CENTRAL ASIA IN WORLD HISTORY HIS 340 3 Credits

Spring 2015 Time: M F 1 – 2:20 Place: Melville Library E4320 Instructor: Boris Stremlin Office: SBS S423 Office Hours: M W F 11:15 – 12:15 Phone: (631) 632-7700 Email: boris.stremlin@stonybrook.edu

Overview:

Consigned to the margins of the modern world in the 19th and 20th centuries, the Central Asian region has recently reemerged as a strategically and commercially central area. Located between China, Russia, the Middle East, and India, it has become situated at the crossroads of the global energy system and competing geopolitical blocs. Yet, Central Asia may only be recovering past prominence. Throughout its storied past, the region has served as an unrivaled center of empire building, long-distance trade, and cultural innovation. We will examine this history, focusing on factors such as pastoral nomadism, nomadic empires, the Silk Road, the spread of world religions, and other features that contributed to the development of Eurasia as a whole. In the second half of the course, we will examine the decline of Central Asia, its colonization by China and Russia, its experience with state socialist rule, and finally, the emergence of the independent states in the wake of the Soviet collapse, Our geographic focus will be on the steppe, desert and mountainous regions of Inner Eurasia as a whole, including five post-Soviet “stans” – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, as well as

Afghanistan, Xinjiang, Mongolia, and parts of Iran, Russia, Ukraine, and other neighboring countries.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, the students should be able to:

• Identify the main geographic features, ethnic groups and historical periods in the history of the Central Asian region

• Evaluate the impact of pastoral nomadism, the Silk Road, world religions such as Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Manichaeism, and Islam, Russian and Chinese rule, as well as state socialism and globalization on regional development

• Appraise the impact of Central Asia on wider Eurasian and global processes • Recognize and distinguish the key writers and historiographical approaches in the

field of Central Asian history

Methodology, Conduct, and Evaluation

A) In order to derive maximum benefit, students should attend every class and complete all assigned readings by the appropriate date. This class will be centered on discussion and careful reading of the assigned texts. Frequent lateness, absence, failure to participate in discussion or to complete the reading, and distraction by electronic gadgets will negatively impact your attendance/participation grade (15% of the total). If you do not volunteer to participate, expect to be called on. Finally, do not plan trips any time during the term that will result in your absence!

B) Students will prepare for each class by answering homework questions on the readings. The questions will be posed ahead of time in class or on Blackboard. For full credit, write approximately one double-spaced page. Shorter or incomplete answers will receive a “check minus” (2/3 credit). For extra credit (a “check plus”), extend your writing and incorporate some or all of the following issues:

• Anything that was unclear in the reading or discussion that you would like to examine further

• Anything that you found especially interesting, and would like to investigate at greater length

• Anything that was unexpected, or conflicted with your previous outlook • Anything that resonates with other classes or your personal experience • Any links between topics and issues under discussion that you think weren’t made

(or weren’t underlined strongly enough)

You do not have to hand in homework for every class, but a total of 20 (twenty) submissions are necessary for full credit. No late homework assignments will be accepted under any circumstances.

All written assignments for the class must be completed independently. Any references must be clearly cited, and no plagiarism will be tolerated (see below). If you are not sure whether to cite or not, you should cite – better safe than sorry.

C) There will be two brief in-class map and timeline quizzes during the term. The features to be located on the map or placed in chronological order will be detailed ahead of time. Each quiz is worth 5% of the overall grade.

D) A take-home midterm exam will be handed out prior to Spring Break, and will be due on the first day of class following break. Students will receive five short essay questions, of which they will have to answer three. Students will also be expected to incorporate a certain set of terms into their paper (a list will be provided ahead of time). Each answer must be at least two double-spaced pages long.

E) A take-home final exam will be handed out on the last day of class, and will be due on Friday May 15 at 5 PM. Students will receive seven short essay questions, of which they will have to answer four. Students will also be expected to incorporate a certain set of terms into their paper (a list will be provided ahead of time). Each answer must be at least two double-spaced pages long.

F) Americans with Disabilities Act: If you have a physical, psychological, medical or learning disability that may impact your course work, please contact Disability Support Services, ECC (Educational Communications Center) Building, Room 128, (631)632-6748. They will determine with you what accommodations, if any, are necessary and appropriate. All information and documentation is confidential. https://web.stonybrook.edu/newfaculty/StudentResources/Pages/DisabilitySupportServices.aspx.

G) Academic Integrity: Each student must pursue his or her academic goals honestly and be personally accountable for all submitted work. Representing another person's work as your own is always wrong. Faculty is required to report any suspected instances of academic dishonesty to the Academic Judiciary. For more comprehensive information on academic integrity, including categories of academic dishonesty please refer to the academic judiciary website at http://www.stonybrook.edu/uaa/academicjudiciary/

Note: Any idea, data, contention, or quote not original to you must be clearly referenced and noted in your bibliography. Ignorance of this rule (and university regulations), plagiarism of only a paragraph or a sentence, changing a few words in passages clearly not yours are not valid excuses. Any plagiarized paper will receive a grade of “0”, and be reported to the disciplinary committee. Plagiarism is very easy to detect, so do yourself a favor and don’t try it.

H) Critical Incident Management: Stony Brook University expects students to respect the rights, privileges, and property of other people. Faculty are required to report to the

Office of Judicial Affairs any disruptive behavior that interrupts their ability tot teach, compromises the safety of the learning environment, or inhibits students' ability to learn.

I) If you have any questions about conduct, requirements, or course materials, remember to first consult the syllabus. If you are still uncertain, contact me directly by email, phone, or in person.

Assessment Scheme

Attendance/participation 15% Homework 1% (x20) 20% total Map quizzes 5% (x2) 10% total Midterm exam 25% Final paper 30% Total 100%

Grading Scale

93 or more A 90-92% A- 87-89% B+ 83-86% B

80-82% B- 77-79% C+ 73-76% C 70-72% C- 60-69% D 59 or below F

Required Texts

Peter Golden, Central Asia in World History, Oxford, Oxford University, 2011. Xinru Liu, The Silk Road in World History, Oxford, Oxford University, 2010. All other readings available on Blackboard (check frequently). Subtitled films may be shown during some class meetings. Tentative Schedule (may be altered to accommodate presentations, films, or inclement weather):

Week 1 (1/26, 1/30): Introduction. Spaces and People

Reading (1/26): David Christian, A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia, Vol. I, Oxford and Malden, Blackwell, 1998, pp. 3-20

Peter Golden, Central Asia in World History, Oxford, Oxford University, 2011. pp. 1-9

Week 2 (2/2, 2/6): Ages of Stone. Hunters and Shamans.

Reading (2/2): David Christian, A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia, pp. 23-68

Reading (2/6): Michael Witzel, The Origins of the World’s Mythologies, Oxford, OUP, 2013, pp. 375-430.

Week 3 (2/9, 2/13): Coming of civilization. Cities, priests, and nomads

Reading (2/9): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 9-20 C. C. Lamberg – Karlovsky, “The Oxus Civilization”, CuPAUAM 39, 2013, pp. 21-63

Reading (2/13): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 21-34 Christopher Beckwith, Empires of the Silk Road, Princeton,

Princeton University, 2009, 1-28

Week 4 (2/16, 2/20): The Birth of the Silk Road

Reading (2/16): Xinru Liu, The Silk Road in World History, Oxford, Oxford University, 2010, 1-61

Reading (2/20): Xinru Liu, The Silk Road in World History, pp. 62-86 Susan Whitfield, Life Along the Silk Road, Berkeley,

University of California, 1995, pp. 27-54, 155-173.

Week 5 (2/23, 2/27): The Turkic expansion

Reading (2/23): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 35-49 Carter Findley, The Turks in World History, 21-55

Reading (2/27): Susan Whitfield, Life Along the Silk Road, pp. 55-94

*First Map Quiz in class – 2/27*

Week 6 (3/2, 3/6): The Coming of Islam. A Cosmopolitan society

Reading (3/2): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 50-75 Xinru Liu, The Silk Road in World History, pp. 87-108

Reading (3/6): Scott C. Levi and Ron Sela, eds., Islamic Central Asia: An Anthology of Historical Sources, Bloomington, Indiana University, 2010, pp. 7-16, 28-44, 55-64, 89-100

Week 7 (3/9, 3/13): The Mongol watershed

Reading (3/9): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 76-90

Timothy May, The Mongols in World History, London, Reaktion, 2012, pp. 81- 106 Scott C. Levi and Ron Sela, eds., Islamic Central Asia, pp. 153-158

Reading (3/13): Xinru Liu, The Silk Road in World History, pp. 109-126

Timothy May, The Mongols in World History, 130-157, 232-256

March 16-22 – Spring Break

Week 8 (3/23, 3/27): Post-Mongol reorientations. Gunpowder Empires

Reading (3/23): Timothy May, The Mongols in World History, pp. 199-210 Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 91-104

Scott C. Levi and Ron Sela, eds., Islamic Central Asia, pp.

165-180 *Midterm due in class, 3/23*

Reading (3/27): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 105-121

Scott C. Levi and Ron Sela, eds., Islamic Central Asia, pp. 165-180 Peter Purdue, China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia, Cambridge, Belknap, 2005, pp. 51-74

Week 9 (3/30, 4/3): The excluded middle

Reading (3/30): Johan Elverskog, Islam and Buddhism on the Silk Road, Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, 175-226. Peter Purdue, China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia, Cambridge, Belknap, 2005, pp. 74-93

Reading (4/3): Peter Purdue, China Marches West, pp. 133-173

Week 10 (4/6, 4/10): The closure of Central Asia

Reading (4/6): Peter Purdue, China Marches West, pp. 256-299

Reading (4/10): Michael Khodarkovsky, Russia’s Steppe Frontier: The Making of a Colonial Empire, 1500-1800, 2002, Bloomington, Indiana University, 126-183

Week 11 (4/13, 4/17): The practice of colonialism

Reading (4/13): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 122-131

Andreas Kappeler, The Russian Empire: A Multiethnic History, trans. Alfred Clayton, Harlow, Longman, 2001, pp. 185-200, 234-238, 261-267

Reading (4/17): Peter Hopkirk, The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia, New York, Kodansha, 1990, pp. 57-68, 123-134, 295-306, 502-526

Week 12 (4/20, 4/24): Revolutionary transformation

Reading (4/20): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 131-136

Jeremy Smith, Red Nations: The Nationalities Experience in and after the USSR, Cambridge, Cambridge University, 2013, pp. 53-96

Reading (4/24): Jeremy Smith, Red Nations: The Nationalities Experience

in and after the USSR, pp. 97-121, 147-162

Douglas Northrup, “The Limits of Liberation: Gender, Revolution, and the Veil in Everyday Life in Soviet Uzbekistan in Jeff Sahadeo and Russell Zanca, eds., Everyday Life in Central Asia, 89-102

Week 13 (4/27, 5/1): Socialist modernization

Reading (4/27): Golden, Central Asia in World History, pp. 136-141

Jeremy Smith, Red Nations: The Nationalities Experience in and after the USSR, pp. 189-215

Colin Mackerras, China’s Ethnic Minorities and Globalisation, London, Routledge, 2003, pp. 19-36

Reading (5/1): Jeremy Smith, Red Nations: The Nationalities Experience

in and after the USSR, pp. 216-255 Colin Mackerras, China’s Ethnic Minorities and Globalisation, London, Routledge, 2003, pp. 37-55

*Second Map quiz in class, 5/1*

Week 14 (5/4, 5/8): Independence, globalization, conflict

Reading (5/4): Larry Goodson, Afghanistan’s Endless War: State Failure, Regional Politics, and the Rise of the Taliban, Seattle, University of Washington, 2001, pp. 42-53, 3-22

Jeremy Smith, Red Nations: The Nationalities Experience

in and after the USSR, pp. 282-321

Reading (5/8): Marlene Laruelle and Sebastien Peyrouse, Globalizing Central Asia: Geopolitics and the Challenges of Economic Development, 9-57

TAKE-HOME FINAL PAPER DUE NOON FRIDAY MAY 15th