This social and cultural analysis provides a new understanding of Kazakhstans younger generations that emerged during the rule of Nursultan Nazarbayev, who has been presiding over Kazakhstan for the thirty years since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Half of Kazakhstans population was born after he took power and have no direct memory of the Soviet regime. Since the early 2000s, they have lived in a world of political stability and relative material affluence, and have developed a strong consumerist culture. Even with growing government restrictions on media, religion, and formal public expression, they have been raised in a comparatively free country. This book offers the first collective study of the Nazarbayev Generation, illuminating the diversity of the countrys younger generations and the transformations of social and cultural norms that have taken place over the course of three decades. The contributors to this collection move away from state-centric, top-down perspectives in favor of grassroots realities and bottom-up dynamics in order to better integrate sociological data.

Marlene Laruelleis research professor, director of the Central Asia Program, and associate director of the Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at the Elliott School of International Affairs of George Washington University.

Introduction: "The Nazarbayev Generation: A Sociological Portrait," by Marlene LaruellePart I: Kazakhstani Youth and National IdentityChapter 1: "Are Youth Different? The Nazarbayev Generation and Public Opinion," by Barbara Junisbai and Azamat JunisbaiChapter 2: "Youth and National Identity: Then and Now," by Aziz BurkhanovChapter 3: "Youth and Civic National Identity," by Dina SharipovaChapter 4: "Mankurts, Kazakh 'Russians' and 'Shala' Kazakhs: Language, National Identity, and Ethnicity Revisited," by Diana T. KudaibergenovaPart II: Youth Voices on Moral ChangesChapter 5: "'We Love Our Country in Our Own Way': Youth, Gender, and Nationalism," by Ulan BigozhinChapter 6: "'Cognitive Unconscious,' 'Modern Conservatism,' and 'Core Liberal Values' in the Context of Chapter 7: "Youths National Identity," by Galym Zhussipbek and Zhanar NagayevaChapter 8: "Contours of Ethnonational Landscapes in Three Cities: Youths Perspectives on Ethnic and Social Integration," by Reuel R. HanksPart III: Globalization and Cultural BlendingChapter 9: "Cultural Globalization and Youth Identity Construction," by Nazgul MingishevaChapter 10: "Visions of Nationhood: Youth, Identity, and Kazakh Popular Music," by Sabina InsebayevaChapter 11: "Return Migration from the United States: Exploring the Dynamics of Cultural Change," by Doug BlumChapter 12: "The Kazakhstan Now! Hybridity and Hipsters in Almaty: Negotiating Global and Local Lives," by Rico IsaacsPart IV: Youth ActivismChapter 13: "#Hashtag Activism: Youth, Social Media, and Politics," by Daniyar KosnazarovChapter 14: "Contemporary Art as a Public Forum," by Alexandra TsayChapter 15: "Overcoming a Taboo: Normalizing Sexuality Education," by Karlygash Kabatova