Social History of the Kazakh Steppe in the 19th - Early 20th Centuries as a Factor in the Formation of Historical Memory

Session Submission Type: Panel

Brief Description

We will discuss two important points: whether the imperial authorities played a major role in stimulating education or whether the Kazakh nomadic elite saw new opportunities in the social space of the Empire in sending their children to Russian educational institutions. And accordingly, questions arise: were the Empire’s goals of creating a new social group adapted to Russian realities, who gained access to service in the colonial administration, realized, or did the authorities see a different result that did not match their expectations. The educational policies of the Empire did indeed create the conditions for the emergence of a new social layer, but this group eventually transcended the colonial system, becoming the driving force of national awakening. We examine the experiences of Kazakh students in the imperial universities during the late imperial period, focusing on their role as agents of cultural and intellectual change. It explores how these students navigated the dual pressures of preserving their Kazakh identity while engaging with the modernizing influences of the imperial center. By analyzing their social interactions, educational experiences, and participation in intellectual circles, the study investigates how these young individuals contributed to the formation of a shared historical memory and shaped the trajectory of Kazakh national identity. And on the case of Semirechensk region we discuss of the contradictory nature of the image of Kazakh officials in the 2nd half of the XIX and early XX centuries in archival documents.. and in the materials of oral folk art.

Sub Unit

• History: 1800-1900

Chair

• Paul William Werth, U of Nevada, Las Vegas

Papers

• Was the Kazakh 'Educated Class' a Product of the Russian Empire’s Social 'Engineering' in the Steppe? - Gulmira Salimzhanovna Sultangalieva, al-Farabi Kazakh National U (Kazakhstan)

• Navigating Dual Identities: The Social Adaptation of Kazakh Students in the Imperial Capital City - Ulzhan Tuleshova, al-Farabi Kazakh National U (Kazakhstan)

• The Image of Kazakh Officials in the Semirechensk Oblast: Materials from Oral Folklore versus Archival Data - Miras Abdrakhim, Zhetysu U (Kazakhstan)

Discussant

• Rebekah Ramsay, UC Berkeley