This week, we are looking into eurocentrism and ethnocentrism, as well as the impact that those brought to Kyrgyzstan.
Eurocentrism is a noun of eurocentric, which is defined as “focusing on European culture or history to the exclusion of a wider view of the world; implicitly regarding European culture as preeminent.” We can see its impact happening all around the world such as in religion, fashion, houses, and food. Many causes made it happen. For instance, colonizations played a large role to influenced third-world countries.
Ethnocentrism, a noun ethnocentric, has a broader meaning than Eurocentrism. It is “the attitude that one’s own group. ethnicity or nationality is superior to others.” While Eurocentrism focuses on European culture’s influences, Ethnocentrism can happen in any culture including different cultures within a country.
Kyrgystan has experienced ethnocentric views over the years. Kyrgyz, which mainly the nomadic tribes, had been enjoying their unique cultures and tradition, however, in the 13th century, Turkic control expanded over Kyrgyzstan and Kyrgyz lost independence as well as language and culture. In addition to that, Kyrgystan was under the influence of the Silk Road, which brought more culture to the Kyrgyz.
In 1876, the Russian empire started its control over Kyrgystan. When it comes to 1918, when the Soviet Union was established, they changed Kyrgystan’s education. literacy, and brought many social changes. On the other hand, the traditional nomadic culture has survived communist control. Many locals faced identity crises over the period.
Kyrgystan is known as a country with strict government control. In 2005, the Akayev government significantly increased political restrictions. Recently, there is a conflict between Kyrgyz and Uzbek, since the Kyrgyz think that there are superior to Uzbek in their traditions and culture. It is an example of ethnocentrism in Kyrgystan.
As you read above, ethnocentrism has been occurring in Kyrgystan, and moreover, manin y other countries all around the world. It can happen not only between countries but also within a country.
Thank you for following Kyrgystan, and I hope gained something from this.
by Seira Kitagawa
Sources:
Kyrgyzstan — History and Culture (iexplore.com)
Kyrgyzstan: Proposed Legal Changes Threaten Political Dissent | Human Rights Watch (hrw.org)
eurocentrism definition – Search (bing.com)