Radical Islam In Central Asia

Download Radical Islam In Central Asia full books in PDF, epub, and Kindle. Read online Radical Islam In Central Asia ebook anywhere anytime directly on your device. Fast Download speed and no annoying ads. We cannot guarantee that every ebooks is available!

Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia

Author : Rashid
Publisher : Orient Blackswan
ISBN 13 : 9788125022282
Total Pages : 304 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (222 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia by : Rashid

Download or read book Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia written by Rashid and published by Orient Blackswan. This book was released on 2002 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ahmed Rashid, Who Masterfully Explained Afghanistan S Taliban Regime In His Previous Book, Here Turns His Skills As An Investigative Journalist To The Five Central Asian Republics Adjacent To Afghanistan That Were Part Of The Soviet Union Until Its Collapse In 1991. Religious Repression, Political Corruption, And The Region S Extreme Poverty Have Created A Fertile Climate For Militant Islamic Fundamentalism. Funded And Trained By Organisations Such As Osama Bin Laden S Al Qaeda And The Taliban, Guerrilla Movements Like The Imu (Islamic Movement Of Uzbekistan) Have Recruited A Staggering Number Of Members And Launched Insurgencies That Threaten The Stability Of All Five Nations. Based On Groundbreaking Research And Numerous Interviews, Jihad Explains The Roots Of Fundamentalist Rage In Central Asia, Describes The Goals And Activities Of These Militant Organisations, And Suggests Ways By Which This Threat Can Be Neutralised In The Future Through Diplomatic And Economic Intervention.

Islam after Communism

Author : Adeeb Khalid
Publisher : Univ of California Press
ISBN 13 : 0520957865
Total Pages : 266 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (29 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Islam after Communism by : Adeeb Khalid

Download or read book Islam after Communism written by Adeeb Khalid and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2014-02-08 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How do Muslims relate to Islam in societies that experienced seventy years of Soviet rule? How did the utopian Bolshevik project of remaking the world by extirpating religion from it affect Central Asia? Adeeb Khalid combines insights from the study of both Islam and Soviet history to answer these questions. Arguing that the sustained Soviet assault on Islam destroyed patterns of Islamic learning and thoroughly de-Islamized public life, Khalid demonstrates that Islam became synonymous with tradition and was subordinated to powerful ethnonational identities that crystallized during the Soviet period. He shows how this legacy endures today and how, for the vast majority of the population, a return to Islam means the recovery of traditions destroyed under Communism. Islam after Communism reasons that the fear of a rampant radical Islam that dominates both Western thought and many of Central Asia’s governments should be tempered with an understanding of the politics of antiterrorism, which allows governments to justify their own authoritarian policies by casting all opposition as extremist. Placing the Central Asian experience in the broad comparative perspective of the history of modern Islam, Khalid argues against essentialist views of Islam and Muslims and provides a nuanced and well-informed discussion of the forces at work in this crucial region.

Radical Islam in Central Asia

Author : Vitaliĭ Vi͡acheslavovich Naumkin
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 9780742529304
Total Pages : 308 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (293 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Radical Islam in Central Asia by : Vitaliĭ Vi͡acheslavovich Naumkin

Download or read book Radical Islam in Central Asia written by Vitaliĭ Vi͡acheslavovich Naumkin and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2005 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This original study by distinguished scholar Vitaly V. Naumkin offers an authoritative analysis of the key militant Islamic organizations in Central Asia. Long veiled in secrecy, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Hizb at-Tahrir al-Islami, and the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan are illuminated here for the first time. Drawing on his extensive fieldwork and an unprecedented array of Central Asian primary sources, the author thoroughly compares their doctrines, power bases, and political practices. The book also explores the history of political Islam in Central Asia and explains the concurrent roots of Islamic militancy from the early disputes between Salafis and traditionalists, through the period of Islamic revival in the late 1980s when radical groups first emerged, and up to their growing strength today. Naumkin analyzes the human dimension in Central Asian Islam through the lives of the most significant theologians, mullahs, underground preachers, and teachers in the region, evaluating their role in the spread of Islamic radicalism. Providing fresh insight into the balance between peaceful and militant means of struggle for power used by Islamic movements, the author considers into the possibility of dialogue with the Islamists and the outcome of the 'Tajik experiment' that brought former Islamic radicals into the government. All those interested in the development of political Islam will find this study an invaluable resource.

Islam, Society, and Politics in Central Asia

Author : Pauline Jones
Publisher : University of Pittsburgh Press
ISBN 13 : 0822981963
Total Pages : 341 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (229 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Islam, Society, and Politics in Central Asia by : Pauline Jones

Download or read book Islam, Society, and Politics in Central Asia written by Pauline Jones and published by University of Pittsburgh Press. This book was released on 2017-07-20 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: During the 1990s, there was a general consensus that Central Asia was witnessing an Islamic revival after independence, and that this occurrence would follow similar events throughout the Islamic world in the prior two decades, which had negative effects on both social and political development. Twenty years later, we are still struggling to fully understand the transformation of Islam in a region that's evolved through a complex and dynamic process, involving diversity in belief and practice, religious authority, and political intervention. This volume seeks to shed light on these crucial questions by bringing together an international group of scholars to offer a fresh perspective on Central Asian states and societies. The chapters provide analysis through four distinct categories: the everyday practice of Islam across local communities; state policies toward Islam, focusing on attempts to regulate public and private practice through cultural, legal, and political institutions and how these differ from Soviet policies; how religious actors influence communities in the practice of Islam, state policies towards the religion, and subsequent communal responses to state regulations; and how knowledge of and interaction with the larger Islamic world is shaping Central Asia's current Islamic revival and state responses. The contributors, a multidisciplinary and international group of leading scholars, develop fresh insights that both corroborate and contradict findings from previous research, while also highlighting the problem of making any generalizations about Islam in individual states or the region. As such, this volume provides new and impactful analysis for scholars, students, and policy makers concerned with Central Asia.

Political Islam in Central Asia

Author : Emmanuel Karagiannis
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 0415553997
Total Pages : 172 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (155 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Political Islam in Central Asia by : Emmanuel Karagiannis

Download or read book Political Islam in Central Asia written by Emmanuel Karagiannis and published by . This book was released on 2010-01 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The terrorist attacks in the United States on 9/11 and the U.S.-led military campaign against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan have intensified scrutiny of radical Islamic groups across Central Asia. This books offers one of the first comprehensive studies of the activities of one of the most feared - but least understood - inernational Islamist organizations in post-Soviet Central Asia: Hizb ut-Tahrir, that is The Party of Islamic Liberation. By utilizing social movement theory, the book analyses political Islam in Central Asia in general, and the phenomenon of Hizb ut-Tahrir in particular. It reveals the critical role of its ideology (based on a selective interpretation of Islamic theology and history) in the partyâ€™s recruiting success. Using primary sources, including the groupâ€™s publications and documents, official reports, alongside interviews with scholars, security experts, mullahs, journalists, diplomats, government officials and group members, it covers the rise of political Islam in the post-Soviet Central Asia, alongside the origins and current status of Hizb ut-Tahrir - its leadership, ideology, political methodology and party structure and its rise in the region from Kazakhstan to Russia and China. Although the organization has received less international examination partly because it has advocated a non-violent approach toward its goals, this book sketches its prospective future relationship to violence in this key region.

Islam in Central Asia and the Caucasus Since the Fall of the Soviet Union

Author : Bayram Balci
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN 13 : 019091727X
Total Pages : 260 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (99 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Islam in Central Asia and the Caucasus Since the Fall of the Soviet Union by : Bayram Balci

Download or read book Islam in Central Asia and the Caucasus Since the Fall of the Soviet Union written by Bayram Balci and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2018 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides a sophisticated account of both the internal dynamics and external influences in the evolution of Islam in the region

The Return of Foreign Fighters to Central Asia

Author : Thomas Lynch
Publisher : Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN 13 : 9781542915311
Total Pages : 44 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (153 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Return of Foreign Fighters to Central Asia by : Thomas Lynch

Download or read book The Return of Foreign Fighters to Central Asia written by Thomas Lynch and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2017-02-03 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Central Asia is the third largest point of origin for Salafi jihadist foreign fighters in the conflagration in Syria and Iraq, with more than 4,000 total fighters joining the conflict since 2012 and 2,500 reportedly arriving in the 2014-2015 timeframe alone. As the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) continues to lose territory under duress from U.S.-led anti-ISIL coalition activities, some predict that many may return home bent on jihad and generating terror and instability across Central Asia. Yet several factors indicate that such an ominous foreign fighter return may not materialize. Among these factors are that a majority of Central Asians fighting for ISIL and the al-Nusra Front in Syria and Iraq are recruited while working abroad in Russia, often from low-wage jobs under poor conditions making the recruits ripe for radicalization. In addition, many of those heading for jihad in Syria and the Levant expect that they are on a "one way journey," some to martyrdom but most for a completely new life, and do not plan a return. Most Central Asian states face their greatest risk of domestic instability and violent extremism as a reaction to political repression and counterterrorism (CT) policies that counterproductively conflate political opposition and the open practice of Islam with a domestic jihadist threat. If improperly calibrated, greater U.S. CT assistance to address foreign fighter returns may strengthen illiberal regime short-term focus on political power consolidation, overplay the limited risks of foreign fighter returns, and increase the risks of domestic unrest and future instability. The United States has few means to pressure Central Asian regimes into policies that address the main drivers of domestic radicalization, such as political inclusion and religious freedom. Although an imperfect instrument, U.S. security assistance-and the specific subset of CT assistance-is a significant lever. U.S. CT assistance for Central Asia should eschew additional general lethal assistance and instead scope security attention toward border security intelligence and physical capacity enhancements. This CT aid should be paired with important, complementary socioeconomic programs that help with countering violent extremism, including greater religious and political openness along with support for the Central Asian diaspora.

Soviet and Muslim

Author : Eren Tasar
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190652101
Total Pages : 433 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (96 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Soviet and Muslim by : Eren Tasar

Download or read book Soviet and Muslim written by Eren Tasar and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2017 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: World War II and Islamically informed Soviet patriotism -- Institutionalizing Soviet Islam, 1944-1958 -- SADUM's new ambitions, 1943-1958 -- The anti-religious campaign, 1959-1964 -- The muftiate on the international stage -- The Brezhnev Era and its aftermath, 1965-1989

Religion, Conflict, and Stability in the Former Soviet Union

Author : Katya Migacheva
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780833099846
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (998 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Religion, Conflict, and Stability in the Former Soviet Union by : Katya Migacheva

Download or read book Religion, Conflict, and Stability in the Former Soviet Union written by Katya Migacheva and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Religion has become increasingly important in the sociopolitical life of countries in the former Soviet Union. This volume of essays examines how religion affects conflict and stability in the region and provides recommendations to policymakers.

The Islamic State in Khorasan

Author : Antonio Giustozzi
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 1787380955
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (873 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Islamic State in Khorasan by : Antonio Giustozzi

Download or read book The Islamic State in Khorasan written by Antonio Giustozzi and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018-08-01 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: So-called Islamic State began to appear in what it calls Khorasan (Afghanistan, Pakistan, Central Asia, Iran and India) in 2014. Reports of its presence were at first dismissed as propaganda, but during 2015 it became clear that IS had a serious presence in Afghanistan and Pakistan at least. This book, by one of the leading experts on Islamist insurgency in the region, explores the nature of IS in Khorasan, its aim and strategies, and its evolution in an environment already populated by many jihadist organisations. Based on first-hand research and numerous interviews with members of IS in Khorasan, as well as with other participants and observers, the book addresses highly contentious issues such as funding, IS's relationship with the region's authorities, and its interactions with other insurgent groups. Giustozzi argues that the central leadership of IS invested significant financial resources in establishing its own branch in Khorasan, and as such it is more than a local movement which adopted the IS brand for its own aims. Though the central leadership has been struggling in implementing its project, it is now turning towards a more realistic approach. This is the first book on a new frontier in Islamic State's international jihad.

Radical Islam in the Former Soviet Union

Author : Galina M. Yemelianova
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 113518285X
Total Pages : 427 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (351 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Radical Islam in the Former Soviet Union by : Galina M. Yemelianova

Download or read book Radical Islam in the Former Soviet Union written by Galina M. Yemelianova and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2009-12-16 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first comprehensive and comparative examination of Islamic radicalisation in the Muslim regions of the former Soviet Union since the end of Communism. Since the 1990s, the ex-Soviet Muslim Volga-Urals, Caucasus and Central Asia have been among the most volatile and dynamic zones of Islamic radicalisation in the Islamic East. Although partially driven by a wider Islamic resurgence which began in the late 1970s in the Middle East, the book argues that radicalisation is a post-Soviet phenomenon triggered by the collapse of Communism, and the break-up of the de facto unitary Soviet empire. The book considers the considerable differences in perceptions and manifestations of radical Islam in the republics, as well as the level of its doctrinal and political impact. It demonstrates how the particular histories of the regions’ Muslim peoples - especially the length and depth of their Islamisation - have influenced the nature and scope of their radicalisation. Other significant factors include the mobilising power of the global jihadist network, and most significantly the level of social and economic hardship. Based on extensive empirical research including interviews with leading members of the political and religious elite, the Islamist opposition as well as ordinary muslims, the book reveals how unofficial radical Islam has turned into a potent ideology of social mobilisation. It identifies the different dynamics at work and how these relate to each other, assesses the level of foreign involvement and evaluates the implications of the rise of Islamic radicalism for particular post-Soviet states, post-Soviet Eurasia and the wider international community.

Handbook of Contemporary Islam and Muslim Lives

Author : Ronald Lukens-Bull
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 9783030326258
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (262 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Handbook of Contemporary Islam and Muslim Lives by : Ronald Lukens-Bull

Download or read book Handbook of Contemporary Islam and Muslim Lives written by Ronald Lukens-Bull and published by Springer. This book was released on 2021-08-25 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a comprehensive handbook which for the first time provides a general yet detailed discussion of contemporary Islam and various aspects of Muslim lives. It offers a much needed tool for an introduction to the world of contemporary Muslim life and debate, and a link of continuity between the Muslim world and Muslims living and born in the West. The reader gains access to articles by leading scholars who observe phenomena in a post-9/11 context and from a global viewpoint. The topics have been carefully selected to provide the reader with both the necessary general view that a good handbook must offer while presenting details and information, as well as ethnographic examples, to inspire further research and interest. Indeed, each chapter will offer topical reading suggestions from which one can expand the material discussed in the chapter. The approach of the handbook is mainly social-anthropological, but attention is given to other disciplines like history, geography, political studies, as well as gender studies and cultural studies.

Central Asia

Author : Adeeb Khalid
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691235198
Total Pages : 576 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (912 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Central Asia by : Adeeb Khalid

Download or read book Central Asia written by Adeeb Khalid and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2022-11-29 with total page 576 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.

The History and Culture of Iran and Central Asia

Author : D. G. Tor
Publisher : University of Notre Dame Pess
ISBN 13 : 0268202087
Total Pages : 398 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (682 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The History and Culture of Iran and Central Asia by : D. G. Tor

Download or read book The History and Culture of Iran and Central Asia written by D. G. Tor and published by University of Notre Dame Pess. This book was released on 2022-04-15 with total page 398 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume examines the major cultural, religious, political, and urban changes that took place in the Iranian world of Inner and Central Asia in the transition from the pre-Islamic to the Islamic periods. One of the major civilizations of the first millennium was that of the Iranian linguistic and cultural world, which stretched from today’s Iraq to what is now the Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China. No other region of the world underwent such radical transformation, which fundamentally altered the course of world history, as this area did during the centuries of transition from the pre-Islamic to the Islamic period. This transformation included the religious victory of Islam over Buddhism, Nestorian Christianity, and the other religions of the area; the military and political wresting of Inner Asia from the Chinese to the Islamic sphere of primary cultural influence; and the shifting of Central Asia from a culturally and demographically Iranian civilization to a Turkic one. This book contains essays by many of the preeminent scholars working in the fields of archeology, history, linguistics, and literature of both the pre-Islamic and the Islamic-era Iranian world, shedding light on some of the most significant aspects of the major changes that this important portion of the Asian continent underwent during this tumultuous era in its history. This collection of cutting-edge research will be read by scholars of Middle Eastern, Central Asian, Iranian, and Islamic studies and archaeology. Contributors: D. G. Tor, Frantz Grenet, Nicholas Sims-Williams, Etsuko Kageyama, Yutaka Yoshida, Michael Shenkar, Minoru Inaba, Rocco Rante, Arezou Azad, Sören Stark, Louise Marlow, Gabrielle van den Berg, and Dilnoza Duturaeva.

The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform

Author : Adeeb Khalid
Publisher : Univ of California Press
ISBN 13 : 9780520920897
Total Pages : 364 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (28 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform by : Adeeb Khalid

Download or read book The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform written by Adeeb Khalid and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1999-01-01 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Adeeb Khalid offers the first extended examination of cultural debates in Central Asia during Russian rule. With the Russian conquest in the 1860s and 1870s the region came into contact with modernity. The Jadids, influential Muslim intellectuals, sought to safeguard the indigenous Islamic culture by adapting it to the modern state. Through education, literacy, use of the press and by maintaining close ties with Islamic intellectuals from the Ottoman empire to India, the Jadids established a place for their traditions not only within the changing culture of their own land but also within the larger modern Islamic world. Khalid uses previously untapped literary sources from Uzbek and Tajik as well as archival materials from Uzbekistan, Russia, Britain, and France to explore Russia's role as a colonial power and the politics of Islamic reform movements. He shows how Jadid efforts paralleled developments elsewhere in the world and at the same time provides a social history of the Jadid movement. By including a comparative study of Muslim societies, examining indigenous intellectual life under colonialism, and investigating how knowledge was disseminated in the early modern period, The Politics of Muslim Cultural Reform does much to remedy the dearth of scholarship on this important period. Interest in Central Asia is growing as a result of the breakup of the former Soviet Union, and Khalid's book will make an important contribution to current debates over political and cultural autonomy in the region.

Securitization of Islam: A Vicious Circle

Author : Kathrin Lenz-Raymann
Publisher : transcript Verlag
ISBN 13 : 3839429048
Total Pages : 325 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (394 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Securitization of Islam: A Vicious Circle by : Kathrin Lenz-Raymann

Download or read book Securitization of Islam: A Vicious Circle written by Kathrin Lenz-Raymann and published by transcript Verlag. This book was released on 2014-12-31 with total page 325 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Diverse Islamic groups have triggered a »revival of Islam« in Central Asia in the last decades. As a result, there has been a general securitization of Islam by the governments: not only do they combat the terrorist Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan but also outlaw popular groups such as the Gülen movement. However, strong repression of religion might lead to radicalization. Kathrin Lenz-Raymann tests this hypothesis with an agent-based computer simulation and enriches her study with interviews with international experts, leaders of political Islam and representatives of folk Islam. She concludes that ensuring religious rights is essential for national security.

Muslim Women of the Fergana Valley

Author : Vladimir Nalivkin
Publisher : Indiana University Press
ISBN 13 : 0253021499
Total Pages : 242 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (53 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Book Synopsis Muslim Women of the Fergana Valley by : Vladimir Nalivkin

Download or read book Muslim Women of the Fergana Valley written by Vladimir Nalivkin and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2016-07-04 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Muslim Women of the Fergana Valley is the first English translation of an important 19th-century Russian text describing everyday life in Uzbek communities. Vladimir and Maria Nalivkin were Russians who settled in a "Sart" village in 1878, in a territory newly conquered by the Russian Empire. During their six years in Nanay, Maria Nalivkina learned the local language, befriended her neighbors, and wrote observations about their lives from birth to death. Together, Maria and Vladimir published this account, which met with great acclaim from Russia's Imperial Geographic Society and among Orientalists internationally. While they recognized that Islam shaped social attitudes, the Nalivkins never relied on common stereotypes about the "plight" of Muslim women. The Fergana Valley women of their ethnographic portrait emerge as lively, hard-working, clever, and able to navigate the cultural challenges of early Russian colonialism. Rich with social and cultural detail of a sort not available in other kinds of historical sources, this work offers rare insight into life in rural Central Asia and serves as an instructive example of the genre of ethnographic writing that was emerging at the time. Annotations by the translators and an editor's introduction by Marianne Kamp help contemporary readers understand the Nalivkins' work in context.