Suchergebnisse

Contacts between Russia and Islam have continued for cent's with different emphases and in different locales. Since the end of the 19th cent these contacts in central Asia (CA) have become increasingly important. Today the Muslims form an important pop group in CA. While the avowed Communist principle in contacts with Islam in CA has been the equality of all cultures, in practice a Russian minority imposes its culture, political and spiritual concepts on a Muslim majority. Russian authorities do not hesitate to instill Russian culture next to or on the debris of national cultures. This has lead to an alienation of some of the Muslims, particularly the younger people, from their religion and their national identity. There still remains, however, a sense of national and religious identity which forms the basis for the continued existence of the Muslim group. In the long run, the spread of the Russian language and of Russian technical civilization will overwhelm the national and religious sub-culture. J. E. Hughes.