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Abstract

The object of the study is the Greek Catholic community of Karaganda city in Kazakhstan. It emerged after repressions and resettlements of residents of Western Ukraine, accused of links with the "nationalist underground" in 1944-1955. Special resettlers were not only participants of anti-Soviet partisan formations, but also their relatives. A significant part of the descendants of the special resettlers underwent Russification and assimilation. At the same time, many Ukrainians managed to preserve their historical memory and national identity. In this they were helped by the underground Greek Catholic Ukrainian Church, which was banned in the USSR. The subject of this study is the role of this church in preserving the ethno-cultural memory of Central Asian Ukrainians.

The research was carried out within the framework of the project "Preservation of the ethnocultural memory of Ukrainian special resettlers during the underground activities of the Greek Catholic Church in Soviet Central Asia" supported by the Gerda Henkel Foundation (Germany).

Memories of people of different generations, including survivors of repression and resettlement, as well as their children and grandchildren, were collected and analyzed. Practices of underground church life, extra-church rituals were studied. Material artifacts supporting historical memory in Ukrainian families (embroideries, prayer books, icons, rosaries, etc.) were recorded. Narratives of collective ethno-cultural memory, usually transmitted orally from the older to the younger generation, were identified and analyzed. A case deserves special attention when the Greek Catholics of Karaganda managed to serve the liturgy openly in a newly built Roman Catholic church (1980-1985).

The study made it possible to reconstruct the life of Greek Catholics who held catacomb services, to study the activities of the most prominent church figures, priests and bishops, and to analyze their role in the preservation and transmission of historical memory over three generations. The methodology of the research is determined by traditional approaches and tools for memory studies.

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Abstract

In the survey, the structure of religious enrichment of the Bukhara Emirate in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is highlighted based on historical sources, archival documents, and contemporary studies. (In numerous international historical sources, the “Bukhara Emirate” is modified to the “Bukhara Khanate” as one of the Central Asian khanates. These terms have the same meaning, but in local sources, the term "Emirate of Bukhara" refers to the period during the Manghit dynasty (1756-1920)).

In the historiography of the Soviet era, the Emirate of Bukhara is described as a conservative state that adheres only to Islam. However, Bukhara has long been not only the center of Islam but also the location of Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Hinduism, and Christianity.

By the second half of the 19th century, when the Emirate of Bukhara became a Russian protectorate, Orthodox Christianity spread in the region. Consequently, the number of churches, their houses of worship, also increased. This was due to the establishment of Russian settlements (colonies) in Bukhara since 1888. Contemporary research and documents indicate that representatives of more than twenty nationalities were transferred there, including the Slavic population (Russian, Ukrainian, Belorussian), Caucasians (Armenian, Georgian, Ossetian, Azerbaijani, etc.), nations from Eastern countries (Afghanistan, Turkey, India, Iran, etc.), German-Mennonites, and even Baltic nations (Lithuanian, Estonian, Latvian), former prisoners of the First World War (German, Austrian, Czech, Polish, Slavic, Romanian, Hungarian, etc.), and representatives of the local population (Uzbek, Tajik, Kyrgyz, and Kazakh). Islam (Sunni, Shia), Judaism (Bukhara Jews, Ashkinazis, Sephardi), Hinduism, and Christianity (Orthodox, Protestant; Starover, Baptist, Mennonite, Sigovo, Molokan) were among the religions represented.

Thus, Bukhara has long been a multi-religious and multi-ethnic country, where there were signs of tolerance. The inviolability of the religious and confessional life of Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Christianity in the Bukhara Emirate in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is characterized by the fact that the last Manghit emirs (Amir Muzaffarkhan (1860-1885), Amir Abdulahadkhan (1885-1910), and Amir Olimkhan(1910-1920)) pursued a socially moderate policy in state governance compared to other Eastern countries.There is a need for a scientific and objective re-examination of Soviet historiography or other historical materials of this colonial period.

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Abstract

This study explores the dynamic interplay between the secular and sacred realms within Islam, with a particular focus on the evolution of a book into a revered object and the intricate relationship between sacredness and materiality. It investigates the underlying expectations, memories, and theological concepts that facilitated the transition of a sacred oral tradition into a fixed, holy text.

Initially, the divine revelation received by Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, manifested as oral recitation, known as the "Quran," before transforming into a written and tangible form referred to as the "mushaf." This transition is closely linked to significant historical episodes, including the "mihna," which emerged amid fervent debates surrounding the Quran's nature, and discussions among textualist Shias and orthodox Sunnis regarding the concept of alteration ("tahrif") in the Quran. Despite differing viewpoints, both Sunni textualists and Shia rationalists (usulis) ultimately affirmed the sanctity of the written Quran.

This paper specifically examines Quranic verses 56:77-80 through the perspectives of classical exegetes from both Sunni and Shia traditions. It aims to comprehend how the original revelation oscillates between the physical book held in hand, the oral recitation, and the contemplation of its transcendental nature by the mind. The resulting discourse, embraced by Sharia scholars and Sufis, played a crucial role in establishing regulations for physical interaction with the Quran and crafting etiquettes for its recitation to preserve its inherent sanctity.

Thus, the intersections between the sacred and secular realms within Islam have given rise to multifaceted layers and non-linear dimensions, offering new avenues for examining Islam specifically and religion in general. By analyzing primary sources within Islamic theology, Sufism, and jurisprudence, this paper aims to illuminate the narrative of this transformative process and its evolution over time.

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The development of printing in Central Asia led to the decline of manuscript culture in the early 20th century. However, the practice of copying and producing books by hand continued to be one of the effective means of disseminating Islamic religious literature, even during the late Soviet period, particularly in the 1970s. The paper focuses on manuscripts originating from Qarnāq, a small village in South Kazakhstan, and provides their description and analysis. They were copied by Ḥabīb Allāh Qārī (d. 1977), an official imam in the village. They are written in universal notebooks (obshchaia tetrad’) of the Soviet era and bound together in pairs or trios.

The paper centers on three volumes of manuscripts: one housed in the local museum in Qarnāq and two in the author’s private collection. They contain different texts in Arabic and Turkic. The content of the manuscripts shows that Ḥabīb Allāh Qārī translated works of the Kazakh religious leader Saʿd Waqqās al-Ghilmānī (1890-1972) into Uzbek language. Additionally, he copied al-Qurān in Turkic, ḥadīth collections as well as several treatises on Islamic theology and rituals.

The findings of the research shed light on the distribution practices of religious literature during the late Soviet period.