Kazakh historian Zhaksylyk Sabitov said that at least 40 forgotten cities that once stood on the territory of modern Kazakhstan are described on ancient Arab maps. Additionally, traces of ancient Greek settlements have been found in Mangystau, reports infohub.kz.
The expert said that archaeologists have discovered the remains of an ancient Greek city from the Hellenistic period in Mangystau. "So they were on the maps of Greek authors, and it seems they even found one such Greek city on the Caspian coast. There are actually many discoveries there," he said.
Sabitov noted that Arab geographical literature from the 7th to the 12th century describes many cities on the territory of Kazakhstan that have barely survived to this day. "For example, on Al-Idrisi's map, up to 40 different cities that were on the territory of Kazakhstan are known, 16 Kimak, and about the same number of Oghuz cities. Various other cities can be attributed to the Karluks, Kipchaks, Bashkurts, Bashkirs, Askeshi, and other peoples," the historian concluded.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that the world opera heroine Princess Turandot lived on the territory of Kazakhstan.