History of Inner Asia

Author: Svatopluk Soucek, Svat Soucek ISBN: 0521651697 Format: Hardcover, 384pp Pub. Date: February 2000 Publisher: Cambridge University Press B&N Price: $75.00

FROM THE PUBLISHER
This accessible introduction to Inner Asia traces its history from the arrival of Islam, through the various dynasties to the Russian conquest. The contemporary focus rests on the seven countries that make up present-day Eurasia: Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Sinkiang and Mongolia. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, renewed interest in these countries has prompted considerable debate. While a divergent literature has evolved, no comprehensive survey of the region exists. This book will fill the gap and become indispensable for anyone studying or visiting the area.

SYNOPSIS
Soucek (Princeton U.) introduces the history and current status of seven countries that suddenly appeared in western consciousness when the Soviet Union collapsed. He includes Mongolia, which was nominally independent but a Soviet satellite, and Sinkiang, which is part of China and so following a different path but is historically and geographically part of the region. The others are Kazakhstan, Uzekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan. He begins with the Kök Turks, the Chinese expansion, and the Arab conquest then describes major events relating to the rise and fall of the Mongols, Timur, and the Russians and extends into post-Soviet independence.