The World

Today’s Geo Quiz takes us to Central Asia. We’re looking for one of the world’s highest mountain chains. To find it, first picture four other mountain ranges:

The Tian Shan, the Karakoram, the Kunlun, and the Hindu Kush coming together into a tangled knot. In the center of the knot are the mountains we’re looking for.

Khan Tengri in the Tian Shan rangeKhan Tengri in the Tian Shan range

The range looms over parts of Tajikistan and Afghanistan and Pakistan. There’s a highway that crosses over these mountains.

It runs from the city of Dushanbe in Tajikistan to Osh in Kyrgyzstan, across part of what was once known as the Great Silk Road, the ancient trading route made famous by Marco Polo.

The mountains are spectacular, but living there means coping with rugged conditions like extremely long and cold winters.

Summers are short and cool.

We’ll be back in a few to reveal the answer and tell you about a language spoken in these mountains that’s on the verge of extinction.

We asked you to find a mountain range in Central Asia for today’s Geo Quiz.

Pamir MountainsPamir Mountains

The answer is the Pamir mountains.

And it is in this mountains, between Tajikistan and Afghanistan, that you might hear increasingly rare sounds of the Shughni language.

Tom Godell of WUKY in Lexington, Kentucky reports on American efforts to document and save this dying language:

Do you support journalism that strengthens our democracy?

At The World, we believe strongly that human-centered journalism is at the heart of an informed public and a strong democracy. We see democracy and journalism as two sides of the same coin. If you care about one, it is imperative to care about the other.

Every day, our nonprofit newsroom seeks to inform and empower listeners and hold the powerful accountable. Neither would be possible without the support of listeners like you. If you believe in our work, will you give today? We need your help now more than ever!