. Ключевые слова. Хорезм, Каракалпак, кузнечное дело, ремесло, экономика, XIX век, социальная структура, рынки Introduction. The second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century marked a critical transitional period for artisanal industries across Central Asia. In regions such as Khorezm and Karakalpakstan, traditional crafts—especially metalworking—continued to play a central role in economic 99 ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE International scientific-online conference production, military provisioning, and rural livelihoods. As the Khanate of Khiva gradually integrated into broader trade networks and came under increasing Russian influence, the dynamics of artisanal work transformed, shifting from purely subsistence-based production to partially market-oriented systems. The expansion of blacksmithing workshops in both rural and urban areas, the specialization of certain crafts in weaponry, horse tack, and iron tools, and the documentation of these developments in archival and ethnographic sources make this period particularly rich for historical study. This paper seeks to investigate how blacksmithing and allied crafts served not only utilitarian needs but also fostered socio-economic structures and community organization in pre- Soviet Khorezm and Karakalpak regions. Literature Review. Historical interest in the material culture of Central Asia has grown considerably over the last decades, with researchers such as V. V. Stasov, M. I. Ivanin, and G. I. Danilevsky offering early descriptions of Khivan craftsmanship and trade life. More recent scholarship, including the work of Turganov (2024), Sadikov (1965), and Gulboev (n.d.), has refined our understanding of regional artisanal production, its military applications, and economic integration. The ethnographic and archival work by A. Utemisov on Karakalpak handicrafts provides a valuable local dimension to this field, especially in understanding village-level craft specialization. Meanwhile, Soviet-era catalogues of legal documents and inheritance records serve as key empirical sources for understanding the presence and spread of metalworking facilities across the Amu Darya basin. Methodological Foundations. This study employs a historical-analytical method grounded in interdisciplinary research. Archival documents from the Oriental Studies Institute of Uzbekistan, combined with court records, travelogues, and economic accounts from 19th-century Russian explorers, serve as the primary data sources. Descriptive statistical data (e.g., number of workshops per region) is used to support qualitative interpretations. The study also adopts a comparative regional approach, contrasting the development of blacksmithing in urban centers like Khiva and Hazorasp with smaller rural settlements in the Amu Darya district. Emphasis is placed on integrating local oral histories and recorded prices to reconstruct artisanal economies and their role in everyday livelihoods. By the end of the 19th century, blacksmiths in Karakalpak villages and towns had not specialized in the production of specific items. However, nearly 100 ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE International scientific-online conference every village had one or two blacksmith workshopsIn his work “Occupational Crafts of the Karakalpaks,” A. Utemisov, using archival sources, notes that in the final quarter of the 19th century, there were 44 blacksmith workshops across the villages of the Shorakhan and Chimboy districts of the Amudarya Division [1]. Specifically