THE ENLIGHTENMENT JADID MOVEMENT IN CENTRAL ASIA AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 20TH CENTURY

https://doi.org/10.57033/mijournals-2026-9-0197 Saidakbar AGZAMKHODJAEV a

a Doctor of Science in History, professor of the Department of Islamic History and Source Stadies IRCICA, International Islamic Academy of Uzbekistan.

Tashkent, Republic of Uzbekistan.

E-mail: saidakbar1953@gmail.com THE ENLIGHTENMENT JADID MOVEMENT IN CENTRAL ASIA AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 20TH CENTURY Abstract. This article is devoted to the jadid movement went through hard times in a historical multi-faceted way. Jadidism became the arena of struggle of various philosophies and worldly methods of approach to perspectives of social development. It focused on key questions about social development: the conceptual sense of the ideology of breaking the basic foundations of feudalism and colonialism. Keywords: Education, jadidism, historical, Turkestan, reforming movement, parliamentarism.

INTRODUCTION Since the achievement of independence has become more actual for the historical sciences of the Republics of Central Asia, the objective learning of the historical problems of the national-liberty movement, in developing process of this movement, goes through the ideas for the struggle of political independence and state sovereignty. Today, the priority of social science is the necessity of remembering old stereotypes and estimations, recreating an objective historical picture of the struggle of Central Asian people for independence.

During the long soviet period the liberation struggle of Central Asian people was either consigned to oblivion or premeditatedly falsified. Today, in conditions of independence where the chance of recreating historical truth exists, the need to decisively review the former orders about the role and place in the historical process ripen both the national-liberation movement and its separate social-political movements.

Vol. 9, (Issue 2/2026) As we know from historical experience, jadidism was one of the notable socialpolitical movements of the past, and if it assisted the growth of national self-consciousness, it also had an important role in the creating and developing the reformists’ ideology. In other words, jadidism was the movement needed for the reformation and the renovation of the society.

For a long time in soviet history, jadidism was imagined as a “reactionary”, a “panturkist”, a “panislamic” movement. In our times, thanks to the efforts of native scientists, new methods of approach have been confirmed. Now it becomes more obvious that the jadids movement expressed the most progressive direction in the complicated interweaving of political powers of the Turkestanian society at the end of XIX-XX centuries. It was based on humanitarian and national values. It satisfied the needs of social development and interests of close concern of the region’s native population. The reformist movement went through hard times in a historical multi-faceted way. Jadidism became the arena of struggle of various philosophies and worldly methods of approach to perspectives of social development. It focused on key questions about social development: the conceptual sense of the ideology of braking the basic foundations of feudalism and colonialism.

MAIN PART The first jadid groups originated in Turkestan and Bukhara at the beginning of XX century. The most known representatives were Munawwar Kori Abdurashidhan ugli, Sadriddin Ayniy, Mahmudkhodja Bekhbudiy, Abdullo Avloniy, Zakiy Validiy, Toshpulat Norbutabekov, Abdurauf Fitrat, Ubaydulla Khodjayev.

There is an opinion that at the beginning, jadidism was a cultural enlightening course, working mainly for the reform of Muslim schools and adopted the European educational system. In some aspects we can agree with that. In reality, the ideology of early jadidism was not yet connected with the idea of national liberation. But still it facilitated the national rebirth, and the Central Asian people became acquainted with the achievements of world civilization.

The most direct way of solving the problems which came to a head was via enlightenment. That’s why in the beginning, the problem of educational reform was at the center of jadids attention. One of the first new-method schools in the region was

opened in Kokand in 1898 by Salohiddin Domla. The jadid school in Tokmak was opened in the same year. In 1899, Mannon Kori in Tashkent and Shamsiddin Domla in Andijan supported the opening. (Hur Turkiston uchun, 1976) By 1917 about one hundred newmethod schools were registered in Turkistan in which over four thousand children were taught: thirty-nine in the Syrdarya region, thirty in Fergana, eighteen in the Semirechensk region, five in Samarkand and others. (Central State Archive of Uzbekistan [TsGA RUz], f. I-47, op. 1, d. 955, l. 230) There were several basic principles in the ideology of the jadids. First of all, they understood that the progressive development in Turkistan was impossible without educated people. The people needed to know the achievements of Russian and world cultures. That’s why they decided that the spiritual liberation must come hand in hand with the improvement of life conditions and the freedom from colonialism. Second, the leaders of the jadid movement organically linked the fast historical progress with the modernization of Islam and forming of social-economic prerequisites of creation of civilized market space. Unlike many thinkers of Europe and Russia, jadids did not reject religions. They were not atheists. They defended the keeping of Islam as a necessary factor, favoring the integrity of high Muslims for the achievement of social progress as a means of cultivating the people in areas such as morality, patriotism, friendship, solidarity and the consolidation of their efforts in struggles in order to save themselves from a crisis condition. Jadids saw in the Islamic religion the most essential means of spiritual purification. They also considered however, that it had to be purified from the scholasticism of the Middle Ages.

At first, the jadids were against the monopoly of confessional education, which was rooted in middle age scholasticism. They proposed the introduction of a new method in teaching. However, to measure the progressive development of their ideology in reforming Islam, they made more conceptual depth and interconnection with the needs of social progress.

The jadids wished to see their people educated and freed from slavery and national reserve. Since the beginning of their existence, they offered their own way to link the people of Turkestan to the achievements of world civilization. This did not mean that they refused national and religious values. They wanted, with the help of non-violence, step by step reforms and the elimination of old dogmas and prejudices, which blocked, hindered further development and progress.

Vol. 9, (Issue 2/2026) These ideas had a real authority among the different layers of the population. Already by the beginning of the 20th century, not accidentally, the jadids movement had conquered almost all the lower area of Syrdarya, Samarkand, the Fergana regions and Bukhara. It was very strong in big cities like Tashkent, Samarkand, Kokand, Andijan, Namangan, Margilan, Bukhara and Kattakurgan.

The first Russian revolution had a noticeable influence on the organization and ideological development of the jadid movement had. During the period 1905-1907, the jadids views began to have growing political peculiarity. The radicalization intensified. The deviation from former mainly loyal positions (with reference to primary feudal political institutions) were identified. The jadid movement in Tashkent became stronger in both organizational and ideological matter. The main index of activating the socialpolitical life was the blunt and sharp animation of the press. The first national newspaper of the turkestanian jadids was “Taraqqiy” (first printed on 27 June 1906), which was edited by a well-known public benefactor Ismoil Obidov. At the same time with “Taraqqiy” (“Progress”) Turkestan’s jadids began to edit in Tashkent such newspapers as “Hurshid” (The Sun), in 1907-1908 “Shuhrat” (Greatness), “Tudjor” (Buyer). Later on, in Turkestan several jadids’ newspapers and magazines appeared: “Osiyo”, “Samarkand”, “Sadoi Turkiston”, “El Bayrogi”, “Turon”, etc. Most of them were short lived, but they had a big role in disseminating the idea of reforms. Uzbek publishing and Uzbek national theatres became effective instruments in spreading the enlightenment and the national renaissance. Tashkent and Kokand publishers supported national poets and writers, especially Alisher Navoi. Spiritual philosophy of XVII-XVIII centuries scientists like Khodja Akhmad Yassaviy, Mirza Bedil, Sufi Olloyor were published along with poetry and prose, to underline jadids ideas. They offered their jadids readers publications not only by Central Asian scientists, but also books published in other Muslim countries such as East Persia, Turkey, Egypt and Syria, which were going through the epoch of national renaissance.

In this period, the jadids did not have an exact agenda, which could have united all progressists. Everyone expressed their own views and offered their own model of national development. Thus, we can see different views, sometimes varying from each other with contradictions in jadids expressions and programs, reflecting different influences. The jadids attentively observed political processes in the metropolis, studied programs of political parties arisen in Russia and adopted experience in their political

activities. Proceeding from the specific national mentality and inclination of Uzbek people for peace and experience in Russian democratic forces, they undertook trends during the years of the revolution to achieve concessions from authorities via social petitions, public debates in State Duma and other legal ways in order to create the least minimal conditions requiring objective demands of Turkistans national development. Turkestanian jadids accepted excitingly the news about State Duma being created in 1906. They considered that it was impossible to stop chaos through the death penalty and arrests by cannon.

The only way to end chaos could be with State Duma, which appeared as a constitutional democratic institute and guaranteed liberty, equality and justice for all people (Hurshid, 1906). Thus, the jadids supported parliamentarism. Of course, the development of the jadids idea of democracy was based on constitutional monarchy. At that time, however, they did not apply radical measures, because they thought tragic results could arrive from this. Their tactics included supporting the democratic process, giving stability to new democratic institutes, creating normal conditions for the government’s work, and at the same time, demanding rationally to obtain independent rights in educational and religious fields.

As a whole, during the revolution of 1905-1907, jadidism appeared as a progressive political movement. It assisted in awakening the Turkistan population and forming the ideology of a national liberty movement.

The years between 1908-1916 were characterized by a quantitative and an organizational growth for jadidism. Hundreds of people were members, however, even at that time it had not yet achieved its massive character. The secret groups of jadids appeared thereafter.

According to the police reports, in Tashkent such groups were headed by teacher Akhmedjanov and consisted mainly of national intelligence representatives and educated students. (Central State Archive of Uzbekistan [TsGA RUz], f. I-1, op. 31, d. 433, l. 274) The Kokand underground group counted for more than fifty members. The Andijan jadids had an illegal organization named “Taraqqiyparvar”, one of the leaders of which was a famous reformer, Ubaydulla Khodjayev. (Fedorov, 1925:48) During the winter revolutionary period, political differentiation among jadids continued. At that time the jadids movement began to have clearly expressed political features.

Vol. 9, (Issue 2/2026) Some external and internal factors made a substantial influence on this. The jadid movement became more organized alter that, when under the influence of the “Mladoturk” (Young Turks) revolution in 1908 and the Persian revolution of 1905-1911. It should be noted that the “Young Turks” revolution interested intelligent persons and entrepreneurs of Turkistan and Bukhara. It gave the impulse for the growth of national self-consciousness and formed the ideology of national independence. Under its influence in programs of jadids strengthening antifeudal and anticolonial features, ideas of fighting with imperial and local despotism appeared more clearly, constitutional reforming of formed institutions of power. Experiences of revolutions in 1908 in Turkey and during 1905-1907 in Russia expanded the ideological and practical activities of jadids. Most of them become defenders of “Young Turks”, This model became for them like the standard of practical decision-making of social-economic and cultural problems, and for gaining national freedom. As a result, a considerable part of the local national intelligentsia persons saw in Turkey the natural ally in struggling with Russian nationalism. According to the information of the secret Police Department, a notable representative of jadids Obidjon Makhmudov from Fergana, more than once repeated that Turkistan must be liberated from the Russian dominion. According to him it was possible to reach this aim simply with a friendly relationship and assistance from Turkey. The revolution of Iran (1905-1911) arouses visible resonance in Turkistan. This revolution used slogans of constitutional limitation of absolute monarchy and modernization of the social system.

The first World War assisted the radicalization of the jadids way of thinking. It strengthened the criticism of basic postulates of official ideology and the mechanism of political life. During that time there was a growing interest in democratic, political and legal institutions and mechanisms, which were established in developed countries of Europe.

In particular, they wrote about the parliamentary monarchy and the republican way of governing, president power, democratic rights and freedom of citizens, ways citizens participated in governing the state society, creating state organs and drafting lands. Understanding the ideology and the tactics of the national-liberation struggle of colonial people became another centre of stable attention of the national democrats. The jadids approached the assimilation of political-law experiences of different countries of Europe, very creatively and learned the experiences of anticolonial movements. From the

extensive knowledge of state building and legislation of European countries, ideology and tactic struggles of anticolonial and democratic movements of Russians and people from the East; the jadids chose everything that could satisfy the conditions of their country and they gave up or modified everything that did not satisfy these conditions. The February Revolution in 1917, had become the transformation period in political thought of the Muslims of Turkistan. The new powers in the political theatre which committed their independence to lead these democratic processes began to appear. The national political parties and organizations were created and the new magazines (“Turon”, “Ulug Turkiston”, “Najot”, “Kengash”, “Hurriyat”, etc.) reflected ideas and interests of the democratically oriented national intelligentsia and different levels of the local population under its power.

The February Revolution had made it possible to change the directions of the jadids. Most of the former jadid circles already did not act independently - many of their members were united to the organizations “Shuroi- Islamiya” and “Turon” and also “Ittifoq” (“The Union of Muslim Labors”).

The jadids began to actively work out the programmer documents, strategies and the tactics of the practical operations.

With the change of a common position in one country, jadids insistently began to bring forth the actual problems of the reformation of the social-political structure along with the high school graduation. They sharply criticized colonialism. They had nominated the idea of conquering the state independence on the first plane, completely opened the former idea of supporting the constitutional monarchy and were for giving to Turkistan the status of national territorial autonomy in Russian Democratic Federative Republic. (Hurriyat, Kengash, & Najot, 1917) “Yashasin qushma halq jumhuriyati” (“Long live the Federation Republic”) was the slogan of the new jadidistic papers which began to be published in 1917 and it was also the slogan of the Turkistan federal party’s newspaper “Turk eli”. The slogan meant “The unity of Turkistan with benevolent nations on the rights of national, cultural and territorial autonomy”. (Turk eli, 1917) Great attention was paid to working out mechanisms of realization of principles of national territorial autonomy. In particular, the organization of the higher body of power, administration and court of Turkistan. These were called to maintain Turkistan’s

Vol. 9, (Issue 2/2026) independent power to adopt laws concerning issues referring to the competition of the Turkistan Federative Republic and to create its own state structure and so on. As a basic form of administration, the republican form was chosen. 1’orming a democratic society in which democratic rights and freedom had to be represented and constitutionally guaranteed de-(ined a prioritical goal. The idea of equality of all the nations of Turkistan in all spheres of economic, social-political, legal and cultural life before the law had been the great progress of that time. Turkistan jadids connected the implementation of state independence with peace and accord among different social forces of the country with convection of legal counsel of Russia formed on a democratic basis. Ideas of the reformation of Muslim society began to deepen. Calling for recreation of former powers of Islam and Islamic nations by means of simplification of customs and termination of everything unbearable fanatics sounded in the theoretical points of view of jadids.

Having no doubts on a religious basis of Muslim society, their reforming idea was oriented for renewing only the structure. They suggested to overlook the public philosophical system of Islam not only by the positions of developing culture, science and education, but also by the framework of anticolonial fighting. The jadids learnt, in particular that “the idea of the power of people is contained in Islamic teaching”, based on principles of Islamic democracy. The teaching of reformers, sharply directed against the colonial yoke, for national renaissance was very popular among the Muslim population. They tried to modernize Islam and prepare it for aims regarding the national-liberty of Muslim oriented people as a united factor in the fight against European colonists. Therefore, noted in the development and evolution of Central Asian jadidizm at the beginning of XX century, one can underline several main stages (levels): 1. Jadidizm on the eve and in the period of the Russian Revolution in 1905-1907; 2. Jadidizm of 1908-1916; 3. Jadidizm in revolutionary events in 1917.

CONCLUSION In view that the jadidizm at the beginning of XX century was a plural-type movement, we can see constitutional - monarchy, autonomic and republic-secular as well as a religious (Islamic) type of movements.

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