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The ‘Great Steppe’ narrative: origins, politics and aspirations of Eternal Kazakhstan

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  • Nazerke Mukhlissova

Abstract

Manifestations of the Steppe in Kazakhstan’s public domains have become more frequent including depictions of the Steppe on billboards, and government campaigns featuring ‘Nur-Sultan – the heart of the Great Steppe’. These kinds of expressions are not solely based on historical facts, but they emphasize, isolate and interpret the ancient past in a multitude of volatile ways. The Eurasian Steppe is being increasingly portrayed with the epithet ‘Great ’ – as the ‘Great Steppe’, and the Kazakhstani establishment is seeking to take ownership of that Steppe. Purposefully ambiguous, the Great Steppe narrative experiences internal contradictions as well as external. Kazakhstani officials are trying to claim everything that happened and everyone who lived in the Steppe for the history of modern Kazakhstan. This article is meant to identify how the Steppe changed and was changed in the Imperial, Soviet political imaginings, and how it became the form and content of the new Kazakhstani identity. This is a discourse-based analysis of the term ‘Great Steppe’, which was consistently used by the First President of the Republic.

Suggested Citation

  • Nazerke Mukhlissova, 2026. "The ‘Great Steppe’ narrative: origins, politics and aspirations of Eternal Kazakhstan," Central Asian Survey, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(1), pages 24-40, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:ccasxx:v:45:y:2026:i:1:p:24-40
    DOI: 10.1080/02634937.2024.2427646
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