Pages: 381-395 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.55086/sp265381395

This paper examines the seismic crises of the fifth and sixth centuries AD in Central Asia and their role in the transformation of urban centers in Chach and Sogd. Using an integrated geoarchaeological approach, the study combines archaeoseismological evidence, written historical sources, and recent field data from the sites of Hantepa and Kanka, supplemented by comparative evidence from the Fergana Valley and Afrasiab (Samarkand). The results demonstrate that the seismic events of this period were not isolated catastrophes but recurrent crises that repeatedly disrupted urban systems. Their effects varied significantly according to local geological structures, soil properties, and the resilience of hydrological networks.
The analysis reveals contrasting urban responses to seismic stress. In southern Sogd (Erkurgan), earthquakes coincided with the destruction of water-management systems, leading to the abandonment of major urban areas. By contrast, in Chach (Kanka), lower seismic intensity and the stability of the Ahangaran River system enabled rapid reconstruction and the continued use of urban and sacred spaces. Evidence from Afrasiab indicates a marked contraction of the inhabited area, providing important clues for reconstructing the spatial extent of seismic effects and identifying possible epicentral zones.
The study argues that the seismic crises of the fifth and sixth centuries AD were a critical factor in shaping Central Asia’s long-term urban trajectories and should be regarded as essential to understanding the region’s historical and socioeconomic transformations. Keywords: geoarchaeology, archaeoseismology, earthquakes, Kanka, Hantepa, urban transformation

Keywords: geoarchaeology, archaeoseismology, earthquakes, Kanka, Hantepa, urban transformation

Information about author:

Surat Kubaev (Tashkent, Uzbekistan). Doctor of Historical Sciences. Institute of History the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Shakhrisabz St., 5, Tashkent, 100060, Uzbekistan
E-mail: [email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0001-9761-8613
Andrey Korzhenkov (Moscow, Russian Federation). Doctor of Physics and Mathematics. Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Bolshaya Gruzinskaya St., 10-1, Moscow, 123242, Russian Federation
E-mail: [email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0002-6424-4253
Durdana Abdualimova (Tashkent, Uzbekistan). Institute of History the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Shakhrisabz St., 5, Tashkent, 100060, Uzbekistan
E-mail: [email protected]
ORCID: 0009-0006-5152-2492