Table of Contents

Note on Translation and Transliteration
Map
Introduction
Part 1. Central Asia in the Early Islamic Period, Seventh–Tenth Centuries
Introduction
A. Central Asia and the Arab Conquests
B. Central Asia under the Samanids
C. The Age of Learning
Part 2. Encounter with the Turks
Introduction
A. Turkic Peoples of the Steppe
B. Qarakhanids: The First Turkic Muslim State in Central Asia
C. Central Asia in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries
Part 3. The Mongol Empire
Introduction
A. Temujin and the Rise of the Mongol Empire
Part 4. Timur and the Timurids
Introduction
A. Timur's Rise and Rule
B. Central Asia in the Fifteenth Century
Part 5. Central Asia in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries
Introduction
A. The Shïbanids and Central Asian Society in the Sixteenth Century
B. Central Asia in the Seventeenth Century
Part 6. Central Asia in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
Introduction
A. The Age of Transition
B. The Uzbek Tribal Dynasties
C. The "Great Game" to Russian Rule
Glossary
Index

Promotional Information

A valuable resource for the study of Central Asian history

About the Author

Scott C. Levi is Associate Professor of Central Asian History at The Ohio State University. He is author of The Indian Diaspora in Central Asia and Its Trade, 1550–1900 and editor of India and Central Asia: Commerce and Culture, 1500–1800.

Ron Sela is Assistant Professor of Central Asian History in the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University Bloomington. He is author of The Legendary Biographies of Tamerlane: Islam and Heroic Apocrypha in Central Asia.

Reviews

"This careful compilation includes court chronicles, memoirs, legal documents, poetry, and more. The breadth of the coverage skillfully illustrates how Central Asia today is the result of many cultures, languages, and ethnicities... Summing Up: Essential. A must for collections on Central Asia." Choice "[T]his is a fascinating and much-needed collection." Central Asian Survey "[T]he anthology is set up in an exemplary manner and the sources describe the extensive history ... [It] will occupy an important place in studies on the history of Central Asia, the expansion of Islam, and the relationship between the peoples in the Islamic cultural world ..." Asiatische Studien / Etudes Asiatiques "A much-needed, long overdue and impressive anthology of translations from sources by and about Muslim Central Asians. The editors have chosen well, providing access to many materials not previously available in English and covering the region in depth. This volume will be required reading for courses on Central Asia." Peter B. Golden, Rutgers University "Islamic Central Asia: An Anthology of Historical Sources is a needed resource for students of Central Asia and should find a large audience. The selection of previously translated materials is well thought out, the introductions to each section and each selection are elegant and erudite, and the more than twenty new translations are particularly welcome. The co-editors are to be warmly commended for making such a rich compendium available." Robert D. McChesney, New York University "Levi and Sela's well-chosen and vividly translated collection takes pedagogy on Central Eurasia beyond philology to history, making a wealth of sources available to students for the first time. They have thrown open the iron gates of Islamic Central Asia to hordes of new readers." James A. Millward, Georgetown University "Situated at the heart of the so-called Silk Road, the peoples of Central Asia witnessed numerous invasions, migrations, and exchanges of religions and cultures, goods and technologies. Central Asia has been exoticized in the Westoand in the Eastoand has captivated the imagination of many. While emphasizing some of the remarkable aspects of Central Asian history, this anthology also examines daily lives in periods of great achievements and important transformations as well as times of crisis, strife and isolation." from the introduction