Khanate of Khiva in the context of "Khorezm People's Soviet Republic"

Russian Turkestan was the vast region of Central Asia governed by the Russian Empire, often described by historians as a colonial possession. It was formally organized as the Turkestan Governorate-General in 1867, and was also known as the Turkestan Krai from 1886 onward. For administrative and military purposes, its territory was managed as the Turkestan Military District.

It comprised the oasis regions south of the Kazakh Steppe but excluded the Russian protectorates of the Emirate of Bukhara and the Khanate of Khiva. While these states retained internal autonomy, their independence was largely nominal, as Russia controlled their foreign relations and military affairs. The population consisted primarily of speakers of Uzbek, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and Tajik, with a significant Russian settler minority.

The Shibanids or Shaybanids, more accurately known as the Abul-Khayrid-Shibanids, were a Culturally Persianate Dynasty of Uzbek (Turko-Mongol) origin who ruled over the Khanate of Bukhara (from 1505 to 1598), the Khanate of Khwarezm (Khiva) (from 1511 to 1695), and the Khanate of Sibir (from 1563 until 1598). Their territory included most of modern-day Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and parts of Russia (including West Siberia) in the 15-16th century (1428-1599). They were succeeded by the Janid dynasty (1599 to 1785).

They were the patrilineal descendants of Shiban, the fifth son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan. Until the mid-14th century, they acknowledged the authority of the descendants of Shiban's brothers Batu Khan and Orda Khan, such as Öz Beg Khan. The Shaybanids originally led the Gray Horde southeast of the Urals (also known as the Uzbegs, after the Uzbeks), and converted to Islam in 1282. At its height, the Khanate included parts of modern-day Afghanistan and other parts of Central Asia.

Khiva (Uzbek: Xiva, Хива, خیوه; other names) is a district-level city of approximately 93,000 people in Khorazm Region, Uzbekistan. According to archaeological data, the city was established around 2,500 years ago.

In 1997, Khiva celebrated its 2500th anniversary. It is the former capital of Khwarezmia, the Khanate of Khiva, and the Khorezm People's Soviet Republic. Itchan Kala in Khiva was the first site in Uzbekistan (and in Central Asia) to be inscribed on the World Heritage List (1991). The astronomer, historian and polymath, Al-Biruni (973–1048 CE) was born in either Khiva or the nearby city of Kath.

The Emirate of Bukhara was an Uzbek absolute monarchy in Central Asia that existed from 1785 to 1920 in what is now parts of Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. It occupied the land between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, known formerly as Transoxiana. Its core territory was the fertile land along the lower Zarafshon river, and its urban centres were the ancient cities of Samarqand and the emirate's capital, Bukhara. It was contemporaneous with the Khanate of Khiva to the west, in Khwarazm, and the Khanate of Kokand to the east, in Fergana. In 1920, it ceased to exist with the establishment of the Bukharan People's Soviet Republic. The Turco-Mongol tribe of Uzbeks known as "Mangits" were the rulers.