Official Name: | Gumdag |
Other Name: | Кумдаг, Kumdag |
Pushpin Map: | Turkmenistan |
Pushpin Label Position: | bottom |
Pushpin Mapsize: | 300 |
Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Turkmenistan |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Type1: | Province |
Subdivision Name: | Turkmenistan |
Subdivision Name1: | Balkan Region |
Subdivision Type2: | City |
Subdivision Name2: | Balkanabat |
Population As Of: | 2021 |
Population Total: | 33000 (estimated) |
Coordinates: | 39.2061°N 54.5906°W |
Gumdag (romanized Russian Kum Dag) is a town in Balkan Province, Turkmenistan. It is located 43 km southeast of the city of Balkanabat. To the south-east of the town, lies the Boyadag Mud Volcano.[1]
The name is derived from two words in Turkmen, gum ("sand") and dag ("mountain, hill").[2] Atanyyazow postulates that the name came from the sand hill 3 km to the west where the first oil well in the area was drilled.
The town is home to the Gumdag oil and gas field, which is the main driver of the local economy.
Before Gumdag was established, the settlement was called Hudaý-Dag, Bahangoşa and Monjuklu.[3] Gumdag was founded as a village in the 1930s by nomadic families from nearby settlements. In the same years, a well-drilling machine was installed by the government on the sand hill 3 km west of the village. With the development of oil production from the region, people from Balkanabat and other cities started to flock here. From 1951 to 1956, it was attached to the Ashgabat region. It used to be a city-with-district-status until November 2022, and alongside Hazar, it became subordinate to City of Balkanabat.[4]
9,237[5] | 11,615[6] | 14,449[7] | 16,529[8] |