Suchergebnisse

Jadid-inspired paths to modernity, 1914-1917 -- Partners in progress : Turkmen intellectuals in Soviet Space, 1917-1930 -- From the ABCs to the ABCs of communism, 1930-1953 -- Speaking Soviet, 1954-1984 -- From happy socialism to independence, 1985-1996 -- Altyn Asyr Nesli : Nyýazow's Golden Generation, 1996-2006 -- The era of might and happiness, 2007-2014

AbstractA study of myth, cult, and language as tools of state power, this paper analyzes ways national identity was constructed and articulated in one state. When Türkmenistan became independent in 1991 its first president, Saparmyrat Nyýazow, promoted himself as the 'savior' of the nation by reconceptualising what it meant to be Türkmen. Myth, public texts and language policy were used to construct this identity. While they were the targets of the state's cultural products, Türkmen citizens contributed to the processes of cultural production. Nyýazow legitimised his authoritarian leadership, first by co‐opting Türkmen citizens to support his regime, and then by coercing them as participants in his personality cult. The paper concludes that Nyýazow used the production of culture, 'invented tradition' in Hobsbawm's sense, to bolster his agenda and further his own power. It also argues that the exaggerated cult of personality Nyýazow cultivated limited his achievements, rather than solidifying them.