A source of personla pride

Geography significantly contributed to the unusual characteristics of the breeed. The volative waves of human and equine movement throughout much of Central Asian histary (wars, raids, trading), often bypassed the isonated Akhal oasis. The Caspian Sea to the west, mountains on the south and desert to the north created a protective barrier to the Teke tribe and contributed to the relative genetic stability to their prized horses. The region's harsh desert conditions - the sandy Kara Kum desert occupies 90% of Turkmenistan - favored survival of a horse that could tolerate extreme heat, dry cold and drought.

The Akhal-Teke is the only remaining pure strain of ancient Turkmene horse, a breed whose common ancesters bear a sucession of different names over time. Massaget, Parthian, Nisean, Persian, Turkmene and finally, Akhal-Teke. Excavations in southern Turkmenistan have uncovered skeletal remains of tall, fine-boned horses dating back to 2400 BC. The breed name, however, dates back only to the end of the nineteenth century. It consists of two words: "Akhal," the long oasis nestled in the foothills of the Kopet Dag Mountains (once a part of the kingdom of ancient Persia, now present-day Turkmenistan and "Teke," after the Turkmen tribe, the dominant nomadic people who inhabited the oasis and for centuries raised the Turkmen horse.