Colonial Authority and Muslim Law in Turkestan

Abstract

The article examines the policy of the Russian Empire toward Muslim law and people’s courts in the Turkestan region during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Particular attention is paid to the revision conducted by Senator K.K. Pahlen, during which a bilingual codification of Sharia norms concerning family, inheritance, and property law was compiled and published for the first time. Based on archival materials, the study analyzes the objectives and methods of the colonial administration in regulating the Muslim population. The views of S.M. Dukhovskoy, K.K. Pahlen, and A.V. Samsonov regarding the role of Sharia and people’s courts within the colonial governance system of Turkestan are also explored.