Geography of Tajikistan has headwaters in Afghanistan and Tajikistan. The other neighbors are the former Soviet republics of Uzbekistan (to the west and the north) and Kyrgyzstan (to the north). The lower elevations of Tajikistan are divided into northern and southern regions by a complex of three mountain chains that constitute the westernmost extension of the massive Tian Shan system. Running essentially parallel from east to west, the chains are the Turkestan, Zeravshan (Zarafshan), and Hisor (Gissar) mountains. The last of these lies just north of the capital, Dushanbe, which is situated in west-central Tajikistan. More than half of Tajikistan lies above an
Emblem of Tajikistan Emblem of Tajikistan The State Emblem of Tajikistan is a modified version of the original emblem of the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic that was in use until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Prior to the Russian Revolution, the territory of Turkestan, of which Tajikistan was part, used the device of a black unicorn on a golden shield, blazoned "or, a unicorn passant sable." However, Tajikistan itself had no symbol. Until 1992, Tajikistan had a emblem similar to all other Soviet Republics. The first emblem of independent Tajikistan from 1992-1993 was the Lion and Sun symbol, which was