Nazif Shahrani
Encyclopedia
M. Nazif Shahrani is a professor of anthropology
and of Central Asian and Middle East
ern Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington. He is an ethnic Uzbek
from northern Afghanistan
and is an American
citizen.
province of Afghanistan
. He completed his elementary education in the village of Shahran-i-Khaash, in Jurm district of Badakhshan, attended Ibnisina (Avecina) Middle School and Kabul Darul Mu'alimin (Kabul Teachers Training High School) in Kabul before entering the Faculty of Education at Kabul University, Afghanistan.
During his junior year at Kabul University, in 1967, he was awarded an East-West Center scholarship by the University of Hawaii
, Honolulu where he completed his BA in Anthropology (1970). He received an MA and Ph.D. from the University of Washington
, Seattle (1972–1976). Between 1972 and 1974, Shahrani conducted anthropological field research in the Wakhan
region in northeastern Afghanistan among pastoral nomadic Kirghiz[Kyrgyz] in the Pamirs and their neighbors the Wakhi
agropastoralist community. He later worked as an anthropological consultant for the ethnographic film, The Kirghiz of Afghanistan, which was aired on PBS
’s Odyssey series (fall 1981). Shahrani has had research and teaching positions at several American Universities, including Harvard’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies, the University of Nevada
-Reno, Stanford University
, and UCLA, before moving to Indiana University
in 1990. He was also a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution (1997–98). He teaches in the departments of Anthropology
, Central Eurasian Studies
, and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures
departments at Indiana University. He has conducted extensive field research in Afghanistan, Turkey
, Pakistan
and Uzbekistan
.
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
and of Central Asian and Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
ern Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington. He is an ethnic Uzbek
Uzbeks
The Uzbeks are a Turkic ethnic group in Central Asia. They comprise the majority population of Uzbekistan, and large populations can also be found in Afghanistan, Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Pakistan, Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China...
from northern Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
citizen.
Life
Nazif Shahrani was born in BadakhshanBadakhshan
Badakhshan is an historic region comprising parts of what is now northeastern Afghanistan and southeastern Tajikistan. The name is retained in Badakhshan Province which is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, in the far northeast of Afghanistan, and contains the Wakhan Corridor...
province of Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. He completed his elementary education in the village of Shahran-i-Khaash, in Jurm district of Badakhshan, attended Ibnisina (Avecina) Middle School and Kabul Darul Mu'alimin (Kabul Teachers Training High School) in Kabul before entering the Faculty of Education at Kabul University, Afghanistan.
During his junior year at Kabul University, in 1967, he was awarded an East-West Center scholarship by the University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
, Honolulu where he completed his BA in Anthropology (1970). He received an MA and Ph.D. from the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, Seattle (1972–1976). Between 1972 and 1974, Shahrani conducted anthropological field research in the Wakhan
Wakhan
Wakhan or "the Wakhan" is a very mountainous and rugged part of the Pamir and Karakoram regions of Afghanistan. Wakhan District is a district in Badakshan Province.-Geography:...
region in northeastern Afghanistan among pastoral nomadic Kirghiz[Kyrgyz] in the Pamirs and their neighbors the Wakhi
Wakhi people
The Wakhi people, or Khik , are an ethnic group originating in the Wakhan of today's Afghanistan. They also live in adjacent areas of Tajikistan and Xinjiang and in Pakistan . They speak the Wakhi language.-Population and demographics:A very rough estimate puts the population of Wakhis at about...
agropastoralist community. He later worked as an anthropological consultant for the ethnographic film, The Kirghiz of Afghanistan, which was aired on PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
’s Odyssey series (fall 1981). Shahrani has had research and teaching positions at several American Universities, including Harvard’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies, the University of Nevada
University of Nevada, Reno
The University of Nevada, Reno , is a teaching and research university established in 1874 and located in Reno, Nevada, USA...
-Reno, Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, and UCLA, before moving to Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
in 1990. He was also a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution (1997–98). He teaches in the departments of Anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, Central Eurasian Studies
Department of Central Eurasian Studies (Indiana University)
The Department of Central Eurasian Studies, often abbreviated as CEUS, is a specialized academic department in the College of Arts and Sciences at the Bloomington campus of Indiana University, in Bloomington, Indiana. Since its original formation in 1943 as a language-training program for the U.S...
, and Near Eastern Languages and Cultures
Oriental studies
Oriental studies is the academic field of study that embraces Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology; in recent years the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Asian studies and Middle Eastern studies...
departments at Indiana University. He has conducted extensive field research in Afghanistan, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
.
Contributions
His major contributions to Central Asian Studies include:- The Kirghiz and Wakhi of Afghanistan: Adaptation to Closed Frontiers and War. Seattle. University of Washington Press, 2002.
- Revolutions and Rebellions in Afghanistan: Anthropological Perspectives. M. Nazif Shahrani and Robert L. Canfield, eds. Berkeley, Institute of International Studies, University of California, 1984.
- The Kirghiz and Wakhi of Afghanistan: Adaptation to Closed Frontiers. Seattle, University of Washington Press, 1979.
- More than 40 book chapters in edited volumes and research articles in academic national and international journals.