What shapes Uzbek national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Uzbek national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]

What shapes Kyrgyz national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Kyrgyz national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]

Uzbekistan’s ancient pottery and ceramics offer a window into the deep history and vibrant cultural evolution of Central Asia, connecting the ingenuity of early Silk Road societies to modern-day artistic traditions. The remarkable discoveries unearthed by archaeologists, from Hellenistic-era pottery fragments at the Uzundara Fortress to the intricately glazed ceramics of Rishton and Afrasiyab, reveal […]

Most of Uzbekistan’s holidays are recognizable from the old Soviet calendar, although they have been moved, refocused, and/or renamed to now celebrate Uzbekistan’s independent, post-1991 history and culture rather than that of the USSR. The major exceptions to this are two major Islamic holidays and the ancient Persian New Year celebrations that have now been […]

Kyrgyz holidays include many inherited from the USSR (although most of those have changed their form at least slightly). Kyrgyz holidays also include many adopted from Russian culture. However, many holidays have now been added to the calendar to celebrate patriotism toward independent Kyrgyzstan and Kyrgyzstan’s long-held Muslim heritage. Thus, Soviet, national, Orthodox, Muslim, modern, […]

Fruit leather is simple, ancient food. Like bread and roasted meat, it likely independently evolved in several places. At its most basic, it is simply mashed fruit smeared to a sheet and left to dry in the sun. The result is a flavor-intensive food that travels well and can keep for months. The oldest known […]

What shapes Azerbaijani national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Azerbaijani national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]

The Talking Phrasebook Series presents useful phrases and words in side-by-side translation and with audio files specifically geared to help students work on listening skills and pronunciation. Below, you will find several useful phrases and words. To the left is the English and to the far right is the Azerbaijani translation. In the center column […]

What shapes Kazakh national identity? The answer is complex and personal, but one key element is the Kazakh national narrative. This includes the heroes and pivotal events taught in schools, the places central to the nation’s collective memory, and the language and beliefs that frame its worldview. A national narrative goes beyond history: it is […]

In this text, Tajik blogger Roxana Burkhanova describes, in Russian, the history and religions under the USSR. Despite the state’s officially athiestic policies, multiple religions existed within the USSR. Since that empire’s demise, all of those religions are now experiencing a revival. The material below details how this came to pass. This is part of […]

In this text, Tajik blogger Roxana Burkhanova describes, in Russian, the history and current status of Muslims in Russia. Islam is the largest minority faith in Russia and Muslims are a growing and important demographic there, especially among immigrants from Central Asia. The material below details both the challenges that Muslims have faced in integrating […]

The Talking Phrasebook Series presents useful phrases and words in side-by-side translation and with audio files specifically geared to help students work on listening skills and pronunciation. Below, you will find several useful phrases and words. To the left is the English and to the far right is the Kazakh translation. In the center column […]