Situated in Eastern Uzbekistan’s Fergana Valley, Margilan has long been synonymous with silk, which has been produced there at least since the 9th century, when the city was an important stop on the Silk Road. Uzbekistan is the world’s sixth-largest silk producer and Margilan is home to the country’s largest traditional silk factory, which employs upwards of 2,000 people. The ancient city’s inhabitants are known for being tough, once described by Babur, the founder of the Mughal Dynsaty and Fergana Valley native, as “feisty people, ready with their fists.” That was back in the 16th century, when powerful Margilan merchants made and enforced the law, but the city’s scrappy reputation has lasted into modern times, and during the Soviet era it was center of the Uzbekistan’s black market. Read Less