Practices of the Interaction of Muslim Communities of the Steppes with the Government (The 2nd Half of the 19th – Early 20th Century)

Abstract

Based on the records of the central and local government of the Russian Empire, stored in the Central State Archive of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Russian State Historical Archive, the article analyzes the aspects and practices of interaction between the authorities and Muslim communities of the Steppe Region in the 2nd half of the 19th – early 20th century. Unlike the Orthodox population living in this administrative-territorial division, whose spiritual life was controlled by the officials assigned by the Holy Synod, Muslims were in the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Hence, the regional administration and several central ministries were directly involved in solving the problems of the spiritual life of Muslims of the Steppes. The competence of these authorities included establishing new parish organizations and constructing the worship places, founding confessional schools and religious and charitable societies, and organizing the believers’ pilgrimage to holy places. The legislation regulating the decision-making process for such tasks required submitting a petition to the local authorities, followed by their step-by-step consideration and then resolution. The central aspect of communication between the governing bodies and the Muslim communities was the establishment of the Spiritual Board in the Steppe region. The Kazakh population filed countless petitions to the central government during the first Russian Revolution of 1905–1907. As a result of the petition campaign, the practice of holding special and private meetings with the participation of representatives from authorities and Muslim communities of the region emerged. As sources evidence, when making decisions concerning the Muslims of the Steppe Region, local administrations relied on the trends in ethno-confessional policy implemented by the central government. Therefore, quite often, outcomes did not benefit the local Muslim population. However, in other aspects, the communication between the authorities and the Muslim communities can be characterized as constructive.