Central Asia: A New History from the Imperial Conquests to the Present
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- Create Date：2022-10-26 06:53:19
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Adeeb Khalid
- ISBN：0691235198
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Summary
A major history of Central Asia and how it has been shaped by modern world events
Central Asia is often seen as a remote and inaccessible land on the peripheries of modern history。 Encompassing Uzbekistan， Tajikistan， Turkmenistan， Kyrgyzstan， Kazakhstan， and the Xinjiang province of China， it in fact stands at the crossroads of world events。 Adeeb Khalid provides the first comprehensive history of Central Asia from the mid-eighteenth century to today， shedding light on the historical forces that have shaped the region under imperial and Communist rule。
Predominantly Muslim with both nomadic and settled populations， the peoples of Central Asia came under Russian and Chinese rule after the 1700s。 Khalid shows how foreign conquest knit Central Asians into global exchanges of goods and ideas and forged greater connections to the wider world。 He explores how the Qing and Tsarist empires dealt with ethnic heterogeneity， and compares Soviet and Chinese Communist attempts at managing national and cultural difference。 He highlights the deep interconnections between the Russian and Chinese parts of Central Asia that endure to this day， and demonstrates how Xinjiang remains an integral part of Central Asia despite its fraught and traumatic relationship with contemporary China。
The essential history of one of the most diverse and culturally vibrant regions on the planet， this panoramic book reveals how Central Asia has been profoundly shaped by the forces of modernity， from colonialism and social revolution to nationalism， state-led modernization， and social engineering。
Central Asia is often seen as a remote and inaccessible land on the peripheries of modern history。 Encompassing Uzbekistan， Tajikistan， Turkmenistan， Kyrgyzstan， Kazakhstan， and the Xinjiang province of China， it in fact stands at the crossroads of world events。 Adeeb Khalid provides the first comprehensive history of Central Asia from the mid-eighteenth century to today， shedding light on the historical forces that have shaped the region under imperial and Communist rule。
Predominantly Muslim with both nomadic and settled populations， the peoples of Central Asia came under Russian and Chinese rule after the 1700s。 Khalid shows how foreign conquest knit Central Asians into global exchanges of goods and ideas and forged greater connections to the wider world。 He explores how the Qing and Tsarist empires dealt with ethnic heterogeneity， and compares Soviet and Chinese Communist attempts at managing national and cultural difference。 He highlights the deep interconnections between the Russian and Chinese parts of Central Asia that endure to this day， and demonstrates how Xinjiang remains an integral part of Central Asia despite its fraught and traumatic relationship with contemporary China。
The essential history of one of the most diverse and culturally vibrant regions on the planet， this panoramic book reveals how Central Asia has been profoundly shaped by the forces of modernity， from colonialism and social revolution to nationalism， state-led modernization， and social engineering。
Reviews
Hadrian
，
Only one chapter of this book covers the time period from the Mongol conquests to the mid-18th century。 The bulk of this history starts in the mid-18th century， with the Qing expansion westward， and the Russian Empire's expansion further south to the Amu Darya river。 The magnificent and ancient Ark of Bukhara gives a slightly misleading impression。 Khalid explains: At its best， exoticism romanticizes Central Asia and places it beyond the reach of history。 At its worst， it can render the region a Only one chapter of this book covers the time period from the Mongol conquests to the mid-18th century。 The bulk of this history starts in the mid-18th century， with the Qing expansion westward， and the Russian Empire's expansion further south to the Amu Darya river。 The magnificent and ancient Ark of Bukhara gives a slightly misleading impression。 Khalid explains: At its best， exoticism romanticizes Central Asia and places it beyond the reach of history。 At its worst， it can render the region a blank slate on which one can inscribe anything one wishes。 This is primarily a history of imperial politics， and also of nationalism: of what was once defined as， a long time ago， part of the Russian Empire and the Qing Empire。 The history so focuses on Kazakhstan， Kyrgyzstan， Tajikistan， Turkmenistan， Uzbekistan， and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China。 Because the Russian Empire stopped at the Amu Darya， Afghanistan is not included; neither are Mongolia or Tibet because of their substantial differences from the rest of the region。 This is still a large and highly populated region -- and Khalid draws from an extensive literature in the citations， with English， Russian， French， Chinese， Uzbek， and other language sources。 The result is an extensive "compare and contrast" between Russian and Chinese Central Asia。 The book's wide scale resists summary， but there are some highlights worth noting。 Khalid emphasizes the relative regional autonomy of local elites， as well as the relatively fluid transmission of ideas， of cross-border trade， and of political maneuvering。 The principle of "extraterritoriality"， or exemption from local law which was a characteristic of foreign treaties with Qing China， meant that subjects of those empires were able to operate across borders - Kazakh or Uzbek officials and bureaucrats from the Russian Empire， or Indian officials or traders from the British Raj。 Additionally， Khalid claims that the Russian- （later Soviet-） administered region enjoyed a better economic position until quite recently。 Cross-border trade and communication only came to a sudden halt in 1962， with the Sino-Soviet split， and only resumed with the later thaw in relations and eventual collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991。 The book concludes with a study of the region post-1989: Khalid is ultimately more bullish about the results of later Soviet policy， with the promotion of "national languages"， federalism， and investments in infrastructure resulting in the formation of several nation-states after the fall of the Soviet Union。 That is not to say that these states have formed uniformly well - with political repression， corruption， and environmental degradation remaining major cross-border issues。 That is still a major contrast with Chinese policy over Xinjiang， which he calls， without hedging， a "21st-century gulag" and "cultural genocide"。 For this mass of information about a region that I know almost nothing about， I found this to be a deeply readable study: I could reasonably recommend it for a university classroom setting， or for professionals who wish to have more than a basic understanding of the region's history。 。。。more
Cheryl
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3。5 stars
Shrike58
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For such a sprawling work， taking one from the introduction of Islam to the region， to the contemporary political situation （the book basically ends with Beijing's oppression of Xianjiang）， Khalid does a good job of giving you a coherent perspective on how the region has arrived at its current state。 Inevitably， this winds up as a case study on the differences between Russian/Soviet and Qing/Maoist state building。 I can see a lot of undergrads being assigned this book to read， and they'll mostly For such a sprawling work， taking one from the introduction of Islam to the region， to the contemporary political situation （the book basically ends with Beijing's oppression of Xianjiang）， Khalid does a good job of giving you a coherent perspective on how the region has arrived at its current state。 Inevitably， this winds up as a case study on the differences between Russian/Soviet and Qing/Maoist state building。 I can see a lot of undergrads being assigned this book to read， and they'll mostly be better off for having done so。 。。。more
Abeb
，
So I didn't read the whole thing because I didn't need to for class。 But it was incredibly comprehensive。 To the point that it seemed like the author included everything they could。 So I didn't read the whole thing because I didn't need to for class。 But it was incredibly comprehensive。 To the point that it seemed like the author included everything they could。 。。。more
Tam
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This is a rather dense survey of Central Asia。 Nevertheless， it is perhaps a decent introduction to the history of the region。 I have no former knowledge to argue with the author on the details。 However， I was still quite surprised by his noticeably angrier tone at the end of the book as he discussed Xinjiang。 Elsewhere the discussion on Soviet and its notorious Gulags was brief - this part is where we probably have more data。 Khalid was able to keep a rather neutral tone， acknowledging some goo This is a rather dense survey of Central Asia。 Nevertheless， it is perhaps a decent introduction to the history of the region。 I have no former knowledge to argue with the author on the details。 However， I was still quite surprised by his noticeably angrier tone at the end of the book as he discussed Xinjiang。 Elsewhere the discussion on Soviet and its notorious Gulags was brief - this part is where we probably have more data。 Khalid was able to keep a rather neutral tone， acknowledging some good spillovers of Russia and Soviet as well as pointing out their destruction and exploitation in Central Asia。 Yet for China and Xinjiang， all I see was the negatives。 So I can't help but question。 。。。more
Iman
，
This book was super long and took me forever to finish but it was 100% worth it。 Ive never been interested in Central Asian history and I know very few people from that region so at first I was wary I'd be bored easily。 That wasn't the case as the book is written in a very engaging manner。 He covers the Central Asian states under communism and how they managed to carve up a nationalist project while integrating with the Soviet Union。 In addition， the part about Xinjiang was well researched。 The This book was super long and took me forever to finish but it was 100% worth it。 Ive never been interested in Central Asian history and I know very few people from that region so at first I was wary I'd be bored easily。 That wasn't the case as the book is written in a very engaging manner。 He covers the Central Asian states under communism and how they managed to carve up a nationalist project while integrating with the Soviet Union。 In addition， the part about Xinjiang was well researched。 The book is pretty depressing tho， massacres are basically the norm and the last chapter detailing the Uighur genocide is heartbreaking。 But it's essential reading into understanding why China has suddenly decided to embark on this genocide now。 。。。more
Raj Karan Gambhir
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Richly detailed and argued。 Does away with tired tropes of exocitization and the "Great Game" and focuses on intellectual， political， and cultural currents within and acting on Central Asia。 The focus is on the former Soviet States much more than Xinjiang， but this imbalance is understandable given the resources currently available to researchers。 Richly detailed and argued。 Does away with tired tropes of exocitization and the "Great Game" and focuses on intellectual， political， and cultural currents within and acting on Central Asia。 The focus is on the former Soviet States much more than Xinjiang， but this imbalance is understandable given the resources currently available to researchers。 。。。more
Rjhayes
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A very well done history about a subject I previously knew almost nothing。 I have two critiques intended to be constructive。First: more， and better maps （ie。 Dashed lines vs solid lines in my opinion are suboptimal for clarifying multiple overlapping boundaries）。 Second: the central Asian countries of today are treated as two fairly homogeneous units through the first 80% of the book。 The main dividing line in most of the history is the Soviet controlled areas and those historically under the in A very well done history about a subject I previously knew almost nothing。 I have two critiques intended to be constructive。First: more， and better maps （ie。 Dashed lines vs solid lines in my opinion are suboptimal for clarifying multiple overlapping boundaries）。 Second: the central Asian countries of today are treated as two fairly homogeneous units through the first 80% of the book。 The main dividing line in most of the history is the Soviet controlled areas and those historically under the influence of what is now called China。 Narratively I can understand why this was done。 But: an introductory chapter on the currently understood national origin stories would have， for this reader， been a useful way to make the following 200 years more legible。 。。。more
Brenton
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A pretty dry read， but still a step above what you’d expect from an academic press history in terms of structure and readability。 Most importantly: I started off knowing virtually nothing about Central Asia （except a bit about Xinjiang）， and found this to be a helpful and informative overview。 Uzbekistan， Kazakhstan， and Xinjiang get the most attention。 There seemed to be little on Tajikistan， Turkmenistan， and Kyrgyzstan until the last couple of chapters。 I’m not sure if that’s because of the a A pretty dry read， but still a step above what you’d expect from an academic press history in terms of structure and readability。 Most importantly: I started off knowing virtually nothing about Central Asia （except a bit about Xinjiang）， and found this to be a helpful and informative overview。 Uzbekistan， Kazakhstan， and Xinjiang get the most attention。 There seemed to be little on Tajikistan， Turkmenistan， and Kyrgyzstan until the last couple of chapters。 I’m not sure if that’s because of the availability of sources， space concerns， or just the author’s personal interests。I’m not sure about the choice to include so much coverage of Xinjiang。 It makes sense in the pre-1910s period， but this is less than a third of the book。 As I learned from reading this very book， the historical paths of Xinjiang and the other Central Asian states diverged pretty sharply once the Soviet period began。 This results in a disjointed historical narrative in the second half of the book， where every so often there’ll be a chapter to check in on Xinjiang and point out that what’s happening there is basically the opposite of what’s going on in the [post-]Soviet states。 This is probably fine insofar as this book serves as a literature review and reference text， but it makes for a choppy cover-to-cover read。 。。。more
Liam
，
"Over the summer and autumn of 1941， Schutzstaffel （SS） squads -- and， apparently， ordinary soldiers --executed many Muslim prisoners of war because they were circumcised， which to the Nazis proved that they were Jews。 In another instance， a group of Central Asian prisoners were transported to a concentration camp in the Netherlands to be exhibited to Dutch communists as examples of the Untermenschen （"subhumans"） to be found in the Soviet Union。" （274）"The 1960s and 1970s were in many ways a go "Over the summer and autumn of 1941， Schutzstaffel （SS） squads -- and， apparently， ordinary soldiers --executed many Muslim prisoners of war because they were circumcised， which to the Nazis proved that they were Jews。 In another instance， a group of Central Asian prisoners were transported to a concentration camp in the Netherlands to be exhibited to Dutch communists as examples of the Untermenschen （"subhumans"） to be found in the Soviet Union。" （274）"The 1960s and 1970s were in many ways a golden age of Soviet Central Asia， and they are remembered as such -- even if the memory occludes the dark clouds that hung over the future。 。。。 Xinjiang followed a rather different course。 Its incorporation into the PRC inaugurated a period of often violent transformation that had much in common with the fate of Soviet Central Asia in the 1930s。 。。。 The two parts of Central Asia were farther apart in this era than at any other time in history。" （304）"The Han were the most advanced minzu and had the obligation to lead the minorities to progress and socialism。 This formula of "55 minorities + the Han = the PRC" （or "55 + 1 = 1，" for short） became the basic paradigm of the management of national difference in the PRC。 This was a fundamental difference from the Soviet Union。 The Russians had a dominant role in the country -- officially they were designated the elder brothers to all other nationalities and the leading force in the union -- but the state was never conceptualized as a Russian state or as having existed across the centuries as a single entity。 In contrast， the PRC is a Chinese state that is imagined to have existed across time as a unified state。 It belongs to a single Chinese people， which has also existed across time。 The non-Han nationalities are minorities in that nation who do not have an ancestral claim to the territory on which they live。" （362） 。。。more
sube
，
This is a survey of Central Asia - from its imperial conquest by Tsarist Russia， to its period under the Soviet Union and the post-communist present。 Furthermore， the history of East Turkestan/Xinjiang is discussed in parallel to the wider events of Central Asia， which often had a greater connection than to China proper until the PRC era。 The book is well-written and clear to understand despite its length， making it easily able to be read despite the amount of information it provides。 Its focus This is a survey of Central Asia - from its imperial conquest by Tsarist Russia， to its period under the Soviet Union and the post-communist present。 Furthermore， the history of East Turkestan/Xinjiang is discussed in parallel to the wider events of Central Asia， which often had a greater connection than to China proper until the PRC era。 The book is well-written and clear to understand despite its length， making it easily able to be read despite the amount of information it provides。 Its focus is on the USSR， and it presents a quite sympathetic presentation on the effect of it - albeit also discussing the negatives。 At times， I felt it was too uncritical， didn't criticise some things enough， etc。 However， overall， it is a good presentation - even if i wish a broader discussion of the role of cotton in central asian economics under USSR would have been given。 The section of the book on East Turkestan under present day China has some issues， primarily on the internment camps （proposing some internment camp to prison/factory pipeline， which does not however exist）， however it is overall a good summary of the forms of repression seen。 Nonetheless， an erudite read to be given and is a great overview over the region。 。。。more
Jonathan
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An in-depth yet approachable modern history that details the period from the imperial conquests by the Russian empire on one hand and China on the other， through the present day。 As someone without a background in Central Asia， I found the book to be quite informative while presenting a clear narrative through line。 I think that the author demonstrates both the larger historical forces （political， economic， religious） that were at play throughout the time period， as well as the distinctness of d An in-depth yet approachable modern history that details the period from the imperial conquests by the Russian empire on one hand and China on the other， through the present day。 As someone without a background in Central Asia， I found the book to be quite informative while presenting a clear narrative through line。 I think that the author demonstrates both the larger historical forces （political， economic， religious） that were at play throughout the time period， as well as the distinctness of differing parts of the region。 The book shows how Central Asia is not a monolith， nor are common tropes about communism， Islam or remoteness generally applicable。 While I found this to be accessible， there is also much to offer a more expert reader with significant research and thorough detail。 。。。more
Luz
，
Although the book is long—500 pages without notes， index， etc。—and dense， so jam-packed with facts， players and analysis that one might even go so far as to consider it definitive， it is a remarkably easy readSome topics deserve highlighting。 One example is the human and cultural interchange that existed between Russia/Soviet and Chinese Central Asia until the border was sealed in 1962。This book endlessly erudite and fascinating。 4/5 ⭐
Jaylani Adam
，