Uzbekistan had 22,029 enterprises with foreign investment on 1 October 2026 (National Statistics Committee), and most of the people arriving with them cannot read the state language yet. That is normal, and nobody expects a visiting director to negotiate in it. What people do notice is whether you can greet them properly, address them respectfully and behave well at the table. This page covers exactly that, links every work situation in Uzbek, and is honest about where Uzbek stops being practical.
Key points
- Learn the opening two minutes of a meeting and the meal afterwards. That is where Uzbek earns the most.
- Always siz, never sen. Add aka or opa after a first name for anyone older than you.
- The how-are-you questions are a ritual. The answer is always a version of “fine, thanks”.
- Contracts, numbers and technical detail belong in a language you both command. Do not improvise them in Uzbek.
The Uzbek for each part of your work
Each page is one situation, with the phrases, their pronunciation and one piece of grammar.
Meeting people - Business etiquette and greetings: titles, the greeting round, cards and gifts. - How to address people: aka, opa, -jon, siz and sen. - Business meetings: introductions, agreeing and next steps, kelishdik (agreed).
Day to day - The office: colleagues, meetings and asking for help. - Work emails and Telegram messages: Hurmatli … and Hurmat bilan. - Business phone calls: who’s calling, can I speak to, call me back. - Money and contract words: shartnoma, toʻlov, hisob-faktura. - A leave or resignation request (ariza): how the letter is written.
Celebrations - Congratulating a colleague: birthdays, promotions and holidays.
The greeting
Assalomu alaykum is the polite greeting for everyone, at any time of day. The fixed reply is Va alaykum assalom; answering with a plain Salom sounds curt. Xayrli kun (good day) is neutral and a little formal, and common in emails and on the phone. See how to say hello.
The how-are-you round
A greeting is followed by several questions in a row about you, your family and your work:
- Yaxshimisiz? Are you well?
- Qalaysiz? How are you?
- Ishlar qalay? How are things at work?
- Uydagilar yaxshimi? Is everyone at home well?
This is a ritual, not an enquiry. Answer each with Yaxshi, rahmat and return it with Oʻzingiz-chi? (and yourself?). Giving a real account of your week is the beginner’s mistake. The full exchange is on the how are you page.
Forms of address: siz, aka, opa
Uzbek has two words for “you”. Siz is polite and is the default for every adult you are not close to. Sen is for children and close friends. The difference shows up in endings too: Qalaysiz? is polite and Qalaysan? is not, so copy the -siz forms.
Aka (older brother) and opa (older sister) are also respectful forms of address for an older man or woman, used after the first name or alone: Rustam aka, Nodira opa. Uka (younger brother) is only for someone clearly younger, so when unsure use aka. More on the address page.
To introduce yourself: Mening ismim … (my name is), Men tadbirkorman (I am a businessperson) or Men muhandisman (I am an engineer), and Tanishganimdan xursandman (nice to meet you). The reply is Men ham. The introductions page shows how the -man ending works.
Business etiquette, from official guidance
The US government’s Country Commercial Guide for Uzbekistan gives visiting businesspeople these points:
- Learn the titles of the people you will meet; such distinctions matter. Only close friends or relatives use each other’s first names.
- Print business cards and company literature in Uzbek or Russian if you can.
- Wear business attire for official meetings and business casual for most social situations.
- Gifts are welcome. If you give flowers, give an odd number: even numbers are for funerals.
- Appointments with government officials can be hard to get; persistence and patience are essential.
The business etiquette page has the Uzbek for each of these moments.
At the table
If a meeting continues over a meal, or you are invited to a home:
- Dasturxonga marhamat is the invitation to the table. A meal usually starts and ends with tea.
- The most honoured guests are seated away from the entrance. Accept the seat you are offered.
- Bread (non) is torn by hand, not cut, and is not placed upside down.
- Tea is poured in small amounts, and the more honoured the guest, the less is poured at a time. Asking for more is a compliment to the house.
- The host will say Oling, oling (take some) many times. To stop, leave a little and say Rahmat, toʻydim (thanks, I am full).
- Yoqimli ishtaha! is said as people start eating. Osh boʻlsin! comes after the meal, not before.
Phrases that earn goodwill
- Juda mazali! Very tasty. About a dish someone cooked, Mazali boʻlibdi. See delicious.
- Qoʻlingiz dard koʻrmasin. The traditional thanks to a cook: “may your hands never know pain”.
- Katta rahmat. Thank you very much. Tashakkur is the formal alternative you will hear in speeches.
- Tabriklayman! Congratulations, for a new job or a signed deal: more on congratulating a colleague. For a purchase or a new home, people say Muborak boʻlsin!
- Navroʻz muborak! and Hayit muborak! on the holidays, and Yangi yilingiz bilan! at New Year. See Navruz.
- Men oʻzbekcha oʻrganyapman. I am learning Uzbek. Expect Barakalla! (well done) in return.
The working week and leave
If you employ people or work for an Uzbek company, the Labour Code (in force since 30 April 2023) sets the frame: normal working time is at most 40 hours a week (Article 182), the minimum annual paid leave is 21 calendar days (Article 217), and an employee who resigns gives 14 calendar days’ written notice (Article 160). Requests are made in writing, in an ariza: the leave and resignation request page shows how one reads. This is a language guide, not legal advice; for anything with consequences, ask a lawyer.
What stays in English or Russian
Be realistic. Following a meeting in Uzbek is a B1 skill that takes most learners eight to fourteen months of daily practice, and professional fluency for contracts and presentations is a project of one and a half to two and a half years. Until then, negotiations, figures, legal text and technical specifications belong in a language you both command, with a professional interpreter or translator where it matters. Do not rely on a phrasebook, or on this page, for anything with consequences.
If you are resident and not just visiting, the calculation changes. Official life runs in Latin-script Uzbek, so signs, forms and correspondence arrive in Uzbek. A first month on the phrasebook, then steady work towards A2 in three to five months, pays back for as long as you stay.
Where Uzbekcha fits
Uzbekcha is the app we make. It is on Android through Google Play as a paid subscription, and coming soon to iPhone. It is built around your reason for learning, with work as one of them, in lessons that are in English. It does not replace an interpreter in a negotiation, and we do not claim it does.