Abstract

The purpose of this study is to show that the colonial policy implemented after the annexation of Central Asia by the Russian Empire in the 19th century was applied in different ways in the Kazakh steppe and West Turkistan, which are two regions that compose Central Asia. For this purpose, the process of the annexation of the Kazakh steppe and West Turkistan into the Russian Empire, the implementation system of political, economic, social, religious and cultural policies, and differences in administrative divisions were examined. And as a result, we came to the following conclusions:<BR> Firstly, although the Kazakh steppe and West Turkistan had historically interacted for a long time, there was no experience of integrating these regions into one space before the 19<SUP>th</SUP> century.<BR> Secondly, at the beginning of the 19th century, the Tsarist Empire regarded the Kazakh nomadic settlements that had been served Russia and paid tribute(yasak) since the beginning of the 18th century as the territory where the suzerainty of the empire was established. Based on this recognition, the imperial government demarcated the Kazakh Steppe into administrative divisions according to the Russian system, and focused on spreading Russian culture and Orthodox Christian beliefs.<BR> On the other hand, thirdly, in Western Turkistan, which was conquered by the Russian expeditionary force in the middle of the 19th century, it showed a change in the introduction of a protectorate system along with the demarcation of Russian administrative divisions. In addition, in the social and religious aspects, a relatively moderate policy of colonial rule was pursued, such as acknowledging some of the power of the indigenous elites and implementing a policy of ‘disregard (игнорирование)’ which implicitly acknowledged Islamic beliefs.<BR> Fourthly, despite these differences, what the Russian Empire was trying to establish in Central Asia was a European colonial system. As a result, the foundation for the formation of Central Asia as a space and Central Asians as a community, which had never appeared in the past, was laid in this region in the 19<SUP>th</SUP> century.

Full Text
Paper version not known

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.