Construction of National and Personal Identities: Oral History of Jewish Women in Soviet Tajikistan, 1940s-1980s

• In Event: Gender, Labor, and Identity in Soviet Central Asia and the Caucasus

Abstract

For centuries, Jewish people have flourished in Tajikistan. Among them are the Bukharan Jews, a regional minority with Persian roots. However, the history of Bukharan Jews who converted to Islam, known as the Chalah, remains largely understudied. This study examines oral history interviews with women of Chalah background to investigate the fluidity of personal identities in predominantly Muslim Tajikistan during the Soviet period.

Author

• Zamira Abman, San Diego State U