Central Asian Ethnicity Compared: Evaluating the Contemporary Social Salience of Uzbek Identity in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan
In this article, I utilise a contextual understanding of ethnicity and unique data to demonstrate that the ethnic Uzbek identity category is both widely available and frequently a useful means of making sense of the world in both Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. While Uzbek ethnicity is generally salient in both states, the context in which it becomes so varies across space. In particular, there are significant urban–rural distinctions that affect when Uzbek ethnicity is utilised to interpret the world. In addition, compared to others, rural Tajikistani Uzbeks perceive that the boundary between Uzbeks and the titular groups is particularly permeable.
Nationalism In Uzbekistan: A Soviet Republic's Road To Sovereignty
Part 1 The rise of Uzbek nationalism: who are the Uzbeks? prelude to perestroika - signs of emerging nationalism the post-Brezhnev crackdown - "corruption", nationalism and the native elites in Soviet Central Asia. Part 2 Uzbek nationalism today - selected themes: the cotton monoculture - root of all evil the rape of Uzbekistan's environment objection to the Russian presence undoing the Russian version of history resistance to Moscow's authority the recruit "murder" scandal the Islamic factor. Part 3 Problems of sovereignty: Uzbekistan in transition the shape of things to come.
Genealogy, Class, and “Tribal Policy” in Soviet Turkmenistan, 1924-1934
This article focuses on Soviet policy toward genealogically defined identity groups in the Central Asian republic of Turkmenistan. For Soviet authorities, kinship loyalties were problematic chiefly because they hindered the emergence of class consciousness among the Turkmen. Soviet officials pursued two essentially contradictory policies in their attempt to eliminate “tribalism” in the Turkmen republic. First, they sought to undermine the economic basis of genealogical affiliation by dismantling the existing system of collective land tenure. Second, they devised a policy of “tribal parity”, which attempted to suppress kin-based conflict by guaranteeing fair and equal treatment for all genealogical groups. Instead of allowing class consciousness to supplant kinship loyalties, however, Soviet rule tended to increase the salience of distinctions based on genealogy. Because of the close linkage between genealogy and socioeconomic standing in Turkmenistan, Soviet attempts to foment class conflict inadvertently exacerbated descent group conflict.