The Yaghnobis and their Valley: towards a new historical perspective

The history of the Yaγnob Valley is of relevant significance for a better knowledge of the Sogdian past. In this research past and modern events intermingle continuously and make our investigation troublesome. But, although this area was (and still is) very provincial, if not remote, such a negative fact has permitted the uninterrupted preservation of an ethno-linguistic heritage, which is still visible, notwithstanding their progressive collapse, in a number of ancestral rituals, traditions and customs. The study of this whole area cannot be limited to the linguistic dimension, but it should be considered in a larger framework, in which the preservation of the language becomes a witness of a deeper and larger historical background, still covered by earth, snow and ice, and, last but not least, by the recent and contemporary human desire of eradicating an enduring ethno-cultural minority.