ABSTRACT
In this chapter the post-Soviet Islamic revival is explored within its local political context in the republics of Tatarstan and Dagestan. The chapter explores the character and form of interaction between Islam and the political authorities in both republics. It examines the role of the Muslim elite in political decision making, the degree to which Islam influences legislative and executive activities in the republics and the impact on public consciousness of the official re-institution of Islamic holidays and rituals into social life. It also raises more abstract questions about the ethno-political implications of the formation of an Islamized national identity for a multi-ethnic society, Islam’s impact on the formation of official national identity and external relations and the use of Islam in establishing a national ‘mythology’ integral to national self-assertion.
