The Ferghana Project

In 1999, seeking a comprehensive understanding of the present-day Ferghana Valley, we began the Ferghana Project within the Islamic Area Studies Project. This valley is in the heart of Central Asia, at the confluence of three newly independent states, Uzbekistan, Qyrghyzstan, and Tajikistan, and where the Syr Darya, one of the largest rivers in Central Asia, flows (Figures 8.1 and 8.2). This single river basin occupies only 5% of all Central Asian land, yet 20% of Central Asia’s population lives there (Calming the Ferghana Valley 1999: 34). The Ferghana Valley’s fertility is one of its outstanding characteristics. Figure 8.1 Central Asia. https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" content-type="black-white" xlink:href="https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780203401422/1e436c3e-b699-45a1-8b79-973d77c2f4b2/content/fig8_1_B.tif"/> Figure 8.2 The location of the Ferghana Valley. https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" content-type="black-white" xlink:href="https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780203401422/1e436c3e-b699-45a1-8b79-973d77c2f4b2/content/fig8_2_B.jpg"/>