Limit this search to....

The New Central Asia: The Creation of Nations
Contributor(s): Roy, Olivier (Author)
ISBN: 0814776094     ISBN-13: 9780814776094
Publisher: New York University Press
OUR PRICE:   $28.50  
Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats
Published: October 2007
Qty:
Annotation: An important book. . . . Required reading for all those with a serious interest in the history and politics of central Asia.
--"Asian Affairs"

Lively and well written.
--"Journal of Islamic Studies"

In a new, revised edition of his acclaimed book, Olivier Roy examines the political development of central Asia, from Russian conquests to the War on Terror and beyond.

During the anti-Gorbachev coup in August 1991, most communist leaders from Soviet central Asia backed the plotters. Within weeks of the coups collapse, those same leaders -- now transformed into ardent nationalists -- proclaimed the independence of their nations, adopted new flags and new slogans, and discovered a new patriotism.

How were these new nations built among peoples without any traditional nationalist heritage and no history of independent governance? Roy argues that Soviet practice had always been to build on local institutions and promote local elites, and that Soviet administration -- as opposed to Soviet rhetoric -- was always surprisingly decentralized in the farflung corners of the empire. Thus, with home-grown political leaders and administrative institutions, national identities in central Asia emerged almost by stealth.

Roys analysis of the new states in central Asia -- Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tadjikstan, Kirghizstan and Azerbaijan -- provides a glimpse of the future of an increasingly fragmented and dangerous region.
Additional Information
BISAC Categories:
- History | Asia - Central Asia
- Political Science | Comparative Politics
- Political Science | World - General
Dewey: 958.04
Physical Information: 0.62" H x 6.36" W x 9.18" (0.95 lbs) 248 pages
Themes:
- Chronological Period - 1990's
- Cultural Region - Asian
- Chronological Period - 21st Century
 
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc.
Publisher Description:

In a new, revised edition of his acclaimed book, Olivier Roy examines the political development of central Asia, from Russian conquests to the "War on Terror" and beyond.
During the anti-Gorbachev coup in August 1991, most communist leaders from Soviet central Asia backed the plotters. Within weeks of the coup's collapse, those same leaders--now transformed into ardent nationalists -- proclaimed the independence of their nations, adopted new flags and new slogans, and discovered a new patriotism.
How were these new nations built among peoples without any traditional nationalist heritage and no history of independent governance? Roy argues that Soviet practice had always been to build on local institutions and promote local elites, and that Soviet administration--as opposed to Soviet rhetoric--was always surprisingly decentralized in the farflung corners of the empire. Thus, with home-grown political leaders and administrative institutions, national identities in central Asia emerged almost by stealth.
Roy's analysis of the new states in central Asia--Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tadjikstan, Kirghizstan and Azerbaijan--provides a glimpse of the future of an increasingly fragmented and dangerous region.

Contributor Bio(s): Roy, Olivier: -

Olivier Roy is Professor at EHESS, the School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences, in Paris. Among his books are The Failure of Political Islam and Globalized Islam: The Search for a New Ummah.