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Samarkand (Tajik: Самарқанд, , , ), population 412,300 in 2005, is the second-largest city in Uzbekistan and the capital of Samarqand Province. Despite its status as the second city of Uzbekistan, the majority of the city's inhabitants are Persian-speaking Tajiks. The city is most noted for its central position on the Asian Silk Road between China and the west.