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Bolashenkova E. Some Images of the Past in School Education of Modern Tajikistan

Ekaterina Bolashenkova
Saint Petersburg State University
Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation
ORCID: 0009-0000-3541-3129
E-mail: e.bolashenkova@spbu.ru

 

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ABSTRACT. The article examines History textbooks for secondary schools published in the Republic of Tajikistan since 2000, both those on Tajik History and World History. The author focuses mainly on ancient and medieval historical periods presented in the books. The article studies the growing attention to Iranian mythology, archaeology, pre-Islamic culture, and Zoroastrianism that one can witness in the past few decades, as well as historical narrative intertwined with legends, which is typical of present-day Tajikistan. Moreover, a considerable amount of material in the textbooks is focusing on the Samanid era (9th — 10th centuries), often referred to as the “Golden Age”. All of this is part of the nation-building process that has unfolded in Tajikistan in the post-Soviet years. Hence the relevant chapters of the textbooks deserve special attention. The author attempts to compare the new textbooks with Soviet textbooks, analyses the shift in emphasis in the presentation of historical events, demonstrates the change of focus from world history to the history of the Tajik people, and notes the change in citizens' attitudes towards certain historical figures. The sources used were secondary school history textbooks purchased in bookshops in Dushanbe in 2014–2015, works of education specialists and research on historical memory, as well as perceptions of the past and memories of school lessons of both post-Soviet schoolchildren, graduates and students, and representatives of the older generation affiliated with the country's science and education system.

 

KEYWORDS: Central Asia, post-Soviet Tajikistan, school education, History textbooks, memory studies

 

FOR CITATION: Bolashenkova E. Some Images of the Past in School Education of Modern Tajikistan. Kunstkamera. 2024. 3(25): 207–223. (In Russian). doi 10.31250/2618-8619-2024-3(25)-207-223

 

DOI 10.31250/2618-8619-2024-3(25)-207-223
UDC 37(575.3)

 

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