scholarly journals Dark Clouds over the Silk Road: Challenges Facing Mountain Environments in Central Asia

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (22) ◽  
pp. 9467
Author(s):  
Roy C. Sidle
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Mineral Resources ◽  
Active Role ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Remote Communities ◽  
Socioeconomic Impacts ◽  
Mountain Environments ◽  
Ancient Silk Road

Central Asia is a vital link in the huge Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that follows much of the ancient Silk Road routes in this region. Other than the economic expansion and trade benefits associated with this complex infrastructure system, little is known about the many of the exogenous issues and direct environmental and socioeconomic impacts surrounding the BRI in Central Asia. This opinion paper takes a sharper look at some of these externalities and potential effects through a sustainability lens. Major environmental concerns focus on the proliferation of spur roads that will develop off upgraded or new Belt Roads to promote exploitation of natural resources. Steep, high-elevation landscapes in the Pamirs and Tien Shan pose problems for road location and construction, and the history of road building in less formidable terrain in Yunnan, China is unsustainable, leading to epic landslide and gully erosion, which degrade river systems. Furthermore, many socioeconomic issues may arise like debt dependencies of poor countries, spread of communicable diseases into remote communities, depletion of mineral resources, and implicit compliance with pro-China policies. While some of the poorer post-Soviet nations can reap short-term benefits from BRI plans, it is urged that they assess the long-term sustainability of BRI development and play an active role in determining the conditions for implementation.

scholarly journals Humid and cold periods in the last 5600 years in Arid Central Asia revealed by palynology of Picea schrenkiana from Issyk-Kul

The Holocene ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 095968362097277
Author(s):  
Suzanne AG Leroy ◽  
Santiago R Giralt
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
Forest Belt ◽  
Pollen Record ◽  
Picea Schrenkiana ◽  
Arid Central Asia ◽  
Mountain Glaciers ◽  
Ancient Silk Road

Central Asia, with its high mountains, despite its location between Europe and eastern Asia remains a data poor area. However, mountain glaciers are strongly affected by global change and have a wide-ranging impact. A new pollen record over the last 5600 years shows the extension of a dry Artemisia steppe around Lake Issyk-Kul, with a slightly wetter period from 4.5 to 2.7 ka BP (less Ephedra). Picea schrenkiana forest growing on north-facing slopes of the northern Tien Shan Range, are exposed to Westerlies-related precipitation. The pollen record of Picea is therefore a very good marker of wetter and cold conditions. A comparison to a nearby synchronous pollen record at a higher altitude indicates that the whole forest belt moved down, and that it was not a downwards extension of the lower forest limit only. Four cold and humid phases were evidenced over the last 5.6 ka: 5.5 ka, 4.2 ka and following centuries, 3.2 ka and following centuries (before the end of the Bronze Age) and finally the Little Ice Age, with the latter two being more strongly expressed. These climatic changes, in agreement with other Arid Central Asia investigations, corroborate the driving role of the Westerlies far inland. Human activities were more intense in the Mid and Late Bronze Age (4.5–3.2 ka) and in the last 800 years, confirmed by archaeological and historical information. Issyk-Kul and surrounding rich pastureland were most likely an important step in the ancient Silk Road.

scholarly journals Polities and nomads: the emergence of the Silk Road exchange in the Tarim Basin region during late prehistory (2000–400 bce)

2017 ◽  
Vol 80 (2) ◽  
pp. 339-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomas Larsen Høisæter
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Tarim Basin ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Trade Network ◽  
Eurasian Steppe ◽  
City States ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
The City ◽  
The Silk Road ◽  
Eastern Central Asia

AbstractThe Silk Road trade network was arguably the most important network of global exchange and interaction prior to the fifteenth century. On the question of how and when it developed, scholars have focused mainly on the role of either the empires dominating the two ends of the trade network or the nomadic empires on the Eurasian steppe. The sedentary people of Central Asia have, however, mostly been neglected. This article traces the development of the city-states of the Tarim Basin in eastern Central Asia, from c. 2000 bce to 400 bce. It argues that the development of the city-states of the Tarim Basin is closely linked to the rise of the ancient Silk Road and that the interaction between the Tarim polities, the nomads of the Eurasian steppe and the Han Empire was the central dynamic in the creation of the ancient Silk Road network in eastern Central Asia.

scholarly journals Genetic landscape of populations along the Silk Road: admixture and migration patterns

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Massimo Mezzavilla ◽  
Diego Vozzi ◽  
Nicola Pirastu ◽  
Giorgia Girotto ◽  
Pio D'Adamo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Structure ◽  
Central Asia ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Phenotypic Data ◽  
Migration Patterns ◽  
Marco Polo ◽  
Genetic Landscape ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
The Silk Road

Background The ancient Silk Road has been a trading route between Europe and Central Asia from the 2nd century BCE to the 15th century CE. While most populations on this route have been characterized, the genetic background of others remains poorly understood, and little is known about past migration patterns. The scientific expedition "Marco Polo" has recently collected genetic and phenotypic data in six regions (Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan) along the Silk Road to study the genetics of a number of phenotypes. Results We characterized the genetic structure of these populations within a worldwide context. We observed a West-East subdivision albeit the existence of a genetic component shared within Central Asia and nearby populations from Europe and Near East. We observed a contribution of up to 50% from Europe and Asia to most of the populations that have been analyzed. The contribution from Asia dates back to ~25 generations and is limited to the Eastern Silk Road. Time and direction of this contribution are consistent with the Mongolian expansion era. Conclusions We clarified the genetic structure of six populations from Central Asia and suggested a complex pattern of gene flow among them. We provided a map of migration events in time and space and we quantified exchanges among populations. Altogether these novel findings will support the future studies aimed at understanding the genetics of the phenotypes that have been collected during the Marco Polo campaign, they will provide insights into the history of these populations, and they will be useful to reconstruct the developments and events that have shaped modern Eurasians genomes.

scholarly journals Strength and Challenges of OBOR Initiative: Indian Perspective

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-77
Author(s):  
Kanwal Deepinder Pal Singh
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
South Asian ◽  
Trade Flow ◽  
Pilot Project ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Territorial Conflicts ◽  
Main Challenge ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
Indian Perspective

The One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative of China is an attempt to ‘remake’ or recreate the ancient Silk Road or Silk Route, symbolising not only trade network but more importantly cultural interaction. It is an ambitious Eurasian strategy with large financial support, which aims to draw linkages from China to various regions of the world. The connectivity and cooperation presented by China between itself and the rest of Eurasia has two main components: the land-based ‘Silk Road Economic Belt’ (SREB) and ocean-going ‘Maritime Silk Road’ (MSR). The ‘Belt’ includes countries geographically situated on the original Silk Road through Central Asia, West Asia, Russia and Europe and has six main corridors. Countries on the Belt and Road—especially those with underdeveloped infrastructure, low investment rates and per capita income—could experience a boost in trade flow and benefit from infrastructure development.  The main challenge for China and for the initiative is the potential for conflicts or geopolitical tensions that could emerge with other powers. This project will increase United States’ attention on Central Asia and South Asian region. This will have consequences for the smooth implementation of the strategy. There is an expected resistance from Russia and Russian-led Eurasian Union (EU) that may divide the relevant countries along the route, leaving them torn between choosing to pursue stronger ties with Russia or with China.  India also remains cautious of the project and still has not expressed its full support. It sees the initiative not as an opportunity, but as a threat or a form of competition. India’s objections are rooted in issues of sovereignty and territorial integrity. For instance, India opposes the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a pilot project of the trade initiative, due to its route passing through Gilgit-Baltistan, which is a disputed area between Pakistan and India. India has its own agenda of connectivity and cooperation.  This article shall first discuss the strengths and challenges of this project and analyse the regional, national and international situations. The Chinese initiative will be discussed, focusing on China’s domestic constraints along with regional economic situation and political tensions in neighbourhood. The Indian perspective related to this initiative shall be discussed in detail, including the ‘Look East-Act East’ policy. Planning and implementation of the project and its impact on bilateral relations shall be discussed. The author shall also analyse the South Asian perspective as a whole, which is plagued by territorial conflicts, bad governance, security threats, impaired transparency, energy crisis, poor infrastructure, fragile institutions and limping economies.

scholarly journals Developmental Historiography of the Ancient Silk Road

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-80
Author(s):  
Sheriff G.I. ◽  
Akeje K.
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Central Asia ◽  
Far East ◽  
Precious Metals ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Trade Routes ◽  
Traded Goods ◽  
Ancient Silk Road ◽  
The Silk Road

This study seeks to explain the history of the ancient Silk Road and also explain its strategic importance as a network of trade routes connecting China and the Far East with the Middle East and Europe. Using the library's documented instrument and historical descriptive methodology, findings show that the Silk Road is historically connected with the Eastern and Western civilizations and culture. Merchants on the Silk Road transported goods and traded at bazaars along the way. They traded goods such as silk, spices, tea, ivory, cotton, wool, precious metals, and ideas. The Silk Road also enabled cultural transfers, for instance when Genghis Khan and the Mongols invaded China, they came along with their own culture, e.g., buttons on clothes were introduced in China as a cultural import from Central Asia especially under the rule of Kublai Khan during the Yuan Dynasty. The paper concludes that the Silk Road rose to prominence during the Han and Tang dynasties. The long-distance trade at this time did not just transport goods and luxuries, it was also a lifeline of ideas and innovations from Persia, India and countries of the Middle East and Central Asia.

scholarly journals A biodiverse package of southwest Asian grain crops facilitated high-elevation agriculture in the central Tien Shan during the mid-third millennium BCE

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giedre Motuzaite Matuzeviciute ◽  
Taylor R. Hermes ◽  
Basira Mir-Makhamad ◽  
Kubatbek Tabaldiev
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Weed Species ◽  
Grain Crops ◽  
Mountain Landscape ◽  
Early Farmers ◽  
Glume Wheats

AbstractWe report the earliest and the most abundant archaeobotanical assemblage of southwest Asian grain crops from Early Bronze Age Central Asia, recovered from the Chap II site in Kyrgyzstan. The archaeobotanical remains consist of thousands of cultivated grains dating to the mid-late 3rd millennium BCE. The recovery of cereal chaff, which is rare in archaeobotanical samples from Central Asia, allows for the identification of some crops to species and indicates local cultivation at 2000 m.a.s.l., as crop first spread to the mountains of Central Asia. The site’s inhabitants cultivated two types of free-threshing wheats, glume wheats, and hulled and naked barleys. Highly compact morphotypes of wheat and barley grains represent a special variety of cereals adopted to highland environments. Moreover, glume wheats recovered at Chap II represent their most eastern distribution in Central Asia so far identified. Based on the presence of weed species, we argue that the past environment of Chap II was characterized by an open mountain landscape, where animal grazing likely took place, which may have been further modified by people irrigating agricultural fields. This research suggests that early farmers in the mountains of Central Asia cultivated a high diversity of southwest Asian crops during the initial eastward dispersal of agricultural technologies, which likely played a critical role in shaping montane adaptations and dynamic interaction networks between farming societies across highland and lowland cultivation zones.

scholarly journals Improving semi-automated glacial mapping with a multi-method approach: areal changes in Central Asia

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 5433-5483
Author(s):  
T. Smith ◽  
B. Bookhagen ◽  
F. Cannon
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Central Asia ◽  
Regional Climate ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Tien Shan ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
The West ◽  
Mapping Algorithm ◽  
Multi Method Approach ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Central Asia has been strongly impacted by climate change, and will continue to be impacted by diverse climate stressors in the coming decades. This study aims to decipher the impact of climate change on glaciers in the central Tien Shan Mountain Range, a large and understudied region located northeast from the Pamir Knot. To address glacier characteristics over a wide swath of Central Asia, the authors designed and implemented a glacial mapping algorithm which delineates both clean glacial ice – methods which are well documented – and glacial debris tongues, which often require extensive manual digitization. This research improves upon methods developed to automatically delineate glacial areas using spectral, topographic, velocity, and spatial relationships. The authors found that the algorithm misclassifies between 2 and 10% of glacial areas, as compared to a ~750 glacier control dataset. After validating the algorithm against multiple manually digitized control datasets, the authors applied it to a study area encompassing eight Landsat scene footprints stretching from the central Pamir through the central Tien Shan. A statistically significant, though minor, gradient in glacier area loss was found, where glaciers in the west of the study area have shrunk less than those glaciers in the east. This gradient is explained by differences in regional climate, where extratropical cyclones propagating from the west weaken and disband under continued topographic influence, as well as differences in topography, where high-elevation glaciers are thermally insulated from some of the impacts of changing temperatures in the region.

The New Silk Road in Central Asia

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 48-60
Author(s):  
Vladimir Pachkov
Keyword(s):  
Central Asia ◽  
Silk Road
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