The Mosaic of Muslim Religiosity and Social‐Political Attitudes in Kyrgyzstan: A Gender‐Based Exploration

• Published in: Journal for the scientific study of religion 2019-03, Vol.58 (1), p.114-137
• Main Authors: Faranda, Regina D., Nolle, David B.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Civil law; Clustering; Ethnicity; Gender; Islam; Kyrgyzstan; Law; Membership; Muslim religiosity; Muslims; Political attitudes; Politics; Religion; Religiosity; Religious cultural groups; Religious identity; Secularism; sharia; Social attitudes; social‐political attitudes; Subcultures
• ISSN: 0021-8294; 1468-5906
• DOI: 10.1111/jssr.12573

This research explores the diversity of Islam in post‐Soviet Kyrgyzstan and the implications of that diversity for social‐political attitudes. Our hypotheses are (1) Kyrgyzstani Muslims can be categorized into gender‐based religious groupings defined by various religious indicators and (2) membership in these groupings influences social‐political attitudes. Using a 2011 nationwide survey in Kyrgyzstan and applying statistical clustering, we identify three groups of religiosity within each gender. Looking at four issues such as preferences for Islam in politics and for religious versus civil law, we find significant differences among the religious groups even after region, urbanity, and ethnicity are controlled. These findings suggest that narratives treating Muslims as a single, unified community or simply contrasting Muslims and non‐Muslims need to be expanded to capture meaningful variations. Our findings are consistent with the theoretical notion that more devout Muslims form a subculture that seeks to extend Islamic values into secular realms.