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Paper abstract:

Islam has been disseminated among small number of individuals for decades in Central Asia. The glasnost played crucial role in Islamic revivalism and the method of spreading Islamic thought has gradually shifted from hujras to wider society through leaflets, tape cassette and emerging mosques during late 80’s and early 90’s. Subsequently, Islam become not only social issue but political phenomenon in the region. The governments of newly independent states of Central Asia faced challenge from the radical Islamists and took measures to minimize role of religion in their respective societies. However, today we observe the second Islamic revivalism in Central Asia that is attached not only with the developed self-confidence of governments but also available infrastructure for dissemination of Islamic thought. This paper analyzes selected Muslim intellectuals’ YouTube channels in Uzbek language and argues that contemporary Islamic revivalism is comprehensive and penetrative in nature. For instance, YouTube channel of Abror Muhtor Aliy who is based in Uzbekistan has more than 400 thousand subscribers and his videos reached 66 million views. Another channel, “Ixlos TV” contain videos of Sodiq Samarqandiy who is based in Turkey and has 89 million views. Similar numbers can be observed in “Osh mTv” that posts voices of Abdulloh domla who is based in southern Kyrgyzstan. The contemporary trends in these videos are that discussions are not specifically about the philosophies and doctrines of Islam but concentrate daily lives, political as well as international events. They engage in debates among each other, put effort in increasing number of subscribers. These channels becoming authority for significant portion of Uzbek speaking communities. The followers have been mobilized in number of occasions including in humanitarian support during pandemic and anti-LGBTQ activities in Tashkent. The topics of the videos are transforming from understanding Islam towards attitude of Islam to ongoing social, political, and international processes.

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Paper abstract:

The article attempts to analyze the attitude towards women among men in Kyrgyzstan and Iran on the basis of a very short research conducted in the city of Qum, Iran, among Iranian professors, both men and women.

Despite the fact that Kyrgyzstan experienced secularism in a very important historical period in the formation of its statehood during the Soviet Union, the construction of Independent Kyrgyzstan began with two opposite processes. On the one hand, Kyrgyzstan, from the very beginning, chose the path of the greatest introduction of democratic institutions in comparison with other countries of Central Asia. However, along with democracy, opposite processes began in the country, namely, the growing and strengthening Islamization of the consciousness of the population, and especially young people.

The revival of Islamic identity in post-Soviet Central Asia revived the patriarchal mentality in these societies towards women. The level of influence of Islam on women's rights may differ from one Central Asian country to another.

The article includes general conclusions based on the results of the field research, using the methods of participant observation, unstructured interviews, as well as a comparative analysis of the understanding of women's rights in Kyrgyzstan and among Iranian professors.

One of the recommendations is to use the methodology of Islamic hermeneutic feminism as possible effective tools for protecting the rights of women in Muslim countries.

Key words: Islamic identity, patriarchal mentality, discrimination, women's rights, Islamic hermeneutic feminism.