Bokhara Rugs: The Complete Guide — Gul Patterns, History & Where to Buy
Bokhara rugs are one of the most recognizable rug designs in the world: rows of repeating medallions on a rich red field, framed by a detailed border. Walk into almost any living room with a hand-knotted rug and there is a good chance it is a Bokhara. They are popular because they look timeless, they work with nearly any style of furniture, and a good wool Bokhara holds up for decades. But the name causes a lot of confusion, so here is the real story, written the way we explain it to customers in person.
Where the name "Bokhara" comes from
Bokhara (also spelled Bukhara) is a historic city in present-day Uzbekistan, and for centuries it was one of the great trading centers on the Silk Road. Scholars, merchants and caravans passed through its markets, and its skyline of minarets and domes still tells that story today. Here is the part most people do not know: Bokhara was never a weaving tribe. It was the marketplace. Turkmen tribes in Central Asia wove the rugs, caravans carried them to Bukhara, and Western dealers who bought them there sold them under the name of the city. The label stuck long after the caravans were gone.
The Kalan Minaret and the Mir-i-Arab madrasa in Bukhara, Uzbekistan, the Silk Road city that gave Bokhara rugs their name. Photo: Bgag, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0).
The old city is still full of trading domes, covered bazaars and caravanserais built for exactly this kind of commerce. Rugs, silks, spices and metalwork all changed hands here, and a carpet bought in these markets could end up in Moscow, Istanbul or London within a few months.
Toki Zargaron, one of the historic domed trading halls in the old city of Bukhara. Photo: Umid1108, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
The Turkmen weavers behind the rugs
The Turkmen are a group of Turkic tribes, among them the Tekke, Yomut, Salor, Saryk and Ersari, whose traditional homelands cover present-day Turkmenistan, northern Afghanistan and northeastern Iran. For generations many lived as pastoral nomads, moving with their flocks and living in felt-covered tents called yurts. Weaving was part of everyday life, and it was done by the women of the family.
Nothing in the tent was wasted or plain. Rugs were floor coverings, but the same skills produced storage bags, door hangings, camel trappings and wedding gifts. That is why the best old Turkmen work is so carefully made: these were the family's most valuable possessions, built to be used, carried and handed down.
Two Turkmen men standing on a red rug in front of a yurt, photographed in color around 1910 by Sergei Prokudin-Gorskii (Library of Congress, public domain).
A Turkmen woman in traditional dress standing on a carpet at the door of a yurt, also photographed by Prokudin-Gorskii around 1910 (Library of Congress, public domain).
The gul: the medallion that defines the design
The repeating medallion in a Bokhara is called a gul (sometimes spelled gol). It is usually an octagonal shape, repeated in tidy rows and columns, with smaller motifs filling the gaps between. The Western trade often calls the rounded version the elephant foot gul, because of how the segments look.
For the tribes, the gul was far more than decoration. Each tribe had its own gul shapes, and they worked like a woven coat of arms. A trained eye can look at the gul and tell you which tribe is behind the design. The Tekke gul, for example, is a quartered octagon, and it is the design that early Pakistani Bokharas copied most often. On a modern rug you will see many variations, but the rhythm is always the same: a calm, orderly repeat that makes a room feel settled.
A close-up of an early Tekke Turkmen carpet. Notice the octagonal guls repeated in orderly rows on a deep red ground, the pattern that modern Bokharas still echo. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
A 19th-century Saryk Turkmen main carpet from Turkmenistan or Afghanistan, now in the Cleveland Museum of Art. Image: Cleveland Museum of Art, via Wikimedia Commons (CC0).
How a hand-knotted Bokhara is made
A real Bokhara starts with wool, which is cleaned, spun into yarn and dyed. The weaver then works on an upright loom, tying small knots of yarn around the vertical warp threads one at a time, row by row. A cut of the yarn leaves each knot standing as one tuft of pile, and a row of weft thread locks the line in place before the next row begins. Over thousands of rows, the pattern slowly appears.
When the weaving is done, the pile is trimmed to an even height and the rug is washed and stretched flat. It is slow, skilled work, and a room-size rug can take months of hand labor. That is also why the pattern is part of the rug itself: flip a hand-knotted rug over and the design is just as clear on the back.
Two young women hand-knotting a rug on a loom at a weaving studio near Bamyan, Afghanistan. The technique is the same slow, knot-by-knot process used for Bokharas. Photo: Sgt. Ken Scar, U.S. Army (public domain), via Wikimedia Commons.
How Pakistan became the home of the Bokhara
The weaving tradition did not stay in one place. Through the 19th and 20th centuries, political upheaval pushed Turkmen weaving families south into northern Afghanistan and later into Pakistan. In Pakistan, weavers settled around cities like Peshawar and Lahore, and the government and trade groups helped organize training and workshops. The Bokhara pattern was a natural first design to teach because of its simple, repeating layout, and it grew into one of Pakistan's best-known rug exports.
That is why most Bokhara rugs sold in the United States today are woven in Pakistan, and why you will often see them called Pakistani Bokharas. They are a category of their own now: softer, more consistent, and made in a much wider range of sizes than the tribal originals. Afghan Bokharas, woven mostly by Ersari Turkmen weavers in northern Afghanistan, are the other major source, and they tend to be a little darker and denser.
This is the classic look in a room-size 9 x 12: deep red field, tidy rows of medallions, and a layered border. Our 9 x 12 New Bokhara Handmade Rug #F-3211 is a good example of the design most people picture when they hear the word Bokhara.
Bokharas come in almost every size, including small ones like this 4.3 x 6 Bokhara handmade in Pakistan (#41082). That flexibility is a big reason the design spread so widely: the repeating layout scales easily from an entryway rug to a ballroom carpet.
Tekke, Jaldar and the other Bokhara styles
When you shop for a Bokhara you will run into a few terms. Tekke-style Bokharas follow the classic grid of medallions on a red field. Jaldar Bokharas use a lattice or diamond-shaped repeat instead of the rounded medallions, often in a lighter, softer palette. The design is still Turkmen in spirit, but it gives a more open, airy look.
Red is the traditional color, and it is still the most popular. But Pakistani weavers also make Bokharas in ivory, tan, rust, gold, green and blue-gray, which makes the style much easier to fit into modern rooms. If red feels like too much, one of these lighter versions gives you the same structure with a calmer feel.
A Jaldar swaps the round medallions for a diamond lattice. This 6.9 x 8 Jaldar Bokhara from Pakistan (#B-78240) shows how much lighter and airier the same tradition can look in an ivory and tan palette.
Not every Bokhara is red. The 5 x 8 Slate Gray Blue Bokhara (#F-3206) keeps the traditional medallion grid but in a cool, modern color, which is a great option if you want the classic structure without the classic red.
What to look for when you buy a Bokhara
Hand-knotted, wool pile. A real Bokhara is tied knot by knot, and the pattern is part of the rug, not printed on it. Good wool is naturally resilient and soft, and it wears very well in living rooms, dining rooms and hallways.
Crisp, even medallions. Look at the rows of guls. They should be well drawn and fairly regular, with small, natural variations that show the rug was made by hand. Colors should be rich and even across the field.
The right size. For a living room, aim for a rug large enough that at least the front legs of your sofa and chairs rest on it. A 9 x 12 anchors a large seating area or sits under a dining table with the chairs pulled out. Add a rug pad to keep the rug in place and add cushion underfoot.
Be honest about the name. A true antique Turkmen tribal rug is a collector's piece and a different thing from a modern Pakistani Bokhara. Both are beautiful, but they are priced and valued very differently. The rugs on this page are new hand-knotted Bokharas, made to be lived on and enjoyed.
Ready to see them in person? Browse our full Bokhara rug collection. Every rug ships free, and if you do not love it, you can return it.
Related reading: the Baluch weaving tradition
Baluch rugs (also spelled Balochi, Balochi, or Belouch) are among the most distinctive and collectible tribal rugs in the world. Woven by the Baluch people — a nomadic tribe dispersed across Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan — these rugs carry deep cultural significance and a wild, spiritual energy that sets them apart from all other Oriental rugs.
Who Are the Baluch People?
The Baluch are a semi-nomadic people whose homeland, Baluchistan, spans the borders of Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. For centuries, Baluch women have woven rugs as part of their domestic tradition — creating pieces for their own use (tent floors, storage bags, animal trappings) and for trade. The weaving tradition is maintained to this day, with Baluch rugs among the most sought-after contemporary tribal pieces.
Characteristics of Baluch Rugs
Dark, Moody Color Palette
Baluch rugs are immediately recognizable by their dark, dramatic color palette — typically featuring deep navy blue, black, and dark red as dominant tones, with accents of ivory, orange, and natural camel. The natural wool used by Baluch weavers, undyed and in various natural shades from cream to dark brown, adds to the earthy, organic quality.
Prayer Rug Designs
Baluch prayer rugs are among the most collectible pieces in this tradition. The prayer niche (mihrab) at the top of the rug indicates the direction of Mecca, and the intricate geometric patterns that fill the field are rich with symbolic meaning. Baluch prayer rugs have a raw, intense spiritual quality.
Geometric Patterns
Baluch rug designs are primarily geometric — angular medallions, star patterns, stylized trees of life, and intricate border designs. The use of camel hair (natural beige-brown) as a secondary color is distinctive of Baluch work.
Small to Medium Size
Most Baluch rugs are relatively small — typically 3x5 to 4x6 feet — reflecting their origin as portable tent furnishings for nomadic families.
Browse our selection of authentic Baluch rugs at BestRugPlace — with free shipping and our price-match guarantee.