Khiva

Khiva, or Kharasm, a khanate of West Turkestan, situated between 37° 45' and 44" 30' N. lat., and 50° 15' and 63° E. long., and comprising nearly 25,000 square miles, about four-fill lis of which are a sandy desert. It is bounded on the E. and N.E. by the Oxus, which for a considerable distance divides it from Amu-Darin (formerly a partof the khanate, but now Russian territory), and at-its N. extremity by the Sea of Aral. In the oases which are mostly situated near the Oxus, and irrigated by means of canals connecting them with the river, rice and other cereals, fruit and vegetables, grow abundantly. Of the numerous nomad races inhabiting Khiva, the most important is that of the Uzbegs. to which the family of the Khan belongs. The capital Khiva, situated in the largest of the oases, is oblong in shape, and surrounded by u, double wall. With the exception of three mosques, a school, and a caravanserai, the houses are constructed of mud. The designs of Russia against.

Khiva culminated in 1873, when the district of Amu-Daria was annexed, and the remainder of the khanate was placed under Russian suzerainty.