Historically Bokhara has been a destination of pilgrims and a thriving market town. However, though Bokhara is the name of a city in present day Uzbekistan and was famous in the 19th century as a carpet weaving center, today the name Bokhara refers not to a place but rather to many carpets which use the motif of the Turcoman Gul. The Yomut, Ersari, Chodor, Tekke, Saryk, Salor, Arabatchi and Beshire are the tribal names of those who weave the carpets often referred to as Bokhara. The Gul which they bear in common varies according to tribe, region and age. Possibly the Gul is a flower, though typically it has an octagonal shape and some believe the Gul is a totem. The wool for these carpets is often dyed with madder giving a spectrum from brick red to fox brown punctuated with black, white, orange and blue.
