| Country name | conventional long form: none conventional short form: Turkmenistan local long form: none local short form: Turkmenistan former: Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic etymology: the suffix "-stan" means "place of" or "country," so Turkmenistan literally means the "Land of the Turkmen [people]" |
| Government type | presidential republic; authoritarian |
| Capital | name: Ashgabat (Ashkhabad) geographic coordinates: 37 57 N, 58 23 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: derived from the Persian words "eshq" meaning "love" and "abad" meaning "inhabited place" or "city," and so loosely translates as "the city of love" |
| Administrative divisions | 5 provinces (welayatlar, singular - welayat) and 1 independent city*: Ahal Welayaty (Anew), Ashgabat*, Balkan Welayaty (Balkanabat), Dasoguz Welayaty, Lebap Welayaty (Turkmenabat), Mary Welayaty note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
| Independence | 27 October 1991 (from the Soviet Union) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 27 October (1991) |
| Constitution | history: several previous; latest adopted 14 September 2016 amendments: proposed by the National Assembly; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of the total Assembly membership or absolute majority approval in a referendum; amended several times, last in 2020 (changed parliament to bicameral) |
| Legal system | civil law system with Islamic (sharia) law influences |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Turkmenistan dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW (since 14 February 2007); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW (since 14 February 2007) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 7-year term (no term limits); election last held on 12 February 2017 (next to be held in February 2024) election results: Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW reelected president in the first round; percent of vote - Gurbanguly BERDIMUHAMEDOW (DPT) 97.7%, other 2.3% |
| Legislative branch | description: note: in September 2020, the Turkmenistan Parliament adopted a constitutional amendment creating an upper chamber, making the Parliament bicameral bicameral National Council or Khalk Maslakhaty consists of: People's Council (56 seats; 48 members indirectly elected by provincial councils and 8 members appointed by the president) Assembly or Mejlis Hakynda (125 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed to serve 5-year terms) elections: People's Council - first held on 25 March 2021 for 48 indirectly elected members (next to be held in 2026); first held on 14 April 2021 for 8 presidentially appointed members (next to be held NA) Assembly - last held on 25 March 2018 (next to be held in 2026) election results: People's Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - DPT 3, independent 45 Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - DPT 55, APT 11, PIE 11, independent 48 (individuals nominated by citizen groups); composition - men 94, women 31, percent of women 24.8% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court of Turkmenistan (consists of the court president and 21 associate judges and organized into civil, criminal, and military chambers) judge selection and term of office: judges appointed by the president for 5-year terms subordinate courts: High Commercial Court; appellate courts; provincial, district, and city courts; military courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Agrarian Party of Turkmenistan or APT [Basim ANNAGURBANOW] Democratic Party of Turkmenistan or DPT [Ata SERDAROW] Party of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs or PIE [Saparmyrat OWGANOW] note: all of these parties support President BERDIMUHAMEDOW; a law authorizing the registration of political parties went into effect in January 2012; unofficial, small opposition movements exist abroad |
| International organization participation | ADB, CIS (associate member, has not ratified the 1993 CIS charter although it participates in meetings and held the chairmanship of the CIS in 2012), EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Meret ORAZOW (since 14 February 2001) chancery: 2207 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 588-1500 FAX: [1] (202) 588-1500 email address and website: turkmenembassyus@verizon.net https://usa.tmembassy.gov.tm/en |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Matthew S. KLIMOW (since 26 June 2019) embassy: 9 1984 Street (formerly Pushkin Street), Ashgabat 744000 mailing address: 7070 Ashgabat Place, Washington, DC 20521-7070 telephone: [993] (12) 94-00-45 FAX: [993] (12) 94-26-14 email address and website: ConsularAshgab@state.gov https://tm.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | green field with a vertical red stripe near the hoist side, containing five tribal guls (designs used in producing carpets) stacked above two crossed olive branches; five white, five-pointed stars and a white crescent moon appear in the upper corner of the field just to the fly side of the red stripe; the green color and crescent moon represent Islam; the five stars symbolize the regions or welayats of Turkmenistan; the guls reflect the national identity of Turkmenistan where carpet-making has long been a part of traditional nomadic life note: the flag of Turkmenistan is the most intricate of all national flags |
| National anthem | name: "Garassyz, Bitarap Turkmenistanyn" (Independent, Neutral, Turkmenistan State Anthem) lyrics/music: collective/Veli MUKHATOV note: adopted 1997, lyrics revised in 2008, to eliminate references to deceased President Saparmurat NYYAZOW |
| National symbol(s) | Akhal-Teke horse; national colors: green, white |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
