Engineering is the application of scientific methods to the solution of practical problems of construction, fabrication and production.

Central Asian cities in the medieval period were marvels of engineering. From the construction of huge defensive walls to the vast and intricate systems of irrigation providing fresh water to people and crops, the establishment and management of these cities involved myriad engineering challenges of every size. Advances in other fields, particularly mathematics and physics, allowed the construction of buildings and public works at a scale seen nowhere else until nearly a millenium later. Novel solutions were developed to raise domes and arches higher, move water further, and to harness the power of both animals and wind more effectively. These innovations allowed medieval Central Asian cities to sustain populations greater than any contemporary urban centers elsewhere, and to do so with a grandeur unmatched in the period.