JCIAD News Volume 2.1 (original) (raw)

The second volume of the Journal of Central and Inner Asian Dialogue's supplementary newsletter, JCIAD News. Downloadable PDF's and previous volumes and issues of both the the journal and its newsletter can be found at www.jciadinfo.org. A little more than three years ago, in August 2011, the Journal of Central and Inner Asian Dialogue (JCIAD) introduced JCIAD News as a supplementary newsletter. JCIAD News’ first volume, consisting of two issues, served as a prelude to the inaugural volume of JCIAD published in 2013. The goal of the Journal and its Newsletter has been to inform the academic community and the public at large about the rich cultures, literature, languages and histories of the peoples of Central and Inner Asia. JCIAD and its newsletter are devoted to bringing the works of native scholars and literary figures of Central/Inner Asia—an area encompassing the Turkic, Mongolian and Tungusic populated regions of Asia east of the Volga—to light. No other publication outside of Central and Inner Asia has taken the approach that JCIAD and its newsletter have, and because of this, both publications remain singular. The survival of Central and Inner Asian Turkic, Mongolian and Tungusic cultures, languages and literature, in spite of more than a century of colonization by outsiders, is in itself a worthy subject of research. To a large part the survival of their national identities is due to their elders. It is for this reason, and in support of Uzbekistan’s declaration of 2015 as “The Year of the Elders,” that both the current newsletter and the Journal’s forthcoming issue will be dedicated to the elders of Central and Inner Asia. JCIAD News and the Journal have been created and supported by the University of Washington’s Central Asian Studies Program, led by Dr. Ilse Cirtautas. We continue to work closely with the University of Washington. In the meantime, we have also earned the support of Dr. Dmitry Funk of the Department of Ethnology at Moscow State University. JCIAD News relies on reader contributions of news pieces, perspectives and book summaries in order to keep the dialogue between scholars in the West and in Central/Inner Asia both meaningful and invigorating. If you have something to contribute either for the upcoming JCIAD or the next newsletter, please see page 28 or email info@jciadinfo.org. The Editors