"BUKHARIAN JEWS are the oldest ethno-religious group of Central Asia, with roots going back for more than 2000 years. Separated from the rest of the world's Jewry they managed to survive in spite of innumerable odds and create a great culture with rich literature and beautiful music. " http://www.bukharianjews.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=2&page=2 [September 2002]

"The Jews of Bukhara are an ethnic and linguistic group, concentrated in Central Asia, particularly in the area of the Uzbek and Tadzhik Republics. The term "Bukharan Jewry" was coined by European travelers who visited Central Asia before the Russian conquest; it derived from the fact that at that time most of the community lived under the Emir of Bukhara. The members of the community call themselves "Isro'il" or "Yahudi." They speak a distinct dialect of the Tajik language, the so-called Judeo-Tajik, defined also as the Judeo-Tajik language. In Uzbekistan the largest concentrations are in Samarkand, the second largest city in the Uzbek Republic, Tashkent (capital of the Republic), Bukhara, Kokand and other cities. In Tadzhikistan they can be found mainly in the capital, Dushanbe. A considerable number of Jews of Bukharan origin can be found in Israel.

It is difficult to estimate exactly how many Jews lived in Central Asia before the second half of the 19th century. Benjamin of Tudela estimated that at the end of the 12th century there were 50,000 in Samarkand alone, but there is no doubt that this figure was not based on direct observation. Arminius Vambery estimated the Jewish population of the Bukharan khanate in 1863-64 at 10,000. At the end of the 19th century the figure was about 16,000. On the basis of Soviet censuses and other assessments it may be assumed that in 1970 30-35,000 Jews lived in Soviet Central Asia. [September 2002] [Source: http://www.heritagefilms.com/TAJIKISTAN.html - link no longer operational - July 2008]

"Bukhara's Jewish Quarter ... the Jewish Synagogue (pitiful state, with the caretaking lady begging for 'donations' for every picture one takes) and Nadir Divanbegi Medressa." Source: http://www.weecheng.com/silk/uz-bukh/bukhara1.htm [September 2002]

• Yehoshua-Raz, Ben Zion (1992): "From the lost tribes in Afghanistan to the Mashhed Jewish Converts of Iran." (in Hebrew)
• Fischel, W. J. (1965): Rediscovery of the Medieval Jewish community at Feireukeuh in Central Afghanistan, Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 85.
• Book about Bukharian Jews, written by Arkadiy Zavulunov, published in New York in May 2002