54
Philosophies, Religions and History of India and Central Asia
UNIVERSITÀ DEGLI STUDI DI NAPOLI "L'ORIENTALE"
Overview
Date/time interval
Syllabus
Course Objectives
The course aims to provide basic knowledge related to the geography, society, culture, economy of Central Asia in the late-modern and contemporary period, i.e. the region at the center of the Euro-Asian continent, crossroads of ancient and modern silk roads and trade, and today roughly occupied by the former Soviet socialist republics of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, but also of western China (Xinjiang). Mongolia, Afghanistan and southern Siberia. At the end of the course, students will be able to orient themselves in the physical and linguistic-cultural geography of the region and will know the main historical phases that led to the formation of contemporary Central Asian states.
ABILITY TO APPLY KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Students will have to demonstrate that they know how to orient themselves in the geography of the region and to know its populations and the main historical phases in the pre-colonial, colonial, Soviet and post-Soviet periods. The course program is structured around twenty topics, two of a general nature, eight concerning the period before 1917 and ten after the one. During the evaluation, the ability to understand and know about one or more of the topics covered will be verified. During the course, the preparation of oral presentations and written papers preparatory to the exam is planned (optional), as well as an exercise in physical and political geography.
FURTHER EXPECTED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Making judgements:
Students must demonstrate the ability to link the autonomous study of texts in English related to the topics covered with the in-depth lectures on the same topics. In the written papers, the ability to synthesize and abstract in the understanding of specific historical problems will be required, as well as the ability to synthesize and expose the notions relating to the chosen topics in an autonomous and effective way.
Communication skills:
During the course, students who wish to do so will have the opportunity to deepen their skills of oral presentation in class and written expression through the preparation of one or more written papers. One of these will be presented orally and discussed during the evaluation.
Learning skills:
At the end of the course, students will have practiced independent reading and analysis of study and in-depth texts in English, they will have gained experience (optional) in the autonomous drafting of a written paper with pre-established topics and sources. During the lesson, the indications/knowledge necessary for the preparation of the written paper independently will be transmitted, as well as for the broader contextualization of the chosen topics and the connections between them.
Course Prerequisites
Basic knowledge (secondary school) of the history of Russia and the Soviet Union, as well as basic knowledge of the geography of the former Soviet Central Asian republics (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan), is useful, but not expressly required. The teacher is available to indicate any preparatory and supplementary readings to students interested in independently undertaking the study of the topics of the course before the beginning or during the course
Teaching Methods
Teaching is organized in lectures, partly carried out through the use of power point presentations, and will be supplemented by exercises and written and oral tests for attending students. Handouts for introductory lessons, exercises and feedback for the preparation of written papers are provided during the final phase of the course. Attendance at the course requires the ongoing preparation of the texts of the program (i.e. study and reading of texts of about 15-20 pages in length for each lesson). The detailed timetable of the course will be presented during the introductory lesson.
Assessment Methods
The exam takes place in oral form, in Italian or English. The evaluation is expressed in 30/30ths. Students who have attended the exam can, if they wish, submit a written paper prepared during the semester for the exam. Students will be able to choose the theme of the papers from a list of pre-established topics. The list of topics will be presented during the lessons, together with the methods and evaluation criteria of the paper itself. Students who prepare the paper will begin the oral exam with the presentation of the same. Students who do not submit the written paper will be questioned on the exam program, then on one or more of the twenty topics chosen for the written paper.
Evaluation criteria for the exam with paper: quality of the same, oral presentation, ability to connect the topics addressed in the paper with the general ones of the course
Evaluation criteria for the exam without paper: quality of the oral presentation, knowledge and ability to orient oneself in the exam program, ability to connect specific topics and themes (taken from the list of topics for the papers) with the general themes of the course.
Non-attending students are asked to contact the teacher in time and in any case before booking for the exam. Attendance is strongly recommended.
Texts
Adeeb Khalid: Central Asia. A New History from the Imperial Conquests to the Present. Princeton University Press, 2021
Recommended text for further study:
David Christian: A History of Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia, Volume II Inner Eurasia from the Mongol Empire to Today, 1260-2000, Wiley Blackwell, 2018
Supplementary teaching material and handouts will be made available by the teacher during the course.
Contents
1) Physical and political geography;
2) Peoples of Central Asia: the distinction between nomads and oasis dwellers;
3) Turkish and Iranian languages and minor linguistic groups;
4) Central Asia from the Shaybanids to colonial conquest;
5) Central Asia under Tsarist rule;
6) Islam and Muslim reformism during the colonial period;
7) Central Asia and the 1917 Bolshevik revolution;
8) National delimitation, Sovietization, cultural revolution, agricultural and industrial development
9) Soviet Central Asia during and after WWII
10) After Stalin’s death
11) Brezhnev’s “stagnation period” seen from Soviet Central Asia
12) Perestroika and the end of the USSR
13) The birth of the independent states
Course Language
Italian
More information
There are no explicitly preparatory courses, however the course is particularly suitable in combination with one or more of the courses: History and cultures of pre-modern Central Asia, Turkish language/literature; Persian language/literature; Russian Language and Literature; Arabic language/literature; Chinese language/literature; Mongolian language/literature; Modern and contemporary history of Russia, the Caucasus, Mongolia, China, Afghanistan, the Islamic world.
The course is preparatory to mobility to affiliated universities in Uzbekistan.