Ashgabat vs Shymkent

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Ashgabat (Turkmen: Aşgabat; Ашгабат, pronounced [ɑʃʁɑˈbɑt], Persian: عشق آباد‎; Russian: Ашхабад), formerly named Poltoratsk (Russian: Полтора́цк, IPA: [pəltɐˈratsk]) between 1919 and 1927, is the capital and the largest city of Turkmenistan. It is situated between the Karakum Desert and the Kopet Dag mountain range in Central Asia. It is also near the Iran-Turkmenistan border. The city was founded in 1881 on the basis of an Ahal Teke tribal village, and made the capital of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic in 1924.

Much of the city was destroyed by the 1948 Ashgabat earthquake but has since been extensively rebuilt under the rule of Saparmurat Niyazov’s "White City" urban renewal project, resulting in monumental projects sheathed in costly white marble. The Soviet-era Karakum Canal runs through the city, carrying waters from the Amu Darya from east to west. Since 2019, the city has been recognized as having one of the highest costs of living in the world largely due to Turkmenistan's inflation and import issues.

Source: Wikipedia

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Şymkent (Kazakh pronunciation: [ʃɯmˈkɛnt]; Шымкент, شىمكەنت; Yañalif: Şьmkent), known until 1993 as Chimkent (Uzbek: Chimkent, Чимкент, چىمكېنت; Yañalif: Çimkent (Uzbek pronunciation: [tʃɨmˈkɛnt])); Russian: Чимкент, romanized: Čimkent (Russian pronunciation: [ˈtɕɨmˈkʲɛnt])), is a city in Kazakhstan. It is near the border with Uzbekistan. It is one of three Kazakh cities which have the status equal to that of a region (the city of republican significance).

It is the third most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty and Nur-Sultan, with an estimated population of 1,002,291 as of June 1, 2018.. According to regional and city officials, the millionth resident of Shymkent was born on 17 May 2018. It is a regional cultural centre. Shymkent is situated 690 kilometres (430 mi) west of Almaty and 1,483 kilometres (920 mi) south of Nur-Sultan. It is also 120 kilometres (75 mi) to the north of Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Source: Wikipedia