Non-Muslim groups, including Jews, Hindus, Sikhs, and Armenians, were integral to the cultural and economic histories of Russian (later Soviet) Central Asia, as well as Afghanistan and Iran. Wedged between competing Muslim rulers and the British and Russian empires, these communities were linked by traditional trade routes and family ties, enabling the exchange and mobility of people, goods, and ideas within and beyond what has been conceptualized as the Persianate sphere.

In the age of colonialism, new demarcations and the creation of nations and nation-states disrupted and dissolved these traditional networks, and new, divisive, and disconnected ideas of community and belonging emerged. Although there are now several publications on the history of these communities, there is still a lack of research on their everyday lives, their relations with Muslim societies, and how these groups coped with the new political, economic, and cultural challenges and opportunities.

This conference seeks to offer new perspectives on the cross-border connections of these communities and their social and economic practices within both regional and colonial contexts. The prevailing imperial and state-centred historiography has often overlooked the perspectives of minority groups, focusing instead on more recent colonial and nation-state boundaries. By examining the experiences of non-Muslim communities in Central Asia and exploring the broader implications of borderland and minority policies in Afghanistan, Iran, and the Russian Empire, we will enhance our understanding of regional and transregional entanglements and how these communities navigated their relationships and interacted with political authorities and Muslim societies.

We invite researchers from all disciplines to submit a short bio and an abstract addressing – but not limited to – the following topics:

1) Connections among non-Muslim communities within and beyond the borderlands of Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Iran.
2) Interaction and Relations of non-Muslim communities with different Muslim groups and political authorities.
3) Disruption of cross-border relations and forming of new ideas of community and belonging.
4) Cross-border family histories

To participate, please send the title of the presentation, an abstract (up to 250 words) and a short bio (up to 200 words) to: loy@orient.cas.cz and Ariane.Sadjed@oeaw.ac.at

The deadline for submitting proposals is 14 March 2025.
Accepted proposals will be notified by 14 April 2025.

Small subsidies available toward travel and accommodation for accepted proposals.

The conference will be conducted in English and is open to the public. Participation is free of charge. We would appreciate it if you could share this call for papers with your colleagues. Please save the dates!

We plan to publish the conference proceedings in an edited volume in 2026.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Jonathan L. Lee

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITTEE
Ahmad Azizy (Orient Institute, Prague): azizy@orient.cas.cz
Thomas Loy (Orient Institute, Prague): loy@orient.cas.cz
Ariane Sadjed (Institute of Iranian Studies, Vienna): ariane.sadjed@oeaw.ac.at

This conference is part of the bilateral GAČR/FWF research project “The Jewish Triangle: Connections and Disruptions in Persianate Jewish Life during the 19th and 20th Centuries” (Registration No. 23-08007K).