ANNOUNCING THE <Central Asian Studies World Wide> WEBSITE

[John Schoeberlein]

ANNOUNCING THE <Central Asian Studies World Wide> WEBSITE

  ***  Visit <Central Asian Studies World Wide> at  ***
           http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/

<Central Asian Studies World Wide> is a central source for information
relevant to the study of Central Asia:  Central Asian studies research and
training institutions, publications, conferences, contacts, and much more.

<Central Asian Studies World Wide> is a work in progress, and I would like
to invite the broad participation of those interested in Central Asia.  If
you see a way that it can be improved, please put in your bit to help
improve it, by providing missing information or giving feedback.
Meanwhile, those visiting it now will find that in some of its dimensions,
it is now more a set of outlines than filled images, and we ask your
patience and assistance to make it more complete.

The point of <Central Asian Studies World Wide> is to help integrate a
field of study which has traditionally been divided into scholarly enclaves
located in particular countries or focused on particular parts of the broad
region.  Because the region has historically been partitioned between
empires, often scholarly work has been done in a way that put its at
margins of the traditional "core" domains of area studies, such as Middle
Eastern studies, (former-)Soviet studies, and East Asian studies.

<Central Asian Studies World Wide> turns the main focus on Central Asia
itself, while helping us to draw on the extensive relevant resources
available in diverse fields and various countries.  Taking advantage of the
flexibility and communicative capacity of the Internet, <Central Asian
Studies World Wide> allows scholars and students to draw on -- and build on
-- rich information resources in ways not otherwise possible.

For <Central Asian Studies World Wide>, we conceive of "Central Asia" very
broadly.  The contemporary states and territories include, from west to
east: the Caucasus and Caspian Basin lands of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and
Armenia; Daghestan, Chechnya and the Northern Caucasus generally; the
Turkic and Muslim regions of the Volga Basin and Southern Russia, the
northern parts of Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India; the "core" Central
Asian states of Turkmenistan, Kazakstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and
Kirghizstan; Xinjiang/Eastern Turkistan and other western regions of China
with large Muslim and Turkic population, Tibet, and Inner Mongolia; and
Southern Siberia extending to Mongolia.

At its current stage of development, <Central Asian Studies World Wide>
already provides a kind of resource that scarcely exists in any field of
study.  But we will also be relying on the support of the Central Asian
studies community to continue improving it.  In the coming weeks and
months, I will write again requesting specific kinds of information
contributions -- only you know best the resources that are available in
your particular field and part of the world and thus we are dependent on
you.  We want as far as possible to overcome the biases of coverage which
come from our own particular perspectives and connections.  All
constructive feedback is welcome.

I would particularly like to hear from those who see this as a worthy
endeavor and who have something to share towards it.  If we can form a sort
of "editorial board" which serves to ensure breadth and depth of regional
and disciplinary coverage, I believe this will be decisive in making the
project as successful as possible.  Please send your ideas and questions to:
     mailto:CASWW at fas.harvard.edu

At the moment, we are engaged in two projects which are closely connected
with <Central Asian Studies World Wide>:

1) Producing a revised edition of the Guide to Scholars of Central Asia,
which will soon be available on-line with coverage of an estimated 1,500
scholars world wide (compared to ca. 1,000 in the first, 1995 edition).
The on-line edition will allow electronic searching by areas of interest,
institutional affiliation, country, etc.  Please submit your information,
if you haven't already, via the web page:
     http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~centasia/guide_qu.htm
or request a questionnaire via e-mail:
     mailto:CentralAsia at fas.harvard.edu

2) Compiling a Guide to Scholarly Resources for the Study of Central Asia,
which will be published later this year with in-depth world wide coverage
of archives, research institutions, reference materials, and much more.
See the web page (with forms for submitting information) at:
     http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/Guide_to_Scholarly_Resources.html

You can find information about these and other projects at the <Central
Asian Studies World Wide> Website on the Internet at
<http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/>.  If you don't have World Wide Web
access, don't hesitate to write to us for more information, at:
     mailto:CASWW at fas.harvard.edu

I would be grateful if you would take a minute to look at <Central Asian
Studies World Wide>, and particularly to visit the =Guide to Scholarly
Resources= page.  As you look here, it is likely you will find information
that is useful for you.  Please also try to help us fill any current gaps.

Thank you and I look forward to your feedback and your assistance!

John Schoeberlein
______________________________________________________________________
Dr. John S. Schoeberlein \ Director
Forum for Central Asian Studies \ Harvard University
1737 Cambridge Street \ Cambridge, MA 02138 \ USA
tel.: (617) 495-4338  fax: (617) 495-8319
mailto:schoeber at fas.harvard.edu
Central Asia Forum Website: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~centasia/
<Central Asian Studies World Wide>: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~casww/
______________________________________________________________________