Konye-Urgench (
Turkmen:
Köneürgenç,
Russian:
Куня Ургенч, from
Persian Kuhna Gurgānj کهنه گرگانج) also known as
Kunya-Urgench,
Old Urgench or
Urganj, is a
municipality of about 30,000 inhabitants in north
Turkmenistan, just south from its border with
Uzbekistan. It is the site of the ancient town of
Ürgenç (
Urgench), which contains the ruins of the capital of
Khwarezm, a part of the
Achaemenid Empire. Its inhabitants deserted the town three and a half centuries ago in order to develop a new settlement, and Kunya-Urgench has remained undisturbed ever since. In 2005, the ruins of Old Urgench have been inscribed on the
UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites. (
See List of World Heritage Sites in Turkmenistan)