Abstract

The collapse of the Soviet Union necessitated the reconstruction of state institutions responsible for managing cultural and religious diversity across Central Eurasia. Three decades later, the region exhibits distinct models of cultural governance that reflect varying combinations of Soviet institutional legacies, post-independence nation-building projects, and contemporary geopolitical pressures. This paper examines the institutional architecture of state-religion management in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan—three countries that share a common Soviet past but have pursued divergent trajectories in organizing state authority over the cultural sphere.

Drawing on institutional analysis and comparative case study methodology, this research addresses two central questions: First, how have Soviet-era institutions (such as the Council for Religious Affairs) been transformed, replaced, or perpetuated in each national context? Second, what relationships exist between these institutional arrangements and broader state strategies of legitimation, particularly regarding national identity formation and regime stability?

Preliminary findings suggest three distinct patterns. Kazakhstan has pursued a hybrid model, maintaining a centralized Spiritual Administration of Muslims while simultaneously expanding secular cultural institutions that emphasize interethnic harmony—a strategy aligned with its multi-vector foreign policy and international image as a mediator. Uzbekistan, following the 2017 succession, has initiated a partial institutional restructuring, shifting from a highly repressive oversight model toward co-optation of religious institutions into state-led cultural nationalism. Tajikistan represents the strongest continuity with Soviet institutional logic, where cultural governance remains tightly securitized, reflecting elite concerns about regional instability and the lingering memory of the civil war.

This research contributes to broader discussions on state-society relations in Central Eurasia by demonstrating that institutional choices in cultural governance are not merely technical administrative matters but reflect deeper configurations of power, historical memory, and geopolitical orientation. The comparative framework reveals how post-Soviet states have selectively appropriated, reinvented, or rejected Soviet institutional templates in their efforts to construct legitimate cultural orders. By focusing on institutional structures rather than theological content, this study engages scholars across political science, sociology, and Central Eurasian studies, offering a framework for understanding contemporary cultural politics in the region beyond essentialist narratives of “tradition” versus “modernity.”