Islamic Central Asia: An Anthology of Historical Sources - Softcover

Scott C. Levi is Associate Professor of Central Asian History at The Ohio State University. He is author of The Indian Diaspora in Central Asia and Its Trade, 1550–1900 and editor of India and Central Asia: Commerce and Culture, 1500–1800.

Ron Sela is Assistant Professor of Central Asian History in the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University Bloomington. He is author of The Legendary Biographies of Tamerlane: Islam and Heroic Apocrypha in Central Asia.

"The collection of this large number of primary sources into a single volume in readable English translation and published in paperback will make this a widely used resource for teaching the history of Central Asia at English-language universities everywhere."

"[T]his is a fascinating and much-needed collection."

"[A]n excellent collection, which will be a valuable sourcebook for courses on the history of Central Asia and Islamic history. As the first English-language anthology of historical sources on the region, it provides a wealth of materials, which can be used to cover a wide variety of themes. It should be on the syllabus of any undergraduate course on the history of Central Asia."

"[T]he anthology is set up in an exemplary manner and the sources describe the extensive history... [It] will occupy an important place in studies on the history of Central Asia, the expansion of Islam, and the relationship between the peoples in the Islamic cultural world..."

"This careful compilation includes court chronicles, memoirs, legal documents, poetry, and more. The breadth of the coverage skillfully illustrates how Central Asia today is the result of many cultures, languages, and ethnicities.... Summing Up: Essential. A must for collections on Central Asia. October 2010, Vol. 48 No. 2"

Sela and Levi offer the first anthology of Central Asian literature in English. Chronically ordered chapters provide primary sources from diverse languages in translation. The geographic reach of material stretches from the Caspian Sea region to modern-day Xinjiang in China. The authors aimed to provide understudied sources, and they include several original translations. This careful compilation includes court chronicles, memoirs, legal documents, poetry, and more. The breadth of the coverage skillfully illustrates how Central Asia today is the result of many cultures, languages, and ethnicities. Going back to pre-Islamic Turkic written sources, covering the Arab conquests of Central Asia, acknowledging the Mongol influence, and comparing Turkic and Persian sources even before coming to the modern period, the content demonstrates the region's complex heritage. Designed to complement an introductory study of Central Asian history, the book would be useful to collections in world history, including the early modern period (1600-1900). Summing Up: Essential. A must for collections on Central Asia; recommended for undergraduate and graduate world history collections. ― Choice