Tribal Nation (ebook)

Argumento de Tribal Nation (ebook)

"As the first English-language monograph to analyze the complexity of Turkmen life and identity within the context of Soviet policies, the book superbly reviews the compromises between the central Soviet authorities in Moscow and the European and Turkmeni communists in Central Asia."--George O. Liber, Europe: Early Modern and Modern

"Professor Edgar covers the period of Soviet Turkmenistan since its creation in its more constructive formative period until the time of the Great Terror. She has researched her subject admirably well and presents her discoveries in thorough yet readable detail."--Albrecht Rothacher, Asian Europe Journal

"The book is one of the most important of the regional studies that are currently enhancing our knowledge of nation-building in the interwar Soviet Union. Its fluent and easy style, and Edgar's disposition not to take for granted an acquaintance with Soviet history, make it a very good introduction to Soviet nationalities policy through case study, and a book also suitable for undergraduate courses."--Niccolò Pianciola, International Review of Social History

"This expertly written volume . . . describes its shift from an obedient Soviet republic to an independent Turkmenistan with its own flag, national anthem, and problems."--Choice

"This is a beautifully written, extremely well researched, and very well argued investigation of nation-making in Soviet Central Asia. Edgar's work goes much further than that of many of her contemporaries and moves in an important new direction. Rather than simply look out from Moscow, from the top down, she begins from Turkmenistan, from the local, and argues that the actual shapes that nations took were the result of a complex negotiation between local traditions and the plans of the Soviets themselves. This is an extraordinarily important refinement of the existing literature."--Ronald Suny, University of Chicago, author of The Soviet Experiment: Russia, the USSR, and the Successor States

"An excellent book. Edgar tackles a big topic with great finesse. She does so in very accessible prose that conveys complex ideas without any jargon. In terms of scope and quality, Tribal Nation ranks among the best historical scholarship in the Russian/Soviet sphere. The making of Soviet Turkmenistan, and the Soviet regime's attempt to build modern socialism through massive intervention in society, is a topic of enormous interest. The book is solidly based on archival research, and displays wonderful mastery of detail."--Adeeb Khalid, Carleton College, author of The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform: Jadidism in Central Asia

"Adrienne Lynn Edgar has filled a significant gap in the scholarship with this engaging new book on the history of Soviet Turkmenistan. There is really nothing out there quite like it."--Michael G. Smith, Slavic Review

"One of the most exciting new works of central Asian history in recent years. . . . This book richly illustrates the Turkmen 1920s and 1930s, but it loses none of its salience in a diagnosis of central Asian life today. An ideal length for teaching and a pleasure to take up: Edgar's book is a must-read for anyone engaged in central Asian history, ethnography, and comparative politics."--Bruce Grant, Journal of Modern History0LIST OF MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS ix
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi
NOTE ON TRANSLITERATION xv
INTRODUCTION Tribe, Class, and Nation in Turkmenistan 1
PART I: MAKING A NATION
CHAPTER ONE Sources of Identity among the Turkmen 17
CHAPTER TWO Assembling the Nation: The Creation of a Turkmen National Republic 41
CHAPTER THREE Ethnic Preferences and Ethnic Conflict: The Rise of a Turkmen National Elite 70
CHAPTER FOUR Helpers, Not Nannies: Moscow and the Turkmen Communist Party 100
CHAPTER FIVE Dueling Dialects: The Creation of a Turkmen Language 129
PART II: CONSTRUCTING SOCIALISM
CHAPTER SIX A Nation Divided: Class Struggle and the Assault on "Tribalism" 167
CHAPTER SEVEN Cotton and Collectivization: Rural Resistance in Soviet Turkmenistan 197
CHAPTER EIGHT Emancipation of the Unveiled: Turkmen Women under Soviet Rule 221
CONCLUSION From Soviet Republic to Independent Nation-State 261
GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS 267
BIBLIOGRAPHY 269
INDEX 287