The Tajik of Tajikistan

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 The five million Tajik are one of the major groups of Central Asia. Their homeland, Tajikistan, is the mountainous center of Asia, surrounded by the Asian republics of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Tajikistan includes the Pamir Mountains, which reach altitudes of nearly 25,000 feet. Most of the people live in the parallel valleys below.

The Tajik have repeatedly been invaded and conquered throughout their history. The armies of Alexander the Great, the Arabs in the seventh century, Genghis Khan, the Turks, the British, and the Russian empire have all had a profound impact on these people. In fact, the numerous invasions have been the major factor in the dispersion of the Tajik to other locations.

The term "Tajik" comes from the word taj, which means "crown." This name was probably first used by the seventh century Arabs to differentiate the Persian (Tajiki Farsi) speakers from the Turkish speakers.

What Are Their Lives Like?

Most of the Tajik are mountain farmers and shepherds. Seasonal grasses create suitable pastures for raising sheep, goats, cattle, a few camels, and some horses. They also practice a remarkable system of terraced, mountainside irrigation so that wheat and barley can be grown at the higher, dry altitudes.

More and more of the Tajik have moved to the cities over the past fifty years. Most families farm during the summer period, then return to the cities for the remainder of the year. This has resulted in an unstable work force throughout the region. A majority of the urban Tajik live in governmental housing. The rural Tajik live instead in village communities located on non-farmable, rocky land. There they build low, square or rectangular houses out of unbaked mud. Pressed mud bricks made with stone are used for the foundations. Flat roofs are made of tightly packed earth and twigs, and are supported by mat covered beams.

Women wear colorful national costumes with printed cottons and silks accented by flowered head scarves. They rarely wear veils; however, they do wear Chaddors, which are multi-purpose shawls. The men wear shirts and trousers, sometimes with quilted robes and belts. They also wear embroidered skull caps, and some wear turbans or fur hats during the cold winter months. The upper class and city dwellers tend to wear European style clothing.

Green tea is served with most meals. Bread is a staple food, and the Tajik bake bread out of anything that can be ground into flour, including a variety of peas and mulberries. They also eat starchy foods, rice, grapes, dried fruits, chicken, lamb, and vegetable dishes.

Tajik society is patriarchal, meaning that the authority belongs to the oldest males of the extended family. Villages and communities are ruled by a males, or council, made up of the male leaders of prominent families. All inheritances are passed down through the males. After marriage, a young bride lives with her new husband's family. Traditionally, marriages were arranged. Today, however, most Tajik choose their own mates.

Tajikistan is the poorest of the Central Asian nations. However, now that it is an independent republic, there is strong potential for new trade relations with Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other Islamic countries.

What Are Their Beliefs?

Most Tajik are Sunni Muslims of the Hanafite branch, although some Shi'ites exist. About 10% of the people are classified as non-religious. This has probably been a result of Russian atheistic pressure.

Tajikistan is surrounded by ethnic and religious tensions. Much of this tension exists between the conservative Wahhabi sect of Islam and the Sufi sect of Islam.

What Are Their Needs?

Some evangelistic materials, such as the Jesus film and the Bible, are already available in Tajiki. However, the people have remained closed to the Gospel. Today, there are only 364 known Tajik believers in Tajikistan and no missions agencies are currently working among them.

The Turkmen of Tajikistan

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 While the majority of Turkmen live in Turkmenistan, nearly 25,000 live in the southwestern region of Tajikistan. This area of Central Asia is bordered on the south by Afghanistan and on the east by China.

The main homeland of the Turkmen is the central Asian region, formerly known as Turkistan. It has long served as a meeting place for various peoples and cultures, as well as a fierce battleground for many of the great Asian conquerors including Emir, Genghis Khan, and Tamerlane.

For centuries the Turkmen lived as nomadic herdsmen. However, the seventy years of Soviet rule has virtually eliminated their nomadic lifestyle. The socialization of farmland has changed their traditional settlement patterns, and movement into the cities has naturally weakened their customs and traditions. Today most of them are farmers and cattle breeders.

What are their lives like?

Traditional Turkmen society was characterized by a distinct economic division between the cattlemen and farmers. This division was present in almost every tribe, settlement, and family. Today, mainly due to the domination by the Russians, many Turkmen live settled lives, working in the urban areas.

Turkmen are especially known for their brisk trade in the bazaars, where many samples of their handicrafts can be found. Some of these include metal and wooden household utensils, tools, and furniture. Many have also supplemented their income by weaving carpets.

The Turkmen society is definitely male-dominated. Women are restricted and often treated as second-class citizens. They are slow to speak and reserved while in the presence of men. Arranged marriages are still very common and families often inter-marry to preserve wealth. Ordinarily, a man does not separate from his father's household until he is between the ages of 30 and 40. By this time, he has been married for 10 to 20 years and has children old enough to be economically productive. Once a man has established a household of his own, he arranges the marriages of his own daughters according to their birth order.

Men usually wear baggy trousers, coarse shirts, boots, and shaggy wool hats. Women love wearing jewelry, especially anklets and bracelets. They cover their heads in fine cotton cloths (like turbans) that are also adorned with jewelry.

The Turkmen are generally tall and thin. They are physically strong and easily able to endure the harshness of the environment. Although Turkmen are characterized by their hospitality, trustworthiness, and sincerity, they are also known as being hot-headed and revengeful.

The Turkmen love to play "Buzjashi," a wild polo-like game played by two teams on horseback. The game, which uses the headless carcass of a goat or calf as the "ball," can be very violent and go on for two or three days.

What are their beliefs?

Ninety-five percent of the Turkmen in Tajikistan are Muslims of the Hanafite branch. The Nestorian Christians penetrated Turkistan in the fourth century A.D.; but by the beginning of the fourteenth century, this had been totally replaced by Islam. This transition gradually came to influence the political, civil, and economic lives of the people.

Despite the outward conformity to Islam, mysticism and other past religious traditions are still prevalent.

What are their needs?

There is little awareness of Christianity among the Turkmen of Tajikistan. They are a people who have no church, and there are no known believers among them. They urgently need to hear the glorious Gospel of Christ!

The two missions agencies currently targeting them have made very little progress. More laborers and evangelistic tools are desperately needed. With modern technology, there may be some inroads possible through satellite television and radio.