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The madrassah of Arab Muhammad-khan was built by the eleventh Uzbek ruler from the Sheibanid dynasty in the Khorezm state by Arab Muhammad Khan in honor of the important event when Khiva became the capital of Khorezm instead of Kunya Urgench which took place in the year 1616. It’s a symmetrical two-story building with a strict portal and cylindrical towers in the corners.
During his reign (1603-1621), Arab Muhammad Khan achieved great success in governing the state. Under him, Khiva became one of the most beautiful cities of Central Asia along with Bukhara and Samarkand.
Initially in place of the current madrassa there was another small madrassah, built by a famous woman of Khiva. Arab-Muhammad Khan bought this building together with neighboring lands and built a new one-storied madrasah made of burnt bricks.
In 1838 the madrasah was rebuilt in accordance with the standards typical for the late madrasahs of Khiva. So in the end was completed the second floor, rooms for classes and hujras (cells).
Up to this day, only the carved wooden columns and fragments of the composite ceilings have remained from the building of the Madrasah of Arab Muhammad Khan. The facade with a faceted entrance niche is framed by low-height wings separated by a two-tiered blind arcade.
Madrasah Arab Muhammad Khan is one of the most visited places in Khiva among the guests of this amazing and mysterious city that keeps the spirit of the past within the walls of attractions of cultural and historical significance.
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