Historical Background of Formation and Development of Medieval Cities in Zhetysu (Semirechye) and South Kazakhstan

Abstract

The present research was based on archaeological and written sources and featured the prerequisites of medieval urbanization of Zhetysu, or Semirechye, and South Kazakhstan. The local urbanization was influenced by political, economic, and social processes. In the political sphere, the factors included: onset and development of state units; political and ideological inclusion of society; better external security; regulation of legal and tax activities, which created a single economic mechanism for reproductive economy, etc. In the economic sphere, the important factors of urban development corresponded with the so-called second stage of the agrarian revolution, i.e. transition from primitive to intensive manual agriculture; use of arable tools with iron ploughshares and sled animals; popularization of irrigation; cultivation of grain and industrial crops; better storage and grain processing, etc. As for the social sphere, the period was marked by degradation of tribal relations. As a result, early class society was beginning to form. This new type of social relations was based not on family ties but on economic contacts, which contributed to the formation of the social structure of medieval cities, e.g. strata of artisans, merchants, administrative elite, priests, etc. The analysis of sources showed that the main historical prerequisites for the urban development of Semirechye and South Kazakhstan were formed in the early Middle Ages. However, their formation was rather irregular and depended on the exact area.