Fieldwork Archives - Voices On Cental Asia

Social Mobilization in the Absence of Infrastructure and Services on the Urban Margins: Toward “Societal Infrastructures”

November 15, 2021

How do communities deal with the decay, failure or complete absence of infrastructure? In the fourth decade after the collapse of the Soviet and other Socialist states, this question is…

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7 min

Fieldwork

How the Soviet State’s Promises of Water Were First Fulfilled and then Failed

October 19, 2021

The Soviet state invested heavily in water infrastructure in arid Central Asia. These investments produced transformations with significant social impact. They also created memories that many anthropological studies have tried…

“Fruit from the Sands: The Silk Road Origins of the Foods We Eat”. An Interview with Robert Spengler

16 minute read

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10 min

Fieldwork

Law and Custom in Central Asia: An Interview with Judith Beyer

July 24, 2020

Prof. Dr. Judith Beyer specializes in political and legal anthropology. She conducted long-term ethnographic fieldwork in Kyrgyzstan where she studied the practices of retraditionalization – how the concept of traditions…

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17 min

Panjikent, the Central Asian Pompeii. An Interview with Pavel Lurje

May 7, 2020

Interview with Pavel Lurje Head of the Sector of Central Asia, Caucasus and Crimea, Senior Research Fellow of the Oriental Department of the State Hermitage Museum, head of the Panjikent Expedition.Dr.…

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7 min

Fieldwork

The Image of the Snow Leopard in the Archaeological Records of Kazakhstan and its Instrumentalization in Modern-Day Political Agendas

April 24, 2020

This article examines the connection between how archaeological remains were excavated in the past to how such remains are dealt with in present day Kazakhstan. Special attention is given to…

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8 min

Nomads and Soviet Rule: Central Asia under Lenin and Stalin. An Interview with an Author

March 10, 2020

In his book, Nomads and Soviet Rule: Central Asia under Lenin and Stalin (I.B. Tauris, 2018), Alun Thomas examines the experiences of Kazakh and Kyrgyz nomads in the NEP (New…

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9 min

The Mystery of Kyrk-Kyz: From 40 Women-Warriors to the Warriors of Light

January 16, 2020

A mysterious castle in Uzbekistan’s Surhandarya bears the name of Kyrk-Kyz, meaning “40 girls.” Was this a sanctuary of legendary women-warriors, or was it home to a group of Sufi…

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6 min

Humans of the Polygon: Travel Notes from the Land of Abai. Karaul, Znamenka (Kokentau), Sarzhal

October 8, 2019

“We are scared for the future of our kids.”A family in KaraulThe lake created in 1963 on the Polygon as a result of an explosion that used 20 tons of…

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11 min

Trilingual Education in Kazakhstan: What to Expect

May 24, 2019

While the only existing studies consider trilingualism in Kazakhstan in general, this research aims to identify possible risks and prospects for the implementation of the program of trilingualism at regional…

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9 min

Fieldwork

26 Routes in 2 Years: The New Transport Map of Central Asia

March 28, 2019

Austen Dowell is a Research Associate with the ERA Institute, focusing on analyzing regional affairs as part of the Central Asia Watch project. He has studied in Central Asia as…

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13 min

Who Is “Tashkent City” For? Nation-Branding and Public Dialogue in Uzbekistan

June 7, 2018

“If they give me a proper place somewhere nearby, I will move. Otherwise, I will not go anywhere!” – Muhabbat Umarova, a woman in her 70s who is a resident…

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11 min

Building Secure Communities in a Post-Liberal Age: A View from Kyrgyzstan

April 25, 2018

How to build sustainable peace, forge livelihoods, and create a basis for development? These questions have been of central interest to scholars in the fields of development, peace and conflict…

Social Mobilization in the Absence of Infrastructure and Services on the Urban Margins: Toward “Societal Infrastructures”

How the Soviet State’s Promises of Water Were First Fulfilled and then Failed

“Fruit from the Sands: The Silk Road Origins of the Foods We Eat”. An Interview with Robert Spengler

Law and Custom in Central Asia: An Interview with Judith Beyer

Panjikent, the Central Asian Pompeii. An Interview with Pavel Lurje

In case you missed it

The Comfort Zone of the Artist Alexander Barkovsky

The Love and Beauty of Wedding Suzani from the Collection of the Russian State Museum of Oriental Art

“Fruit from the Sands: The Silk Road Origins of the Foods We Eat”. An Interview with Robert Spengler

Regionalism and Regional Order in Central Asia: An Interview with Filippo Costa Buranelli

The Image of the Snow Leopard in the Archaeological Records of Kazakhstan and its Instrumentalization in Modern-Day Political Agendas

Nomads and Soviet Rule: Central Asia under Lenin and Stalin. An Interview with an Author

The Mystery of Kyrk-Kyz: From 40 Women-Warriors to the Warriors of Light

Humans of the Polygon: Travel Notes from the Land of Abai. Karaul, Znamenka (Kokentau), Sarzhal

Trilingual Education in Kazakhstan: What to Expect

In case you missed it

The Comfort Zone of the Artist Alexander Barkovsky

The Love and Beauty of Wedding Suzani from the Collection of the Russian State Museum of Oriental Art

“Fruit from the Sands: The Silk Road Origins of the Foods We Eat”. An Interview with Robert Spengler

Regionalism and Regional Order in Central Asia: An Interview with Filippo Costa Buranelli

26 Routes in 2 Years: The New Transport Map of Central Asia

Who Is “Tashkent City” For? Nation-Branding and Public Dialogue in Uzbekistan

Building Secure Communities in a Post-Liberal Age: A View from Kyrgyzstan

Regionalism and Regional Order in Central Asia: An Interview with Filippo Costa Buranelli

Did the Kazakhs Have Their Own Dance Culture and What Are the Origins of Kara-Zhorga – The Nation’s Favorite Dance?

A Past That Is Neither Remembered nor Forgotten. A Tale of Two Lenin Statues in Tajikistan

How the Soviet State’s Promises of Water Were First Fulfilled and then Failed

Social Mobilization in the Absence of Infrastructure and Services on the Urban Margins: Toward “Societal Infrastructures”