| Capital city and Regions of Turkmenistan | |
| Alt Name: | Province |
| Category: | Unitary state |
| Territory: | Turkmenistan |
| Current Number: | 5 Regions 1 Capital city |
| Population Range: | (Regions only): 569,100 (Balkan) - 1,519,000 (Mary) |
| Area Range: | (Regions only): 53772order=flipNaNorder=flip (Balkan) – 37513order=flipNaNorder=flip (Ahal) |
| Government: | Region government, Government of Turkmenistan |
| Subdivision: | District |
Turkmenistan is divided into five regions, or welaýatlar (singular welaýat) and one capital city (şäher) with provincial legal status. They are Ahal, Balkan, Dashoguz, Lebap and Mary, plus the capital city of Ashgabat. Each province is divided into districts. As of 20 December 2022 there were 37 districts (Turkmen: etraplar, singular etrap), 49 cities (Turkmen: şäherler, singular şäher), including 7 cities with district status (Turkmen: etrap hukukly), 68 towns (Turkmen: şäherçeler, singular şäherçe), 469 rural councils (rural municipal units, Turkmen: geňeşlikler, singular geňeşlik) and 1690 villages (rural settlements Turkmen: oba ilatly ýerler) in Turkmenistan.[1] [2] [3]
See main article: Ashgabat. The capital city of Turkmenistan is Ashgabat, which is an administrative and territorial unit with provincial authorities.
See also Map of the Boroughs of Ashgabat
As of January 5, 2018, Ashgabat includes four boroughs (uly etraplar), each with a presidentially appointed mayor (Turkmen: häkim):[4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
This is a reduction from the previous number of boroughs. Arçabil and Çandybil boroughs were merged on February 4, 2015, and the new etrap, named Arçabil, was in turn renamed Büzmeýin in January 2018. At that time the Abadan borough of Ashgabat, created in 2013 by annexing the town of Abadan and surrounding villages to Abadan's south, was abolished and its territory was merged into the newly renamed Büzmeýin borough. The former Ruhabat borough was abolished at the same time and its territory absorbed by Bagtyýarlyk borough.[11]
On 15 June 2020, Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow announced intention to create a fifth borough of Ashgabat, to be called Altyn etraby, centered on the new resort zone created on the shores of the former Gurtly Water Reservoir, recently renamed "Golden Lake" (Altyn köl).[12]
| Division | ISO 3166-2 | Capital city | Governor[13] | Area[14] | Pop (2022)[15] | Key | Map | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashgabat | TM-S | Yaztagan Gylyjov | 260abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 1,030,063 | not on map | |||
| Ahal Region | TM-A | Yazmuhammet Gurbanov | 97260abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 886,845 | 1 | |||
| Balkan Region | TM-B | Tangryguly Atahallyev | 139300abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 529,895 | 2 | |||
| Daşoguz Region | TM-D | Nazarmyrat Nazarmyradov | 73400abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 1,550,354 | 3 | |||
| Lebap Region | TM-L | Shohrat Amangeldiyev | 93700abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 1,447,298 | 4 | |||
| Mary Region | TM-M | Dovranberdi Annaberdiyev | 87200abbr=onNaNabbr=on | 1,613,386 | 5 |
