A à Âäher, translated as "city," is the most important form of third-level administrative division of Turkmenistan. In theory, a à Âäher should be more populated than a à Âäherçe ("town") or a geà Âeà Âlik ("rural councils"). In some cases, a à Âäher may include towns or villages ("oba" / pl. "obalar") within its boudaries.
In Turkmenistan, municipalities with a city status are established by law. Cities fall into three categories:
Cities with district status, along with regular districts, are headed by a presidentially appointed häkim, translated as "governor" or "mayor" in the case of a city. Three cities in Turkmenistan, Aà Âgabat, Arkadag, and Turkmenbaà Â<nowiki/>y, are further subdivided into boroughs with district status, each of them having its own häkim. Cities within a district are subordinated to the district's institutions and are administered jointly. Those cities are headed by a geà Âeà Â, an elected council chaired by an arçyn ("elder") who serves as both chairman and mayor.
Here is a list of the 51 municipalities designated as cities by law in Turkmenistan arranged by administrative divisions and alphabetical order as of December 20, 2022. Cities with district status are bolded.
The former cities of Gumdag and Hazar were downgraded to town status in November 2022, and thus have been removed from this list. The cities previously named Gurbansoltan Eje adyndaky, Nyýazow, and Serdar were renamed Andalyp, à Âabat, and Gyzylarbat respectively. The new city of Arkadag was formally incorporated on 20 December 2022 by act of the Turkmen parliament.