Quicknation    Turkmenistan Mary

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Mary is a city of Turkmenistan, capital of the Mary Province. Its population (est. 1999) was 123,000.

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It is located at latitude 37.6000 North, longitude 61.8333 East. The city is an oasis in the Karakum Desert, located on the Murghab river.

The city was founded in 1884 as a Russian military and administrative center. It was developed by the Soviet Union as a center for cotton production through the use of extensive irrigation. In 1968, huge reserves of natural gas were discovered 20 kilometers west of town.

Mary is Turkmenistan's fourth-largest city, and a large industrial centre, for the natural gas and cotton industries, the nation's two major export industries. It is a trade center for cotton, cereals, hides, and wool.

. However, it lies near the remains of the ancient Islamic city of Merv, which in corrupted form gives its name to the modern town.