Overview

This is the first volume of field work, based on western ethnological standard, about the Kazakhs of Kazakhstan since Alfred E. Hudson's work published in 1938. The various articles reflect the contemporary life of rural and urban Kazakhs. A common theme is the socio-cultural aspects of how their way of life has changed since independence. The introductory essay by the editor, ethnologist Ingvar Svanberg, presents contemporary Kazakhstan and the Kazakh people. The Danish ethnologists Karen Odgaard and Jens Simonsen, who have conducted field work among academicians in Almaty, discuss how the intellectual elite comprehend Kazakh identity and history and how they cope with social reality. American anthropologist Cynthia Ann Werner, who spent thirteen months of field work in a rural region of Southern Kazakhstan, writes on the role of feasts and gift exchange among contemporary rural Kazakhs. The independence of Kazakhstan prompted the reappearance of religious life and the attendant holidays. Of great political and symbolic importance is the celebration of Naurus; it is becoming increasingly significant in the evolution of a modern Kazakh identity. The contemporary Naurus celebration and its national importance in a multiethnic environment is the topic of Hilda N. Eitzen's contribution to this book, based on field work in various parts of the country. German ethnographer Peter Finke has done enduring field work among Kazakhs in Western Mongolia, an ethnic enclave that has preserved a more traditional life style than their peers in Kazakhstan. Once dependent on its former ally, the Soviet Union, the new geopolitics in the Eurasian continents has therefore made the Mongolian Kazakhs vulnerable, impoverishing many Mongolian Kazakhs to the point where they are abandoning their country in increasing numbers. Soon their traditional way of life in Mongolia will also be forgotten.

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9780700711154

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Reviews

'useful volume It marks the beginning of the emergence of Kazakh studies in the West a subject of importance in its own right.' - Jonathan Aves, Asian Affairs

Author Information

Ingvar Svanberg

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