Northern Fergana
Namangan
Knife-makers, garden courtyards, and the country's most fragrant bazaars.
Best months
Typical stay
From Tashkent
Elevation
The third-largest city in Uzbekistan and, for many locals, the greenest. Namangan's craft heritage — Chust knives, embroidered tubeteikas, hand-forged copper — is still practised in family workshops on the edge of town.
Chust knives, tubeteika embroidery, and the country's most fragrant bazaars. Songbird keeping is a genuine local passion.
History
A layered past
Founded in the 17th century as a suburb of the older Akhsikent (destroyed by earthquake), Namangan grew rich on Fergana cotton and craft. The Mullah Kyrgyz madrasa is a 20th-century highlight in a city that mostly rebuilt itself in the Soviet era.
Best time to visit
When to come
April–June, September–October.
What we do here
Ways to experience Namangan
01
Chust knife workshops
The pichoq — half tool, half heirloom. Forged in a village 20 minutes out.
02
Khoja Amin complex
17th-century tomb and mosque in a garden courtyard.
03
Sunday bird bazaar
Nightingales, quails, canaries — an Uzbek passion that predates the khans.
Pairs well with
Where travellers go next
Good to know
Questions travellers ask
Is it worth a stop?+
As a half-day out of Fergana — yes, for the Chust knife workshops and the Sunday bird market.
