Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic Republic – Tajik Socialist Soviet Republic. At that time, its capital was renamed "Stalinabad", after Joseph Stalin, and the territory that is now northern Tajikistan (Sughd Province) was added to the new republic. Even with the additional territory, the Tajik SSR remained the smallest Central Asian republic. On 5 December 1936, it was renamed to the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic. With the creation of a Tajik republic defined in national terms came the creation of institutions that, at least in form, were likewise national. The first Tajik-language newspaper in Soviet Tajikistan began publication in 1926. New educational institutions also began
Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic as Soviet Uzbekistan. Beginning 20 June 1990, the Uzbek SSR adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty within its borders. Islam Karimov became the republic's inaugural president. On 31 August 1991, the Uzbek SSR was renamed the Republic of Uzbekistan and declared independence three months before the Soviet Union's dissolution on 26 December 1991. Uzbekistan was bordered by Kazakhstan to the north; Tajikistan to the southeast; Kirghizia to the northeast; Afghanistan to the south; and Turkmenistan to the southwest. The name, Uzbekistan, literally means "Home of the Free", taken from an amalgamation of "uz" (Turkic: "self"), "bek" (Turkic: "master", "bey in