In early 2022, protests rocked Kazakhstan. Initially peaceful demonstrations soon turned violent after brutal government crackdowns, leaving at least 238 dead during -Bloody January-. But despite fears that Kazakhstan might split along ethno-linguistic lines, ethnicity played little role in the unrest: deep socio- economic problems and anti-regime grievances pushed protestors onto the streets.
More than thirty years since declaring independ- ence, multi-ethnic Kazakhstan is still grappling with its nationhood. While secessionist movements provoked ethnic conflicts, territorial disputes and civil wars across the former USSR, Kazakhstan de- veloped a relatively stable inter-ethnic policy, and predicted Russo-Kazakh tensions largely failed to materialise. Analysing the multiple narratives, actors and often contradictory feelings of nation- al belonging in post-1991 Kazakhstan, Diana T. Kudaibergen investigates why Kazakhstani na- tion-building is so unusual. Has Kazakh societ
