Dushanbe vs City of London

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Dushanbe (Tajik: Душанбе, IPA: [duʃæmˈbe]; significance Monday in Persian) is the capital and largest city of Tajikistan. As of January 2020, Dushanbe had a population of 863,400 and as of 2010 that population was largely Tajik. Until 1929, the town was known in Russian as Dyushambe (Russian: Дюшамбе, Dyushambe), and from 1929 to 1961 as Stalinabad (Tajik: Сталинобод, Stalinobod), after Joseph Stalin. Dushanbe is located in the Gissar valley, bounded by the Gissar Range in the north and east and the Babatag, Aktau, Rangontau and Karatau mountains in the south, and has an altitude of 750--900 m. The town is divided into four districts, all named after historical figures: Ismail Samani, Avicenna, Ferdowsi, and Shah Mansur. In ancient times, what is currently or is near modern Dushanbe was settled by different empires and individuals, including Mousterian tool-users, various neolithic cultures, the Achaemenid Empire, Greco-Bactria, the Kushan Empire, and the Hephalites. In the Middle Ages, more settlements started near modern-day Dushanbe such as Hulbuk and its famous palace. In the 17th century to the early 20th, Dushanbe started to grow into a market village controlled at times by the Beg of Hisor, Balkh, and eventually Bukhara. Soon after the Russian invasion in 1922, the city was made the capital of the Tajik Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in 1924, which initiated Dushanbe's development and rapid population growth that lasted until the Tajik Civil War. Following the war, the city became capital of an independent Tajikistan and continued its growth and development into a modern city which now is home to many international conventions. Dushanbe's modern culture had its beginnings in the 1920s, where Soviet music, cinema, theatre, sculpture, film, and sports all started.

Music, primarily shashmaqam before the Soviet invasion, took off in the city as a result of Russian influence and local opera houses and symphonies. Tajik figures like Sadriddin Ayni contributed greatly to the development of Dushanbe's literature, which went through many changes during and after the Soviet period. Theater and movie both saw their infancy in the 1930s and were heavily influenced by Soviet tendencies. The design of Dushanbe, once neoclassical, transitioned to a minimalist and eventually modern style. The town is a centre for newspapers, radio stations, and television of the nation, with almost 200 newspapers and over a dozen television studios working in 1999. A lot of Dushanbe's education system dates from Soviet times and has a legacy of state control; even now, the greatest university in Dushanbe, the Tajik National University, is funded by the government. Dushanbe International Airport is the principal airport serving the city. Other forms of transport include the trolleybus system dating from 1955, the small rail system, and the streets that traverse the city. Dushanbe's electricity is primarily hydroelectric, produced from the Nurek Dam, and the aging water system dates from 1932. Tajikistan's health care system is concentrated in Dushanbe, meaning that the major hospitals of the country are in the city. The city constitutes 20 percent of Tajikistan's GDP and has large industrial, financial, retail, and tourism businesses. Parks and main areas of the city include Victory Park, Rudaki Park, the Tajikistan National Museum, the Dushanbe Flagpole, and the Tajikistan National Museum of Antiquities.

Source: Wikipedia

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The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London from its settlement by the Romans in the 1st century AD to the Middle Ages, but the modern city named London has since grown far beyond the formal City of London borders. The City is now only a tiny part of the metropolis of London, though it remains a notable part of central London. Administratively, it forms one of the 33 local authority districts of London; however, the City of London is not a London borough, a status reserved for the other 32 districts (including London's only other city, the City of Westminster). It is also a separate ceremonial county, being an enclave surrounded by Greater London, and is the smallest county in the United Kingdom. The City of London is widely referred to simply as the City (differentiated from the phrase "the city of London" by capitalising City) and is also colloquially known as the Square Mile, as it is 1.12 sq mi (716.80 acres; 2.90 km2) in area. Both of these terms are also often used as metonyms for the United Kingdom's trading and financial services industries, which continue a notable history of being largely based in the City. The name London is now ordinarily used for a far wider area than just the City. London most often denotes the sprawling London metropolis, or the 32 London boroughs, in addition to the City of London itself. This wider usage of London is documented as far back as 1888, when the County of London was created.The local authority for the City, namely the City of London Corporation, is unique in the UK and has some unusual responsibilities for a local council, such as being the police authority.

It is also unusual in having responsibilities and ownerships beyond its boundaries. The Corporation is headed by the Lord Mayor of the City of London (an office separate from, and much older than, the Mayor of London). The Lord Mayor, as of November 2019, is William Russell. The City is made up of 25 wards, with administration at the historic Guildhall. Other historic sites include, St Paul's Cathedral, Royal Exchange, Mansion House, Old Bailey, and Smithfield Market. Although not within the City, the adjacent Tower of London is part of its old defensive perimeter. Bridges under the jurisdiction of the City include London Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge. The City is a major business and financial centre. Throughout the 19th century, the City was the world's primary business centre, and it continues to be a major meeting point for businesses. London came top in the Worldwide Centres of Commerce Index, published in 2008. The insurance industry is focused around the eastern side of the City, around Lloyd's building. A secondary financial district exists outside the City, at Canary Wharf, 2.5 miles (4 km) to the east. The City has a resident population of 9,401 (ONS estimate, mid-2016) but over 500,000 are employed there, and some estimates put the number of workers in the city to be over 1 million. About three-quarters of the jobs in the City of London are in the financial, professional, and associated business services sectors. The legal profession forms a major component of the northern and western sides of the City, especially in the Temple and Chancery Lane areas where the Inns of Court are located, of which two—Inner Temple and Middle Temple—fall within the City of London boundary.

Source: Wikipedia