Watch Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia

2025
1 Season

As the Soviet economy stagnated in the 1970s, witness how Central Asia nevertheless experienced accelerated economic development. Learn about substantial industrial and urban growth in the region, and dramatically improved living standards. Also, explore rampant governmental corruption in Central Asia, rising nationalist sentiment, and the factors leading to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia is a series that ran for 1 seasons (24 episodes) between September 18, 2025 and on The Great Courses

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24. Independence and Modern Central Asia

September 18, 2025

Conclude with a look at Central Asia following the USSR

23. The Uyghurs and East Turkistan

September 18, 2025

Assess the Chinese claim that the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, East Turkestan, has always been part of China. Look at evidence for the Uyghur view of the region as the homeland of a Uyghur nation. Then look into Chinese rule of Xinjiang, and current Chinese policy in the region, a cultural assimilation campaign holding over a million Uyghurs in forced reeducation camps.

22. Prosperity and the Fall of the USSR

September 18, 2025

21. Life in Soviet Central Asia

September 18, 2025

The mid-1950s to mid-1980s were in many ways a golden age in Central Asia

20. Stalin, War, and New Identities

September 18, 2025

Revisit the era known as the Great Terror, in which Stalin annihilated the first generation of Soviet communists in Central Asia, with the execution and deportation of intellectuals, political figures, and entire ethnicities. Grasp the ways in which the hardships and horrors of World War II, notwithstanding the vast suffering, laid the foundations of a Soviet identity for Central Asians.

19. Revolution, Modernization, and Famine

September 18, 2025

Delve into the events of the Russian revolution of 1917 and the Bolsheviks

18. Cotton, Colonialism, and Rebellion

September 18, 2025

Examine the actions of the Tsarist regime aimed at making colonized Central Asia profitable. Observe how the Russian creation of a huge cotton industry

17. Colonial Turkestan and Tashkent

September 18, 2025

Russia-ruled Central Asia followed the example set by the European colonial empires. In Turkestan, learn how Russian administrators studied their colonized populations to better control them, and created a typically colonial legal system. In Tashkent, witness the division of the city into a European and native town, and oppressive conditions brought by urbanization and the edge of Russian rule.

16. Russia

September 18, 2025

Uncover the origins of the Russian state and of the Russian Empire, which came to include nomadic peoples of the steppe. Grasp the factors that led to the Russian Empire

15. Bukhara and the Madrassas

September 18, 2025

Dig into the history and lore of the city-state of Bukhara, as it became one of the premier centers of learning in the Islamic world, and a major stop on the Silk Road. See how Bukhara gained prominence under the Shibanids, who left works of majestic architecture. Study the culture of the madrasas, academies which attracted scholars and students from Syria to Siberia.

14. New States and Confederations

September 18, 2025

In the 17th and 18th centuries, Central Asia saw a complex quilt of state-building from east to west. In East Turkestan, follow the emergence of the Sufi Altishahr state in the south, the Buddhist Zungar khanate in the north, and a florescence in the arts. To the west, track the rise of the Kazakh khanate, and the vibrant cultures of the city states of Khiva, Bukhara, and Kokand.

13. The Timurid Renaissance

September 18, 2025

The two centuries following the death of Tamerlane in 1405 were a time of cultural flourishing in Central Asia. Under the Timurids and their successors, the Shibanids, witness the growth of a sophisticated Islamic culture, seen in the profusion of madrasas (academies of learning), and wide patronage of the arts and sciences. See also how Sufi masters came to substantially influence politics.

12. Islam and Sufism in Central Asia

September 18, 2025

Explore the culture of Sufism, the mystical branch of Islam, whose followers seek a direct oneness with God. Observe how Sufism took root in Central Asia, where it remains strong today, and look into its core traditions and beliefs. Note the key role of Sufi masters in religious life and visit the shrine to Sufi saint Khoja Ahmed Yasawi and the holy mountain known as the Throne of Solomon.

11. Tamerlane, the Sword of Islam

September 18, 2025

Travel through the incredible life of the fearsome 14th-century conqueror Timur, or Tamerlane, whose legacy lives on in Central Asia today. Take account of his extraordinary political shrewdness and empire-building; his legendary cruelty as a military leader; and his patronage of the arts, leaving a cultural flowering and stunning architectural monuments in his sumptuous capital of Samarqand.

10. The Coming of the Mongols

September 18, 2025

As precursors to the renowned Mongols, observe how the Qarakhanid Empire helped build a distinct Turko-Persian civilization and intellectual life. Then trace the epic conquests of the Mongols, who created one of the largest empires in history. Grasp the ways in which, despite their aggression and brutality, the Mongols continued the legacy of the Turko-Persian empires which preceded them.

9. The Age of the Polymaths

September 18, 2025

The Samanid dynasty followed the Abbasid tradition of patronage of scholars and artists, making its great capital of Bukhara a center of learning that rivaled Baghdad. Take the measure of some of history

8. The Arrival of Islam

September 18, 2025

The absorption of Central Asia into the Islamic world completely transformed the region and its peoples. Study the four phases of the Arab conquest of the Eurasian steppe in the seventh and eighth centuries, and the resulting cosmopolitan Islamic civilization which integrated the cultures of nomadic and sedentary peoples. Trace the history of rule in the region by the Abbasid caliphate.

7. Khazars and Khaganates

September 18, 2025

The Khazar khaganate was unique in being a Jewish state which took root outside of the Middle East. Investigate the origins of the Khazars, how they came to embrace Judaism, and the function the faith played in their political life. Explore their singular culture and system of two rulers, and how their powerful state dominated central areas of the steppe for nearly three centuries.

6. Rise of the Turkic Empires

September 18, 2025

Trace the origins of Turkic nomadic peoples, the emergence of the Turkic khaganate in the sixth century, and their expansion to become the first empire to link Europe with China. With the fall of the Turk khaganate, there rose another Turkic empire, the Uyghur khaganate. Grasp the distinctive role of the religion of Manichaeism under Uyghur rule and the Uyghur construction of impressive cities.

5. The Xiongnu and Tensions with China

September 18, 2025

The Xiongnu nomads of Mongolia were one of the first nomadic confederations to become an empire. Chart the Xiongnu

4. Sogdiana and a Cultural Crossroad

September 18, 2025

Religion became a key form of cultural fusion in early Central Asia. Trace the influence in the region of the beliefs and rituals of Zoroastrianism, and the role of Buddhism in the development of long-distance trade. Road. Learn of the ancient civilization

3. Early Empires on the Steppe

September 18, 2025

The history of the Eurasian steppe was shaped by the interface of the nomadic tribes at its core and the sedentary civilizations that surrounded it. Track the incursions onto the steppe of the Persian Achaemenid Dynasty, the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom, the Kushan Empire, and the Han Dynasty of China. See how these interactions produced a remarkable fusion of cultures, ideas, and languages.

2. Scythian and Nomadic Culture

September 18, 2025

The Scythians were among the first people to dominate large parts of Central Asia. Explore their nomadic lifestyle, and their excavated burial mounds, showing spectacular grave goods with great artistic sophistication. Review astonishing archaeological findings that confirm some of the more outlandish parts of Herodotus

1. Central Asia: A Lay of the Land

September 18, 2025

Begin with a geographic overview of Central Asia, a land of climatic extremes, encompassing mountain ranges, rivers, vast deserts, and fertile steppes. Take account of the two types of societies that emerged here: nomadic peoples of the desert and steppe and agriculturalists of the waterways and oases. Learn about the ways of life of these peoples, and their historical interactions.

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Where to Watch Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia

Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia is available for streaming on the The Great Courses website, both individual episodes and full seasons. You can also watch Crossroads of Civilization: A History of Central Asia on demand at Prime Video and Amazon.