Nationalism and History: The Politics of Nation Building in Post-Soviet Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, Donald V. Schwartz and Razmik Panossian (softcover)
$15.00
In stock
Perhaps more than any other factor, nationalism directly contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. This volume brings together four original essays, which analyze the roots of this nationalism and the desire for independence in one of the most troubled areas of the former USSR: the Transcaucasian or Southern Caucasian republics. With a general focus on the role of national historiography in the nation building process within Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, this volume analyzes the historical underpinnings of the many conflicts in the region.
The first paper, by Stephen Velychenko, deals with the writing of history by the central authorities in Moscow who sought to reshape national identities throughout the Soviet period. The three subsequent papers deal with the Transcaucasian republics. Stephan H. Astourian discusses the use of historiography as an instrument not only for (re)creating national identities in Azerbaijan and Armenia, but also for legitimizing territorial claims over Karabakh. Audrey L. Altstadt looks at the decolonization process in Azerbaijan and the historical revival, which is an important element of this process. Stephen Jones analyzes the Georgian road to independence through the concept of populism, by which mass nationalist mobilization was achieved. The unifying thread in all four cases is the appeal to history to legitimize political decisions, events, and even wars.
