The Tush Kiyiz and the Television: “National Goods” and Consumer Choice in Soviet-era Kyrgyzstan

November 13, 2013

Kathryn Dooley, Harvard University

Abstract: Although the Soviet planned economy was notorious for its failure to satisfy the population’s demand for consumer goods, in Central Asia it managed one surprising achievement in this regard: the production of so-called “national” goods accommodating the unique traditions and ways of life of the Central Asian population. From the 1930s through the 1980s, for nearly the entire period of Soviet rule in Kyrgyzstan, Soviet industries produced a whole array of traditional-style goods, including Kyrgyz national clothing and decorative crafts like the shyrdak and tush kiyiz. Initially motivated by economic necessity, the policy of producing “national goods” came to reflect Khrushchev- and Brezhnev-era ideas about nationality, culture, consumerism, and the limits of permissible difference and individual self-expression within the Soviet system.

Moreover, by the late 1960s and 1970s, the Soviet state’s production of national goods was widespread enough that Kyrgyz consumers were faced with a great deal of choice in deciding what kinds of products – national or European, traditional or modern – to purchase and use. The expanded horizons of consumer choice allowed a diverse set of consumption practices to develop among the Kyrgyz population. As a tool for expressing personal values and community affiliations, consumer choice became the fulcrum of a series of debates within Kyrgyz society – influenced but not completely controlled by official state ideology – about national identity, modernity, “Russification,” and authenticity. This presentation explored how issues of consumption relate to broader questions about the impact of Soviet rule in Central Asia and the internal dynamics of Kyrgyz social and cultural change during the late Soviet period.

Bio: Kathryn is a Ph.D. student at Harvard University conducting dissertation research on consumer goods and consumption practices in Soviet Central Asia from 1945 to 1985. She has previously received a B.A. in History from Washington State University and an M.A. in Russian Area Studies from the University of Oregon. Kathryn's research interests include comparative empires, gender, and social and cultural history.

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