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Hatmaker of Samarkand
ADB Review [ October 2005 ]

Ulmas Bozorov and his family maintain traditions of craftsmanship that go back many generations. But they may have to adapt as they face competition from bigger firms with modern technology

By Ian Gill, (igill@adb.org)
Principal External Relations Specialist

SAMARKAND, UZBEKISTAN

Ulmas Bozorov and his family are hatmakers in a city that has prized craftsmanship for two millennia.

Tamerlane brought artisans from far and wide to rebuild Samarkand in the 14th century after the Mongol invasion—and many fabulous monuments still stand from that era.

TRADITIONS Dilshod Bozorov in the hat shop: these days the world comes to them (above); Ulmas (below) making a musical instrument called a tar: he has also composed a song for hatmakers

Chinese weavers who first discovered how to make silk contributed to the city’s early prosperity. Europeans coveted the new fabric and Samarkand, being at the center of the trade route between the Orient and Europe, profited.

Ulmas Bozorov, the 63-year-old sprightly patriarch of his clan, is deeply conscious of his city’s—and family’s—heritage. His handicraft shop is down the road from the mausoleum of Tamerlane and right opposite another tomb that may be the city’s oldest surviving building.

“Our grandfathers and great grandfathers sold their goods in Afghanistan and Iran. They went by camel along the Silk Road,” he says.

Ulmas and his wife Sojida have three sons and three daughters who are skilled in various crafts. But hatmaking is the staple expertise—the children acquire it before they read and write.

But today the family faces the dilemma of many long-established enterprises as their countries become more market oriented: they have to adapt or risk going under.

This is not the first time the Bozorovs confronted a challenge. In the 1930s, during a campaign against “rich” people, the authorities threatened to send the family to Siberia. To avoid this, the family turned over everything to the Government. But with their skills intact, they slowly rebuilt the business.

These days, the challenge is less dramatic but ranges from an increasingly restrictive climate to competition from bigger enterprises armed with better technology.

Given the important role that such small- and medium-sized enterprises play in Central Asia’s emerging private sector, governments and the international community need to encourage their development through regional schemes that provide help, such as microfinance and skills training.

In his workshop, Karim, one of Ulmas’ sons, uses a mold and simple tools to fashion a fur hat. It does not take long to make and, since it is summer, they are making only 20 hats a day, he says. Demand is much stronger in winter.

Repairing old hats helps keep the business ticking over. “My heart feels big when people ask us to repair hats that they bought from us many years ago,” he says. “It shows they are loyal.”

Specialty hats are another handy source of income. The family makes ceremonial hats for Kyrgyz brides and production of these can rise to 20 a month during the wedding season from September to March. It also makes distinctive hats known as a formovka from imported fur and local sheepskin that are popular with Russian politicians.

IN THE CLOSE-KNIT Bozorov family, children can make hats before they can read and write

The family does not travel far these days sell its products—the longest journey would be a 3-hour car trip to a bazaar in Bukhara, the next major city. The Bozorovs either sell abroad through dealers or to international tourists who visit their shop.

At the hat shop, Dilshod, another son, shows the skins they import for their products. “This is a white fox from Russia and this dark mink is from China,” he says. Tourists come from Europe, Japan, and Russia, he adds.

Ulmas is a music lover and, as a sideline, he makes a stringed instrument called the tar.

Picking up a tar, he strums it while singing a song that he composed for shapochniki, or hatmakers.

“When I go by the Silk Road from China to Georgia, Europe also is my friend and my job is making hats.”

He says the family is expanding its operations and points out a new room that is being built.

But he also admits, “Our problem is that we do not have modern technology and equipment. It is hard for us to compete with large companies.” He has discussed with the family the idea of importing Italian technology, but plans have not gone beyond this.

As Uzbekistan and other Central Asian economies open up to new ideas and technology, he may learn that traditional skills handed down through the generations may not be enough in the future.

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