ABSTRACT
In considering the bearing of the premodem heritage of the societies of Inner Asia on their capacity to modernize in the twentieth century, it is important to take into account the diversities among them as well as their common premodem characteristics. There was a time when students of this subject were inclined to treat so-called third-world countries as an undifferentiated group of societies. Subsequent research has led to the conclusion, which seems obvious once one starts thinking about it, that relatively nonmodemized societies are in fact much more diverse than those that are relatively modernized. The purpose of this study is to enrich our understanding of the process of modernization by adding another area to those already studied as a means of broadening the basis of comparison.
