The Past, Present and Future of Central Asia


  • Date: January 17th, Friday, 2020 14:00-15:30
  • Location: Room 303, SNUAC (Bldg. 101)

Speaker: Prof. Beomshik Shin (Director of Center for Eurasian and Central Asian Studies, Dept. of Political Science & International Relations)


On January 17th, Vice Director of SNUAC, Prof. Beomshik Shin (Director of Center for Eurasian and Central Asian Studies, Dept. of Political Science & International Relations) spoke to the 12th cohort of interns about Central Asia.

He first defined the concept of Eurasia. Eurasia started as a concept in geography and developed into a term of history, civilization and international politics, and eventually rose as an alternative concept for Central Asia after the decline of the Soviet Union. He continued with detailed explanations on Central Asia and Central Eurasia. While classic Central Asia refers to the east and west Turkistan region, the concept has expanded into Central Asia and Central Eurasia in recent times. Prof. Shin also emphasized that Central Asian studies are advancing beyond the nation-state into regions.

He noted that it is the research trend to study not only the state but the surrounding region as well.

Review and photos by DooWon Chang (Academic Reporter)