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Following the dismantling of the old Soviet Union, the new Republics have formed a loose Commonwealth. This book looks at the new found status of the independent Republic of Kazakhstan, and details its history and development. ... Read more

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Published by Embassy of Kazakhstan, Washington DC. Color maps and illustrations. ... Read more

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The collapse of the centrally planned systems of the former Soviet Union undoubtedly stands out as one of the most important global events of the 20th century. The transformation from a centralized economic system to a market system created major opportunities for Western corporations to enter markets that had formerly been closed to them. In this book, E.K.Dosmukhamedov employs a distinctive approach to the study of post-communist transition by analyzing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from a political, legal and economic standpoint. Kazakhstan is used as a case study to illustrate the role of FDI in restructuring the economy of the former Soviet Union countries in the Post-Communist era.
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The planktonic foraminifera have, for over forty years, beenrecognised to be the most valuable stratigraphic indices for marinesediments of Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic age. However, theirevolutionary origins in the Jurassic and their development,morphological evolution and systematics in the Early Cretaceous have,until now, been poorly understood. This book illustrates for the first time all the published taxa knownfrom the Jurassic, and clarifies and corrects their taxonomy. The taxonomy and stratigraphic distribution of the Early Cretaceousplanktonic foraminifera are also revised, and all of the publishedspecies are illustrated, using the type specimens. The systematics ofthe Early Cretaceous forms are clearly set out, both for species andfor genera: their evolution is explained as well as the ecologicalimportance of the morphological changes they have undergone. Moreover,by analogy with the Recent Globigerinacea the palaeoenvironmentalsignificance of these Early Cretaceous taxa is discussed. The book deals with 136 species belonging to 26 genera, five of which-- Compactogerina, Haeuslerina (of the Jurassic),Lilliputianelloides; Claviblowiella andPlanohedbergella (of the Cretaceous) -- are new. Rangecharts are provided, as are extensive keys for the more importantgenera. Superbly illustrated, with 65 high-quality plates, this work will bean invaluable reference for all micropalaeontolists andbiostratigraphers worldwide, with many species illustrated by SEM forthe first time. This is the first book to collate all knowninformationon the early evolutionary origins of the planktonicforaminifera. ... Read more

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The Caspian Sea has been the focus of states and peoples in and out of the area for the last decade. The surrounding states are interested in getting a decent share of the lakeÂ’s resources. The industrial states are interested in taking the oil, gas and other natural wealth of the Caspian Sea to world markets as soon as possible. The populations of the littoral states, which are all ruled by undemocratic regimes, are concerned with whether their governments will retain their just rights in the Caspian Sea. They realize that the highest priority for their current rulers is to keep their grip on power, not their nationÂ’s present or future interests.

How have the respective governments in Azerbaijan, the Federation of Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and especially, Iran, thought and acted in regard to the situation of the Caspian Sea and their interests?

The issue has a special reference to Iran because it is experiencing a terrible situation in regard to the Caspian Sea due to the poor management of its foreign policy and international relations. Iran will end up with the smallest share of the Caspian Sea, whether it likes it or not. This is a serious setback for a country that once shared the Caspian Sea with the former Soviet Union. IranÂ’s mismanagement of its Caspian Sea rights is a political and diplomatic lesson in what not to do.

This book gives everyone, even those without legal or political backgrounds in this issue, an opportunity to survey the facts and history; and to analyze the legal and political realities of the present political situation of the worldÂ’s largest lake. ... Read more

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This study concentrates upon the socio-political and nationalist views of three influential representatives of the early 20th century Kazak intelligentsia: Alikhan Bokeilhanov, Akhmet Baitursynov, and Mukhamedzhan Seralin. The resulting discourse on literature, education, and politics shaped the Kazak nationalist movement before 1920. This study draws on the published works of the Kazak intelligentsia, the periodicals Ai qap (1911-1915) and Kazak (1913-1918), and archival records from the Central State Archives of the Republic of Kazakstan.
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Great book for academics
My classes with Dr. Sabol are awesome and I know he has extensive knowledge in Central Asia and Russia and it's definitely worth reading.Enjoyable prose. ... Read more

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Politics of Language in the Ex-Soviet Muslim States offers a unique and timely analysis of language policies in the central Asian states of the former Soviet Union. The authors relate these policies to broad issues such as nation-building, language planning, and multilingualism. The book is a comprehensive survey of language policy in the five newly independent states with largely Turkic-speaking populations and in the Tajic republic, with its mainly Iranian-speaking population. It addresses each state's consideration over how the use of Russian--widespread as a second language among the Turkic-speaking peoples and known as a first language for Soviet-era immigrants regardless of ethnicity--should relate to use of the local varieties of Turkic or Iranian. It also addresses efforts in each state to elaborate the local variety of Turkic or Iranian for use as public discourse in administration, law, business, and politics, including teaching the language to its nominal speakers, and considers the relation between these languages and those of local ethnic minorities. The authors utilize previously unpublished empirical data, which is presented in both a clear narrative and conceptual framework.
Jacob M. Landau is Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Barbara Kellner-Heinkele is Professor of Turkic Studies, Free University of Berlin.
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Customer Reviews (2)

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE WHAT A SMART WOMAN CAN DO!
Have you ever been trapped in a crowd, a hysterical crowd,terrified of the future? Imagine being a young Jewish woman doctor in Stalinist former Soviet Union during the Second War - and each decision might be fatal.Fear, terror, and blind hatred rule the day - and everyone wants the young doctor to perform miracles when God seemed silent and remote.

This fascinating autobiography, written with a sharp sense of life's ironies and injustices, conveys the wisdom that comes from being a true survivor.Compassion and knowledge can sometimes save a life - or mean nothing except dying with a conscience.(It's worth juxaposing the Machevillian logic of Rich on that silly island TV show where ethics were jettisonned for money with the heroism of the partisans of WWII.) Ruzena also illuminates the brutality come so easily to so many individuals in the name of so abstract ideology like fascism or communism.

Perhaps Oprah could interview Ruzena so television viewers can see how a true hero behaves in a crisis! This inspirational story of a woman's survival, sacrifice, and success (living and enjoying life in the California) combats the easy cynicism that seems so pervasive today. We should never, Ruzena shows, underestimate what a smart woman can do - especially in a crisis!

A truly fascinating biography from first page to last!
Cattle Car To Kazakhstan: A Woman Doctor's Triumph Of Courage In World War II is the story of a young woman in her twenties, married to a dynamic lawyer, a leader in the Zionist movement, whose world was torn apart inSeptember 1939 when her home town of Przemysl, Poland (bisected by theRiver San) is occupied by the German army on one side, and the Russian armyon the other. Ruzena's husband is arrested by the Soviet Secret Policebecause of his political activities, leaving her alone and six monthspregnant. After her baby is born three months later, the NKVD (Sovietsecrete police) arrest her, put her into a cattle car packed with otherwomen and children, and ship her off to the a primitive Kirghiz village onthe wild steppes of Kazakhstan, south of Siberia. Cattle Car To Kazakhstanis a vivid account of Ruzena Berler's deportation and the years she spentin the wild steppes and, later, in the Czech Legion. She and her companionsworked hard to simply survive. A lot of women and children didn't. Ruzenalater served as a doctor in an immense agricultural complex, battled adevastating typhus epidemic, was pursued in winter by wolves, used ahigh-wheeled cart through muddy floods of sudden springtime snowmelts,fought (and became an officer) with the Czech Legion in what is nowKazakhstan against the Germans, and worked in the field hospital day andnight with little sleep. During all of this, she took care of her child.After the war, Ruzena learned that her family died in Auschwitz, and thather husband had been executed by the Soviet Secret Police. The war beingover, she left newly liberated Prague as Czechoslovakia was becomingCommunist, moving to Southern California, remarrying, raising her daughterOlga and having sons. Cattle Car To Kazakhstan is an astonishing, candid,revealing autobiography, the story of a woman's successful struggle tosurvive overwhelming odds for herself and her daughter in times of war,oppression, violence and despair. ... Read more

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The author reconstructs collective memory theory in light of the Kazak case, stripping it of its postmodernist baggage, and proposing a place for it in a general theory of religion. This ethnography of Muslim life among the Kazaks of Central Asia describes the sacralisation of land and ethnic identity, local understanding of Islamic purity, the Kazak ancestor cult and its domestic spirituality, pilgrimage at the tombs of Sufi saints, and folk therapies shaped by traditional Islamic medicine and Inner Asian shamanism. ... Read more

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Before the Russian conquest, the Kazaks had a well-articulated culture based on their nomadic pastoral economy. Although Islam was introduced to most of the Kazaks in the seventh and eighth centuries, the religion was not fully assimilated until several centuries later. As a result, it coexisted with earlier elements of Tengriism. Traditional Kazak belief held that separate spirits inhabited and animated the earth, sky, water, and fire, as well as domestic animals. To this day, particularly honored guests in rural settings are treated to a feast of freshly killed lamb. Such guests are sometimes asked to bless the lamb and to ask its spirit for permission to partake of its flesh. Besides lamb, many other traditional foods retain symbolic value in Kazak culture. Kazakh culture is largely influenced by a Turkic nomadic lifestyle and Islam. Kazakhs are typically Sunni Muslims. Because animal husbandry was central to the Kazaks' traditional lifestyle, most of their nomadic practices and customs relate in some way to livestock. ... Read more

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When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the newly independent republics faced many common challenges, including state building and integration into the world community, as well as different regional hurdles. Kazakstan, the site of the Soviet Union's atomic weapons testing for almost half a century, inherited a vast nuclear stockpile that made it the fourth largest nuclear state in the world.

Having embarked on a course of democracy, Kazakstan acted in response to the public outcry against nuclear testing. In the closed Soviet system, the people of Kazakstan had suffered from the effects of fallout for forty years and were denied information about the testing and its impact on their health. Nursultan Nazarbayev's first act as president of an independent nation showed the world the seriousness and sincerity of its intentions. He shut down the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site, where the first Soviet bomb was detonated in 1949. This was followed by a more radical decision: to give up its nuclear arsenal and to declare Kazakstan a nuclear-free nation. Acting with the support and aid of the people of the United States, it destroyed more than a thousand warheads and ICBMs.

Kazakstan's courageous act has set an example for the future denuclearization and demilitarization of the world. The great hope for peace in the twenty-first century in our multipolar world is through nonproliferation of nuclear weapons.

This year, Kazakstan is celebrating two major 10-year anniversaries: 10 years of independence and 10 years of a commitment to denuclearization. The years of independence have seen great progress in many areas, despite the difficult regional and economic environment that has tested Kazakstan's chosen path to democracy and capitalism.

This book describes how the people of Kazakstan reached the decision to rid themselves of nuclear weapons and argues that peace will come to our multipolar world only through nonproliferation and denuclearization. President Nazarbayev sets the record straight on Kazakstan's dauntless decision to lead the way to a secure future for all our children and grandchildren. ... Read more