Identity Politics in Central Asia and the Muslim World: Nationalism, Ethnicity and Labour in the Twentieth Century

by Illen Van Schendel (Editor), Willem Van Schendel (Editor), E. Zurcher (Editor), Erik J. Zürcher (Editor)

Overview

Nationalism was regarded as a positive force shaping "modern" societies and states but in Europe it has been overshadowed by the disasters of two world wars. Outside Europe it has continued to enjoy a heyday throughout the 20th century. Covering Turkey, Iran, Abghazia, Uzbekistan, Tajikstan, Afganistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, this study lays bare the counter-forces unleashed by the project of nationalist modernization, and the stimulation of identity politics as the result of ruthless repression of minority languages, culture, traditions and religion - the life-blood of minority ethnicity. This study examines how these policies, which include Islam as the basis of nation-building in, for example, Pakistan and the post-Pahlavi Iran, have strengthened identity politics and the movements for opting out of the nation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781860642616
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/27/2001
Series:	Library of International Relations , #13
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.62(d)

About the Author

Willem van Schendel is Professor of Asian Studies at the University of Amsterdam.
Erik J. ZUrcher is Professor of Turkish Studies at the University of Leiden and the author of Turkey: A Modern History (I.B.Tauris, 1993).

Editorial Reviews

A workshop called "Opting out of the nation" held in Antalya, Turkey in November 1997, is the origin of this collection of eight papers which addresses issues of nationalism and identity in the complex societies of central, south and west Asia. Individual papers consider the ideological legacy of Soviet rule, the impact of the Karabakh conflict in Azerbaijan, Bengali ethnicity in Pakistan, labor issues in Iran, and the use of fundamentalism by Kermalist Turks. Van Schendel (Asian Studies, U. of Amsterdam) and Z<:u>rcher (Turkish Studies, U. of Leiden) provide an introduction. There is no index. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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