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Mustafa
Tuna Islam in Central Eurasia
Spring 2011 Monday-Wednesday 14:50-16:05 HISTORY185 RELIGION165 RUSSIAN190 SES185 |
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"Islam in Central Eurasia" traces the history of the Muslim peoples of Central Eurasia (Afghans, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tatars, Uzbeks, Uyghur, etc.) from the spread of Islam in the region to the present day and provides access to the cultures of this unique territory which constitutes the northern tier of the Muslim world. Central Eurasia designates the lands extending from Eastern Europe to China and includes some of the most interesting but seemingly peripheral Muslim-inhabited areas in the world such as the Caucasus, Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Eastern Turkestan/Xinjiang. In this course, we will study the Islamization of the peoples of Central Eurasia and the evolution of their cultural and political institutions under the governance of several empires that ruled the region (Chingissid Empire, Tamerlane, Russia, the Soviet Union, China). We will also witness the encounter of Central Eurasian Muslims with West European modernity, the attempts of the communist regimes to eradicate religion in the twentieth century, the survival and transformation of Islam under hostile Soviet and Chinese communist regimes, and the peculiarities of present-day Muslim societies in Central Eurasia that are often overlooked in the midst of an ill-informed discourse about Islam and terrorism. Using a rich collection of primary sources along with state-of-the-art historiographic analyses, we will challenge the public perception of Central Eurasia as the backyard of al-Qaeda terrorism and try to learn about the diversity and cultural vivacity of the region's Muslims.
The reading requirement will be around 100-120 pages a week. All required readings are digitized with the exception of two books: The Penguin Historical Atlas of Russia and An Historical Atlas of Central Asia. You will have access to these books in the Perkins Library.
Scroll down for some interesting books that we will read or click here for more on the course including the weekly topics and study questions.
David Morgan, The Mongols (Oxford: B. Blackwell, 1986).
Ibn Batuta, The Travels of Ibn Battuta to Central Asia.
Allen J. Frank,
Muslim Religious Institutions in Imperial Russia.
Lev Tolstoi,
Hadji Murat.
Ibn Khaldun,
Ibn Khaldun and
Tamerlane, Their Historic Meeting in Damascus, 1401 a.d.
Scott Levi, The Indian Diaspora in Central Asia and Its Trade, 1550-1900.
James A. Millward, Eurasian Crossroads: A History of Xinjiang.
Marianne Kamp, The New Woman in Uzbekistan: Islam, Modernity, and Unveiling under Communism.
Adeeb Khalid, Islam after Communism: Religion and Politics in Central Asia.
Khassan Baiev, The Oath: A Surgeon under Fire.
Abdul Salam Zaeef, My Life with the Taliban.