national identity
Latest Past Events
Negotiating Identity in Kyrgyzstan: Nationality, Islam, and the Meaning of Tradition
with Vincent Artman, University of KansasSince independence, Kyrgyzstan, like the other Central Asian states, has been confronted with the challenge of articulating a viable national identity.Drawing upon five months of fieldwork, this presentation examines some of the ways in which Kyrgyz people make sense of the complex relationship between their religious heritage and their national identity. Vincent M. Artman… Continue reading Negotiating Identity in Kyrgyzstan: Nationality, Islam, and the Meaning of Tradition
Central Asia’s Struggle with Religion
with Catherine Cosman, Senior Policy Analyst- U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom Central Asian governments use state-controlled Islam to build national identity, but also fear Islam's influence and understand that Islam has greater mobilization potential than any other institution in their societies. In the early 1990's, there was fairly free access to various religious influences and the popularity… Continue reading Central Asia’s Struggle with Religion
