Ancient History of Central Asia

Name: Ancient History of Central Asia
ISBN: 9787545220049

费耐生 / 韩中义 / 傅加杰 / 水敏军Shanghai Guangqi Press Co., Ltd. · ChinaDec 2024

4.3

Word count: 129K words
Chapters: 27
ISBN: 9787545220049

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Summary

Frye was a world-class authority on Central Asian studies and one of the few scholars to command such classical and Eastern and Western languages as French, German, Russian, Persian, Arabic and Turkic. He wrote many weighty works, including The Cambridge History of Iran, and trained numerous Asian researchers active around the world. "Strange yet important" Central Asia has always drawn global attention, yet shifting configurations and a diversity of languages and peoples make writing the history of this region exceptionally difficult. With his unrivaled erudition, Frye compresses the ancient history of Central Asia into a small book of just over 200 pages, covering the rise and fall of empires such as Persia and Alexander's, the migrations of nomadic peoples such as the Scythians and Huns, the civilizations of ancient cities such as Ferghana, Samarkand and Bamiyan, and forgotten ancient kingdoms of the Western Regions such as Kushan and Daxia... His aim is to show that Central Asia in fact shared a common culture, faith and set of values—this is the legacy left by ancient history.

Editor's review

Ancient Central Asia is not an easy introductory read; it is more like a tapestry of civilization woven with the threads of scholarship. Frye, a scholar long steeped in this field, portrays Central Asia not as a vague geographical concept but as a dynamic crossroads of civilizations full of conflict and fusion. The book's most striking value lies in its combination of a grand narrative framework with detailed case analysis: from the bronze horse harness of Scythian nomadic tribes to the camel bells of Sogdian caravans on the Silk Road, and to the Persian cultural underpinnings of the Islamization process, Frye seeks to present an "acentric" history of interaction, breaking with the conventional perspective centered on a single powerful empire (such as Han, Tang, Persia or the Arab Empire). Reading this book, you will gain not only knowledge of the succession of Central Asian dynasties but also a way of thinking about how civilizations endure without absolute hegemony, through trade, war, religious propagation and technological diffusion. Its scholarship is solid and its citations rich; although some chapters are somewhat daunting for general readers, it is precisely this uncompromising depth that ensures its status as an important reference work in this field in the Chinese-speaking world.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Deep readers with a strong interest in the history of the Silk Road and cultural exchange
Students or researchers in world history, especially the history of inland Asia
Readers eager to move beyond a Central Plains-centered perspective and understand the ancient world outside China
Enthusiasts who like to explore history through material culture, archaeological discoveries and documentary cross-verification

Not a good fit for

Casual readers seeking light, story-driven history books
Those interested only in the history of Central Asia during the Mongol Empire period (after the 13th century); this book focuses on antiquity

Reading tips

Can be read alongside the Central Asia sections of Tan Qixiang's The Historical Atlas of China to build spatial and geographical awareness.
The book involves many ancient peoples and place names; keeping brief notes to sort them out is recommended to avoid confusion.
There is no need to finish it in one sitting; read by chapter according to interest (e.g., the Kushan Empire, the Hephthalites, the Turkic Khaganate) for thematic reading.

About the publisher

Shanghai Guangqi Press Co., Ltd. China · Founded in 1991

Shanghai Guangqi Press Co., Ltd. focuses on nonfiction in history, urban studies, thought and academia, and the humanities and arts, with frequent directions including foreign literature, social culture, travel, literary appreciation, and world history. Its library holds 47 titles, represented by works such as Manifestly Haraway, Caliban and the Witch: Women, the Body and Primitive Accumulation, Owls of the Eastern Ice, and others covering nature, gender, cities, and historical memory. Its authors include Donna Haraway, Silvia Federici, Jonathan C. Slaght, Nastassja Martin, and Yuan Xiaoyi. The press is characterized by introducing nonfiction with intellectual depth and cross-cultural perspective, balancing scholarship and readability. Given limited public information, this profile is based only on the titles in the library.

版权信息
总序
译者序
前言
第一章地理状况
第二章民族、语言、传统和信仰
第三章史前时代
第四章琐罗亚斯德教
第五章阿契美尼德王朝的中央集权制
第六章亚历山大东征和希腊文化遗产
第七章希腊—巴克特里亚王国和帕提亚王朝
第八章游牧民族的到来
第九章被遗忘的贵霜
第十章丝绸之路
第十一章佛教东方
第十二章游牧者归来
第十三章粟特人的商业世界
第十四章哈里发与可汗
第十五章伊朗—伊斯兰世界磨合
第十六章现代中亚的诞生
附录一文献来源
附录二地理名词
附录三布哈拉和撒马尔罕的地方统治者
附录四粟特地区的神灵
附录五中亚地区的语言
附录六河中地区的古代钱币
索引

FAQ

What is this book's Douban rating?

According to our search, the book currently has no rating on Douban. It is a relatively specialized and niche academic work, but readers in related fields generally consider it detailed in material and distinctive in perspective, with high reference value.

What historical period does this book cover specifically?

The book focuses mainly on the ancient history of Central Asia, roughly from the early nomadic civilizations around 1000 BCE to the early period of Islamization (around the 10th century CE), with emphasis on the rise, fall and interaction of multiple indigenous and foreign civilizations in this region before Islamization.

What is the author Frye's academic background?

Richard N. Frye (also rendered in Chinese as "傅礼初") was a renowned late American authority on Iranian and Central Asian studies and a professor at Harvard University. This book is the Chinese translation of one of his representative works.

How does this book differ from commonly seen books such as The Empire of the Steppes?

The Empire of the Steppes focuses more on the political and military history of nomadic peoples and their conflicts with settled civilizations, with a grand vision but broader strokes. Frye's Ancient Central Asia pays more attention to the oasis city-state civilizations indigenous to Central Asia, the complex processes of ethnic migration and fusion, and the details of economic, religious and cultural interaction, using archaeological and documentary materials more concretely and following a different scholarly approach.

How far does the narrative time range of this book extend?

According to the content description, the book mainly covers the history of Central Asia from prehistoric times to the early period of Islamization (around the 8th–9th centuries CE), which can be understood as focusing on the ancient history of Central Asia in the "pre-Mongol period." It deals less with the later history of the Mongol Empire and the Timurid Empire.

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About the author

费耐生 Author

Fei Naisheng is an author about whom limited public information is available. Few details can be confirmed at present: his nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background are not clearly recorded, and only one of his works is held in the collection. On the basis of the available material, Fei Naisheng's writing centers on the history of Central Asia, and his representative work is A History of Ancient Central Asia, which is classified under social sciences. The book takes the history of ancient Central Asia as its subject, focusing on the political changes, movements of peoples, and cultural exchanges in this hub connecting Eurasia over the long course of time. Judging from the orientation of his work, the author is closer to a writer of history for general readers, emphasizing the clear presentation of historical context and facts rather than dense scholarly argumentation. Because relevant introductions are scarce, further verification is needed regarding the details of Fei Naisheng's life and academic background; readers wishing to understand his approach may begin with A History of Ancient Central Asia and observe how he handles historical sources and narrates the past.

韩中义 Author

Han Zhongyi: publicly available information is limited, and at present only one work by this author is known, A History of Ancient Central Asia, classified under social sciences. Based on the available information, the author's writing centers on the ancient history of Central Asia and belongs to historical academic or general knowledge writing. Central Asia lies at the crossroads of the Eurasian continent, where ancient regimes rose and fell frequently and where ethnic migrations and cultural exchanges were highly complex. Works on this subject generally need to handle multilingual historical sources while balancing chronological lines with geographical scope, so such writing tends to emphasize the organization of historical facts and the presentation of broader developments. For readers, this book can be regarded as an introductory or reference work for understanding the ancient history of Central Asia. Because information about the author's life, educational background, and research focus is not available in the current records, this introduction makes no speculation and offers only an objective account based on the existing work information; further details may be added if reliable sources become available.

傅加杰 Author

Fu Jiajie is an author for whom only limited public information is currently available. His known signed work is A History of Ancient Central Asia, classified under social sciences. The available records do not confirm his nationality, dates of birth and death, educational background, or professional positions, nor do they allow a full picture of his academic career. On the evidence at hand, his writing interest centers on Central Asia, a historical region linking several civilizations across Eurasia, with attention to political change, population movements, and cultural exchange in ancient times. Such subjects generally require authors to draw on multilingual sources and archaeological findings while balancing scholarly rigor with readability for general readers. As only one work is currently known, it is difficult to judge his long-term writing direction or overall style, or to assess the book's specific reception among scholars and readers. What can be said is that the book offers Chinese readers a useful social-science reference for understanding the ancient history of Central Asia; should more information emerge, a clearer picture of the author may follow.

水敏军 Author

Shui Minjun is an author about whom limited public information is available. Only one work by this author is currently held in the collection, A History of Ancient Central Asia, classified under social sciences. Judging from the subject of this representative work, Shui Minjun's writing interest centers on the historical development of Central Asia, covering the ancient period, a broad span of time. Central Asia lies at the crossroads of the Eurasian continent, where numerous peoples and regimes rose and fell throughout history; research in this field generally requires both textual scholarship and a regional overview. Because basic details such as the author's nationality, dates of birth and death, educational background, and professional experience are not clearly recorded, a full picture of his academic lineage and writing style is difficult to outline. The existing work suggests that he focuses on a broad regional history rather than a collection of isolated case studies. For readers seeking to understand ancient Central Asian history, the book offers a useful reference volume; further information about the author's other writings and later research will depend on additional public sources.