article
Rivalry and solidarity among Uyghur healers in Kazakhstan
Inner Asia • 3 (1) • Published In 2001 • Pages: 71-96
By: Bellér-Hann, Ildikó.
AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
Uyghur healers rely on spirit possession, acting as mediums between human and spirit worlds. They employ both ancestral spirits and those of the Muslim saints, reflecting a mix of traditional Inner Asian shamanistic practices and Islamic beliefs. Healers can treat both social problems and physical symptoms. They apprentice with an established healer to help "open up the way," and must obtain blessings from Islamic saints and holy persons before becoming full-fledged healers. This work is a study of three Uyghur healers living in a diasporic community in Kazakhstan made up of two groups: descendants of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century immigrants, and those who came in the 1960s. The former. "local Uyghurs," are more educated and adapted to Russian ways. The latter, "Chinese Uyghurs," are considered more traditional, and authentically Uyghur. The author discusses the life histories and different healing styles and methods of healers from both communities, finding that although the Chinese Uyghur healers might be considered more authentic, the local Uyghur healers are more successful because of their wider and deeper social connections.
- SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
- External migration
- Magical and mental therapy
- Shamans and psychotherapists
- Spirits and gods
- Revelation and divination
- Magicians and diviners
- cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
- Uyghur
- HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
- 2023
- RegionThe area the document pertains to
- Asia
- Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
- Central Asia
- Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
- article
- Evaluation
- Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
- Ethnologist
- Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
- Ian Skoggard; 2014
- Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
- 1997
- Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
- 1997
- Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
- Almaty, Kazakhstan
- NotesAdditional notes
- Ildikó Bellér-Hann
- Healers are indexed according to ocm's for "Shamans and psychotherapists" (756) and "Magicians and diviners" (791),
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 94-96)
- LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
- sn 99033632
- LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
- Uighur (Turkic people)