The Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, University of Tokyo (Tobunken), and the Japan Office, Association for the Study of Persianate Societies are pleased to co-host a lecture by Professor Richard Foltz (Concordia University) entitled “Religious Tensions in Tajikistan: Hanafi, Salafi, and Isma’ili Islam.”
This hybrid event will be held both in person and online. Please note that advance registration is required for online participation.
The organizer looks forward to your participation.
Lecture Title:
Religious tensions in Tajikistan: Hanafi, Salafi, and Isma’ili Islam.
Speaker:
Professor Richard Foltz (Professor, Department of Religions and Cultures, Concordia University)
Chair:
Professor Kazuo Morimoto (Professor in Islamic and Iranian History, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, University of Tokyo)
Date and Time:
11 May (Mon) 2026, at 18:00-19:30 (JST)
Venue:
Room 304, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, Hongo Campus, University of Tokyo (東京大学東洋文化研究所3階、大会議室304), and online via Zoom
Abstract:
For more than one thousand years prior to the Bolshevik Revolution Tajiks were the principal custodians of Islamic high culture across Central Asia, providing many of the major historical figures of Hanafi Sunni learning and Naqshbandi Sufism. Following seventy years of enforced atheism during the Soviet period the region came under the influence of Gulf Arabs attempting to win over the population to Salafi Islam, creating tensions with post-Soviet government authorities as well as with locals who remained attached to their traditional beliefs and practices. Tajikistan has also seen tensions with the inhabitants of the Pamir region who are mostly Ismai‘ili Shi’ites. Longtime Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, following a failed attempt to promote a pre-Islamic Zoroastrian identity, has turned instead to supporting Hanafi Sunnism as a bulwark against Salafism which is increasingly popular amongst a young population frustrated by lack of employment opportunities and political freedoms.
Speaker’s Bio:
Richard Foltz is a cultural historian specializing in the broader Iranian world. He has published 12 books and over one hundred scholarly articles, and his work has appeared in over a dozen languages. His most recent books are The Ossetes: Modern-Day Scythians of the Caucasus (Bloomsbury, 2023) and A History of the Tajiks: Iranians of the East (2nd edition, Bloomsbury, 2023).
How to Participate:
Pre-registration is required for online participation. Please fill in the format https://forms.gle/F6Na52RD5qcKTWa67 by 8 May, at 24:00 JST. You will receive the Zoom details over the weekend.
In-person attendance does not require advance registration.
Contact Person: Kazuo Morimoto (morikazu@ioc.u-tokyo.ac.jp)
This event is co-hosted by the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, University of Tokyo (as a Tobunken Seminar), and the Japan Office, Association for the Study of Persianate Societies (as a Gilas Lecture).
