Turkestan is a city in the South Kazakhstan region, located 180 km north-west of the administrative center – Shymkent. Turkestan (Iasi) was assessed as the spiritual and political center of the Turkic-speaking people and was the capital of the Kazakh Khanate. Turkestan is 1,500 years old.
The first ancient settlement on the territory of modern Turkestan emerged at the beginning of the 6th century AD.
Its greatest bloom reaches Yasy in the 12th century. During this period, the city begins to be filled with oriental brilliance, it becomes crowded, its bazaars are overflowing with abundance, the rows of rich caravans passing along the roads of the Great Silk Road are endless. Rumors about the glory of the city spread throughout the Muslim world. It was during this period that the Yasy began to be called the second Mecca. From the 12th century, the city became known as the capital of the Shavgar region. In the period up to the 16th century, medieval Turkestan was the administrative center of the Central Asian rulers of the kind of great dynasties such as Khorezmshahi, Chagataida, Timurids, Sheibanids.
Here you can visit Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yassaui is an unsurpassed masterpiece of medieval architecture and an amazing complex of palaces and temples. The elegant furnishings of the vault and the colorful tiled mosaics capture the imagination.
Sheikh Khoja Ahmet Yassawi – a mystical Sufi, poet and philosopher was the spiritual leader of the Turks.