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Shared Space, Divided Space: Narrating Ethnic Histories of Osh

Author

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  • Nick Megoran

    (School of Geography, Politics and Sociology, Newcastle University, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, England)

Abstract

In June 2010 the Kyrgyzstani city of Osh was engulfed in three days of mass killing, arson, and looting. Accounts by journalists, academics, politicians, and organisations tend to either overdetermine ethnicity as a causal factor, or dismiss its significance as a social process. As a result, internal responses to the tragedy have been viewed by outsiders as mendaciously irrational. To overcome this impasse, this paper foregrounds the idea of Osh as national territory. Based on ongoing ethnographic study since 1995, plus an analysis of media reports, it shows the ways in which Uzbek and Kyrgyz residents of the city have narrated its ethnic past as one of divided or shared space. The resonance of these narratives can both help account for responses to the violence within Kyrgyzstan that have puzzled outsiders, and also uncover resources of hope. The paper highlights the importance of considering nationalism as a geographical phenomenon in explicating ethnic-based violence in contemporary Central Asia.

Suggested Citation

  • Nick Megoran, 2013. "Shared Space, Divided Space: Narrating Ethnic Histories of Osh," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 45(4), pages 892-907, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envira:v:45:y:2013:i:4:p:892-907
    DOI: 10.1068/a44505
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    Cited by:

    1. Konstantin Ash, 2022. "State weakness and support for ethnic violence in Southern Kyrgyzstan," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 59(6), pages 860-875, November.

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