In 2025, the names of only two settlements were changed in Tajikistan. This was announced on January 27 at a news conference by Abbos Anoushervon, Head of the Coordination Department of the Committee for the Development of Local Territories.
According to him, by decision of the government and with the approval of the Majlisi Milli (Tajikistan’s upper chamber of parliament), one mahalla (a mahalla in Tajikistan is a traditional neighborhood community or residential quarter, serving as a foundational, self-governing unit in cities and villages) and one village were granted new administrative status, which also led to changes in their names. In particular, the settlement of Dashti Hashtsar in Ayni district was transformed into a village and renamed Vahdatobod. In addition, the village of Tavildara was upgraded to an urban-type settlement and renamed Somondeh.
Abbos Anoushervon also stated that in 2026, following government instructions, three more sites are planned to be renamed: two mahallas in the districts of Qubodiyon and Roudaki, as well as one historical heritage in Vanj district. He did not specify which names would be changed or what new names would be assigned.
In previous years, however, the renaming process in the country was carried out on a much larger scale. In 2024 alone, more than 500 villages were renamed in Tajikistan. Their former names were of Russian or Turkic origin or were associated with figures from the Soviet era. According to the authorities, they were replaced with “Tajik names.”
Later, more than 170 additional settlement names deemed “non-standard” were also changed. In particular, names such as Urtaqishloq, Kattasarqamysh and Kangeli were replaced with Miyondeh, Nayiston and Zarnisor.
Over the past three years, many settlements retaining names from the Soviet period have also been renamed, including “Kommunist,” “Kommunizm,” “Leninobod,” “Oktyabr,” “Pravda,” “Kirov,” “Gorky,” and “Pushkin,” as well as names linked to ethnic groups such as “Tajikobod,” “Uzbekobod,” “Kyrgyzobod,” and “Kazakhobod.”
For example, in Jaloliddini-Balkhi district, the village of Kommunist was renamed Ganjobod, while in Panj district the village of Kommunizm became Barzgaron. In Shahritous district, the village of Leninobod was renamed Somoniyon; in Abdurahmoni-Jomi district, Rohi Lenini became Piruzon; and in Danghara district, the village of Dangarai Bolo was renamed Rahmoniyon.
