KERKI, ker-Ke. A strongly
fortified town of Bokhara, Central Asia, situated
about 113 miles southeast of the city of Bokhara, on
the left bank of the Amu Darya (Map: Asia, Central, ?
2). The town has several mosques, a small bazaar, and
a caravanserai. It is defended by a good wall and
deep ditch, and has some strategic importance, owing
to its position on the Russian frontier. Its
fortifications were strengthened by the Russians in
1885. and the town contains a Russian garrison. The
inhabitants, numbering about 5000, are mostly Uzbeks
and Turkmen.
From The New International Encyclopaedia
edited by Daniel Coit Gilman, Harry Thurston Peck,
Frank Moore Colby 1911