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Turkmenistan
History and Structure
Islam came to the Turkmen primarily through the activities of
Sufi (see Glossary) shaykhs rather than through the mosque and
the "high" written tradition of sedentary culture. These shaykhs
were holy men critical in the process of reconciling Islamic beliefs
with pre-Islamic belief systems; they often were adopted as "patron
saints" of particular clans or tribal groups, thereby becoming
their "founders." Reformulation of communal identity around such
figures accounts for one of the highly localized developments
of Islamic practice in Turkmenistan.
Integrated within the Turkmen tribal structure is the "holy"
tribe called övlat . Ethnographers consider the övlat,
of which six are active, as a revitalized form of the ancestor
cult injected with Sufism. According to their genealogies, each
tribe descends from the Prophet Muhammad through one of the Four
Caliphs. Because of their belief in the sacred origin and spiritual
powers of the övlat representatives, Turkmen accord these
tribes a special, holy status. In the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries, the övlat tribes became dispersed in small,
compact groups in Turkmenistan. They attended and conferred blessings
on all important communal and life-cycle events, and also acted
as mediators between clans and tribes. The institution of the
övlat retains some authority today. Many of the Turkmen
who are revered for their spiritual powers trace their lineage
to an övlat, and it is not uncommon, especially in rural
areas, for such individuals to be present at life-cycle and other
communal celebrations.
In the Soviet era, all religious beliefs were attacked by the
communist authorities as superstition and "vestiges of the past."
Most religious schooling and religious observance were banned,
and the vast majority of mosques were closed. An official Muslim
Board of Central Asia with a headquarters in Tashkent was established
during World War II to supervise Islam in Central Asia. For the
most part, the Muslim Board functioned as an instrument of propaganda
whose activities did little to enhance the Muslim cause. Atheist
indoctrination stifled religious development and contributed to
the isolation of the Turkmen from the international Muslim community.
Some religious customs, such as Muslim burial and male circumcision,
continued to be practiced throughout the Soviet period, but most
religious belief, knowledge, and customs were preserved only in
rural areas in "folk form" as a kind of unofficial Islam not sanctioned
by the state-run Spiritual Directorate.
Data as of March 1996
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