Hijra to “islamic state” through the female narratives: The case of Kazakhstan
Хиджра в «Исламское государство» через призму женских нарративов: кейс Казахстана
Shapoval Y. Bekmaganbetova M.
2021Russian Presidental Academy of National Economy and Public Administration
Gosudarstvo, Religiia, Tserkov v Rossii i za Rubezhom/State, Religion and Church in Russia and Worldwide
2021Issue 3289 - 315 pp.
The article deals with factors and motives for the emigration of wom- en, citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan, to the territory of the so-called “Islamic State” (IS). The idea is to represent the voices of women, who performed the Hijra to IS, through the analysis of their personal narratives. The study is based upon interviews with forty women who were returned from Syria and Iraq with the humanitar- ian operation Zhusan. The case of female emigration to the territory of the “Islamic State” is presented against the background of the pro- cess of formation of various types of female identity and problematic issues of the development of the Kazakhstani ummah. The compiled social profiles of women refute their stereotypical portrayal as people with a low level of secular education, low income and lack of agen- cy. The dominant discourse in women’s narratives is a break with the previous secular life, the rejection of old religious patterns in favour of a new community — a female jamaat — based on the idea of “pure” Islam. The main factors of the Hijra were: identity crisis and reli- gious quest; striving to find social support in a new community; ro- mantic relationships; insufficient development of religious education for women; socio-economic deprivation; ISIS propaganda.
Female religiosity , Hijra , Identity , Islamic discourses , Narratives
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L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan
L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University
10 лет помогаем публиковать статьи Международный издатель
Книга Публикация научной статьи Волощук 2026 Book Publication of a scientific article 2026