Reproductive health patterns in post-Soviet Central Asian countries Abstract This study aims to evaluate reproductive health patterns among post-Soviet Central Asian republics since their independence. The reproductive health indicators of individual countries were researched and compared. Furthermore, cluster country groups among selected post-Soviet, post-Socialist and capitalist countries were identified based on certain reproductive health indicators for the beginning and the end of the research period. The subsequent research was focused on 1999 Kazakhstan Demographic and Health Survey data. This thesis explores statistically significant factors influencing pregnancy outcomes in the country. According to the results, never married, urban women, women of Ukrainian, Russian, and other ethnicities, women living in the East and North regions were more likely to terminate a first pregnancy by an induced abortion rather than giving a live birth. Additionally, the same categories were proven to be statistically significant using the Poisson regression analysis, except the regions were shown to be the West and the North. Keywords: post-Soviet Central Asia, reproductive health, maternal mortality, pregnancy outcomes

This dissertation aims to uncover the main parameters, the decisive dynamics within Kyrgyz politics not only through an examination of the socio-political context of post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan, but also through an analysis of the events that came to be known as the &lsquo / Tulip Revolution&rsquo / . It examines the general and immediate contexts, course of events, dynamics and implications of the &lsquo / Tulip Revolution&rsquo / in order to understand what kind of dynamics account for the continuing instability in Kyrgyzstan in its aftermath. Despite a variety of factors can be considered as relevant, this study argues that the continuity in the decisive role of informal dynamics in shaping Kyrgyz politics accounts for the continuing instability in Kyrgyz politics. Bases of the informal dynamics are embedded in Kyrgyzstan&rsquo / s historical context and they are strengthened by its transitional context / they played decisive roles in shaping the course of events during the &lsquo / Tulip Revolution&rsquo / and their decisive role remained as such in its aftermath. Not only various developments in Bakiev era, but also the events that led to the end of it provide reinforcing evidence for such continuity. Hence, the &lsquo / Tulip Revolution&rsquo / did not bring about an &lsquo / impetus for democratization&rsquo / , but indicated to an &lsquo / impetus for the decisive role of informal dynamics&rsquo / in shaping Kyrgyz politics, which paves the way for the persistent instability in the country.

Cette thèse explore les rôles rituels et sociaux des femmes au Tadjikistan et s’appuie sur seize mois d’enquête de terrain en zones urbaines et rurales. Deux fils conducteurs structurent l’analyse. Le premier porte sur la construction des féminités dans la société tadjike, tout particulièrement au regard du statut (acquis, perdu, reconquis) de femme mariée, extrêmement déterminant dans l’organisation des relations sociales. Le second interroge les rôles des femmes dans la reproduction familiale et sociale, tout particulièrement dans l’économie rituelle et matrimoniale. L’ensemble s’attache à montrer, au prisme des parcours matrimoniaux aujourd’hui extrêmement hachés des femmes, les négociations et adaptations de la société tadjike contemporaine aux bouleversements qu’elle a connus ces vingt dernières années : disparition de l’URSS, entrée dans l’économie de marché, la Guerre civile (1992-1997) et les migrations massives des hommes vers la Russie. Les enjeux ambivalents révélés par les mariages – étudiés comme performance, comme statut et comme relation – sont étudiés à deux niveaux : au niveau des femmes, pour qui le mariage constitue une ressource fondamentale autant qu’un carcan patriarcal ; et à celui des familles, pour qui le mariage est à la fois une obligation sociale et le lieu d’une contestation possible des hiérarchies en place. Située au croisement des études de genre, de parenté, d’économie rituelle et des recherches sur l’aire post-soviétique, cette thèse propose de saisir comment les transformations socioéconomiques récentes ont affecté les représentations et les relations de genre d’une part, et celles au sein de la famille, d’autre part. / This dissertation explores social and ritual roles of women in Tajikistan, based on a sixteen-month fieldwork conducted in both urban and rural areas. Two main threads structure the analysis. The first one addresses the construction of femininities in Tajik society, especially regarding their status (acquired, lost and conquered again) of “married woman” – which is extremely decisive for them to organize their social life. The second questions women’s roles in family and social reproduction, especially regarding ritual and matrimonial economy. Overall, this dissertation aims at showing that analyzing uneven and irregular women’s matrimonial itineraries reveals how negotiations and adaptations of Tajik society to ongoing transformations have been proceeding – following the upheavals this society has been going through: the breakdown of the USSR, the integration to market economy, the Civil war (1992-1997) and the wide migratory fluxes of men going to Russia. The ambiguous stakes contained in marriage – understood as a performance, a status and a relation – are analyzed at two levels: at the level of women, for whom marriage remains a crucial resource as much as a patriarchal constrain; and at the level of families, for whom marriage is both a social necessity and the opportunity to challenge former hierarchies. Located at the crossroad of gender studies, kinship, ritual economy and post-Soviet studies, this dissertation aims at understanding how recent socioeconomic transformations affect gender representations and relations, on the one hand, and those of family, on the other.

Abstract: From Harlem to Central Asia: Langston Hughes exploration of Class, Race and Gender under the Soviet Union. This essay explores Langston Hughes journey to Soviet Central Asia, where he aimed to gain insights into the lives of people of “color” under the Soviet Union. Focusing on a book by Hughes this essay analyzes his portrayal of both colonial and post-revolutionary Central Asia.Through the lens of postcolonial theory and an intersectional approach, the study draws connections between African American and Central Asian societies during times of transition. It delves into the intricate dynamics of ethnicity, class, gender, and politics that surface in Hughes depiction of the region. Ultimately, the study seeks to deepen our understanding of the complex intersections between race, gender, ethnicity, and politics in Central Asia during and pre the Soviet era, while highlighting the long-term effects of colonialism on post-slavery African American society and post-colonial Central Asia.