History writing, natural sciences and literature

According to the textbook, the Jadids tried to teach history not as a succession of khans but as a process created by the people. Mulla Olim Makhdum haji wrote “Tarixi Turkiston”, printed in Uzbek; Muhammad Solih after 25 years of research created “Tarixi jadidai Toshkent”; Muhammad Yusuf Bayoniy left “Khorezm History” and “Shajarai Khorezmshohiy”. The Russian orientalist and archaeologist V. Vyatkin (1869–1932), working in Samarkand, found remains of the Ulugbek observatory in 1908; in 1895 the Circle of Amateurs of Archaeology was formed. In natural sciences a main map of the region was drawn in 1867 and a meteorological station opened in Tashkent; N. Severtsov studied the Pamirs, P. Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky the Tian Shan, and A. Fedchenko the Fergana Valley and Alay. According to the textbook, research served the empire’s interests first; the Central Asian Scientific Society, founded in 1871, stopped in 1893 for lack of funds. In 1870 the Turkestan public library and in 1876 the Turkestan Museum were founded in Tashkent. In literature Muqimiy (“Saylov”, “Tanobchilar”, travel writings), Furqat, Zavqiy (jailed for satirical poems) and Anbar otin (who defended women’s rights) became famous. In Jadid literature Abdulla Qodiriy published his first works in the 1910s (the play “Baxtsiz kuyov” and the story “Juvonboz” appeared in 1915; the textbook says 1910). In Jadid theatres 25 plays were staged in 1911–1917; Behbudiy’s “Padarkush” criticised moral poverty and Nusratilla Qudratilla’s “To‘y” criticised costly customs.