ABSTRACT
Pastoralists utilizing sparsely populated and marginal regions have often been affected by political decisions, made far away in the centres of colonial powers. The major transformations of the twentieth century: the October and Chinese Revolution; and the replacement of collective strategies through market-oriented reforms and independence are followed by the end of the Cold War and the advent of modern globalisation. An investigation into historical and contemporary challenges by powerful external actors and a focus on local and regional responses provides insights into the effects of domination, resistance and reform in the spatial and economic periphery. Economically and politically there has been long competition between nomads and farmers over natural resources. While they compete in the production sector, political influence is mainly felt and contested in the urban centres of oasis towns. In Central Asia the Great Game resulted in the demarcation of international boundaries separating the spheres of influence of the super powers of the time.
